Remember the Old Red Double Deckers?

My dad was a Routemaster bus conductor.

As a teenager, I used to skitch on Routemasters. Not, obviously, my dad’s, or I’d still be grounded.

There is a company near me that hires retro buses and coaches for weddings etc. I used to go to school on a double decker.

They're fab! Love a red bus. There's one a few miles down the road from here which is used as a roadside cafe.

I loved those red buses - so atmospheric .
I last went on one hired for a wedding .
I also loved the green and cream buses that served the South Coast .
I just remember steam trains - they were incredible .
The silver service in the dining cars was a Murder on the Orient Express experience !

I remember them too.
We hired one for my daughter's London wedding to keep everyone together who arrived without their own transport - we used it to move from the ceremony to the reception.
It was pretty full (think it held 72??) and very jolly!
Great for this kind of thing.

We didn't have a "personalised" bus but we did have a man with a ticket machine!

routemasterbus.london/our-buses/classic-routemaster-buses/

We had maroon and cream municipal buses in my home town, not a single Routemaster among them, but much the same bus riding experience. The countryside was served by the green "National' buses and a few small independent companies.
Some of the National buses had upstairs seating which went across most of the width of the bus. Which made it a bit difficult to get out of as one approached one's bus stop if one was right by the window...

I lived in London so rode the Routemasters daily. As a young child I liked to sit downstairs at the front on the left and 'drive' the bus by holding onto the handlebar in front of the seat. I watched the driver and turned the bus round corners, pulled up at stops, everything. It made me feel very important!

As a teenager I had to get one or two Routemasters to school every day. Just a short trip so sat downstairs near the door for a quick exit. Like everyone else, I remember jumping on and off the platform when the bus was moving, or sometimes getting off at lights.

For a trip into central London we sat upstairs at the front if possible for a tour of London. What splendid views! Although I took it all for granted of course.

My FIL owns a 1962 Routemaster bus and has run it as a business for the last 20 odd years, only recently retiring it from service.
It has proved to be a great financial investment too, as he paid £5K for it and has recently been offered £35K, which he declined.
His house doorbell is one of the internal bells from another bus.

Oh and the Clippies! Always so perky.

I wondered what happened to the bus (or buses) used in Summer Holiday and it seems they were scrapped. I wonder what they would be worth now!

Chestnut

I remember jumping on and off the platform when the bus was moving, or sometimes getting off at lights.

Ah, the good old days!

https://www.gransnet.com/uploads/talk/202402/medium-728911-87658816-3200313546665149-8568921649187913728-n.jpg https://www.gransnet.com/uploads/talk/202402/medium-845795-a337.jpeg

Ours were red and cream PMT buses (Potteries Motor Traction). We went everywhere by bus, bike or Shanks's Pony as we didn't have a car.

I used to read all the notices inside.
"Mum, why would people spit on the bus?"

Fairycakes

Chestnut

I remember jumping on and off the platform when the bus was moving, or sometimes getting off at lights.

Ah, the good old days!

Yes, I left the heel of my new navy high-heeled shoes left behind, stuck on the platform one night in Hanley 😲

When we were on holiday on Malta a few year ago, we went sight seeing excursions on elderly double decker buses, not sure if they were Routemasters?
Our school bus in the mid Sixties was an old double decker with long bench seats upstairs, instead of the two and two formation we were used to on public transport. I also remember that upstairs was for smokers?

I enjoyed your reminiscences, Fairycakes, thank you. 😄

I seemed to spend half my life on a red double-decker, going to school everyday and going to dancing lessons across London. I too remember jumping on and off the platform. At secondary school we used to avoid the conductor to dodge paying our fare, then spend the money in the sweet shop near school.
We had a routemaster for DD2's wedding to transport the guests into London for the reception. It was 2012 and it took us past The Olympic Park to get a good view of the buildings nearing completion.

Grannmarie

When we were on holiday on Malta a few year ago, we went sight seeing excursions on elderly double decker buses, not sure if they were Routemasters?
Our school bus in the mid Sixties was an old double decker with long bench seats upstairs, instead of the two and two formation we were used to on public transport. I also remember that upstairs was for smokers?

I enjoyed your reminiscences, Fairycakes, thank you. 😄

We did some trips on the old single deckers in Malta.