Remembrance Sunday

Brian Everett MBE, President of the
London Transport Old Comrades Association
ahead of Peter Orchard, Wreath Layer,
and the TfL contingent formed up
ready to march off.

Last Sunday it was my immense privilege to lead the London Transport Old Comrades as they undertook their traditional annual duty to pay their respects to those London Transport staff who gave their lives in active service.

The veterans are welcomed to 55 Broadway for breakfast early on Sunday morning. Not all are able to march but can watch the whole service on a large screen in our Board Room (in the company of portraits of our founders Lord Ashfield and Frank Pick). Those who are able go to the briefing before assembling in the foyer for photographs.

Peter Orchard, a former Navy man who served on HMS Antrim during the Falklands conflict, was our wreath layer. Peter works for me in Surface Transport in East London as an Area Manager.

At precisely 1015 those who are marching assemble in Queen Anne's Gate and are called to order by Bob Lawrence, former Emergency Planning Manager at London Underground. With the veterans called to attention I am required to address them and finally, in a carefully choreographed military fashion, give permission for them to march off to the Cenotaph.

The right to march past the Cenotaph was granted to the London General Omnibus Company in 1917 by King George V. Some 900 buses and their drivers were requisitioned to drive troops to the front in World War 1 and bring back the wounded. This was astonishingly dangerous and the drivers were reputedly 'volunteered' without choice. In recognition of their bravery the King bestowed the right to march and so the LGOC became the only civilian organisation able to do so. This right transferred through London Transport and to TfL.

On return the veterans march back to Queen Anne's Gate where I receive them. Once again Bob Lawrence approaches, announces that the men have completed their duty, and asks me for permission for them to be dismissed, which of course, I give.

All are then reunited for lunch at 55 Broadway and an afternoon of old friendships, reminiscences, and reflection.

Until next year....


....

Lord Mayor's Show

Today, as Vice President of the London Bus Museum, I was invited to take part in the Lord Mayor's Show - a 477 year old tradition celebrating the annual appointment of the Lord Mayor of London.

My hosts had both horse and motor bus participation and I was pleased to be aboard Dennis D142, dating from 1925, for a number of reasons.

It was rescued from otherwise certain extinction by the late Prince Marshall with whom I worked in the late 1970s. Having been expertly restored it had been as far afield as Japan on promotional visits and after the London Transport Museum opened in 1980 it ran from time to time on a special Vintage Bus Route 100 from Covent Garden. The only remaining vestige of that service is the old bus stop post (but not flag) in Wellington Street.

In fact I drove it myself in the Lord Mayor's Show in 1980 with the Chelsea Pensioners aboard so today's trip was a significant piece of nostalgia for me.

D142 is now resident at the London Bus Museum at Brooklands. It stayed overnight at Bow Garage before being on point at London Wall at 0730. For the parade the Worshipful Company of Tallow Chandlers in their blue and white regalia were aboard. We followed their Master and guests in open vintage cars and we ourselves were followed by the Three-Light Horse Bus from the Museum led by Tony Drewitt.

The early morning rain faded, and very soon we were ready to move. D142 demonstrated the same shyness in getting started as she did to me 32 years ago, giving the team and the Pageant Master one heart-stopping moment. But soon we were underway and beautifully captured by the live BBC television coverage as we passed Mansion House.

It was over too quickly and before long we were at the lunch stop by Temple, followed by a trouble-free return.

As ever the thousands of smiling faces said it all as Londoners and visitors saw modern and ancient vehicles, from civilian life and the military, parade through the City of London.

....

Euro Bus Expo 2012

The new Optare MetroCity for London
Photo: Stuart Jones Bus and Coach Buyer

It only seems yesterday we were bathed in the heat of summer in the Olympic Park. Now it is mid-November, the nights are long, which must mean our  annual expedition to Birmingham for the industry's trade show at NEC Birmingham.

There are in fact two different shows both occurring every two years. This one was the Euro Bus Expo and lasted over three days.

Our New Bus for London was there - LT3 looking resplendent despite already having several months' daily service under its belt. ADL and Optare showed their latest wares, as did all the other major manufacturers.

Technology continues to make great strides; the latest hybrid and electric vehicles demonstrate how far things have come in the past few years. Transport Minister Norman Baker announced a further £20m Green Bus Fund, again demonstrating Government determination to get the volumes of ultra-low emission vehicles up and unit costs down.

Science is also delivering assistance in many other areas of the industry. These include systems to improve engineering and operating efficiency, vehicle tracking, and fuel economy.

I was impressed with the Optare MetroCity on display for London operation. This 10.6m single-decker is designed for urban bus conditions, is light, which allows a capacity of 60 passengers, and at long last allows a rear window - a feature missing from this particular manufacturer's products for some time.

Optare already has a number of full, size electric vehicles in operation - so far with good results - and in a design where the vehicle requires very little modification regardless of the power plant, be that diesel, hybrid or EV.

So an optimistic show in tough economic conditions. The industry is trying hard for sure.

...

Poppy Day

We are supporting even more vigorously than usual Poppy Day 2012, recognising those who have given their lives for this country. We do so especially given the great contribution by the military to the London 2012 Olympic Games.

