Stealth Rollercoaster at Thorpe Park (video)

Hywel Williams [CC-BY-SA-2.0], via Wikimedia Commons

This is one of my personal favourite rollercoasters because it’s a 'launch coaster' which reaches 80mph in 1.9 seconds.

The rollercoaster first opened on March 15^th 2006 at Thorpe Park in Surrey, England and cost £12 million to build. It was manufactured by 'Intamin' and designed by Werner Stengel.

The ride starts off by propelling you to 80mph, almost instantly and it feels

Route 453 conversion to New Routemaster finally announced by TFL

"London General bus MAL117 (BP57 UJY) 2008 Mercedes-Benz Citaro, route 453, 10 June 2011" by Darren Hall Uploaded by Ultra7. Licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons.

London Bus route 453 has been experiencing delays in converting the route to New Routemaster operation. TFL released a press statement (on 2^nd October 2014) regarding the fuel consumption, which I have previously published.

Transport for London (TfL) has today announced that the next bus route to be served entirely by New Routemaster buses will be the 453.

From 18 October there will be phased conversion of the route, which is operated by London General, and runs 24-hours a day between Deptford Broadway and Marylebone station, via Baker Street, Oxford Circus, Trafalgar Square (Charing Cross), Westminster, Lambeth North, Elephant & Castle and New Cross Gate. The route will be running entirely with New Routemaster buses by mid November.

TFL releases fuel consumption figures for the New Routemasters'

Routes 11 and 24 is reported to have the Lowest fuel consumption.

By Au Morandarte from Chiswick/Romford, London, England (So close, yet so far...Uploaded by Ultra7) [CC-BY-SA-2.0], via Wikimedia Commons

TFL released a press statement on the 2^nd October 2014 regarding Route 453 and it's conversion to the New Routemaster bus. What I find interesting is the fuel consumption figures that TFL have released.

Figures also released today show that the average fuel consumption of the New Routemasters in service is almost 50 per cent better than the buses that operated on the routes before them.

Fuel economy on the following routes has been measured and results have shown a significant increase in their average miles per gallon (MPG)

80 year old London Bus route 137 is due to have New Routemaster Buses

By Chris Sampson (2375-JJD375C 060304 cps) [CC-BY-2.0], via Wikimedia Commons

London Bus Route 137 is due to have the New Routemaster buses by Mid to late November according to the London Omnibus Traction Society.

Brief History

The route was the first formed which started on the 3^rd October 1934. It first operated between Archway Station and Elmers End Green, via Victoria. Then on the 1^st of November 1964,

Failed Route tests for New Routemaster conversion

Route 23 is the one affected

Computer generated image of New Routemaster, copyright belongs to TFL.

I recently found a Freedom of Information request referring to the London Bus routes which the New Routemaster failed their route test on. Eddie Cole submitted a request via the 'What Do They Know' website where you can see users submitting information requests to government bodies for information.

The 'What Do They Know' website user sent a Freedom of Information request to Transport for London on 11^th September 2014.

Dear Transport for London,

New Routemaster conversion for Route 453 is delayed again!

"London General bus MAL117 (BP57 UJY) 2008 Mercedes-Benz Citaro, route 453, 10 June 2011" by Darren Hall Uploaded by Ultra7. Licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons.

LOTS (London Omnibus Traction Society) have reported that route 453 has missed two target dates, so the route conversion to New Routemasters will now commence on the 18^th  of October 2014.

This is not the first time the route has experienced delays converting to a specific bus type. 

The first delay occurred on the 15th of February back in 2003

Open boarding returns on Route 453 in form of New Routemasters

Creative Commons image by Ultra7

Route 453, which is an 11 year old London Bus Route will have an open boarding service for the first time in 3 years. The New Routemaster buses are due to have 3 doors and 2 staircases. The route runs from Deptford bridge DLR station in South London to Marylebone station via Westminster Bridge and Oxford Circus.

Hong Kong bus operators to use ADL Enviro500 (Tri-Axle) Hybrid

Alexander Dennis Enviro500 Tri-Axle Hybrid

Image from KMB's press release

Kowloon Motor Bus (KMB), Citybus and New World First Bus Services Limited (NWFB) are to use the Alexander Dennis Enviro500 (Tri-Axle) hybrids in Hong Kong for a comprehensive service trial. The buses are funded by the Environmental Protection Department in order to cut harmful emissions in the congested streets of Hong Kong.

Statement from KMB

“KMB is pleased to announce that Hong Kong’s first environment-friendly Euro VI engine hybrid double-deck bus “hBus” will arrive KMB in early September, and enter service in the fourth quarter this year. Funded by the Environmental Protection Department, the hBus is a 12-metre 3-axle air-conditioned double-deck with a diesel-electric “Hybrid Series” propulsion system,

Video: New Routemaster on Route 8

Yesterday I hopped on board the New Routemaster by Holborn, its running on Route 8 operated by Stagecoach London. This is one of the couple routes that operates fully in One Person Operation where the rear door operates as a normal door and stays shut between stops.

Video: Buses at Theobalds Road, Holborn

I captured buses at Theobalds Road where buses of many types passes by. Routes 8 and 38 uses New Routemasters which can be seen on the video.