Londoners have been invited to submit designs for a new London bus with Transport for London offering a prize of £25,000 to the best design.
Mayor Boris Johnson announced the competition yesterday as he took time out from the crisis enveloping his administration following allegations against advisor Ray Lewis.
Speaking at London’s Transport Museum the Mayor and Transport Commissioner Peter Hendy invited would-be designers to submit their ideas saying the contest was “the first step towards delivering the Mayor’s vision of a 21st Century version of the Routemaster.”
Johnson said he wanted “as many people as possible to submit their ideas” adding “whether you’re a professional designer who can submit a detailed plan or you are someone who uses buses every day and has one great idea that would make your journey better, we want to hear from you.”
Designers are being encouraged to submit their designs in one of two categories:
‘Design a bus for London’. Entrants will have the option of submitting a design for a specific part of the bus or a ‘whole bus’ design. In this category, designs will have to be quite detailed and must comply with guideline specifications as provided by TfL. A number of drawings will be required, as well as written documents providing reasoning and more detailed descriptions of the design and features of the bus.
‘Imagine a bus for London’. In this category, entrants can submit single design concepts for particular features of the bus, or a sketch of the overall look. The judges will be looking for the best ideas rather than detailed technical designs. Entries will be judged in four age categories: under 11, 11-15, 16-18, and over 18.
Full details of the competition can be found at www.tfl.gov.uk/anewbusforlondon.
