I understand from my TfL contact that it's lawyers have been instructed to look at contracts of terms of sale for certain RMs that apparently had a clause for compulsory buyback within a 3 year period. I understand this effects about 40 vehicles.
It requires a buy back at the sale price and possibly a payment for any renovation work that meets class VI.

Very sketchy info so maybe anyone else knows more.

I'll take an' odds on ' bet that Hendy bit his lip very hard when this was uncovered as he was one of those primarily responsible for the Routemaster removals --- what goes around comes around --- with luck to haunt you .

Maybe the heritage routes are inline for a serious boost . Please deal with that awful H9 for starters to prove the critics wrong by making it work as we know it can and should .

A friend of mine who is Managing Director of Nippybus in Somerset owns ex-Strathtay Scottish and Sovereign Dartmaster RM191. Raymond has recently managed to secure her old VLT 191 reg. Could the ex-Sovereign 13 fleet be the buses in question???

This is really good news Tony, 40 Routemasters being bought back should be enough to start running extra Heritage services on the 8,11,12,36,38 & 73. Actually, I was out for lunch with my mate who used to be a driver at Tottenham Garage during 2000/2001, the Doc may remember him, Paul Jones? We were discussing how Boris being Mayor would have a positive effect on the restoration of crew operation in London and Paul was telling me the 24 would be a good route to put the conductors on. Even if it will take a few years for the first of the new generation Routemasters to enter service, I hope the recruitment of conductors will commence ASAP even if they have to work on OPO buses at first. There are also Routemasters, mostly RMLs being continually made available for sale through ebay and dealers, so if even a fifth of the 500 or so RM/Ls that were in service in London before the mass withdrawals commenced in 2003 can be re-purchased, that will definitely be a result and increase the amount of Heritage services.

Finally, regarding the cost of converting them into Dartmasters, first of all, I would recommend fitting them with the same Dennis Dart running units RML2284 received, a job that could be contracted out to Alexander Dennis in Falkirk and to anyone who says it would be cost prohibitive, well Boris does have an £11 Billion pound and I hardly think it would put a massive dent in that.

IT WOULD BE A GOOD THING TO SEE THE H ROUTES IMPROVED WITH THE ADDITION OF FURTHER ROUTEMASTERS AND ROUTE EXTENSIONS / CHANGES ETC. BUT HOW LIKELY IS THIS IN THE LIGHT OF IMPENDING LOW FLOOR LEGISLATION IN THE NOT TO DISTANT FUTURE ...... OR WILL THERE BE SOME SORT OF ALLOWANCE FOR HERITAGE ROUTES / SERVICES IN GENERAL ...... THIS I FEEL IS A BIG QUESTION WHICH ALSO REQUIRES URGENT ATTENTION !!!! IF RMS WERE TO BE BOUGHT BACK, THEY COULD CERTAINLY BE USED TO BOOST THE CURRENT FLEET ON HERITAGE ROUTES . IM SURE EVERYONE WE BE WATCHING THIS SPACE WITH GREAT INTEREST !!!!! ED.

I meant to say £11 billion budget.

Some very good points you have raised there Ed, I think it is imperative that a submission is made for an amendment of the DDA for special dipensation to be granted that allows original Routemasters to be exempt due to "Heritage Status" before the legislation finally becomes law in 2017. It can be pointed out that RMs are an essential part of London's street furniture and a major tourist attraction which justifies such an exemption and it would be sheer bloody-mindidness to ban them after 2017 when there would be more than enough wheelchair-accessible new generation Routemasters in service by that time to meet a disabled passenger's needs.

If the worst came to the worst however, original RM/Ls COULD still be converted to wheelchair accessibility to allow them to carry on in service beyond 2017. Open top RM450, now in service with Timebus underwent such a conversion some years ago, as I believe did RM644. You can check out photos of the bus at their website http://www.timebus.co.uk/.

It would however mean that at least half a dozen seats would have to be sacrificed on the lower saloon reducing seating capacity on an RM to 58 and an RML 66. Let's hope common sense can prevail before then as Lothian Buses would have to make the same conversions to their fleet of Edinburgh Sightseeing RMs, RMAs, RMCs, RCLs & ERMs. Neil Renilson. Lothian Buses' Chief Executive promised in a magazine interview back in 2004 that their RM fleet would still be operating in 2024.

Graham,
I am as delighted as anyone about the prospect of a re-think at TfL over the RM issue. I remeber having countless chats with you four years back about the prospect of a Steve Norris win and the future of the RM. Now that Boris is in,as I predicted he would be, there is at least some hope. However, nothing has happened as yet. This talk of routemaster buyback is, I suspect, just that at the moment-namely talk. Nevertheless, I do get the feeling that something positive will happen. Do you feel the same? For a start, surely the acqusition of just 50 RM s or RML s would not be beyong the wit of man? Just a mere 50, perhaps even 40, would give London's streets that Routemaster feel again. But let's not get too carried away just yet. It's hard not to feel just a twinge of excitement, though, isn't it?

Nice to hear from you again Simon, yes, I'm confident positive things will happen in London again with an increase in the RM fleet under Boris, he did after all use RM70 as his campaign bus and commented on how much he enjoyed driving it.

Taken from an Evening Standard article

Boris Johnson has vowed that his first act as Mayor of London will be to scrap bendy buses and replace them with a modern-day Routemaster.

Mr Johnson said that the controversial buses were abused by fare dodgers and highly dangerous to cyclists.

Speaking at the first Tory candidates hustings meeting, the MP for Henley said that he would introduce a new version of the Routemaster bus that had been axed by Ken Livingstone. Their replacement would be fully accessible for the disabled and mothers with buggies.

He said: "We should on day one, act one, scene one, hold a competition to get rid of the bendy bus. They wipe out cyclists, there are many cyclists killed every year by them.

"It's not beyond the wit of man to design a new Routemaster which will stand as an icon of this city."

Well they ain't avin mine, so there.

Stick that in your pipe and smoke it Boris


Claire