Is The New Routemaster A Better Bus For COVID-19?
I went to the Angel today and rode on a New Routemaster.
It almost seemed it was a bus designed for social distancing.
- I sat in one of the sets of four seats on the lower deck, by myself.
- The other set, also had a single occupant.
- The driver is safely behind a barrier and two metres from passengers.
- Entry and exit is by rear and centre doors only.
- The buses were designed for entry and exit at all doors.
I’d certainly be happy to travel on one of these buses.
The Anonymous Widower 
The irony is it was only in January that boarding arrangements were changed on borisbuses to front door only to prevent millions of pounds being lost by fare evasion . See press release link below –
https://tfl.gov.uk/info-for/media/press-releases/2020/january/new-routemaster-buses-to-become-front-boarding-only
These buses must rank as the most uncontrollable ever designed and lack the capacity of normal double deck buses .
The only reason the current system is working is because no fares are being charged but you can’t provide a full bus service and if you permanently reduce capacity for social distancing you will need to operate far more buses at greater cost needing more buses and drivers and maybe more garage capacity!
While double deck buses provide the complications of passengers using stairs in both directions and while borisbuses offer two staircases who will decide which is up and down and then passengers will need to pass other passengers if middle is up and rear is down .
So would we have been better if single deck artic buses been retained which Boris Johnson threw away ?
And that’s before extra passengers on buses because passengers are frightened of use underground and mainline trains within London!
Comment by Melvyn | May 4, 2020 |
I went to The Angel on a bus, but I took a taxi back!
I said to the driver, that I’d not heard any reports of black cab drivers dying of the COVID-19 virus and he said he hadn’t either. Given that black cab drivers talk extensively to each other and have a bush telegraph, that is second to none, I would be very surprised if black cab drivers are suffering much from the virus.
Is there a lesson to be learned here?
Comment by AnonW | May 4, 2020 |
Are their famous green cabins for tea and bacon sandwiches closed or open ?
Comment by Melvyn | May 4, 2020
The green cabin in St. John’s Wood wad shut when I last passed it a couple oc weeks ago. I think they all have a take away window so could be open.
(And many/most will serve anyone at the window, taxi drivers getting priority)
Comment by MilesT | May 5, 2020