London bus stops to get Olympic inspired art

Bus stops in London are getting an art make over ahead of the Olympic Games this summer. As part of a special art commission, selected bus shelters will be decorated with changing displays on the roof, with 30 bus shelters in 20 London boroughs already boasting these innovative displays.

Mark Titchner is the artist behind the latest bus shelter art project in which motivational slogans and phrases are being flashed up on the top of bus stops. Commands including, “If you don’t like your life, you can change it” and “Act or be Acted Upon” are being displayed on the roofs of bus shelters so those travelling on the top deck of London buses can look down and read the phrase.

There are 31 different motivational statements in total which are being changed on a daily basis on the bus shelter displays so commuters will see a different one every day they pass the same stop. The system is controlled by curators via the internet who change the displays at different times of the day and on different routes. The idea is to give passengers a thought to take with them on their journey, the Turner Prize nominated artist revealed.

While a number of professional artists are involved in the creation of the art for the London bus shelters, the public can also get involved via Bus Tops, where the people can submit their ideas and suggestions for use as art displays on the shelters.

The project is part of a wider programme of 12 public art commissions rolled out throughout the rest of England, also Northern Ireland, Wales and Scotland.

London double-decker bus ploughs into supermarket entrance

A big red double-decker London bus crashed into the entrance of a busy south west London supermarket yesterday, narrowly avoiding injuring shoppers and those travelling on the service. No injuries were reported, although the Sainsbury’s store in Wandsworth where the accident occurred was usually busy at approximately 11am when the incident occurred.

 The road around the Sainsbury’s supermarket was cordoned off as police carried out an investigation of the area. One eyewitness described how the accident occurred, saying that a road sweeper vehicle had been involved in the crash. Witnesses reported seeing passengers travelling on the bus at the time, although everyone escaped the accident without serious injury.

According to the witness, the road sweeper was travelling in one direction, with the bus travelling in the opposite direction, and the crash occurred when the two collided, with the bus driver left with nowhere to go but into the entrance of the Sainsbury’s store.

The number 28 bus was reported to have suffered damage to the front of the vehicle including a smashed windscreen. Debris from the accident was strewn across the area in front of the busy Sainsbury’s store including glass from the windscreen.

Transport for London confirmed that a full investigation into the accident will be carried out to determine the cause of the incident and to ensure nothing of this nature happens again.

London bendy buses undertake their final journey in the capital

From this weekend, the bendy bus will become a thing of the past on London’s transport network as the final journey of the number 207 bendy bus will conclude in the early hours of this Saturday morning, signalling an end of the elongated bus’s life on the capital’s roads.

The bendy bus was hit with controversy since its introduction by TFL back in 2002 as the single-decker buses offered a free-for-all for fare dodgers who were easily able to avoid paying for their journey as the vehicles had several entrances which meant the driver was unable to check that every passenger was swiping their Oyster Card.

TFL started sending inspectors onto bus routes to try to clamp down the this type of fare dodging, however they were unable to monitor every service so it was still possible for some passengers to slip through the net. It’s been estimated that the scrapping of the bendy buses will save TFL £7.4 million annually as fewer fare dodgers will be able to take advantage of the system.

As well as enabling some passengers to get away without paying for their travel, the bendy buses were regarded as too large for the streets of London with many believing the posed a danger to the public and passengers.

Whether you were for or against the London bendy bus, from this weekend they won’t be seen on the city’s roads. The 350 bendy buses are being replaced with another 500 vehicles, 50 of which are hybrid double-decker buses. In addition, from early next year the very first modernised, eco-friendly, open platform Routemaster buses will grace London’s transport system once again.

Double-decker bus pulled through London to raise money for Veterans Aid

A team of 20 men and women made up of members of the police force and the armed forces joined together to pull a 15 ton double-decker bus 1 mile through Central London this weekend to help raise money for the Veterans Aid fund.

Tugging the colossal bus by hand for a mile would have been no easy feat in itself, but to make the fund raising act all the more challenging, 60 passengers boarded the bus and remained onboard for the 1 mile ride.

