Transport for London (TfL) has permanently halted its heritage service of 10 iconic Routemaster buses on the number 15 route.
The buses were the last of the city’s famous open-backed vehicles in operation, after the other heritage route, the 9H, was retired seven years ago.
The news comes more than a year after the UK was hit with by the Covid pandemic, slashing ridership across London’s transport network.
After reviewing the bus network to ensure it responds to customer demand, TfL said it had concluded that the heritage buses on a section of route 15 are “not needed for the current and predicted customer demand on the corridor.”
It also said that this combined with concerns about the environmental and accessibility limitations - they are not step-free or ULEZ-complaint - meant that their continued operation was “no longer viable.”
TfL added it was important to note that the buses did not have ULEZ standards because they were built in the 1970’s.
source: Evening Standard