RM70 - Seventy Years of a London Icon

The Routemaster bus has become synonymous with London and is famous the world over. Although fewer were built than of the preceding RT type, their uniqueness and longevity has made them instantly recognisable as the typical London bus. First conceived as a replacement for the trolleybuses, the prototype was unveiled in 1954. Main production did not start until 1959 but they would continue to serve London’s passengers until 2005. From the late 1980s, they began to be withdrawn from London, but many found further use with bus companies throughout Britain and beyond. Nowadays some Routemasters can still be found on sightseeing work in London. Others are in use for corporate hospitality, film work and wedding hires, while hundreds survive in preservation. In this book Malcolm Batten celebrates this legendary London bus on its seventy-year anniversary with a diverse selection of high-quality images.