Dual Door Buses

[Falcon1200]

Yes indeed, for example here in Oxford, Oxford Bus Company routes City 2/2A/2B, 3/3A, 5, 8/9, BrookesBus U1 and U5 could benefit from dual doors as they get extremely busy, even if the majority of these are just basically town centre to suburb routes.

Woodstock Road, Marston Road, Abingdon Road and Botley Road routes don't tend to get busy, so they work fine with single doors

Dual door buses would be handy for the X3 (Abingdon-JR-Barton) route, given the time I've had to wait at St Aldates for hordes to alight before boarding !

Oxford Bus Company has operated dual-door at times in the past, it'd be interesting to know why they moved away from it.

In the 70s they had just under 50 dual-door Fleetlines (but many single-door double deckers also). I remember them well !

 

[SouthEastBuses]

Dual door buses would be handy for the X3 (Abingdon-JR-Barton) route, given the time I've had to wait at St Aldates for hordes to alight before boarding !




In the 70s they had just under 50 dual-door Fleetlines (but many single-door double deckers also). I remember them well !

Completely forgot about the X3. The one time I rode the full length from Abingdon to Barton, it got extremely busy. Yes, X3 also would benefit from dual doors. I'd also add the 15

Never been on the 6, 13 and 35 yet so I don't have an opinion, but 4 can work fine with single doors as it doesn't get used a lot, not to mention it's mostly rural so you're more likely to find people doing long journeys - so you'd want to provide as many seats as possible.

 

[Falcon1200]

Completely forgot about the X3. The one time I rode the full length from Abingdon to Barton, it got extremely busy. Yes, X3 also would benefit from dual doors. I'd also add the 15

Never been on the 6, 13 and 35 yet so I don't have an opinion, but 4 can work fine with single doors as it doesn't get used a lot, not to mention it's mostly rural so you're more likely to find people doing long journeys - so you'd want to provide as many seats as possible.

The 13 is fine with single doors, most folk alight and board in the city centre. I'm in the minority going through to the station !

 

[DEFarnes]

Kingston is nose in

The buses mostly go in empty, having alighted passengers at the "street" side of the station. The bays are only for the buses that start their journey from the station. There is a dedicated bay for wheelchair entrance as I assume ramps can't be used in the normal bays, never seen its use so not sure how much faff it is or the proceedure.

 

[TravelDream]

I'm surprised nobody has tried the bus gates that are in use in parts of Russia.
Not sure how it helps with the second door though as that is ungated.
(Image below shows the interior of a bus with turnstile equipment)

 

[Bletchleyite]

First Manchester's artics in the late 90s had a "one way gate" type thing on the rear doors (which are I believe legally mandatory on artics, else I'm sure they'd have specced them out). Many older American buses sort of have it too in that the rear doors aren't automatic, rather they are just locked by the driver and you push them outwards to exit with them springing shut behind you.

The obvious problem with having them at the entrance is that it would prevent wheelchair users getting in.

 

[Non Multi]

I'm surprised nobody has tried the bus gates that are in use in parts of Russia.
Not sure how it helps with the second door though as that is ungated.

AEC Merlins on London 'Red Arrow' routes were fitted with turnstiles decades ago, IIRC they weren't a success.

 

[RT4038]

AEC Merlins on London 'Red Arrow' routes were fitted with turnstiles decades ago, IIRC they weren't a success.

I think that was more due to the technical limitations of the turnstiles at that time (c1966) rather than the concept as such.

 

[SouthEastBuses]

I'm surprised nobody has tried the bus gates that are in use in parts of Russia.
Not sure how it helps with the second door though as that is ungated.

Rome, Italy trialled this on two of their Citaros on route 669.

 

[JonathanH]

Reading ran OPO, single deck, dual door buses from 1958, well into the 70s

Indeed, the last REs weren't withdrawn from the last service to operate them, the 40 to Earley and Woodley until 1982. They were retained because of the low bridge under the railway line on Loddon Bridge Road.

(They really were horrible buses though in my opinion - reputation as a cattle truck and cold in winter - I think they finished on my then local routes to Caversham Heights when I was about 4.)

However, their withdrawal did lead to complaints from residents in newspapers about the extra weight of double deck buses on otherwise quiet residential roads - eg Silverdale Road in Earley.

For a time following their withdrawal in the early 1980s, Reading had a wholly dual door, double deck fleet other than some coaches for Goldline work.

