London transport considers scrapping 'ladies and gentlemen’ from announcements

The loudspeaker announcement of “ladies and gentlemen” on London’s transport network may be scrapped in favour of a more gender neutral phrase.

The suggestion comes after a British woman was told by Transport of London staff that she “didn’t sound like a Miss.”

The incident occurred when the woman called and reportedly spoke with a customer service representative over the phone.

“I just said but I am, I am Aimee Challenor, and they replied ‘but you don’t sound like a miss’. I was just in shock, I didn’t really know how to respond,” the stunned woman told The Independent.

Challenor, 19, has since expressed her shock over her identity being called into question by the employee based on "outdated stereotypes."

“I knew it wasn’t right. London is massively diverse and it’s something we should be incredibly proud of so I knew it had to be raised, if it affected me it could affect anyone,” she told The Independent.

In response to the remark, London Mayor Sadiq Khan told The Independent he apologised unreservedly for the “inappropriate remark”.

Khan also pledged to do more to foster equality, including potentially removing “ladies and gentlemen” from announcements across London’s transport network.

Khan also said he would be investigating the incident to ensure it didn’t happen again according to The Independent.

Transport of London’s director of customer strategy Mark Evers told The Independent, “London is a diverse city and we want every customer to feel welcome on our network.”

“We are currently reviewing the language that we use at our stations to make sure that it is inclusive and addresses every customer, regardless of their race, gender identity, disability, age, sexual orientation or religion.”

Challenor believes gender-neutral announcements are a good start.