The double-decker London bus filled with passengers was pulled by rope by the 20-strong team of fundraisers from the Cenotaph in Westminster to Grosvenor Garden in Victoria as part of the charity fund raising mission. The Epping Forest Pipe Band also gave their support to the cause by piping the procession, playing their instruments as the double-decker bus followed closely behind.

Folk duo, Northfield, have also announced that they will donate all profits from their forthcoming single release to the charity, Veterans Aid.

The police men and women and members of the armed forces who carried out the mammoth bus pull hope to have raised £6,000 for the Veterans Aid charity from their efforts, although their main aim was to help raise awareness of the cause with their attention-grabbing fund raising event.

First of the new London Routemaster buses driven off the production line

The first of the new style London Routemaster buses was driven off the production line today by the man who’s spearheaded their return.

Boris Johnson vowed to scrap the bendy buses and reintroduce a new version of the classic open platform London buses as part of his election pledge during his bid to become mayor of London in 2008, and today he delivered on that promise when he got behind the wheel to drive the first of the vehicles off the production line at the Wrightbus factory in Northern Ireland.

The first batch of finished hybrid Routemasters will be operated by Arriva and introduced to busy central London bus routes from early next year. Their return will signal the first time the Routemasters have been seen on the London transport systems since they were phased out in 2005.

Eight of the new style double-deckers will be launched into the city to begin with, all of which feature three entrances/ exits, and two staircases. However the rear exit of the bus will only be open at peak times as a second member of staff is required to ride on the bus to supervise when the back platform is opened.

The London mayor predicts that the new Routemasters will ensure London is seen as a “world leader” in terms of its public transport system, and is confident the environmentally friendly buses will be well received by the public as the double-decker have been designed with the city and its passengers in mind.

20 new London tour buses to be made in China

An order for 20 new London tour buses due to be added to the London Big Bus Tour fleet in time for the Olympics next summer has been handed to a Chinese company.

The move has been seen as extremely controversial in the current economic climate with the government recently championing British companies in order to safeguard jobs, and yet the £5 million contract to create the new London sightseeing buses was won by a company operating in China.

In the past, the open-top sightseeing buses used on the London tours were made in Britain, however the latest batch will be shipped over from China once they’re completed.

The 20 new open-top double-decker buses will be used to transport tourists on sightseeing tours around the capital’s most famous landmarks as part of the London Big Bus Tours. The 20 new buses have been ordered to help cope with demand from tourists when the city hosts the 2012 Olympics next summer. The buses are expected to be up and running in time for the international sporting event.

Anhui Ankai Autombile based in Eastern China is the company responsible for manufacturing the new order for sightseeing buses for London. The company has previously worked with Big Bus Tours, supplying buses for use on their sightseeing tours in other parts of the world including America, Hong Kong and the Middle East.

Wi-Fi coming to London buses

Wi-Fi connectivity is about to be rolled out on London buses, according to recent newspaper reports.

The plans to introduce free Wi-Fi for bus commuters in the capital is part of the mayor of London, Boris Johnson’s, plan to help improve connectivity for public transport users in the city.

It’s been reported that internet broadband provider, Virgin Media, are in the advanced stages of negotiation with London councils with regards to providing the Wi-Fi internet service for London commuters via the bus network. If successful, Virgin would need to install wireless routers throughout the city to facilitate the free Wi-Fi connectivity. It’s believed the plans to roll out Wi-Fi on London buses are in taking shape, and we could see this technology in place in the not too distant future.

If successful with their negotiations to be the Wi-Fi internet provider for the London bus network, Virgin Media would offer free Wi-Fi of half a megabit for every passenger, although a very basic standard of internet, the connectivity would be sufficient for sending emails and web browsing. However if you subscribe to Virgin then you’ll benefit from Wi-Fi of up to 10 megabits while travelling on the London bus network.

Should Virgin Media get the green light to continue with their Wi-Fi plans, this would mean serious competition for BT Openzone which currently serves the city with Wi-Fi internet, however it charges non BT customers for using their internet while out and about, whereas Virgin would provide free access to all.

