The Routemaster Book

The Routemaster bus is a universally recognised symbol of London. Developed in the 1950s it has been a familiar sight on the streets of the capital for half a century and still operates on selected heritage routes today. Although developed by AEC for London Transport Routemasters were sold initially also sold to Northern General and second-hand vehicles were later part of the fleets of other operators throughout Britain. Although its open-platform design ultimately led to it being phased out in London in 2005 it is regarded by many as a 20th century icon of British design - when developed its lightweight integral chassis independent front suspension fully automatic gearbox and power-hydraulic braking put it well in advance of most rival buses. This volume tells the story of the Routemaster's development and operational history in London and elsewhere accompanied by approximately 100 colour illustrations of the vehicle from prototypes through the changing operational scene of the last 50 years to its continuing existence today. Written by a well known authority on the subject Michael Baker has a number of best-selling titles to his name.