London’s last Routemaster buses entered service in early 1968. However, nearly two years before this event LT had embarked on what was referred to as a ‘Bus Reshaping Plan’. This largely entailed the mass reorganisation of bus routes and the introduction of ‘One Man Operated’ buses on a large scale. London Transport chose the AEC Swift and the Daimler Fleetline to fulfil the latter objective. These were introduced between 1966 and 1978. In the event, both types proved to be wholly unsuitable in that they failed to cope with London’s traffic conditions and were not compatible with LT’s regimented overhaul system.In the event many had short lives with London Transport with the first design of Swifts, referred to as Merlins, having been virtually eliminated by 1973 (other than the Red Arrow version). The moderately improved version, the SMS, fared a little better with the last of the type being withdrawn in 1981. The Fleetline was also a flawed design and most of these had gone by the early 1980s, although some modified buses lasted until 1993. Their successors were mainly Leyland Nationals, Olympians and Metrobuses, all of which proved to be much more reliable.Mike Rhodes documents the various types of OMO buses at work throughout the LT operating area.