Nantwich calls for coach hire firms to stop off in the town

Nantwich is calling for coach hire companies to schedule stop-offs at the town during their long distance journeys in a bid to help boost the local economy.

Over 300 coach and minibus hire companies have been contacted and invited to arrange comfort breaks in Nantwich during their scheduled services as part of the town’s “Save Our Shops” campaign. Included in the invites sent out to coach companies were local tourist guides to provide the companies with information on what Nantwich has to offer.

Coaches and buses will be allowed to park at Nantwich Town Football Club during their stop off. The site offers a safe and convenient spot for passengers to be dropped off and collected.

The local rotary club has also got involved in to help put their weight behind the campaign. The club have donated £250 which will be used to pay the £8 coach parking fee for when the vehicles visit Nantwich and the donated money will also provide a £5 lunch voucher for the coach driver which can be redeemed in one of the many local cafes or restaurants.

If the venture is well received and succeeds in attracting coach parties to Nantwich, the local council says they will discuss the possibility of providing an annual subsidy, paid for by the town council and shop keepers, which will be used to cover the cost of parking and other associated costs for coach companies visiting the town.

Bus protest by disabled passengers and pensioners causes disruption in London

A group of disabled and elderly bus passengers caused disruption in London yesterday morning by staging a protest in the capital to complain over the Government spending cuts.

Two wheelchair users handcuffed themselves to a London double-decker bus Oxford Street while a group of members from the Great London Pensioners Association held up placards to show their anger over government spending cuts and the way this is affecting the most vulnerable in society.

There were 8 protestors in total but despite their small number, the group succeeded in creating a tailback of 20 London buses in the capital and causing delays of up to an hour on the roads in some parts of the city. Many passers-by also joined in the protest to show their support for the demonstrator’s cause.

One of the protestors commented on how the cuts have affected his heating bills and says he believes the axe will fall on the public transport service next which was why he decided to join in on the protest. The pensioner said he was protesting on behalf of vulnerable people such as disabled passengers who would be affected should the Government decide to cut public transport services for this group.

However the Government say they plan to reform the benefit system for vulnerable members of society to ensure those who are most in need get the best level of help and support.

Discounts offered on coach and minibus hire to Wembley for the FA Cup Semi Final

Coach Broker is offering discounted deals on chauffeur driven coach and minibus hire this April for Manchester United, Manchester City, Bolton and Stoke football fans all heading to Wembley to cheer on their teams at the FA Cup Semi Final.

With a massive selection of coaches and minibus available to hire such ranging from 8-setaer minibuses with extra leg room, to 20-seater mini coaches with air conditioning, 40-seater standard size coaches and 80-seater double-decker coaches, there’s something to suit every size party amongst Coach Broker’s extensive fleet of vehicles.

Whether you’re travelling from Bolton, Manchester, Stoke, Liverpool, Birmingham, Leicester, Gloucester, Durham, Newcastle, Bangor, Cardiff, Edinburgh, Swansea or Leeds Coach Broker can offer you the benefit of their expert coach hire service as they operate throughout the UK so no location is an issue.

All of our coaches are driven by professional drivers who have all been handpicked for their advanced driving skills, so you can rest assured you’ll be in very capable and safe hands when you make a coach journey with us. Our drivers will take care of every detail of your journey when you travel to Wembley on the weekend of April 16th – 17th so you can sit back and enjoy the occasion to the full.

Whatever your budget, however many people you need to transport, Coach Broker can provide you with a service which is tailored to meet all of your needs. If you want to travel in luxury, Coach Broker can offer you the benefit of their executive coaches which come complete with reclining seats, air conditioning, onboard W.C, tea and coffee making facilities, and CD, DVD/TV entertainment features so you’ll be treated to a very comfortable and enjoyable trip when you hire an executive coach.

Get in touch now to request a free quote for chauffeur driven minibus for coach hire to Wembley for the FA Cup Semi Final. Unbeatable discounts are available now, so call Coach Broker immediately to make the most of these cheap coach hire deals.