Capoco design

Mayor unveils winning new Routemaster designs
Futuristic but led by revered design icon...

Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, recently unveiled the winning designs in the New Bus for London competition, and outlined the next steps in delivering a new bus fit for 21st century London based on the iconic Routemaster.

The Mayor was joined by Transport Commissioner Peter Hendy as he met the winners. The judges were so impressed with the ideas submitted in the ‘whole bus’ design category that a joint first prize was awarded to Capoco Design Ltd and a collaborative entry from Aston Martin and Foster + Partners. The two runners up prizes in the ‘whole bus’ design category were awarded to Jamie Martin, a 29 year old transport design graduate, and another collaborative entry from Héctor Serrano Studio, Miñarro García and Javier Esteban.

Overall, 700 entries were received from professionals and non-professionals of all ages, from London and across the world.

Mayor Boris Johnson said: ‘I promised Londoners that I would hold a competition to design a new bus for London, based on the much-missed Routemaster, and today we can unveil the fantastic winning designs.

‘When I launched the competition, I asked for stylish and imaginative designs which would resonate with Londoners. We have had a phenomenal response, with ideas submitted from around the globe, and we now have, in our joint winners, two stunning designs that allow us to go forward and produce a truly iconic bus fit for 21st Century London.

‘I know that, like me, Londoners will be waiting eagerly to see how these ideas evolve into the final design that will appear on our roads.’

Peter Hendy, Transport Commissioner, said: ‘With 700 entries from five different continents, the sheer scale of the response to this competition clearly shows how much it caught the imagination of Londoners and others worldwide. We now have a wealth of fantastic ideas to present to the bus manufacturers who will create the final design of the new bus for London, due to hit the streets in 2011.

‘I was also hugely impressed with the entries in the ‘imagine’ category of the competition. Not only did we see some real creativity, but almost all entrants also considered accessibility and environmental issues in their drawings.’

The next step in delivering the new bus for London is to pass the winning design ideas on to bus manufacturers to develop into a final proposed design. Transport for London expects to award a contract to develop and build the first new bus for London towards the end of next year, after a competitive tendering process. The first of the new buses will be on the streets of London by 2011.

Images of the joint-winning entries are available on the GLA website www.london.gov.uk