This famous double-decker London Routemaster bus adorned Gorodetsky Street in Kyiv for almost a quarter of a century. The car was brought back in 1999 by the capital’s architect Leonid Zharikov. At first it housed the Warsteiner Bub, in 2006 a concert box office was opened here, and in recent years the bright red double decker has served as a very cozy cafe.
And then the other day it became known that the legend was leaving. January 13th and 14th were the last working days of the cafe. The bus will be removed from a place that is already difficult to imagine without it. However, do not lose heart ahead of time. The Kyiv Routemaster will most likely find a different location, and in the meantime the car will be slightly updated (repainted, replaced floors) to make it even more attractive.
Let’s remember that Routemaster buses operated on London routes for almost half a century – from 1956 to 2005. Until 1968, 2875 cars were manufactured. A sample from 1965 was presented in Kyiv. This bus was 9 m long and could accommodate 72 passengers.
The Routemaster was innovative in many ways. This is a monocoque aluminum frame-type body from the Park Royal studio, which was installed on the AEC Regent V chassis. The bus also received front independent suspension, power steering, automatic transmission and power brakes.