Q London pics
Fsurv_londonps1
RED BUS
Checked out the bus sign at curb. It is not a bus [stop] sign but rather a bus [stand] sign.
Sign in Q photo matches sign found at that location in spring/summer 2014. Post 2012 and pre 2015.
Bus [stand] confirmed by painted sign on road surface.
So this confirmed the specific location and seemingly narrows the time frame within which the Q pic was taken.
The bus is a double decker – almost a cliche – the model is RML (Routemaster Lengthened. See the square shaped window in top row. That is telltale for the L version of the RM. These were withdrawn from service by the transit authority (Transit for London, TfL) and replaced with modern buses.
The RML had an open platform, or entrance, at the rear. The driver sat in a half-cab upfront and concentrated on driving and had little, if anything, to do with passengers. A 2nd person serves as conductor and stood at the back opening to collect fares and to provide assistance to passengers. Also to let driver know when to pull over and when to pull out and so forth – used a bell sounded with the push of a button on the wall.
So the RML was a two-man operation. Included a conductor. Multiple meanings - think orchestra and the Maestro, or Master, the Director.
A bus stop has required stops where passengers wait and the bus must pull over to allow them to embark and alight. Between stops the conductor might ring the bell for the driver to make a special stop at a passenger's request. Or passengers could hop on / hop off because the platform was open and no door needed to be worked. This was considered an advantage on busy routes.
But a bus stand served differently. It was a place to park the bus. Note that the sign at issue this location, in the Q pic, instructed the driver to switch off the engine whilst on the stand. A stand might be a place to switch drivers (different shifts and so forth) or to change the conductor. Or to sync back with the normal schedule. For short layovers, too.
Here the stand appears to have provided a place for tour guides to sell tickets, collect fares, and otherwise interact with passengers at the curbside. So it served as a place for embarkment and alighting large groups at once – like a tour group on and off for a continuous route with no or few intermittent stops along the way.
Two-man operation. Possible changeover of the driver or of the conductor. Possible adjustment of schedule. Interaction with passengers as a group and such.
Moar …