Boris is, as usual, not inviting us to the unveiling of the mockup of a mockery that people still think is a ‘New Routemaster’. People thinking this will, when I come to power, probably need to be put in camps.
Omnibuses2.0, along with everyone else with an interest in 21st century transport, is still puzzled by the whole idea:
Coming from the provinces but living close enough to London to be familiar with the Routemaster, I remain unconvinced that the capital needs a bespoke new version of what I’m kindly referring to as a classic. Not that the new version bears much resemblance to the old. It might be a rear loader but not all the time. It’s almost as if the bus can’t quite make up its mind.
Well, quite. The Boris PR people are firing up the Quattro as usual, with the BBC and Standard already notified to start churning out uncritical propaganda:
BBCTravelAlert: Notebooks out! The new routemaster design is unveiled today… [SP]
…
The final designs for a new jump-on, jump-off double-decker bus for London are due to be unveiled.
The designs, being shown off by Conservative London Mayor Boris Johnson, are based on the old driver-and-conductor Routemaster bus which was taken out of regular service in December 2005.
The latter is just a regurgitated wire story, actually, with no analysis at all.
What’s going to happen is that a sleek thing full of doors and staircases and looking nothing like a Routemaster will be unveiled, no one will ask about the cost and everyone will pretend it’s an updated version of a 1950s classic. The Emperor’s New Bus will continue to suck up TfL money and time and we’ll carry on watching the bus fare rise by more than inflation.
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There was no chance to get an updated “real” Routemaster. The RM was an extremely modern bus in its time, but some of its features wouldn’t be accepted today, as there is the engine next to the driver (which also prevents the driver from collecting fares), the front axle position and the (expensive) conductor. The construction of a completely new bus (instead of a somewhat special exterior on a well tested chassis) would have become much more expensive as it got now. And so we will (probably) get a new bus in London which looks a bit like one of the old warhorses, but I’m quite sure that the platform doors remain closed at any time as there will be no money spent on “new” (or old) conductors.
Yeah I agree. The new design doesnt reeeeally make it a Routemaster. Not like the classic. Looks like a big red coach. And yes, the cost on us Londoners. They shouldn’t have gotten rid of it anyway. Bloody Ken. Found this vid ‘Bring Back The Routemaster’ on YouTube, made me smile.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=taxanOKZQvs