wrote:

The Business

1st August 2004

Business Platform by Ian Watson

Why must the last bell sound for proper buses?

Proper buses that are cramped and uncomfortable.

Never mind the infirm, those of us over 6 foot can't use them properly!

Give me a bendy bus any day

Stuart wrote:

Proper buses that are cramped and uncomfortable.
Never mind the infirm, those of us over 6 foot can't use them properly!
Give me a bendy bus any day

Just sit down.

AIUI, bendy buses have fewer seats than Routemasters.

Colin McKenzie

--
The great advantage of not trusting statistics is that
it leaves you free to believe the damned lies instead!

On Wed, 11 Aug 2004 at 09:58:02, Stuart
wrote:

Proper buses that are cramped and uncomfortable.

Never mind the infirm, those of us over 6 foot can't use them properly!

Give me a bendy bus any day


I mourn the demise of the conductor - and that is one of the main
reasons for the demise of the Routemaster. Cost, I mean - cheaper to
pay one person than two. Granted RMs are awkward for pushchairs, and
impossible for wheelchair-users, but those who have other forms of
disability used to be able to rely on a helping hand from the conductor,
who would get them on and see them safely seated before allowing the bus
to move off. Sigh....

I do agree, though, they are rather low in the ceiling (at 5'8", I have
to bend, on the upper deck!). But no, not bendy buses - they make me
feel sick, and there is no upper deck to go on where one can see where
one is going....
--
Annabel Smyth
http://www.amsmyth.demon.co.uk/index.html
Website updated 7 August 2004 - for a limited time, be bored by my holiday
snaps!

In message , Annabel Smyth
writes
I mourn the demise of the conductor - and that is one of the main
reasons for the demise of the Routemaster. Cost, I mean - cheaper to
pay one person than two.
Sadly yes. But I believe it's a false economy. Having extra people
on hand helps with all sorts of things, mot least security, limiting
damage and making people feel safer (and therefore happier to use public
transport).

Granted RMs are awkward for pushchairs,
I beg to differ. For *folded* pushchairs they're better than most
modern buses, thanks to the little "cubby hole" beneath the stairs.

and
impossible for wheelchair-users,
Indeed, I agree.

but those who have other forms of
disability used to be able to rely on a helping hand from the conductor,
who would get them on and see them safely seated before allowing the bus
to move off. Sigh....
*Exactly* the situation my mother is in. She seldom visits London but
it much happier with older buses as there are more grab-points than on
wheelchair accessible ones (inevitably, since the wheelchairs naturally
need circulating space).

I do agree, though, they are rather low in the ceiling (at 5'8", I have
to bend, on the upper deck!).
But only to and from your seat. Not the greatest hardship in the
world.

But no, not bendy buses - they make me
feel sick,
Good for crush capacity short rides but I'm glad to see from elsewhere
in this thread that I'm not alone in seeing them as being wasteful of
road space.

and there is no upper deck to go on where one can see where
one is going....
Which is, of course, the end of civilization as we know it! :-)

I'm still eager to find what the "tourist network" of RMs mentioned by
Ken Livingstone a long time ago will turn out to be.
--
Ian Jelf, MITG, Birmingham, UK
Registered "Blue Badge" Tourist Guide for
London & the Heart of England
http://www.bluebadge.demon.co.uk

In message , Stuart
writes
wrote:

The Business
1st August 2004
Business Platform by Ian Watson
Why must the last bell sound for proper buses?

Proper buses that are cramped and uncomfortable.

Never mind the infirm, those of us over 6 foot can't use them properly!

Give me a bendy bus any day

Speaking of which, I saw a bendi-coach the other day; I didn't realise
that such beasts existed... Mega-something or other IIRC.
--
Kat

In message , Annabel Smyth
writes

I mourn the demise of the conductor - and that is one of the main
reasons for the demise of the Routemaster. Cost, I mean - cheaper to
pay one person than two. Granted RMs are awkward for pushchairs, and
impossible for wheelchair-users, but those who have other forms of
disability used to be able to rely on a helping hand from the conductor,
who would get them on and see them safely seated before allowing the bus
to move off. Sigh....

I do agree, though, they are rather low in the ceiling (at 5'8", I have
to bend, on the upper deck!). But no, not bendy buses - they make me
feel sick, and there is no upper deck to go on where one can see where
one is going....

I rather like bendi-buses; they somehow remind me off camels in the way
they get up from the kerb before they leave..
--
Kat

On Wed, 11 Aug 2004 11:24:07 +0100, Colin McKenzie
wrote:

Just sit down.

I would if there was any legroom. The only place I can sit is either
right at the front or on the side-facing seats, and in the latter case
my knees block the aisle.

AIUI, bendy buses have fewer seats than Routemasters.

I'd rather stand in comfort than sit with my knees up my nose.

The Routemasters are fun, but regardless of the accessibility issue
they are not suited to the modern day. The bendies are better, as are
those newer deckers with lots of legroom on the upper deck.

Also, a good two-doored double-decker loads and unloads far quicker
than the single-entrance Routemaster.

Neil

--
Neil Williams in Milton Keynes, UK
To e-mail use neil at the above domain

On Wed, 11 Aug 2004 12:43:54 +0100, Annabel Smyth
wrote:

I mourn the demise of the conductor

I don't. Having a conductor means they have to move around the bus,
and that means crush-loading isn't possible, and you can't stand just
because you want to because you're only going two stops.

Off-bus ticketing is the answer, though those TfL machines are of a
very poor design; counterintuitive and unreliable. Oyster will
certainly help matters, though it'd be good to push the Saver 6 a bit
harder as well.

Granted RMs are awkward for pushchairs, and
impossible for wheelchair-users, but those who have other forms of
disability used to be able to rely on a helping hand from the conductor,
who would get them on and see them safely seated before allowing the bus
to move off. Sigh....

It's sad that in London and the other big cities there's such a safety
issue with the driver emerging from his cab to help with such things,
as you often see elsewhere. However, merely waiting for someone to
sit down before departure will probably cover that in most cases.

But no, not bendy buses - they make me
feel sick

Why? They're only elongated single-deckers.

Neil

--
Neil Williams in Milton Keynes, UK
To e-mail use neil at the above domain

"Neil Williams" wrote in message
...
On Wed, 11 Aug 2004 12:43:54 +0100, Annabel Smyth
wrote:

I mourn the demise of the conductor

I don't. Having a conductor means they have to move around the bus,
and that means crush-loading isn't possible, and you can't stand just
because you want to because you're only going two stops.

Off-bus ticketing is the answer, though those TfL machines are of a
very poor design; counterintuitive and unreliable. Oyster will
certainly help matters, though it'd be good to push the Saver 6 a bit
harder as well.



And those TFL machines don't accept notes

Annabel Smyth wrote:

NO WAY! And yes, I did mean to shout. People get on a Routemaster, sit
down, and then look for their Oyster or their fare. On a 2-door bus,
first of all the driver very often doesn't open the entrance door until
people have finished getting off, and then you have to wait while
everybody faffs around finding their pass or their Oyster, or getting
out a ticket, or even buying one, outside the central zone. Takes far,
far longer than on a RM.


But on a routemaster everyone standing who doesn't want to get off (such
as us 6 footers who can't sit) has to move out the way to let those who
are getting off get off. There is always a bottleneck just inside the
door. The driver of a 2 door bus only holds the front doors when the bus
is full - it's entirely sensible to wait to see how many get off before
letting the same amount on

In Central London there is no faffing to find tickets.... you don't need
money or tickets, just walk straight on and you might get ticket
checked. I agree a conductor would be good, but for fare evasion purposes.