*Firstly, apologies for the lack of posts over the past few months. As many of you know, I am currently studying for a law degree which has involved an assessed piece of work being due in every week for the past few months which is where my efforts have been focussed. With that out of the way, and a lot more spare time over the Summer vacation, I hope to bring the blog back to its regular frequency*
A sight that will no longer be seen on Nottingham’s streets
will be that of the bendybus, which bowed out of service with NCT last week,
after 13 years in service. Having spent their time serving various parts of the
extensive network, the buses have seen use on Go2 Uni route 4 (formerly Unilink
4) for the past 9 years. The route will see double-deck operation from the next
academic year, making the articulated beasts surplus to requirements.
NCT did make a fairly big deal about their withdrawl;
certainly a bigger one than the Tridents that had provided an equal length of
service that were also withdrawn in the same week. The reason; it is unlikely
Nottingham will ever see such vehicles again.
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| One of the buses that NCT has recently retired |
The Scania articulated buses were given a fond farewell from
the streets of Nottingham by all accounts. Certainly more so than their London
cousins. Boris Johnson’s dislike of the bendybus was well known and as part of
his election pledge in 2008. Three years later they were no longer present on
the streets of the capital. Johnson claimed that they were not suitable for the
streets of London due to their length and the danger they posed to other road
users, particularly cyclists. Whilst compounds across the country remain filled
with the London rejects (including one near Stafford), some have found use
elsewhere; Leicester being one example, where former London Bendybuses shuttle
students into the City Centre.
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| Boris Johnson saw bendybuses as a problem, and a New Bus for London as the solution |
However, they haven’t always been any more popular in their new
homes than they were in London. The batch that went to Malta were unreliable,
unpopular and seemingly highly combustible. One now famous photo showed the
result of when a driver attempts to do a ‘U-turn’ in one, resulting in the bus
clogging up the entire road. Back home, Go-North East fell out of favour with
theirs on their Citylink 58 route, opting instead for rigid Optare Versas.
The main benefit of the bendybus is the overall capacity. A
London specification Citaro seats just five more than Trent Barton’s Wrightbus
Eclipses, however with a generous standing capacity. A double deck bus’
inability to have standees on the top deck results in the bendy bettering it in
that regard. It means that they are ideal for busy routes where customers are
not on the bus for a significant period of time. This is a very particular type
of route and it is this lack of versatility that is why so many of the buses
are sat out of use up and down the country. The other is the sheer issue of
size; they are long and difficult to manoeuvre; they simply are not suitable
for certain roads.
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| Despite being taller and thus less streamlined, these double deck buses were more fuel efficient than the Wright Streetcars that they replaced |
Which leads me nicely to their use in York. York is one of
the few places across the country where Bendybuses were bought specifically for
the City, as opposed to being London cast-offs (or in the case of Leeds, York
cast offs.) The 15 strong fleet of Mercedes Benz buses are used exclusively on
four of the city’s six park and ride routes; three routinely and the fourth
during busy periods. They therefore use roads across the city and throughout
the ancient city centre; the same city centre that apparently rendered the ‘Ftr’
buses unsuitable a few years ago.
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| The Ftr scheme ended after pressure from the City Council who felt that the size of the vehicles meant they were unsuitable for the city. |
Councillor
James Alexander said in 2010: “The Ftr has been an unmitigated, costly
disaster. Not only is it too big for York, but it has been costly to taxpayers
due to the road changes required to service it. More than £1.5 million has been
spent on it and this could have been better spent on genuine investment in
public transport.”
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| One of the many tight turns the Citaros have to navigate in the City Centre. This one is part of the Grimston Bar route |
So if these buses are too big, then are the Citaros
as well? I'm inclined to say yes having watched a number on the Grimston Bar
route negotiating their way through York’s tight streets yesterday. Yet, there
is no uproar about them. How intriguing.
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| A Citaro navigates one of many bendybus friendly roundabouts in the city. The cost of similar infrastructure for the ftr scheme faced much criticism |
Despite
their widespread use throughout mainland Europe for quite some time now, the
bendybus appears to have been a noughties trend that has fallen out of fashion
and out of favour within the UK. The use of double deckers is instead far more
widespread and arguably more practical for our roads. York, London and
Nottingham are all cities where bendybuses have been replaced with double
deckers and that is a trend I can see continuing. The older buses on York’s Park
& Ride network are due for renewal; I will be somewhat surprised if new
bendybuses find their way onto York’s streets.
As ever, many thanks to Chris for the York photos and Matt for those of Nottingham and London.
