The Tube was hit by yet another strike this week.
But it wasn’t all doom and gloom for Londoners (well, not for those with at least a passing interest in buses, anyway).
150 extra buses on 40 routes were drafted in to help with the crowds of commuters displaced from the besieged London Underground. Routemasters and RTs once again rode to the rescue of the stranded, aided by the usual motley mix of vehicles sent into battle by around 13 different operators.
Routemaster rides again
The original RM, that is.
Christopher Tongmee snapped this splendid vintage RML helping out on the 25 at Stratford Bus Station.
Good to see the old #routemaster back in service getting me to work on #TubeStrike #monday pic.twitter.com/1kBQhEDjjJ
— Paul Sylvester (@paulsylvester75) January 9, 2017
Paul Sylvester caught another, helping out on Arriva’s route 38 in central London. Interestingly, the 38 these days is the mainstay of the RMs successor, the New Routemaster.
The roads are just solid today, everywhere in zone 1 but good to see TfL raided the transport museum for some extra buses #TubeStrike pic.twitter.com/WJoEmpCwtV
— Tony Ross (@TonyWestHam) January 9, 2017
And some even older were around to help…
Wanderers return
Many buses which earned their keep in London in a former life also returned to help out, such as this Scania N230UD. Previously with Stagecoach East London, this particular vehicle is now more used to pounding the streets of Newport, South Wales.
And finally…
Finishing on a whopper, even Ensign’s 98-seat, air-conditioned Enterprise managed to put in an appearance.
Did you spot anything else which caught your attention? Let us know in the comments below, or drop us a tweet – @transportdsn.
Feature image credits: AFP.