Apart from being a possible tourist attraction is there any point in bringing back Routemaster buses in London?

Show all answers

Two Fingered Salute

Sorry donâ€™t agree.

Even if they were mechanically inferior, you could always put a modern engine in the same design. Itâ€™s the bodywork not the engine that is the issue.

I never saw or heard of people falling off of them, youâ€™re more likely to get run over by a new bus than to fall off a route master (you werenâ€™t supposed to stand on the small open part anyway).

Yes they are two man operated, this made them quicker and safer.

Quicker because there was no queue to get on, everyone just piled on and the conductor collected the fare while the bus was moving.

Safer because there are two staff, you have a pop at the conductor all of sudden the driver will appear with a big tyre iron in his hand and inform you heâ€™d just called the police. Thugs are cowards, much more likely to pick on a lone driver or passenger than someone whoâ€™s part of a two man crew.

Wheelchair users you may have a point, but letâ€™s be honest hereâ€¦ how easy are the new buses to actually use and what % of passengers are we actually talking about? Donâ€™t forget that for frail and non wheelchair bound disabled (such as the blind), on an RM there is a conductor to help if needed (part of their job) my old gran (gawd bless â€˜er) preferred a â€œproper busâ€ for just that reason.

Iâ€™m not saying they should be on every route, but they should be part of the fleet much better than these one man jobs, even if they are more expensive and those bendy buses are the worst thing to happen to London for years!

Of course the biggest bonus is we could remake â€˜On the busesâ€™

Aurelius

These would be new improved Routemasters.
Besides I have ridden on the old versions myriad times and never once saw anyone fall off. Do you want to ban biccles and motorbikes as well? People fall off them far more often.

The Master

Absolute rubbish. Routemasters have been around for ages, they were convenient and Londoners loved them and so did tourists. You could
hop on and off easily, when stuck in traffic, very common in London, you could just jump off. As for mechanically inferior this is nonsense, Routemasters go on and on for ever and they're used in many carribean countries as they last so well and never over heat. I have lived in London for over 40 years and have never heard of people falling out or off them, and as for conductors getting beaten up, this just never used to happen. The friendly helpful bus conductor actually stopped crime, vandalism and grafitti. Unlike modern buses where the driver is hidden away and grafitti, smoking and crime is rife!!

The conductor provided good customer service and reassured you on the way home. People get mugged on modern buses, this never ever happenend on a routemaster.

Who ever wrote this question doesn't have a clue.

Alwyn P

The Routemaster bus is not just a tourist attraction: they are loved by Londoners themselves. Ken Livingstone was voted in twice as Mayor of London on the promise that he would keep the Routemaster. It is highly likely that the electorate felt betrayed by Livingstone when he got rid of them and voted in Boris Johnson because he said he would bring them back.

Mechanically the Routemaster was very advanced when it was first built. It is very light for its size compared to modern buses and therefore would need less energy to move it.

Over the years there have been many modifications made to the London fleet of Routemasters including more up-to-date engines and gearboxes which would make them more efficient. The ones used currently in London are able to meet the strict new London emission standards.

As for people falling out of them: this was very rare. There were far more serious accidents involving passengers getting trapped in doored buses when alighting including many fatalities.

They cause less traffic hold-ups. When worked properly on an average London route, even with the widespread use of the Oyster Card the Routemaster covers a journey about 10% quicker than a modern doored bus. This is mainly due to the very short boarding and alighting times needed because there are no doors to have to wait to open and close and also that many passengers board and alight at traffic lights or in traffic hold-ups. To many passengers a shorter journey time means a shorter working day, therfore making them more attractive to use for those that may otherwise use a car.

The advantages spread beyond that of the passenger: less time needed at bus stops means less of a hold up to other traffic especially in a narrow road, resulting in other road users also getting to their destinations quicker and a shorter working day for them as well. Quicker journeys also results in fewer buses needed to cover the same amount of journeys. Fewer buses results in fewer parking places needed and fewer buses to maintain and fewer drivers needed.

Conductors can assist the disabled on and off, assist with passenger queries, keep law and order, etc. they are worth the extra cost!

augustblue

Yes! You can just jump on/off at the traffic lights rather than walking all way down to the busstop which is normally about 10shops down from the one you want. Yes I am talking about Oxford St lol.

els76uk

I don't think there's much point in bringing back the old routemaster with two crew, except for tourist routes (they still run a number 9 route through central london from trafalgar square to the albert hall).

but a new version, with low floors and open platform would work well because people could jump on and off between stops. wheelchair users can get on and off at stops, where the driver can lower the suspension; everyone else can get on and off wherever they like.

the thing with the old routemaster was that it was only quick because more people got on and off between stops (actually, when they get out of traffic they are pretty slow- i doubt any ever went above 20mph). there's no reason why the new buses can't have CCTV so the driver knows when it's safe to proceed, like bendy buses have, and oyster card readers, so people don't need to pay the driver, therefore avoiding the need for two crew.

david m

I think an updated version of the RM would be a great boon to London.Even better are the RMLs which are a couple of feet longer and have more seats.The increased speed of passengers getting on and off not only speeds up the travelling time it also speeds up the traffic as the bus doesn`t spend as long at stops.A conductor is a big asset especially on busy tourist routes where questions can be answered and problems with fares/currency can be sorted while the bus is moving and not sitting at a stop.
Yes there were accidents but the vast majority were down to passenger error,not the design of the bus.As a bus driver in London in the 70s and 80s I felt far more comfortable having a conductor on board than when I drove a `new` bus on my own.I also think lone passengers feel safer when there is a conductor keeping an eye on things,especially late at night.

James M

They are more reliable than the 'bendy' buses and don't burst into flames. They could easily run alongside other more modern buses. I am not aware of conductors having been beaten up. Apart from all of that, they served us well for fifty years and many Londoners loved them, myself included.

Dafydd

I couldn't agree with you more. I have fond memories of the old routemasters, but I have similar feelings for steam trains. No one is suggesting bringing back steam trains to run commuter trains into London are they? I think that this is a hobby horse of the new London Mayor and his opposition to the new 'bendy' buses. I find those perfectly acceptable. All the points you highlight against the routemasters are valid. They are still operating on some routes used by tourists - eg No 15 to the Tower - and I think that should be the limit of their use. Bringing them back more than that would cost us dear in increased fares and increased accidents.

CLIVE H

There is no point what-so-ever in reintroducing the old Routmaster bus to London or indeed a modern version thereof.

Losing what some people call an icon is just progress. The next generation who will never have seen a Routemaster, save perhaps in a transport museum, will not mourn it's passing.

Same thing with the red telephone box etc. Why do people weep for their departure? Time to move on.

My own view of all this nonsense about the Routmaster is that it is just an exercise to take the people's minds off the real issues which seem to be ignored while everyone squabbles over the design of a replacement bus.

Beware of clever Bojo. Do not be fooled by this Mayor of London. He is a clever politico of the first order with the badge of PM firmly stamped upon his forehead.

I admire him for his cleverness, but I'm a Londoner and nothing much gets past me, especially not the price of apples on a barrow.

Gromit

What Boris wants, Boris gets, I suppose :P
They're just a novelty, aren't they really. Be nice to have them every once in a while, on some kind of 'trip down memory lane' event. But other than that - no reason.
From what I remember, they were loud too.

Enter Your Message or Comment

User Name:
User Email:
Post a comment: