Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Aug 5, 2017 4:38:24 GMT
Facelifted Gen1 Citaro. I don't like the vertical cooling tower of the Gen2s
|
|
|
Post by l1group on Aug 5, 2017 6:37:31 GMT
I've had to split it to sentimental value (due to childhood), the enthusiast, and modern (can be purchased today). And then separate it to deckers and singles because they are different kinds of buses, so, erm... Yeah. Here goes my list.
Decker: Sentimental value: Volvo B7TL (Euro 2, ZF, London United. Either body bodes well.) Enthusiast: MCW Metrobus (Debatably could also be the Leyland/Volvo Olympian) Modern: Volvo B5LH/Gemini 3 (don't matter about front).
Single: Sentimental value: Dennis Lance SLF/Wright Pathfinder (somehow) Enthusiast: oh...er... Dennis Dart SLF (Euro 2)/Plaxton Pointer, or Leyland National Modern: Mercedes-Benz Citaro C2. I really want to see a MAN Lion's City (A22) in the UK though, because it'll be interesting.
|
|
|
Post by fg49 on Aug 5, 2017 7:56:34 GMT
I'm going to follow a similar set up as l1group has here Decker: Sentimental value: Volvo B7TL/Mylennium Viking - VE1-10 of London United's 49 being the reason why Enthusiast: Euro 4/5 ZF Enviro400s - Particularly, 9428-9455 Modern: Enviro400 Hybrids all variants Single: Sentimental value: Dennis Dart SLF/Plaxton Pointer mostly the Euro 3 variants but there's still a lot of love left for the Euro 2's Enthusiast: Wright StreetLite DF, honestly I'm not the Euro 5 version's biggest fan but the Euro 6 Daimler examples are a different category. Quite a few good rides I've had on the 39 now, I didn't even know they could downshift. Modern: Unfortunately, they just aren't up there enough to knock the Euro 6 ZF E200 off top spot, or the Euro 4/5 Allison off second. I'll always have time for an E200
|
|
|
Post by lwldriver on Aug 5, 2017 9:29:16 GMT
I'm going to follow a similar set up as l1group has here Decker: Sentimental value: Volvo B7TL/Mylennium Viking - VE1-10 of London United's 49 being the reason why Enthusiast: Euro 4/5 ZF Enviro400s - Particularly, 9428-9455 Modern: Enviro400 Hybrids all variants Single: Sentimental value: Dennis Dart SLF/Plaxton Pointer mostly the Euro 3 variants but there's still a lot of love left for the Euro 2's Enthusiast: Wright StreetLite DF, honestly I'm not the Euro 5 version's biggest fan but the Euro 6 Daimler examples are a different category. Quite a few good rides I've had on the 39 now, I didn't even know they could downshift. Modern: Unfortunately, they just aren't up there enough to knock the Euro 6 ZF E200 off top spot, or the Euro 4/5 Allison off second. I'll always have time for an E200 I agree with you, as a driver who passed my test in a Y reg TA, have to say my favourite ever buses are the TA's, Ive driven from memory 17779/80/88/95, 17841/42/43/44/45/64/66 and 17965/67/68/69/70/71/72/73/74/75 in my earlier days in the industry. Of these 17779, 17780, 17842 and 17965/67/68/70/72 were the best ones, my overall favourite however was 17842 as it was comfortable and was nippy but also had the added entertainment of the whaling noise from the brakes when you apply them and then slowly release your foot off (any PD drivers - try it) had passengers on the bus and those walking past in stitches of laughter. Over the past 21 months Ive got the pleasure of experiencing the following; 9813/14/15/16/17/18/19/20//22/23/24/25/26/27/28/29/30/32/33/34/35/36/37/39/40/41/42/43 at WL, generally these were good 9813-9829, these ex Connex ones had some life left in them although the really good ones were 9813/15/17/20/22/23/26/27/28, the 9830-9843 well we all know their rather hot reputation but I'll put it into a driver perspective 9830/39/40/42 were good (when 9842 wasn't having a fuel leak of course). 9830 was my favourite of this batch - it had a 'Politeness' sticker on the dash next to the oyster reader (I think this was some old attempt at trying to get the passengers to be nice to the driver) it was quick and the front doors had that gas sound when opening in what I can only describe as something from the Little Miss Jocelyn Bus Driver sketch as found on YouTube with that gas escaping sound. 9832 was a death trap, 9837 always gave the impression it was about to go up in flames and 9834 was just gutless. 9839 and 9840 were solid performers although 9840 went through a slow phase which was then fixed and then it flew. My ultimate favourite Abellio TA was 9823 which sadly was one of the first to go, it reminded me of a typical Stagecoach TA, it just worked everytime, as soon as you touch the accelerator it was off, was very quick and did everything perfectly. 9826 was the quickest that thing could reach some speeds but it was uncomfortable in the cab but it's performance was why I always chose it over anything else on offer form my second half 381s at Peckham. If those of you happened to be on a late 381 or N381 over the last 6 months of last year and up until March of this year it was probably me, I refused Enviros Volvo's and even hybrids to take the TA and the drivers and controllers knew that if I was on the route then they would normally leave the TA for my second half. Always a pleasure to see 17842 on the 177 when I am at Peckham and it still has its whale. As for darts Ive driven 34366, 8303 and a few of the Abellio trainer darts. The best one is by far 8303 a solid all round performer and even today I can't understand why it's at BC in storage. Luckily that bus was often refused by the 484 drivers so it was always left for me which I kept for the whole 5 rounders on lates, if any of you happened to get any after 4pm pics of it over the past 9 months or so it was probably me driving. Even 34366s owner has been on the bus and says it's much better than 34366.
|
|
|
Post by COBO on Aug 5, 2017 9:36:25 GMT
MCW Metrobus and the Volvo Olympian. Plaxton President or Alexander ALX400 or Wright Eclipse Gemini bodied Volvo B7TL Plaxton President or Alexander ALX400 bodied Dennis Trident Marshall Capital or Plaxton Pointer 2 bodied Dennis Dart SLF Wright Eclipse Gemini 2 or Enviro 400 bodied Volvo B9TL Enviro 400 bodied Dennis Trident Wright Eclipse Gemini 3 (both the original and frog face) or MCV EvoSeti bodied Volvo B5LH Enviro 400 MMC bodied Alexander Dennis E40H
|
|
|
Post by Alexis on Aug 5, 2017 11:18:42 GMT
It would have to be the 61-reg E400 hybrids on the 56. The EHVs come in a close second.
|
|
|
Post by redexpress on Aug 5, 2017 12:23:01 GMT
Favourite bus of all time: Another vote for the Metrobus from me. But the Scania N113DRB comes in a close second, preferably an early 90s example with Alexander RH bodywork. A pity that none were ever built with NC Palatine II bodywork. Favourite bus in production now: For me it has to be a DD, so I suppose I'd go for a B5LH / E400MMC as that's the best chassis with the best bodywork design IMO. I do have some reservations about the build quality of the MMC as a lot of the early ones suffer from terrible rattles and squeaks - they seem far worse than the classic E400 in that respect. A shame as it is easily the best DD design on the market at the moment. Favourite bus that doesn't exist: Citaro DD
|
|
|
Post by mondraker275 on Aug 5, 2017 15:02:30 GMT
Citaro is by far the best in terms of look and ride. But if all the routes in London were Citaro's I would hate it as its a SD. Therefore, it cant be my favouraite. So I guess that would then mean its between the current Stagecoach Tridents or the B5LH/Gemini 3. I giving the edge to the latter as its a hybrid and I love that electric move off.
|
|
|
Post by twobellstogo on Aug 5, 2017 15:22:53 GMT
Routemasters for me. Single decks, often unloved, but I always liked the AEC Swifts. Of the current bus parc, I'd say the hybrid E40Hs for double deck, and the Citaro family for single decks.
|
|
|
Post by busoccultation on Aug 5, 2017 16:01:46 GMT
I am using a similar set up to l1group and fg49 as well. Sentimental value: Dennis Trident ALX400 in particular the Stagecoach ones as I grew up with these buses. Modern in production: ADL Enviro 400/H MMC/City and Volvo B5LH Wright Gemini 3 Other buses that I also like: ADL Enviro 400/H, Volvo B5LH Wright Gemini 2 (Love the engine sound especially when changing gear) and VDL DB300 Wright Gemini 2 (Mainly because I do like the engine sound)
|
|
|
Post by Eastlondoner62 on Aug 5, 2017 17:11:03 GMT
I'll also join the members splitting it into categories as it's far too hard to single any out Double DeckersSentimental Value: Easily the ALX400/Trident 2. Grew up with them my whole life, seen all the different variants in service as well as used each one multiple times. My favourite ones in particular being the Euro2 ones which Stagecoach had at BK, NS etc. I used to love sitting over the left wheel arch seat right behind the exit door. But as the exit door moved forward in later batches I always treasured a special place in my heart for the Euro2s. Enthusiast: Volvo B5LH/Enviro400 MMC. By a clear lightyear they are the best body available on the Volvo B5LH, they glide gracefully along the roads not to mention they look graceful unlike the box and frog. Completely love all the batches out there, I even enjoyed being on them while stuck in London Bridge traffic. Both the E40D MMC and E40H MMC come in a close second, however they aren't as good as the B5LH. Standard Enviro400/E40Hs are also quite nice buses. I also do have a special place for Volvo B9TL/Gemini 2s and standard Diesel Enviro400s. Single Deckers Sentimental Value: Dart SLF/ALX200, Again, I grew up with them on my local routes. Saw them all the time on the 62, 325, 300, 287, 366, 296, 396 and 376 as well as the frequent strays on the 173. It was quite sad when they all left in the blink of an eye. Never even got to say goodbye to them Enthusiast: Mercedes Benz Citaro. Probably no surprise given other people's answers. They are far better to ride than most other single deckers on the market. They look stunning and they seem to have an ability to never age. Saw a picture of one the other day and couldn't believe at all that it was a Wreg bus! I'll also add a controversial bit: Most disliked Double Decker: VPs, ACs buses in particular. I liked Go Ahead's PVLs so I don't know what went wrong with the Metroline ones. But ride after ride I try to enjoy them but they just seem to give me terrible rides. It's got to a point I'd probably opt for an LT over them. Most disliked Single Decker: Optare Versas. Completely terrible buses, I remember seeing one for the first time sitting on the 396. Thought to myself "that looks like an interesting bus", after my first ride on one I wished that they were never ordered. Even worse when the lovely new Enviro200s on the 62 were replaced by the Versa junk from PD and they got the lovely new Enviro200s after just a few months of service. Ride quality is completely shambolic. They look terrible, nowhere near as sleek as Enviro200s or even Wright Streetlites. I was over the moon when the 469 went to DT and the Enviro200s started to return to BK, even if it was just for two more months of service on the 62. - I took what I could get
|
|
|
Post by astock5000 on Aug 5, 2017 19:01:53 GMT
I couldn't just choose one bus either, but I'm going to split it differently and go roughly by era as sometimes the reasons they are my favourites are somewhat complicated.
I'll start with the AEC RF, these can be fun to travel on at running days, often to small villages I wouldn't have visited otherwise, even if they do sometimes seem to outnumber everything else at such events. But I can't really say for sure why I'm putting this ahead of the RT.
Next is the Routemaster. I suppose this could partly be sentimental value as I remember them in normal service in the early 2000s and they were always something to look out for when in Central London, but then at the time I was not so into London buses as the trains, or buses in my local area. They also seemed a bit awkward to get off when busy compared to more modern types. So actually I ended up liking the Routemaster more once I had learnt about the history of the type and that of London Transport. While these can also dominate running days it is nice to see ones which have been restored to more original condition.
Leyland National: This is a type I just missed out on travelling on in normal service (unless I went on one but don't have any memory of it). Until about 2002 Garston had a re-engined National but while I remember seeing it I never managed to ride it. I also had a couple of EFE models of Nationals since I was quite young so my interest in them might come from that too, but I also like the concept behind the design and it is *the* bus of its era.
I have to mention the Leyland Titan as well. Mullanys had a couple of these for some years but it was a long time before one was finally used on my school route. The design and proportions of the bodywork sometimes makes these look larger and more impressive. Then there's the history of the design with it intended to be the double deck equivalent of the National but ending up more or less as a London Transport type, so there's a few reasons why I tend to prefer Titans to Metrobuses (though I still haven't travelled on an ex-London Transport Metrobus...).
