# End Of The Routemaster



## JoT (Aug 12, 2003)

The last Routemaster will set off from Marble Arch to Brixton Garage at noon on Friday.

The move to get rid of the Routemaster has been supported by Comrade Mayor Livingstone after saying in 2001:

*"Only a ghastly dehumanised moron would want to get rid of the Routmaster"*

I will reserve my comments on the man for a closed forum









What have we got now? Bendy buses, not only are they wider than the Routemaster (not good in London streets) they ride up on the pavements when going round corners and have an unnerving habit of setting on fire







Then there are the big one man operated (OMO) doble decker buses that are almost as wide as the Bendy buses, in certain areas of London you take a big risk sitting on the top-deck of these buses with no conductor, it is so bad you will often see people standing on the bottom deck with seats available on the top deck.

The Routemasters were quicker because there was no delay having to pay the driver as on the OMO buses, they caused less traffic problems because they weren't stopped at bus stops as long. Having a conductor on board was good for safety IMO.

One of the reasons given for getting rid of the Routmaster was poor access .... well I am sorry .... the entrance to the Routemaster is larger than the other buses and there is a conductor to assist people getting on and off .... when was the last time you saw an OMO bus driver help someone on or off a bus?

There was talk of a modern Routemaster being introduced .... sadly it didnt get anywhere









London will be a poorer place IMO


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## scottishcammy (Jul 11, 2003)

Showing my ignorance here John, but what is a routemaster?


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## JoT (Aug 12, 2003)

scottishcammy said:


> Showing my ignorance here John, but what is a routemaster?
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One of these


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## scottishcammy (Jul 11, 2003)

Oh! I feel like a right twat now! I had no idea that is what they were called, sorry John. That seems a real shame. Princes Street in Edinburgh is getting pedestrianised and apparently trams are being reintroduced.

If the routemasters are working, why are they getting rid of them?


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## JoT (Aug 12, 2003)

Cammy the buses are old and aren't going to last for ever I suppose, the environmentalists don't like them and they don't conform to modern "access" regulations. However although the modern buses are supposed to be easier to get on there isn't a conductor to help so it negates any advantage the improved access provides.

The alternatives to the Routemaster just aren't as good, the bendy buses hold around 20 less people per bus and the journey is slower due to the OMO system. I used to use the Waterloo to Victoria route till it went "Bendy" so I tend to take the tube or a taxi now







The modern doubledeckers are better than the bendy buses but as they are OMO still take longer, they are also very "jerky" with automatic or semi-automatic geraboxes and severe brakes. They tend to be driven in a manner of quick acceleration and quick deceleration ... I have seen old people and children take a tumble ... but never have on a Routemaster; saw someone fall out of one once







but that was his own fault









What people camapaigned for was a modern Routemaster .... sadly it didn't happen


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## ETCHY (Aug 3, 2004)

I agree Jot, the Routemaster was not only a classic design but totally functional.

Unfortunately everything now has to be hi-tech & modern even if the new way of doing things is actually a step backwards !









It'll be interesting to see how many of these modern buses with their fancy suspension systems which can be lowered to allegedly ease access etc will still be running in 10 years ?

Dave


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## mach 0.0013137 (Jan 10, 2005)

I used to go to school in the 60`s on the `154` which was one of these, wasn`t too keen on those new fangled Routemaster things
































Mind you I agree they are a lot better then the OMO things they have now, though the old open back buses could be bloody drafty in winter


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## johnbaz (Jan 30, 2005)

ba**ards

the 'old red buses' were an icon of london,whenever there was one on the telly-be it anywhere in the world-it was always 'a london bus'









is nothing sacred?

john


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## JoT (Aug 12, 2003)

Here you go Mac ...









These are more your era; 1926


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## scottishcammy (Jul 11, 2003)

The patented Mac 'feline-o-bus'!


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## rhaythorne (Jan 12, 2004)

Couldn't agree more with your comments JoT. I was going to mention Mayor Ken (or Major Kun as I like to refer to him







) and bendy-buses in albini13's "rant" thread but I see you have dedicated an entire thread to the subject!