There are buses, trains and locations promoting the poppies and in an event this past week on Trafalgar Square HRH Prince Charles demonstrated the value of hopping on and off - in this case RM1005 owned by Commissioner for Transport for London Peter Hendy.


...

The veterans

Ian Aitchenson tells me about his military service
and long career on the buses

On Friday I was delighted to join some of London Transport's war veterans to launch our two buses adorned with poppies for the Royal British Legion.

Together with an Overground and Circle Line train these buses are designed to raise awareness of the sacrifices made by London's service men and women. We are also launching the Veteran Oyster photo cards and decorating some bus shelters too.

London Transport is the only civilian organisation permitted to march past the Cenotaph on Remembrance Day. It was granted by King George V in 1920 in recognition of the services to the country of bus staff who drove buses to the front line in France in 1915.

Each year the London Transport Old Comrades do so remembering the 1500 staff who died in World War 1, the 3000 who died in World War II, and others subsequently.

It was a great privilege today to meet several old and not so old veterans in Whitehall where we launched and then took a ride on one of the two Stagecoach vehicles which will now run in service for the next few weeks.

I talked to Elsie Davies, who is now 94, a former conductress who was one of 11,000 women recruited during the early months of the war. I also talked to Ian Aitchenson who proudly showed me a photograph of himself in Germany on the last day of World War II in 1945. Ian was a driver at Walworth and Camberwell, finishing his career on the Original London Sightseeing Tour from Wandsworth eventually being the sole driver and guardian of Routemaster ERM242 which over time was gradually polished and smartened up. He was sad to end his driving career even though well into his 70s but as a Scotsman proud to know his particular bus ended up in Edinburgh.

The next time we see them will be with very many other colleagues as they march past the Cenotaph in a couple of Sundays time, as we take a moment to remember all those who have given the ultimate sacrifice for their country.

Representatives of road and rail London Transport
staff launch our poppy buses and trains

....

Kenny Martin MBE

My diary for Friday certainly had Night Network Traffic Controller Kenny Martin's investiture at Buckingham Palace in it but the day turned out rather differently than I expected.

Along with Arriva's Peter Middleton, Kenny was awarded the MBE in the Queen's Birthday Honours following his heroic actions at the height of the disturbances last August.

He was deployed to the Brixton area shortly before events there escalated. Despite his own vehicle coming under attack, he continued to assist passengers and bus drivers helping to get them to safety. Kenny also then went out to recover a number of abandoned buses in the area returning them to garages. This prevented them from being damaged in the street and as a result the number of bus 'casualties' was amazingly small.

As a complete surprise Kenny's friends, colleagues and family (some from overseas!) arrived unannounced at Buckingham Palace aboard L1 - the first Leyland Olympian in the London Transport fleet nearly 30 years ago and now preserved by Neil Bird.

Neil instantly offered me the chance to drive L1 and so we arrived at the Palace as Kenny was finishing his interview for BBC TV News. Once he had recovered from the surprises (several at once - the bus, the destination blinds, the passengers and me!) the film crew recorded him celebrating aboard the bus and this was later broadcast on the evening local news.

The rain did not dampen anyone's spirits and we were even tolerated by a lone policeman when we ventured a little closer to Buckingham Palace than he would have liked.

A memorable day for Kenny Martin MBE which he won't forget and a good reminder of the dedication of our team who face unexpected challenges every day.

...

Far East

Singapore's Gardens by the Bay

I am sorry to all my followers that you've heard so little from me of late. Suffice to say it has just been really busy in the post-Olympics period as we now focus on the Mayor's manifesto commitments and we wrap up all the Olympics learning and document it for the future. This is not just about future Games but all major events that we might get involved in.

There is a huge thirst for information about the Olympic Games and I am just back from Singapore where I was delighted to be the keynote speaker at a conference hosted by the Land Transport Authority. Singapore is of course a fitting place to start as this is where the IOC elected London as the 2012 host city back in 2005.

Nor surprisingly Singapore has many of the challenges we face in London. A growing population and demand for transport. Major rail projects underway but some time yet to coming on stream and a need to cope with the requirements in the meantime, all, of course subject to differing political opinion as to how it should be achieved and paid for.

It is some 15 years since I was there: it was a periodic stopover when I commuted to Hong Kong for Board meetings when my company was owned by the Chinese. Since then more land reclamation, significant new development, and the corresponding rise in demand. Singapore also boasts a congestion charging scheme which predates London by many years and is highly automated and dynamic.

Electronic Road Pricing in action

Audiences are very interested in the Olympic legacy - not just the physical infrastructure such as the DLR extension and Stratford International station - but the learning. Our Travel Demand Management demonstrated that we can achieve behavioural change by properly targeting our audience and this shows much promise for the future.

Similarly, for the first time, we properly addressed freight issues. Freight occupies 25% of Central London's roadspace. Freight competes with public transport for kerbside space, carriageway space; it is licensed by the same Traffic Commissioner and the vehicles are built and powered by the same manufacturers. Yet for too long the industries merely stared at each other over an unspoken divide. The Games has helped us realise in the future we will have to work much more collaboratively and, I am delighted to say, the freight industry has taken up these opportunities very enthusiastically.

I have no doubt that whilst we won't have anything to match the Olympic Games, our 2013 will be hugely challenging and exciting!

....