The makers behind the New Bus 4 London, aka the replacement for the Routemaster classic, continue to test the new high-tech double decker.
Our regular car spy photographer got more than he bargained for just before Christmas when something rather larger than usual came into focus: the New Bus 4 London.
The details of the New Bus 4 London
This is a very state-of-the-art bus, fashioned around a lightweight aluminium spaceframe and designed by Heatherwick Studio.
It’s also a range-extended hybrid, with a 4.5-litre diesel engine used to charge up the batteries. For much of its time on urban service, it will operate as an electric vehicle. The makers claim it produces less than half the CO2 and NOx emissions of a regular diesel bus.
The design is a clever nod to the great London bus designs of the past: the glazing on both levels follows the staircases front and back, linking the upper and lower decks with a neat, glazed motif.
The first new bus designed for London for 50 years
Transport for London, which commissioned the new London bus, says this is the first bus designed for the capital for half a century.
The New Bus 4 London has three sets of doors, and a conductor will be employed to man the rear platform on the busiest routes.
However, don’t expect London to be over-run by the new buses overnight. They will be introduced gradually, the first eight arriving on route 38 between Victoria and Hackney by May 2012. So there’ll be a few in service in time for the Olympics, but not one on every street corner.
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