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Routemaster conductors will cost £8m says Boris
Ross Lydall, City Hall Editor27.02.08
Employing conductors to work on a new fleet of Routemasters to replace bendy buses would cost just £8 million a year, Boris Johnson claimed today.
The Tory mayoral challenger wants to launch a competition to design a new version of the London double-decker, with its open rear deck and conductors.
His rival Ken Livingstone claims that bringing back conductors would add a couple of pounds a week to council tax bills, while Transport for London buses boss David Brown said it would cost £600million to replace the capital's 337 bendy buses with Routemasters.
Speaking on BBC London radio today, Mr Johnson said the true cost of employing conductors on replacement Routemasters was insignificant when contrasted with the amount TfL spends on consultants - more than £210 million in 2006/7.
He said: "It's absolutely true that if you are going to bring back a Routemaster, or have a new Routemaster, you would need a conductor with them. I have looked at the expense of that. It would cost £8million to have conductors on each of these buses per year"
A spokeswoman for Ken Livinsgtone thinks Mr Johnson has got his sums wrong. "There are currently just under 400 bendy buses. To achieve the same capacity with the Routemaster design would require at least 200 more buses. Conductors on the 600 new buses would cost £70million a year," she said.
Reader views (20)
Here's a sample of the latest views published.
My wife and I have just returned from a long weekend in London. We travelled on 6 buses on one day all but two were Routemasters. These were the most comfortable of the buses that we used, the conductors were friendly and helpful. The only two things that spoilt the experience were the constant bleeping of the hand held machines which read the Oyster cards and the non authentic engines, the old AEC engines had a very distinctive exhaust note which is not present with their replacements.
- Thomas Bowden, Ivybridge, UK
London's Routemasters should never have been withdrawn as even though they were over 30 years old they were still far superior to the modern vehicles that replaced them and popular with the majority of Londoners.
It's a shame that Ken's bendies can't do u-turns as quickly as he can as, let's not forget, in the late 90s when Livingstone was trying to become Mayor he was championing both Routemasters and conductors to such an extent that when he was elected Major he bought 50 of the buses back and put them out on the road!
- Paul, Shoreditch, London
Why do we need to spend more money on new Double decker buses, when we have perfectly good old ones, that worked just fine before they were taken off the roads? Just bring back the old Double deckers that are part of London and sorely missed.
- Jane, London
Personally I couldn't care less about the Routemaster - load of sentimental claptrap! As for conversation from the conductors, the most I ever got from them was a miserable grunt as they shoved up and down the bus. Apart from the harmonica playing guy on the 73 or 38 up Essex Rd that is... bring on the bendies!
- Cyclist, London
Please bring back the London Routemaster. A properly designed bus like the original. Made for the comfort of passengers not the manufacturers pocket. The bendys are like cattle trucks and inhuman hence the violence on board, you are not treated as a passenger. I try to avoid them if I possibly can.
- Paula Newman, London, England
Considering the millions Livingstone wastes on his trips/cronies/metronet debacles/traffic paralysing bendy buses etc, new routemasters with conductors will be a vote winner.
- Zak, London
Love Routemasters, love Boris! Am not exactly sure why conductors are needed on a Routemaster - presumably they can just have a couple of oyster readers scattered about. Might need to employ a few more inspectors to deter the fare dodgers though.
- Jill, London
I would love to see a poll on what LONDONER'S thought of Bendy Buses. Obviously the Fare dodgers love them. I wonder what the Tourists that come over here think of the Bendy buses? Do you think they get excited at seeing them? They cause traffic jams, are dirty, noisy and extremely dangerous. Have you seen them taking tight corners round London. For the Bendy buses alone Mr Livingstone should go. Ok they clear a supposed 150 plus people off the streets in one go, if you've been on one when it's half full you'll know they are the most awkward things to be in. Spend a little a money bring back the Route master, 3 Route masters would move round London and get London moving a lot quicker then 1 Bendy bus. Would Ken listen, now he went to European Capitals to see the Bendy's in actions on roads actually built for them and thought they would be great for London.
- Mark, Barnet
May I recommend dropping free travel for the under 16's on buses which would save £50+million per year and then use that to bring back routemasters?
- Ken Yadigit, Streatham
Bendy buses are a disaster for London. Only Dictator Livingstone could have been stupid and arrogant enough to introduce them.
- Warren Alexander, London, UK
Further confirmation, if any were needed, that Bungling Boris belongs to a past age and that Londoners would be crazy to elect this buffoon who would not only lower London's image across the world, but also replace modern reforms to the transport system with ideas long past their sell-by dates. Conductors on routemaster buses? We're not in the 1950s anymore!
- Norm, Dagenham
Bring the Routemasters back! When we visited in 2001 the conductors were lifesavers. Yes, we had maps and had researched our destinations, but Conductors helped ever so much on the Details the Travel brochures leave out! NOT HAVING Conductors has had an effect on our decision not to revisit again! Surly Bus Drivers that do not have time to answer small questions are NOT GOOD for Visitors. GO BORIS! YEAH ROUTEMASTERS! DITCH Red Ken!
- Theron Helton, Illinois, USA
This must be GREAT news for the people of London - as an "outsider" living 250 miles from the Capital (but the proud owner of an ex-Route 12 Routemaster)I haven't been able to understand why they have put up with fare evasion on such a vast scale for so long. London lost so much with the virtual disappearance of the Routemaster - perhaps an updated version can bring back some of the charm.
- Brian, Northallerton UK
In the words of Claire Elizabeth, "Bring back talking!" Now, wouldn't that make a good ES Campaign?
Meanwhile, the return of the Routemaster would be good start though.
- Robert Zimmerman, London
So where does Bungling Boris reckon he's going to cut £8 million to pay the conductors on his low-frequency Routemaster service?
- Charlie, Soho
Bring back the routemaster. Considering that the Bendy Buses also lose revenue - their fare dodging loss will be the routemasters gain. Also, the Bendy Buses on certain routes are dangerous, dirty and stinky. They are also too big for London's streets.
- Sharday, London
It would be fantastic to have a person that speaks (English)on a bus again; the tourists love the banter and conductors are usually very helpful.
Even taxi drivers are complaining that no-one talks anymore, customers too busy texting or listing to ipods. Bring back talking!
- Claire Elizabeth, London UK
Erm if 600 conductors cost 70million that means each one would be paid over 116k a year. If that is Ken's idea of a basic salary it would explain why the cost of the GLA and the Mayor's precept has risen so dramatically!
- Mark, London
Why should 600 Routemasters be needed to replace 400 bendy buses? Is the calculation made on the seated accommodation or on the total passenger capacity? This is important, because when TfL says bendy buses carry more passengers than Routemasters, one of the reasons is that the standing capacity is increased, rather than the seating one! This way they can pack more people per bus, but not necessarily in comfort.
- Paolo Tomasi, London, UK
"Conductors on the 600 new buses would cost £70million a year," she said."
That's still 140 million pounds less than the sum paid for 'consultants'.
So no problem then!
Boris for mayor.
- Sarah N., London, UK.
