ABOUT THE BUS

The Red Bus (RM1353) is a 1962 AEC Routemaster, registration 353 CLT. It worked from garages in south London for 25 years, operating on routes including the 88 from Tooting to Acton via Marble Arch and Notting Hill Gate. Withdrawn from service in 1987, it has been kept in tip-top shape ever since by preservationists. Sam and Clunie Phipps bought the bus in October 2007 to bring it back to life for passengers. Now it is the only one of its kind in Edinburgh.

Routemasters were first introduced to London in 1956. They used aircraft construction techniques applied in World War II, notably a lightweight aluminium body and hydraulic brakes. They also featured power steering, independent front suspension and automatic transmission, giving the smoothest of rides.

A total of 2,876 were built with many variants, production ceasing in 1968. In the late 1980s several ran in Glasgow under Clydeside Scottish. They were in regular service in London right until 2005 and a few ‘heritage’ routes still operate in the centre of the city.