First Class Bus Travel

Getting on a bus is a chore at best for any London commuter. But being a misanthropic 6’1″, I can only describe it as hell – and one that forces me to pay £1.30 for the privilege. Every day I walk to the bus stop with the harrowing knowledge that I will brush past the undesirables on the bottom floor, to an upstairs designed to accommodate people from the Tudor era – four feet nothing with a penchant for the smell of piss.

But it seems TFL has stepped up its game, and every morning this week I’ve rocked up to the bus stop to be greeted by a 26 that puts the rest of its siblings to shame. Like a beacon of light through the fiery clouds of the underworld, this bus of the future pulled up, boasting air conditioning, enough space to stand without developing a humpback, and seats far enough apart to ensure I didn’t have to eat hair for breakfast.

Now when I say ‘bus of the future’, I’m perhaps being a little generous. There’s no doubt that they should have come to these conclusions a good few years ago. Even though England’s summers fall a little short of tropical, there was never any need to have the heating on in June. But it’s a welcome step forward all the same. The fancy additions to the number 26 may be a prequel to next year’s unveiling of Boris’s ‘New Bus for London’. If so, the new generation of London’s iconic double-deckers will be on par with a first-class flight. The only things missing will be the hot towels and barf bags.

For those of you who don’t need to travel from Waterloo to Hackney Wick via Hackney Road, it seems that you’ve not been so lucky. Despite doing some digging on TFL, and taking numerous other buses around town, as yet I’ve not managed to find another bus to rival this one, and as per usual I’ve arrived at my destination spitting profanities and baring teeth. Seems this comfortable commute phenomenon is confined to Hackney – fine by me! Now they’ve just  got to sort out the toe tappers, halitosis sufferers and that guy that sits at the front with his hand down his trousers, and the 26 will be perfect. Think you can tackle that one for me Boris?

Image by tyo courtesy of Flickr