Bøker av Matthew Wharmby

After the successful six-year production run of its B7TL low-floor double-decker had been curtailed in London by increasing noise problems, Volvo developed a leaner and quieter update which it dubbed the B9TL, and orders resumed in strength.

When London Buses LtdâEUR(TM)s subsidiary companies were privatised in 1994, northwest London-based Metroline passed to its management. The company promptly took over Atlas Bus in 1995 and then n doubling its size in 1998 with the acquisition of neighbouring MTL London. A new livery of red with a deep blue skirt set Metroline apart from its rivals, and in 2000 a powerful but unusually hands-off patron was secured with the companyâEUR(TM)s sale to Delgro (later ComfortDelgro) of Singapore. Since then, Metroline has held its own as a dependable TfL contractor, continuing to expand with the acquisition of Thorpes and Armchair in 2004 and pulling off an even bigger coup in 2013 when First LondonâEUR(TM)s western portfolio was acquired as Metroline West. In terms of vehicles, the London Transport inheritance had all gone by 2004 and low-floor purchases moved to hybrids, including Borismasters, and now to electric buses. With over 250 colour pictures, this book is the first of a new series that explores the major corporate London bus operators that have arisen in the quarter-century since the privatisation of London Buses Ltd. Included are details of takeovers, reorganisations, vehicle comings and goings and the kind of unpredictable but wholesale changes that fascinate enthusiasts.

In this photographic archive, each company's last Routemaster-operating decade is outlined in detail up to when each route was converted to OPO one by one between 29 August 2003 and 9 December 2005.

This book explores what used to be the old London Transport's highest-numbered block of routes. It shows a potted history of each route accompanied by a list of points served and one or two pictures of the kind of bus that can be found in service today. With over 190 photos, this book presents an up-to-date snapshot of the London bus scene in 2021.

This fifth and final London bus route volume looks at the route numbers with letter prefixes. A potted history of the routes and their details are accompanied by up-to-date photos showing the buses on each route. With over 190 photos, this volume is an up-to-date snapshot of the modern London bus scene as it stands as of the latter half of 2021.

London Transport 1970-84 covers the declining years of London's bus operations, during which the venerable RT and Routemaster types were compelled to give way to modern buses. These enjoyed less success, however. In this book, 120 stunning color images are accompanied by informative captions, giving the full picture of this time of huge change.

Good Photographic Coverage, In depth Historical Text, New Factual Information, Useful to Modellers, Good Technical Information

Mainstay of London Buses Ltd's fleet into the 1990s, London's MCW Metrobus fleet of M class remained almost completely intact by the time of privatisation in the autumn of 1994.