Serves me right for using a bus

[Baffled Spoon]

I had to go into London yesterday and needed to use a bus for the first time in years. Moving off from a bus stop, the bus broke down. It stalled several times whenever it was started, and after a few attempts, the driver started it and just put his foot flat on the accelerator pedal and kept the bus on max rpm for a good 5 minutes. After this (having belched out masses of smoke), the bus seemed to work fine again.

What the hell was wrong with it? Some sort of exhaust regeneration thing? Italian tune up? Just curious...

[CraigyMc]

I'd answer but as you're clearly some sort of eco-mentalist I'd rather not.

I mean... a bus ?

C


(could it have been recharging a battery/air supply?)

[The Nur]

Sounds like an Italian tune-up to me

[chunkol]

Maybe his air brakes had a leak

[Monkeylegend]

His bus has a sensor linked to the gearbox which is read at every bus stop and doesn't allow the bus to leave early. It requires them to rev the bus at max revs at standstill until they are at their scheduled departure time.This then re-engages the gearbox and off you go.

This enables LFT to maximise passenger no's and increase revenue, which more than offsets the cost of diesel used during the rev up "spare time". It encourages drivers to slow down in order to not get ahead of their timetable. Revving at max revs makes it easier for Inspectors to identify buses that are not adhering to their timetables, so that disciplinary action can be taken with the driver.

[scotty_d]

I too hate Scum shuttles

[KaraK]

The "breakdown" and rev-hard combo is there to make sure that as many passers by as possible notice the bus in order to maximise the embarrassment of the people who are then seen actually on a bus.

I might be making this up

[Monkeylegend]

KaraK said:

The "breakdown" and rev-hard combo is there to make sure that as many passers by as possible notice the bus in order to maximise the embarrassment of the people who are then seen actually on a bus.

I might be making this up

Well I didn't make mine up, shame on you

[KaraK]

Monkeylegend said:

KaraK said:

The "breakdown" and rev-hard combo is there to make sure that as many passers by as possible notice the bus in order to maximise the embarrassment of the people who are then seen actually on a bus.

I might be making this up

Well I didn't make mine up, shame on you

I'm a scamp me.

[Petrolhead_Rich]

Baffled Spoon said:

I had to go into London yesterday and needed to use a bus for the first time in years. Moving off from a bus stop, the bus broke down. It stalled several times whenever it was started, and after a few attempts, the driver started it and just put his foot flat on the accelerator pedal and kept the bus on max rpm for a good 5 minutes. After this (having belched out masses of smoke), the bus seemed to work fine again.

What the hell was wrong with it? Some sort of exhaust regeneration thing? Italian tune up? Just curious...

It's fked! HTH

It's a bus, it spends all it's time being driven with no mechanical sympathy by drivers who don't really care, full of passengers that graffiti it, piss on it, vomit on it and pull it apart, with the occasional hijack and driving into lamp-posts during mass burglary sessions, Suicide Bomb attacks and torching during riot's.

On a good day it's half full of students/left wing hippies!

[adds "Baffled Spoon" to list of people who use public transport and will be shot come the revolution....]

[weeredmetro]

It sounds like it had low air pressure. Revving the engine drives the compressor faster so it takes less time to build the air up.

Modern buses have so many interlocks that you can get stupid things like Low Air Pressure = Doors Not Properly Shut -> Door Sensor cuts ignition if bus moves.

[Baffled Spoon]

Petrolhead_Rich said:

[adds "Baffled Spoon" to list of people who use public transport and will be shot come the revolution....]

Oi! It was either a case of risking my car being set upon by rioters, or using the bus. I chose to put the bus in the firing line, although it clearly needed no external help to imobilise itself

[Baffled Spoon]

Monkeylegend said:

His bus has a sensor linked to the gearbox which is read at every bus stop and doesn't allow the bus to leave early. It requires them to rev the bus at max revs at standstill until they are at their scheduled departure time.This then re-engages the gearbox and off you go.

This enables LFT to maximise passenger no's and increase revenue, which more than offsets the cost of diesel used during the rev up "spare time". It encourages drivers to slow down in order to not get ahead of their timetable. Revving at max revs makes it easier for Inspectors to identify buses that are not adhering to their timetables, so that disciplinary action can be taken with the driver.

Really? That is the stupidest thing I have ever heard. No wonder it's installed on a bus then

[slipstream 1985]

duh he's building up speed fred flintstone style

[Timberwolf]

That's the thing about the bus. I view it not as something that will get me somewhere (at least, not any faster than I can walk there) but as something likely to provide at least one amusing or unusual incident while possibly - but by no means definitely - leaving me in a different place to the one I started at.

Favourites include:

• Bus running slightly late and thus on a truncated route with a leery old bloke on it who kept threatening to get off at every stop. Eventually times it wrong and gets clouted by the door, cue massive argument with the bus driver about not getting in the doors when the alarm is sounding amid much, "I'm going to report you to TfL, I am" huffing.
• Spanish tourist who, despite reassurances of other passengers, is convinced she is on the wrong bus. Every time it turns down a different road she unleashes a torrent of shouting on her husband/boyfriend in the next seat, which while I don't know more than about three words of Spanish sounded like a combination of blind panic and invective against him daring to pick that bus.
• Being on a bus during a shift change. Driver getting off says to the driver getting on, "if it starts pouring out smoke don't worry, it did that this morning."
• Bus with an interesting (one assumes nicely waterfowled) autobox that on each gearchange involved the engine revving freely for a couple of seconds, before dropping in to gear with a massive clunk.

[billzeebub]

bus wkers..