Monday 3 October 2016

Buses I Have Known (6) : Routemaster

Lets end this short series about buses with one which never ran in Birmingham in normal revenue earning service... the classic London bus the Routemaster. Although as a kid i never had the chance to ride on one of course i knew what the Routemaster was, as its probably the most famous bus in the world after all! Finally on a trip to London towards the end of its time in service in 2005 i took a Routemaster bus from Oxford St to Golders Green and a very interesting experience it was too.

Ironically the very next week i travelled on a Routemaster again, this time around Birmingham on a preserved example. You can still see a few Routemasters around London on special services, they also pop up elsewhere too. Over the last few years i've seen them in Crewe, at the NEC, (a few years ago) in Stratford-upon-Avon being used for a wedding, and one passed my house a few months ago!
Taking tourists around London

RM1397 seen at the former North Birmingham Busways garage in Erdington

At London Transport Museum

At a LT Museum Depot open day