"MIG" wrote:
Their allover red buses are mostly confined to SE London.
They seem to be better at keeping the right colours in the right
places now. Till fairly recently, it was common to see garish
yellow and blue buses on routes like the 261 (London), but it
doesn't seem to happen any more.

That was partly a tender thing - the 261 was the very last contract before
the "red rule" came in, so it seemed to linger longer.
--

Andrew

On Sat, 15 Nov 2008 13:51:23 -0000, wrote:

Yeah, but people still don't go to the far ends of the platforms,
particularly on the westbound track.

Which means the announcements are superfluous. If people didn't
realise yesterday, the same people (as indeed they are) won't realise
today or tomorrow, announcements or no.

In any case, I'm quite happy that the sheep will continue not to walk
to the end of trains, as it gives me more space.

Do you mean the Met? Yes, I've heard many a time that they have a
holier-than-thou attitude. But still, there are many destinations and
several variants on how to run trains, so it is not surprising that there
are so many announcements.

So announce those - but shut up about the bloody doors!

Announcements like "This train is ready to depart, stand clear of the
doors, mind the doors, mind the doors" are pointless and irritating,
as "beepbeepbeepbeepbeep" conveys that information perfectly well on
its own. If really necessary, give platform staff a whistle, a good,
traditional-railway, non-annoying way of conveying that information
further in advance.

Neil

--
Neil Williams
Put my first name before the at to reply.

In article
,
(Neil Williams) wrote:

On 11 Nov, 21:46, Mizter T wrote:

Disagree most strongly in the case of London, although absolutely
acknowledge that fellow fellow passengers are capable of making
journeys distressing.

IMO, the Tube, especially the deep Tube, is a distress purchase in
central London. The bus is by far the most civilised way to get
around, offering a seat, a view and (if not on a Travelcard) a cheaper
fare as well. The only real downside is the lower speed.

I don't agree at all. I much prefer tube and other trains if the option is
available.

--
Colin Rosenstiel

On Sun, 16 Nov 2008 05:34:26 -0600,
wrote:

I don't agree at all. I much prefer tube and other trains if the option is
available.

I prefer trains if they're not overcrowded (i.e. I can get a seat).
In London, they usually are, whereas most bus routes aren't. This
being the case, the bus is vastly more attractive to me.

Neil

--
Neil Williams
Put my first name before the at to reply.

In message ,
writes
In article
,
(Neil Williams) wrote:

On 11 Nov, 21:46, Mizter T wrote:

Disagree most strongly in the case of London, although absolutely
acknowledge that fellow fellow passengers are capable of making
journeys distressing.

IMO, the Tube, especially the deep Tube, is a distress purchase in
central London. The bus is by far the most civilised way to get
around, offering a seat, a view and (if not on a Travelcard) a cheaper
fare as well. The only real downside is the lower speed.

I don't agree at all. I much prefer tube and other trains if the option is
available.

I have a bad back and I prefer Tube & Train every time. A Bus is only
ever as good as it's driver, and sadly many seem poorly trained these
days and seem to get their ideas on driving from Top Gear :-)

Plus of course so many councils seem to have put speed bumps on bus
routes. Now that really does help my back !!

--
Edward Cowling "It's a thief in the night to come and grab you
It can creep up inside you and consume you"

In message , at 11:56:23 on Sun,
16 Nov 2008, Edward Cowling London UK
remarked:
Plus of course so many councils seem to have put speed bumps on bus
routes. Now that really does help my back !!

Tell me about it! At the stop I get off most often, the council has put
one of those "pedestrian platforms" across the road just before the
stop. If I'm downstairs at the back of the bus and I'm standing (well,
slouching even though I'm quite short) it always seems to make me hit my
head on the ceiling.
--
Roland Perry

"Edward Cowling London UK" wrote in message
...

I have a bad back and I prefer Tube & Train every time. A Bus is only ever
as good as it's driver, and sadly many seem poorly trained these days and
seem to get their ideas on driving from Top Gear :-)

I have noticed on several occasions that drivers seem to slam the brakes way
too hard, particularly on double deckers as people are coming down the
stairs.

On Fri, 14 Nov 2008 15:38:09 -0000, Andrew Heenan wrote:

I was at Euston bus station when a bus came round (people inside and
outside looking bemused) making an external announcement that "this
bus is under attack". I think this was before ibus though.
That was a pre-ibus thing. I've heard it a couple of times.

This example is from outside London:
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=iDGHuNfQZjA

I think the London version sounds less panicky.

Why doesn't it just send an automatic radio message to control telling
them to call 999, rather than relying on passers-by?

On Sun, 16 Nov 2008 12:38:49 -0000, wrote:

I have noticed on several occasions that drivers seem to slam the brakes way
too hard, particularly on double deckers as people are coming down the
stairs.

The classic London binary throttle - only two settings, those being
full acceleration and emergency braking.

It is understandable, though, given the atrocious state of bus
infrastructure in Central London.

Neil

--
Neil Williams
Put my first name before the at to reply.

On Sun, 16 Nov 2008 13:52:31 +0000, asdf
wrote:

Why doesn't it just send an automatic radio message to control telling
them to call 999, rather than relying on passers-by?

Because it might be too late, and also because it may act (like a
burglar alarm bell) as a deterrent.

Neil

--
Neil Williams
Put my first name before the at to reply.