Stylish liveries and exotic exteriors are all well and good, but ANDY RIGBY argues that passengers are more likely to judge a bus by the comfort, quality and facilities of its interior. In the first of two articles, he focuses on urban vehicles — in London and a few places beyond to identify the latest trends
You may have to excuse the cliché of a title but the old adage is, more often than not, correct. When taking the whole journey view, a passenger often sees little of the outside of a bus, perhaps only a fleeting glimpse as one pulls up at the stop for them to board or as it drives away after they have alighted.
Some may not even know what colour the vehicle is or whether it has any eye-catching vinyls applied. Their relationship is mostly with its interior where they could spend anything from a few minutes to a couple of hours. A vast amount of discussion is often given to how vehicles look externally, but is this always the most important concern?
External appearance is important and a clean and smart vehicle is attractive to passengers and is a good marketing tool, along with the impression a striking-looking vehicle can make.
But once aboard, someone making that decision will now care little fo…
