The London's New Routemaster

Using a car journalist rather than a bus journalist to write it is courageous but some of the text lacks the depth that a bus journalist might have gone into. The writer also seems to be a bit deferential towards some of the players.A bit too much like a coffee table book although the design and layout is just superb. A book to thumb the pages of perhaps rather than sit down with as a good read?'Another author, Martin Curtis has written a contemporary book going into rather more depth yet still with some cracking imagery included.

Sections on the competition for the design and the subsequent manufacturing stage are very good, but there are parts of the book that could have been more tightly written. The use of FOUR forewords/prefaces/introduction by four of the main players in the design is an interesting feature! The book could, perhaps, be more critical, and a little less self congratulatory, about the vehicle that has come out of the design process, but given the books genesis, this was always going to be unlikely. As a tale of the birth of a vehicle that could be claimed to be revolutionary, however, it is a very interesting and welcome document.

If like me you like the new bus for London then this is definitely worth a read. Covers everything from it's inception which is probably why TFL tried to ban it ? Why ? There's nothing in it that's detrimental to the vehicle or TFL just what seems to be a true account of how the bus ended up on the streets of London. Good sharp pictures with plenty of readable material which covers the so called design competition that wasn't !!

Excellent and complete history of the evolution of this icon of London's landscape. The successes and failures, both practical and political, are included and it will be very interesting in 5 years time to see the real success to the bus.

An excellent well-written professional account of the development and entry to service of London's new iconic bus. Well produced and well illustrated.Thoroughly reccmmended.