British Bus Conversion Site - Single vs Double decker

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May 19, 2013, 2:28pm

British Bus Conversion Site :: Vehicles :: Choice of vehicle :: Single vs Double decker

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Topic: Single vs Double decker (Read 3,097 times)

Jonathan
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Single vs Double decker
« Thread Started on Jan 1, 2005, 2:33pm »

The obvious advantage of the double decker is doubling the internal volume. The disadvantages might not appear so obvious.

Main problems with double deck vehicles;

The height of the vehicle need serious planning. Low bridges are easy to plan for as they can be found on truckers maps and a route chosen taking this into account.

TREE's cannot be planned for. Serious damage can be done to the roof and windows of a double decker bus by driving through tree's. It may not seem obvious whilst approaching a tree that it might take a window out or worse rip the corner of the roof off. It is difficult to guage the clearance and impossible to see at night.

There is one particularly bad bus stop in Edinburgh which the council in their wisdom place next to a rather large tree. It is common for new drivers to attempt to stop "at" the bus stop as would be expected. Unfortunately if you position the bus in the "required" position next to the kerb the tree takes out half the roof.

PETROL STATIONS do not normally accommodate double decker buses. Single deck vehicles may be able to negotiate the floor plan of the filling station, but the canopy may be too low for double deckers.

Please note that the only difference between an HGV pump and a car pump is the speed of delivery of the fuel. It is perfectly permissible to take a bus to a car pump.

STREET FURNITURE such as road signs, lamp posts, bus stops and bus shelters can cause serious damage. Due to the camber of the road the vehicle may lean out over the pavement and may result in contact with street furniture. The consequences of such contact at speed can be rather impressive and expensive to repair.

The main draw back with single deck vehicles can best be described as the "sting" in their tail!

Single decker buses and coaches tend to be longer than double decker buses. They commonly have an extra 6 to 8ft to the rear of the back axle. If you stop at the side of the road and apply full lock before pulling away the rear of the vehicle will sweep in over the kerb and take out anything in the way. Such as road signs, litter bins, bus shelters, post boxes, PEOPLE! This is also a problem for double decker buses as they do have a tail swing but it is most noticable on single deckers.

With the advent of power steering this problem has increased as in the past drivers were prevented from dry steering by the sheer weight of the vehicle. Although still possible to turn the wheel without power steering it is far easier to move forward slowly whilst turning the wheel. The later buses such as the Leyland National are infamous amongst bus drivers. I have heard many tales of the "tails" of the Leyland National. I have driven the National myself on service around Edinburgh and never felt 100% comfortable negotiating narrow roads for fear of taking out a parked car with the arse end!

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ianduncan
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Re: Single vs Double decker
« Reply #1 on May 31, 2005, 1:14pm »

Are there any online journals or anything from people who have converted double deckers? I'm interested to hear whether people have run into the problems outlined above and how they have dealt with them...

regards,

Ian

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osmin
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Re: Single vs Double decker
« Reply #2 on Feb 7, 2006, 2:33pm »

Ian, Aside from the obvious probs with the size of a decker I have to say that having the ability not compromise on interior design space is by far more exciting than being stuck in a cupboard, which is fine for travelling and festi's but for full time living , especially with realistic park up is MUCH better.

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