HomeBendy buses = bad for cycling
Cycle lane eater. Many cycle lanes have disappeared or been segmented into useless splinters just two years after being put in. This is because the horrible new articulated "bendy-buses" need longer bus stops.
Dodge or die? Despite international research showing that cycle lanes have the greatest safety benefits when they continue through junctions, where 75% of collisions occur, in the City they stop at the traffic signals. This has become even more dangerous with the trailing ends of the new articulated buses.
Bendy Bus Lies EXPOSED!
More comfortable...but only if you're lucky to get a seat. Bendy buses have fewer seats than a Routemaster or modern double decker and run less frequently than the double-deckers they replace as they have greater capacity or rather more standing room. There was uproar among rail commuters when Connex proposed to rip out seats so they could cram more people onto their trains. Now it's time for bus passengers to complain.
Higher capacity...but only in theory. (Bendy Bus total seated: 49, standing: 86, Routemaster total seated: 72, standing: 5) Why when train companies are considering double-decker trains to increase capacity are the bus companies going the other way. Aren't our roads even more crowded than our railways?
Faster boarding...but as there are more people waiting to get on as the bendy buses run less frequently there will be longer queues at the bus stops. The main advantage is that you can't buy tickets from the driver on bendy buses but you can't buy tickets on buses in central London now and once this has been extended throughout London, any advantage of bendy buses will evaporate.
More accessible...but only compared to old Routemasters. Can't get on and off between stops, useful for the less able bodied who don't want to walk all the way to/from the bus stop. Modern double deckers are accessible too. Block pedestrian crossings.
- Loss of the view - the best bit is riding on top.
- Mobile road blocks - TfL has refused to commission research about the increased congestion having all these long buses will cause.
- Danger and inconvenience to cyclists
- Removal of cycle lanes
- Getting stuck in 3m wide bus lanes including those on Euston Road. Aim to get rid of large vehicles in centre of London - London lorry ban etc. - not bring more in! These large buses simply don't fit in with London's streets and are more suited to wide continental avenues.
Save the 73 from bendy-bus hell
