The London Routemaster replicates the dark red and platinum colour scheme given to RM1933 in 2008 in celebration of the 75
th
Anniversary of London Transport on the one hand and equally important
to East Londoners, the centenary of the Bus Garage in Bow. Our bus
features the anniversary logo on the front section of the advertising
panels but is otherwise devoid of any promotional adverts, just like the
original.
Registered ALD 933B, our Routemaster comes with dark red wheels, gold
London Transport lettering and red interior seating. Running on Route
15, passengers would take in many of the sights of the City as it
journeyed to Tower Hill via Aldwych, Fleet Street and St Paul’s
Cathedral. Its number RM1933 is also printed in gold beneath the
driver’s cab window.
In real life, RM1933 had quite a widespread career, having been
delivered to London Transport in 1964. Sporting the standard red RM
livery until 1983, it was also one of several buses chosen to wear the
London Transport 50th Anniversary colour scheme, returning to
the standard livery a year later. In 1987, RM1933 became a Routemaster
in exile as it was sold on to Kelvin Scottish, then moved again to
Stagecoach Perth before going on to Stagecoach Cumberland. However in
2000, it was bought back by London Bus Services Ltd and returned to the
capital, serving on Route 13 until 2005. Later the same year, RM1933
was one of several Routemasters selected to continue in service on the
Routemaster Heritage Routes, when it was allotted to the Easton London
route 15, where we picked up the story.