Instruct: Given a question, retrieve passages that can help answer the question.
Query: When was the double-decker bus invented?
The first commercial horse-drawn double-decker omnibuses were introduced in England in 1847 by Adams & Co. of Fairfield, Bow, then improved upon by John Greenwood, who introduced a new double-decker in 1852.[2]
Double-decker buses are common in long distance interurban trips. Open top double-decker are used in city-tours. On 9 March 2017, the British Embassy in Chile made a deal with the Public Transport Ministry in Santiago to try double-deckers for public transport.[67] On that day the first bus was tested on Santiago roads.
Malaysia has historically seen the use of double-decker buses in mass transit to varying degrees, but were significantly limited in use due operational costs and driving spaces needed for such buses. Early double-decker municipal buses primarily existed in Malaya within the Kuala Lumpur area of Selangor and George Town, Penang between the late 1940s and the early 1960s, when double-deckers were eventually withdrawn in favour of cheaper and more agile single-deck buses.
A single-decker bus or single-decker is a bus that has a single deck for passengers. Normally the use of the term "single-decker" refers to a standard two-axled rigid bus, in direct contrast to the use of the term double-decker bus, which is essentially a bus with two passengers decks and a staircase. These types of single-deckers may feature one or more doors, and varying internal combustion engine positions.
A single double-decker bus arrived in Auckland in early March 2013 for a trial, with more planned to arrive in 2014 if the trial proved successful. The Scania K320UD bus, operated by Ritchies Transport, began revenue service on 11 March 2013 on the well-patronised Northern Express services on the Northern Busway between Albany and Britomart in downtown Auckland.[62] In addition, NZ Bus and Howick & Eastern investigated the use of double-decker buses on the Dominion Road, Mount Eden Road, and Botany to downtown routes.[63] By May 2016, double deckers were running on the busway and on many other Auckland urban routes, operated by several companies, with more to be introduced.[64]
Other than the capital Jakarta, there are some cities in Indonesia that have operated double-decker buses, mostly as city sightseeing tour service. They are Bandung and Surakarta.[27][28] The Bandros is a double-decker tourist bus operating in Bandung since 2014.[29]
The double decker bus was also a star in a Saturday morning TV series titled Here Come the Double Deckers in the 1970s.[85]
By the early 2000s, the PPD has shifted their bus fleet from European built double-decker buses to cheaper second-hand Japanese buses and imported articulated buses from China. By that time, the double-decker seems to be lost in favour of articulated bus, which provides more exit and entry points to accommodate faster embarkment. By 2004 the TransJakarta bus rapid transit began its service in Jakarta, but uses no double-decker bus and chosen conventional and articulated buses instead.
A double-decker bus is a bus that has two storeys or decks. Double-decker buses are used for mass transport in the United Kingdom, Europe, Asia and many former European possessions, the most iconic example being the red London bus.
In the 1950s, double-decker buses of the South Western Bus Company plied on the Galle Road in Colombo, Sri Lanka. These were taken over by the Ceylon Transport Board (CTB) when all bus services were nationalised in 1958. Beginning around 1959, large numbers of second-hand double-decker buses of the RT, RTL and RTW classes were imported by the CTB from London Transport, and ran in their original red livery with the oval CTB logo painted on the sides. These buses were phased out beginning in the mid-1970s, and none remain in service. Later, around 1985, 40 ex-London Routemaster entered service. One Routemaster bus is run by the Sirasa TV and radio station.
The Metro Manila double-decker bus was employed in the 1980s on the EDSA highway. The model most used was the Leyland Atlantean, a double-decker bus chassis manufactured by Leyland between 1958 and 1986. Leyland pioneered the design of rear-engined, front entrance double deck buses in the United Kingdom, allowing for the introduction of one-man operation buses, dispensing with the need for a conductor.
On July 1, 2016, the first double-decker electric buses entered service in Beijing on Route 观光3, a tourist route that runs from the Summer Palace to the north gate of the Forbidden City. In February 2017, the first double-decker electric buses for a standard route were introduced to Bus 44. The electric double-decker bus has 70 seats and can carry 100 passengers. By March 2017, the electric double decker fleet had expanded to 10 bus routes: 13, 44, 55, 121, 425, 510, 569, 专6, 专8 and 特12. Later that same year, route 10 also started running Yinlong double-decker EVs. In January 2018, Huairou bus H64 was converted to double-decker electric buses.
Woodlands Regional Bus Interchange was the first underground interchange in Singapore to accommodate articulated buses and double decker buses. Double deckers made their debut appearance in 19 February 1996 as an off-service SBS bus, one of which it is a Leyland Olympian 2-Axle and Mercedes-Benz O305 double deckers.
