Bendy Buses On Route 73

From Saturday 4 September 2004, the 73 bus will be no longer be run by the trust old Routemaster but by a one of the new bendy buses.

For those who don't live or work in London, this bus runs from Victoria to Tottenham Swan, and is the only bus to travel the entire length of Oxford Street. I use it myself from Victoria to Oxford Circus.

I haven't been too big a fan of the bendy buses in the past, and after several of them went up in flames in March I asked are bendy buses safe?

Although the new buses can carry more people, they have a third fewer seats than the old Routemasters, meaning more people have to stand.

I'll be sad to see the end of the Routemaster on the 73, but after my trip to Germany last week, I have to admit to being impressed by the bendy buses. The major benefit was the public information system that told you what stop was coming up next, a life saver if you don't travel regularly by that particular bus. I hope this feature will be included on the new 73s.

A few things I don't think will work well with the buses favour is that the ability to just hop and off, especially on Oxford Street. Oxford Street is fondly known as London's largest bus stop as the traffic is regularly a halt. With the old Routemasters it was possible to just jump on or off the back, the new bendys will force users to wait at offical bus stops as the doors remain shut until the stop has been reached. The bendys may also cause problems for pedestrians trying to cross the road due to the their length.

There has been quite a bit written about the 73 bus, and the demise of the Routemaster. Here are a few links.

Anyway, here's a snap of the 73 bus travelling down Oxford Street today. It may be the last time you see a Routemaster with that magic number on.