 

[TravelDream]

AEC Merlins on London 'Red Arrow' routes were fitted with turnstiles decades ago, IIRC they weren't a success.

I stand corrected.
TBF in Moscow I don't think they are much of a success in dettering fare evaders which was their purpose.

 

[SouthEastBuses]

I stand corrected.
TBF in Moscow I don't think they are much of a success in dettering fare evaders which was their purpose.

IIRC they weren't successful in Rome either.

 

[dm1]

I stand corrected.
TBF in Moscow I don't think they are much of a success in dettering fare evaders which was their purpose.

They have since been removed and replaced with validators at all doors, in order to speed up dwell times. They slowed boarding down considerably (albeit still much faster than cash transactions with the driver).

 

[TravelDream]

They have since been removed and replaced with validators at all doors, in order to speed up dwell times. They slowed boarding down considerably (albeit still much faster than cash transactions with the driver).

Are you talking about Moscow?
I thought they'd replaced conductors which are still in place in most of Russia. I've never been on a Russian bus or tram where you pay the driver other than private minibuses (marshutkas).

 

[dm1]

Are you talking about Moscow?
I thought they'd replaced conductors which are still in place in most of Russia. I've never been on a Russian bus or tram where you pay the driver other than private minibuses (marshutkas).

The buses in Moscow have not had a conductor for a long time

The cash transactions with the driver was referring to the UK.

 

[Mat17]

The original post made me think. I remember travelling on dual door buses around Sheffield with some frequency in the late 80s/early 90s, be this the 'bendy buses' as the articulated vehicles were known or the old Atlantean/Fleetline types. Then they all disappeared (without me really noticing tbh). After over a decade of not seeing them, I boarded a Powell's bus service which was a dual door Olympian (I think), and remember quite clearly that a fair few passengers seemed to be confused where to board and alight. That made me wonder had it really been that long since they were a common sight.

The weird thing for me alighting at the centre door for the first time since my youth was not saying thank you to the driver. That felt just wrong on every level.

 

[Deerfold]

The weird thing for me alighting at the centre door for the first time since my youth was not saying thank you to the driver. That felt just wrong on every level.

You just need to be a bit louder.

 

[Bletchleyite]

You just need to be a bit louder.

A quick wave towards the wing mirror is how I do it in London.

 

[TheGrandWazoo]

The original post made me think. I remember travelling on dual door buses around Sheffield with some frequency in the late 80s/early 90s, be this the 'bendy buses' as the articulated vehicles were known or the old Atlantean/Fleetline types. Then they all disappeared (without me really noticing tbh). After over a decade of not seeing them, I boarded a Powell's bus service which was a dual door Olympian (I think), and remember quite clearly that a fair few passengers seemed to be confused where to board and alight. That made me wonder had it really been that long since they were a common sight.

The weird thing for me alighting at the centre door for the first time since my youth was not saying thank you to the driver. That felt just wrong on every level.

There’s a lot of cities that haven’t seen dual doors in regular operations for many years. Newcastle must be 40 years save for the odd ex London one pending single door conversions and a few bendis

 

[Snow1964]

A quick wave towards the wing mirror is how I do it in London.

New London buses don’t even have wing mirrors, there are small cameras with screens in the cab

 

[Geordie driver]

There’s a lot of cities that haven’t seen dual doors in regular operations for many years. Newcastle must be 40 years save for the odd ex London one pending single door conversions and a few bendis

I know this will get a load " well other areas manage it" replies, but we were dead set against dual doors due to passengers getting caught in them, unless you have driven a bus people have no idea how poor the views in the mirrors can be. They tried to get us to use ex London MCWs with dual doors and we refused point blank.

 

[WAB]

I know this will get a load " well other areas manage it" replies, but we were dead set against dual doors due to passengers getting caught in them, unless you have driven a bus people have no idea how poor the views in the mirrors can be. They tried to get us to use ex London MCWs with dual doors and we refused point blank.

Nowadays, cameras, sliding doors and sensitive door edges must mitigate that concern?

 

[Bletchleyite]

New London buses don’t even have wing mirrors, there are small cameras with screens in the cab

Wave at that, then! They are looking at the doors to close them so they will see it.

 

[Geordie driver]

Nowadays, cameras, sliding doors and sensitive door edges must mitigate that concern?

Indeed, but I can't see any company who is going to use them up here as so much infrastructure would need changing.

I was just referring to TGWs point of them not being used in Newcastle for a long time.