please empty your brain below
I did the Route 18 bendy bus when they first got installed a while back -and I would agree with you: they're rubbish. A lot of kids use that route - and they don't pay - and they enjoy getting away with it. presumably they can buy sweets & crisps with their bus fare instead.

Jag | Homepage | 05.12.04 - 11:30 a.m. | #

I have to admit that, whilst I rarely comment, I DO enjoy reading your posts about the vagaries of London transport.

Is London unique? Surely similar problems have been overcome in other European cities? Ohh yes trams and such like, or, god forbid, bicycles and walking.

Sorry, not raining on your parade, the travel system in Glasgow isn't much better but as it deals with far far fewer commuters it can seem positively Germanic in it's efficiency.

Gordon | Homepage | 05.12.04 - 12:18 p.m. | #

Judging by the title of that bus stop pic - there may be other uses for those rotating straps.
Has anyone done a bendybus party yet?

drD | Homepage | 05.12.04 - 2:27 p.m. | #

Amen brother! Down with the bendy buses. In addition to all that you said I must add that they just look dumb. Bring back the routemasters!

Colin Gregory Palmer | Homepage | 05.12.04 - 2:40 p.m. | #

It's great fun when one of them hits something, something hits them or they slam on the brakes for some twit who steps out in front of them.

I get called to a "Bus RTA one injury", and instead find 30 people with bruised shins who all want to go to hospital so that they can put in an injury claim against TfL.

Grrrrr.....

Tom Reynolds | Homepage | 05.12.04 - 3:44 p.m. | #

Last time I was in London I saw a procession of 3 or 4 bendy buses slowly making their way across Blackfriars Bridge. I heaved a little sigh and thought 'What would DG say?'

ionicus | Homepage | 05.12.04 - 5:14 p.m. | #

Completely agree with your points on their disadvantages, but they do have one astounding advantage. They deter crime and antisocial behaviour on the Upper Deck. Many a time I used to ride the upper deck of the 25 into town, and by the time it reached Manor Park, there would always be some bad kids on the upper deck, intimidating all the adults, even the rough and tough East European guys. Psychologically, a single decker bus is safer because all passengers are on the street level within view of passing traffic and pedestrians, and also because they are all sat behind the driver, there is a far greater psychological assertion of authority from the driver. This feature alone makes me forgive everything else about the bendy buses. (Remember the week after David Morley was murdered, 2 guys got stabbed on the upper deck of a bus up in Archway, I think it was?)

Gerry | Homepage | 05.12.04 - 6:44 p.m. | #

As I remember, normal single decker buses also share the advantage of having 'no upper deck'. Give me twice as many single decker buses any day.

diamond geezer | Homepage | 05.12.04 - 6:51 p.m. | #

i used to live on the 73 route.

amy racecar | 05.12.04 - 7:53 p.m. | #

So apart from the 'no upper deck' issue (boo hiss actually - I love sitting on the upper deck and have personally never had any real problems with groups of kids that haven't also occurred on the lower deck, bus driver or no bus driver - but I can see the point, sort of) what is supposed to be the advantage of bendy buses? There must be one - complain as you like about public transport, but I can't imagine the planners sitting around thinking of things to annoy the public - so what is it? I assumed it was a speed issue - i.e. the bus driver doesn't have to check and give out tickets. And whilst I can see the point about dodgy ticket machines, its not so different from requiring people to have tickets before they get on the tube is it? With reliable ticket machines, it is much more efficient.

Katherine | 06.12.04 - 11:17 a.m. | #

I'm not a huge bendybus fan but I disagree with your point about Oyster cards. You certainly don't need to be well-off to get an Oyster card - in fact, if you aren't well off, you should be positively encouraged to do so, because Oyster bus fares are 70p instead of £1. That's ten journeys for the price of seven - so you break even on the £3 deposit after five return trips.
Discounts apply to tube fares too - so tell all those Tower Hamleters to get one!

Dave Arquati | Homepage | 06.12.04 - 11:44 a.m. | #

I used to love the routemaster (73) but they were also old and clapped out, let's face it. The lack of seats on the bendy, and the mad crush of people in rush hour, is a problem. But there are advantages. You can't deny they are much better for pushchairs and big luggage. Also warmer in winter, without the sweaty condensation of double-deckers. And faster - better acceleration and no ticket-collecting means they're quicker ... the Sunday route on the 73, in particular, is noticeably better. And, yes there is a crush, but a lot of those people who crush in are people who used to have to look at all those full buses going past their stop (yes, I know this still happens, but I think less so). And, be honest, you did have to be pretty nifty on your feet to get on an old 73 in bad rush hour - at least now there's three doors to have a go at.

lee jackson | Homepage | 07.12.04 - 10:44 p.m. | #

Agreed. The one better thing about bendy buses compared to double deckers is that, when they're busy, you're more likely to be able to get on board a bendy bus than a double decker when one finally arrives. A rush hour journey is much more uncomfortable, though.

diamond geezer | Homepage | 07.12.04 - 10:52 p.m. | #

The process of multiple buses congealing together in some creepy show of atomic forces writ large is (at least in our household here in Chicago) known as 'Bus Bunching'. It happens here, with bendy and non bendy buses with great regularity.

In the areas of the city underserved by rail transport (read: lower-income, disenfranchised) this can be even worse, esp. during our winter seasons of snow, ice and cold wind.

Eric Sinclair | Homepage | 08.12.04 - 12:45 p.m. | #

I agree bendy buses are rubbish. And you can't get out when you choose.

Harriet | Homepage | 11.12.04 - 1:18 a.m. | #

Yes, yes, yes! They are bloody hopeless. They may deter crime on the upper deck but they increase my desire to massacre people on the lower one! They are an appalling lunacy that should be done away with.

Keep up the good work

Kevin

Kevin Turner | 09.01.06 - 12:52 p.m. | #

i was once so overwhelmed with glee to see a ROUTEMASTER!! bus arriving at my stop, i jumped on i on the spur of the moment, just because it was a routemaster. i paid for it afterwards though, ended up in trafalgar square. still, it was worth it! I HATE BENDY BUSES AND NOBODY BOTHERS TO PAY ON THEM, THERE IS NOWHERE TO SIT. THEY ARE FOR CATTLE, NOT HUMAN BEINGS!!

Madskraleine | 08.04.06 - 10:40 p.m. | #

You forgot to mention that bendy buses are also potentially lethal for cyclists. While it's never a good idea to pass any bus on the inside, on more than once occasion I've been overtaken by a bendy bus which then started manoeuvering to pull up at a stop. When this happens, you are cut up by the angled front half and need to brake sharply to let the full length of the bus pass you. Easy enough with the old Routemaster. But with a bendy bus, it's probably too late and you're either stuck, or, more likely, you'll need to frantically hoist your bike onto the pavement to avoid being squashed.

Al | 10.04.06 - 5:56 p.m. | #

Ha ha good stuff, although the 25 isnt the only bendy through East London, as theres the 38 and 149 too. Machine ate my only quid too once, i got on the bus as TfL got my pound regardless!

dg writes: The 25 was the only bendy through East London when I wrote this post, Martin. Alas, times change.

Martin | 10.09.06 - 12:12 p.m. | #

Hi from someone 16 years into the future!

I now wonder about the coincidence that another city (Brighton in this case) ended up putting their bendy buses on their route 25!

Patrickov | 22.12.20 - 7:03 a.m. | #











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