Singapore Bus Service, now known as SBS Transit (SBST), was for many years the only operator of double-decker buses in Singapore, launched its first double-decker bus service on 13 June 1977 with 20 Leyland Atlanteans running on service 86 and launched by then-Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Communications Ong Teng Cheong The fleet grew steadily, with the further introduction of the Mercedes-Benz O305 and the Leyland Olympian in 1993, the latter being the first air-conditioned double-decker bus and the longest bus to date at 12 metres (39ft 41⁄2in) in length, leading to its nickname of "Superbus". The Volvo B10TL, the first stepless, ultra-low-floor "Superbus" was launched in 1999. Volvo B9TL wheelchair-accessible buses began to be introduced in 2006, by 2014, SBST had over 1631 of these buses in service.
In the film Summer Holiday, Cliff Richard and friends drive a double-decker bus fitted out as a caravan across Europe.[81] The popular British sitcom On the Buses featured double deckers, driven by Stan Butler (portrayed by Reg Varney). In Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, the aforementioned Knight Bus is a triple-decker bus which can fit under bridges due to magic.
The Wright StreetAir EV DF was revealed in August 2016 as the replacement for the Wright Electrocity. It is available in two main variants: a single-decker bus variant, and a double-decker bus variant. Both are based on an all-electric version of the Wright StreetDeck integral double-decker bus. The StreetAir EV DF is available in a single 10.6m length weighing 18 tonnes. The body design of the single-decker bus variant is based on the Wright Eclipse 3, while the body design of the double-decker bus variant is based on the StreetDeck. Both variants are available with electricity conduction via overnight (plug-in), inductive (through the road surface) or conductive (with a pantograph) methods.
There have been a significant number of incidents in which a double-decker bus has collided with a low bridge, often a railway bridge. This is often caused by the driver making a wrong turn, driving a route they are unfamiliar with, or being used to driving single-decker buses and forgetting to allow for their vehicle's extra height when driving a double-decker.
A double decker bus was featured on an episode of Doctor Who.
Kerala State Road Transport Corporation is operating double deckers in Thiruvananthapuram and Kochi cities. Kolkata and also has double-decker buses. They are modelled on the London buses. Ashok Leyland Titan double decker buses are used in all cities. Articulated double-decker buses from Ashok Leyland were used till they were phased out in the early 1990s as they were thought to be unsuitable for city traffic. Recently in Kolkata, CSTC reintroduced double decker bus with music system on selected routes where wide road space was available, i.e. no over-head cables, low bridges or flyovers. CSTC has spent 1 million INR to renovate 1 bus. Today, double deckers exist only in Mumbai, Vadodara, Kolkata, Kochi and Thiruvananthapuram.
Indonesia first operated its double-decker bus fleet in 1968, with Leyland Titan double-decker bus first operated in Jakarta. The double-decker bus service linked Salemba in Central Jakarta with Blok M area in South Jakarta from 1968 to 1982.[22] Between 1984 and 1996, the Jakarta municipal bus service, Perusahaan Umum Pengangkutan Penumpang Djakarta (Perum PPD) operated a fleet of 180 Volvo B55 double-decker buses, connecting various corners in the city.
The Dennis Falcon was a rear-engined single-decker bus, double-decker bus and coach chassis manufactured by Dennis between 1981 and 1993. It was mostly built as a single-decker bus, although some express coaches and a small number of double-decker buses were also produced. The total number built was 139, plus one development chassis.
The double-decker bus service ceased to operate in 1996 due to aging fleet, lack of spare parts, and there are no plan to renew the double-decker fleet in Jakarta. By that time, the remnant of double-decker bus body were sold and repurposed as bus-themed clothing store in Blok M and restaurant in Senayan (now SCBD) area, but now the establishment has been demolished.[23]
Early double-deckers put the driver in a separate cab. Passenger access was via an open platform at the rear, and a bus conductor would collect fares. Modern double-deckers have a main entrance door at the front, and the driver takes fares, thus halving the number of bus workers aboard, but slowing the boarding process. The rear open platform, popular with passengers, was abandoned for safety reasons, as there was a risk of passengers falling when running and jumping onto the bus.
Following increasing public bus ridership, more open roadways and the feasibility of operating double-deck Hop-On Hop-Off tourist buses within Kuala Lumpur, Prasarana Malaysia purchased 40 (revised from an earlier 111) Alexander Dennis Enviro500 double-decker buses in 2014 to serve high volume Rapid KL Rapid Bus routes; with a capacity of 108 passengers each, it is double that of a contemporary single-deck bus in the fleet. The first five buses of the batch entered service in September 2015; with the rest of the fleet gradually added into service in the following months. Feasibility studies were also conducted by Prasarana Malaysia on the reintroduction of double-deckers in Penang through Rapid Penang's bus service in 2015.[31]
Bus Éireann also utilises double-decker buses on some of its commuter routes, such as the Dublin to Dundalk service. Double-deckers are also common on some of the company's suburban routes in Cork city. More luxurious Double-Deckers are used on Intercity Routes like the XI Dublin-Belfast Route or X3/X4 Dublin-Derry route.