London Banter - View Single Post

[email protected] · December 1st 08, 11:57 PM posted to uk.transport.london

In article ,
(Colin McKenzie) wrote:

wrote:
In article ,
(Adrian) wrote:

An RM is about 7.5t ULW.
A Citaro bendy is about 18t ULW.

Actually, an RML (nearer in capacity to a bendy and not
appreciably different from a modern double-decker) is 8.25 tons
ULW. You only get a 64-seater RM for 7.5 tons.

Difference between tonne and ton? RMLs were always labelled as
7t15cwt - so your figure is high unless the replacement engines
were half a ton heavier than the originals. RMs were 7t5wt.

RMLs are definitely over 8 tonnes now. Now I think of it, it was RMs that
were 7 tons 15 cwt.

And the RM is as rigid a bus as has ever been produced.

I suspect a big part of the reason why modern buses are so heavy is
that the low floor requirement means you have to put in more metal
to get the same rigidity (because it can't be in the most
weight-efficient places).

A front engine, front entrance (behind the front wheel) Borismaster
might be able to be lighter than any existing low-floor bus,
especially if it didn't have a driveshaft to the back wheels.

The solidity of the Routemaster is in the frame, I agree.

--
Colin Rosenstiel