Eventually it was replaced in 2005 by modern double decker buses. It was also very challenging for elderly and handicapped people to use easily. The Routemaster was the cause of many accidents as people ran and jumped onto it whilst it was in motion or jumped off before an official stop. It was most famous for its open rear entrance, which also caused its eventual decline in use. Designed in 1956, the Routemaster bus operated for more than half a century in the capital. The most iconic version of the London double decker bus is the Routemaster, which most modern designs are now modeled after. The Metropolitan Police approved of the red buses the colour was so easy to spot acting as a warning to those crossing the street. It was because of the competing bus companies that London General Omnibus Company-the biggest operator in the city-painted their buses red to stand out from the competition. Not shackled to an official route, pirate buses would sometimes take side streets and alternative routes to get to destinations faster. Such independent buses were known as “pirate buses” (though, sadly, they lacked peg-legged men with eye patches). By 1924 there were over 200 independent buses operating in the city, running along popular routes. At this time, there were a shortage of buses in London and various companies competed against each other for bus dominance. The first engine-powered double-decker bus appeared in London in 1923. While it seems cheap to us, the poor Victorians thought the shilling was far from a bargain. Shillibeer’s bus could carry 22 people and cost 1 shilling per journey (the equivalent of 5 pence in today’s money). Inspired by the success of the Parisian bus service, George Shillibeer started the first London bus service in 1829, offering a route between Paddington and Bank. In 1828, business man Stanislas Baudry set up the route, picking up passengers in a horse-drawn double decker omnibus. The first double decker bus did not originate from London, but somewhat surprisingly, from Paris. Where did these quintessentially London vehicles come from and were they always littered with the nibbled bones of fried chicken? Yet to the rest of the world, London’s double decker bus is one of the capital’s most iconic features alongside the red telephone booth, the Queen, and pubs bustling with pints and patrons at 10 in the morning. Slow and meandering, the London bus (particularly in its nocturnal form) is more of a mobile rubbish bin full of crumpled cans of Carlsberg and greasy half-eaten boxes of fried chicken than a viable mode of transport. It’s the alternative option you never want to take, your last resort when late at night your phone dies and an uber can’t whisk you away from whatever house party/rave/ironic-disco/karaoke/actual-disco/rooftop bar you are trying to escape. For most Londoners, the London bus is a nightmare.
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