New London double decker

[boronia]

Looks like London has finally decided on the design of the next generation "Routemaster" bus



More at:
http://www.mayorwatch.co.uk/final-design-for-londons-new-bus-is-unveiled/201011214

[Volvo Super Olympian]

What a fugly creature. Why did they decide have the front half red and black?

[ALBION1881]

This what this thing reminds of a 1936 Yellowbus 720 D/D that was in service in Chicago USA but seriously they are not thinking building two prototypes this thing look like a beached Beluga whale.

[shovelyjoe]

I'm split on the design. Half of me likes it and half of me thinks it looks horrible. I guess I will have to wait until they make a real one to decide whether I like it or not.

[kitkat271]

I actually don't think it's that bad - there's some good design cues from the past. The interior design is interesting with two big staircases ... the straight one at the front seems a bit wider than it needs to be.

[Windy]

That's all well and good, but in application, if they bring back conductors, then it will work as a concept. The problem is that the manpower cost is what contributed to the death of Routemasters in London service.

[Nugget]

Reading the design concept the bus is really a transformer. It can be both a standard decker and a routemaster. If there is a conductor on board (which is probably in peak periods) the back doors are left open for a hop on hop off with conductor concept and when its for one man operation only the front and middle door are used.

[ka9102]

one word:awful

[Mr OC Benz]

one word:awful

Thats actually three! I can't really make a judgement until I see a real version of that.

[NE7025]

Do anyone knows can the bodywork installed on other chassis (like Volvo B9TLs), just like Wright's Eclipse Series since they are made by
Wrightbus?

[Bassman]

The danger of this concept is that the finished vehicle could be too specialised and as a result may not be a profitable proposition. Catering for specific London requirements is all well and good, but to survive the final bus will need a wider appeal. Gone are the days of the single London Transport with a requirement for a large number of buses.

[craigp]

So does it mean all bus companies in London have to use (and pay) for this design?

[Robert T]

More images post media release this week.

http://londonist.com/2010/11/in_picture ... =4#gallery

[Leyland Olympian]

Leyland, please come back- only you can make the best dd buses, bring back Olympian

[dude]

I managed to watch the 15th November edition of Inside-Out London which featured a 5 minute story about the new Routemaster. (http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b0071mkv - To watch this on BBC iPlayer outside the UK you'll need to find a UK based proxy for your browser).

I don't think it looks too bad actually, but its design is flawed by being front entry capable and having doors on the rear platform. Even Mayor Johnson in part of the story had a freudian slip and mentioned conductors or other personnel being required to be present while the doors are open. It seems a mickey-mouse new routemaster IMO.

[ajw373]

So does it mean all bus companies in London have to use (and pay) for this design?

No, they don't have to use it, in fact the specification isn't suitable for most of the routes in London.

My bet is the Borismaster will be like the hybrid buses currently operating in London. That is buses purchased by TfL and given to operators to run.

Watch out for the first production batch to appear on the 23 before the Olympics.

[ajw373]

Do anyone knows can the bodywork installed on other chassis (like Volvo B9TLs), just like Wright's Eclipse Series since they are made by
Wrightbus?

It is essentially an integra, and a hybrid intergral at that.

[2112Y]

Here is a link to TFL's You Tube about the new bus for London:

http://youtu.be/TWckXHojurM

[Bus-1809]

Is it just me, or does everytime someone tries to re-create something and make it better, it looks worse...?

I have honestly never seen a more fugly bus... It looks nothing like a Routemaster. RouteFAIL is more like it. Just use what is availiable now.

[Bus-1809]

The other thing that comes to mind is that I'm pretty sure it's a requirement that all new buses are fitted with interlocks on the doors that lock the brakes on and disable the gas pedal when the doors are open. As far as I can work out, the rear platform is a waste.

[boronia]

Why is referred to as a "new Routemaster"?? It has nothing in common that I can see.

I'll bet that the RM was never called the "new RT" in its day.

[lts]

I do think this Borismaster is beautiful at all.Looking forward for its model from Corgi!

[wyth]

Im looking forward to the Corgi model too, I feel its nice but think some enviro 500s would be a lot better, cheaper, and more practical, I reckon the NBFL will not be ordered in big numbers due to the price and will be dedicated to one very busy route and feel its only a matter of time before London gets enviro 500s.

[lts]

Im looking forward to the Corgi model too, I feel its nice but think some enviro 500s would be a lot better, cheaper, and more practical, I reckon the NBFL will not be ordered in big numbers due to the price and will be dedicated to one very busy route and feel its only a matter of time before London gets enviro 500s.

But Will the 12m Enviro 500 is a bit too long for London roads?!

[Tog]

There's nothing in theory stopping London running tri-axle doubledeckers. They run 12m single-deckers without any trouble. There has been some debate over just why tri-axle deckers haven't been considered by Lodon in recent years, especially in light of the bendybus fiasco, but no good reasons have been put forward. Tri-axle deckers are unusual in the UK; most are second-hand imports from Hong Kong or elsewhere and used on school runs but Stagecoach have used them on Megabus and Magicbus routes. First in Glasgow have the only batch of E500 in the UK but are in the process of withdrawing their single batch of 'Nordics' (tri-axle Volvo B7L with East Lancs bodywork derived from the design used in Copenhagen).