Whether I'm travelling as a pedestrian or as a car driver in London, bendy-buses always seem to get in my way and cause excessive congestion, especially at bus stops where they may occupy the entire lay-by so that other buses have to queue up in the road behind blocking other traffic









As to the jerky ride of modern buses, I think this is partly down to a drop in the standards of the drivers. Smooth driving was an important factor back in the days when they used to train crews at the Chiswick school - in fact l failed my first test for a "lack of vehicle and passenger sympathy" i.e. I was driving too fast and chucking my passengers around. By comparison, many of the current drivers seem to have attended the Bob Newhart School of Bus Driving.


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## JonF (Aug 26, 2005)

The big problem with bendy buses is that they're just too bloody long. They cause massive congestion around the Victoria area, beacuse when they leave the bus stop and cross the jubnction to turn back South, they are so long their back end completely blocks the junction, box junction or not. This brings all the traffic grinding to a halt.









I don't really like any buses, but the routemaster type is very much the lesser evil.


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## JoT (Aug 12, 2003)

scottishcammy said:


> The patented Mac 'feline-o-bus'!
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Mac's Pussy Bus perhaps?


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## mach 0.0013137 (Jan 10, 2005)

JoT said:


> Here you go Mac ...
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Your mistaking me for Stan & The Welshman


















JoT said:


> scottishcammy said:
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> > The patented Mac 'feline-o-bus'!
> ...


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## oldfogey (Nov 29, 2005)

I rode on a routemaster yesterday from Charing Cross to Fleet Street. I'll miss them, much preferred to the bendy buses.


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## PhilM (Nov 5, 2004)

It's such a shame to see this icon go, I much prefer the RM especially in the summer as there a lot cooler.







The new double deckers have small windows and dont allow for any free flowing air









As for Bendy busses, from what I've seen being on these people jump on and dont pay


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## PeterN (Sep 1, 2005)

Bottom line is money, isn't it. Get rid off the buses that need a conductor and cut your staffing costs by 50%. Privatisation, don't ya just love it - customers, what do they matter. Shareholders are everything.


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## JoT (Aug 12, 2003)

PeterN said:


> Bottom line is money, isn't it. Get rid off the buses that need a conductor and cut your staffing costs by 50%. Privatisation, don't ya just love it - customers, what do they matter. Shareholders are everything.
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I think you will find it was the London authority and not the bus companies that made the decision


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## PeterN (Sep 1, 2005)

I stand corrected if that's the case. Just deduct the anti-capitalist rant, and the point about money saving is still valid!


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## JoT (Aug 12, 2003)

Peter the reasons London gave were: safety, non-compliance to access regualtions and environmental.

I don't think saving money has ever been on Ken Livingston's agenda during his whole political career









Ken did say in 2001 "Only a ghastly dehumanised moron would want to get rid of the Routemaster" .... then shortly after he put plans in place to do so.

Mind you just before the last Mayoral election he also said he wasn't going to raise the Congestion Charge, then promptly increased it after he was elected


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## PhilM (Nov 5, 2004)

Just driving home and went past the Streatham bus depot, so many people outside with cameras







They had 3 on the front lined up for peolple to take pictures of.


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## PeterN (Sep 1, 2005)

"Peter the reasons London gave were: safety, non-compliance to access regualtions and environmental."

True, difficult to see how you could get a wheelchair on a Routemaster. I suppose all things must pass...


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## Andy (Feb 23, 2003)

I'll be glad to see the back of the poxy things.

I commute in London by motorbike and dread getting caught behind one.

The emissions are like razor blades in your eye's.

That said, I hate bendy buses even more.

I've witnessed so many near misses involving these.

They're so hard to predict and take up the whole bloody road when turning, and at roundabouts.


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## JoT (Aug 12, 2003)

It is very fitting that the last crew on the 159 are the wonderfully named Winston Briscoe and Lloyd Liquorice from West Indies. Driver Winston has been driving Routemasters for 36 years.


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## Griff (Feb 23, 2003)

JoT said:


> It is very fitting that the last crew on the 159 are the wonderfully named Winston Briscoe and Lloyd Liquorice from West Indies. Driver Winston has been driving Routemasters for 36 years.
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Lloyd *Liquorice*

He's probably driven Allsorts!!


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