Nothing from the late 80s - early 90s particularly stands out for me (see below) so I'm jumping ahead to the DB250 / ALX400. DLAs were the first low floor double deckers I really noticed, I remember watching them pass Alexandra Palace after visiting a model railway exhibition there. I think some VLWs might have been around by then as well but I preferred the look of the ALX400s, and I'd still say the ALX series were the best looking designs produced at that time. Then some were delivered for the 142, and seeing them more often I noticed more details of the design. These being short ones they had the two shorter windows part way down the upper deck, which looked quite distinctive. I only learnt all the different chassis and body combinations some time later, but with those being local buses I ended up preferring them to the Tridents and B7TLs. There was also a period when I travelled part of the way home from school on the 142 or 258 fairly often.
And finally the New Routemaster. I've explained why I like these a few times before and don't really feel the need to repeat myself here as that would be a long post in itself.
Buses that didn't make the list but deserve a quick mention include the AEC Merlin (another good looking bus, it's a shame it was unsuccessful), and Dart SLFs with early Pointer bodies and also DSB220 / Prestiges - there were many of these in Watford when I was growing up. Oddly that's not so much the case with most types that were around back then. While it is certainly a nice change to see Olympians, for example, at running days and I enjoy journeys on them as much as other buses I listed above, I don't have so much of an interest in the types as a whole (in terms of reading about them and looking at production lists etc) and I don't consider them to be my favourites. I mainly just have an interest in the specific buses of those types which I used to see, and that's really more to do with the local scene and the operators than the vehicle types.
|
|
|
Post by LX09FBJ on Aug 5, 2017 19:44:23 GMT
I'm going to go down the splitting route for DDs
Personal/sentimental: Almost split between Volvo B7TL and Dennis Trident, ideally with Alexander ALX400 bodywork but I also really like the President too. The Trident just edges out but the former First and London United VNLs (the 10s ALX400s,, I can't remember the code) and VAs were some of the best vehicles I've ever ridden on.
Modern diesel: Alexander Dennis Enviro400, particularly Euro IV and V and in particular fast ones. I'm also partial to Volvo B9TL/Wright Gemini 2 plus the E400s which I would've regularly caught on the 85
Modern hybrid: Volvo B5LH/Wright Gemini 3 (I much prefer the new style- I must be in the minority here). The Evoseti is ok, but not brilliant but are why can't GAL fit half decent seats to these? The ones at Tower Transit actually have decent seats. The Alexander Dennis Enviro400 MMC is also
Step entrance: Volvo Olympian, particularly London United's VA32-54 which were very nice. Didn't ride this batch a lot but managed to get one on a tube strike extra on the 285 about a couple years ago.
Single deckers:
For me, Euro V Citaros are my favourite but the Enviro200 MMC is also very nice, a radical departure from the rather boring Enviro200, although the ECWTA* examples are a lot nicer than the pre ECWTA* ones, which I find very dull. I haven't had any bad experiences with StreetLites, but then again I haven't travelled on many of them.
The older Euro III Darts (2001 to 2003) are also nice too, particularly those with AT545s (which is where I'm writing this from!)
Types I dislike Double deckers - The allocation of route 22 and all of Go-Aheads MHVs, mainly due to the horrible seats.
Single deckers - Alexander Dennis Enviro200Dart as the older ones (pre 2008) are very rattly and the vast majority of them built before 2011 are very boring to ride on in my view, and the Abellio ones (8516 to 8566 - before refurbishment) are also rather dark inside.
|
|
|
Post by twobellstogo on Aug 5, 2017 21:31:35 GMT
Crumbs, people saying they grew up as children riding on ALX400s and suchlike... Clearly, allegations of bus enthusiasm's demise are well wide of the mark!...
|
|
|
Post by snoggle on Aug 5, 2017 22:01:25 GMT
Crumbs, people saying they grew up as children riding on ALX400s and suchlike... Clearly, allegations of bus enthusiasm's demise are well wide of the mark!... I'm glad I'm not the only thinking "oh if I give my favourite types they'll need to look in the history books as all these young whippersnappers won't know what they are" And we have done this topic before so I'm not going to repeat myself. People can dig out the old thread and posts.
|
|