Courtesy of The Llamabutchers, changes are underway in London's public transport department:
LONDON, England (Reuters) -- Lumbering through the narrow streets of London, the capital's red double-decker buses are as much part of the cityscape as Big Ben and Buckingham Palace. But 50 years after their debut, the much-loved Routemaster buses, with their conductors, hop-on, hop-off platforms and pull-cord bells, are being removed from the streets, condemned as expensive antiques. These are the classics of the double-decker genre -- not the first, nor the latest, but by far the most popular among passengers. Yet by the end of 2005, the buses, most of which have travelled continents with the amount of miles they have racked up, will disappear from the city's streets {...}Created in 1947 to replace World War Two-era trolleybuses, the snub-nosed, light-bodied Routemasters were hailed as revolutionary in meeting the challenges of negotiating London's crowded, winding streets. Between 1956 and 1968, a total of 2,760 Routemasters were put into service, with expectations they would last no more than 17 years. Five decades later, about 300 are still on the road. Twice as many were in service last year, before the city began its campaign of forced retirement. "They've been fabulous, but this is the 21st century, and the city needs a 21st century transportation system," said Graham Goodwin, a spokesman for Transport for London (TfL), the agency in charge of the city's bus system. Goodwin said the Routemaster was being scrapped because of its 10 to 15 percent higher operational costs and lack of accessibility to disabled passengers. As a replacement, the city has commissioned a greater number of bigger, boxy double deckers with wheelchair access and, more notably, a fleet of so-called "bendy buses" - single-deck articulated buses that can carry up to 140 passengers. Neither model has been without its well-publicised problems. The bendy buses were temporarily banned earlier this year after four caught fire in a four-month period. And one newspaper described travel on the newer generation of double deckers with their bright fluorescent lights and grey-flecked interiors as having as much charm as sitting at the bottom of a swimming pool. More irritating to harried commuters is the length of time it takes to load passengers past the driver, who must check all fares, unlike Routemasters where conductors speed the process along.
Man, it's been a disappointing Thursday. First Miss Apropos. Now the double-decker buses.
Sigh.
London traffic is going to be even more of a nightmare than it already is.
Ergh.
I'll stick with the tube, thank you ever so very much.
Posted by Kathy at September 1, 2004 01:56 PM | TrackBack