by Tom Edwards
BBC London Transport Correspondent
There's no doubt that taking a trip on a Routemaster is a pleasure. When you see one heading towards you - especially if you know it's going to stop - it's difficult not to feel a nostalgic warm glow.
It's like seeing a pristine antique car purr past you in the street.
We went filming on a Routemaster RM259 on a bright May morning. These used to be commonplace in London and the workhorses of transport in London but they were scrapped three years ago - apart from on two heritage routes.
The first thing that strikes you when you hop on is how dark it is on the bottom floor - the place where the conductor used to stand. It takes a moment for your eyes to adjust. And it smells of old seats and not surprisingly is quite musty.
"It's an icon of London and tourists spend ages photographing them and Londoners want them back. It's the kind of vehicle people want to see"
Mark Taylor, bus driver
And it's noisy down there. You can't hear the person sitting directly across from you. Not that you'd want to in the middle of an anti-social rush-hour - but it shows what a din that engine makes.
Also I'd forgotten how bumpy a ride it is. The old suspension needs some work. Our cameraman was trying to film as we tackled some speed bumps - not sure that shot was useable. You can feel every pothole and bump in there.
Up the stairs ... surely they didn't used to be that steep? The heat on the top deck is stifling. After opening the windows it does improve slightly.
Mark Taylor is our driver. He's an evangelist for the Routemaster. The company he works for now rents them out for weddings and parties. You can buy one for about £13,000 on the internet.
"The Routemaster is an icon of London and tourists spend ages photographing them and Londoners want them back. It's the kind of vehicle people want to see."
When you head back down the stairs you forget how important those handrails used to be. Lose your grip and you're skidding down the stairs with your shopping flying out the moving door. You could end up following it yourself.
I'm sure I've jumped out of a Routemaster like most Londoners when it's been moving, much to the annoyance of the guard. I must have become more cautious because I don't think I'd do that anymore.
I have a vivid memory five years ago or so of a businessman jumping out of the door when the bus I was on was going quite fast... And that shocked look on his face as his legs suddenly had to speed up to catch up with the pace of the road.
The legendary Routemasters
As I came down the stairs I thought - why didn't more people get hit by cyclists as they were getting out? Maybe as we've had a huge increase in cycling numbers a few years ago it wasn't an issue?
If we bring back an open door on the back of the Routemaster - a whole generation of newish cyclists now used to passing on the inside of buses in traffic will have to re-educated to avoid leaping bus passengers.
Also the jury's still out on whether we'd get open doors at all on the back of the new Routemaster.
Sandy Glennie, the former managing director of Volvo Bus UK, has told the trade magazine Transit that having an open rear platform on a new bus was a "non starter".
Other executives have told me they doubted an open door at the back would pass Health and Safety legislation. And critics say bringing back the Routemaster would be too expensive and impractical.
But there's no doubting there is genuine affection for this rather compact basic bus. Everywhere we went - mainly Chelsea and the western extension - people stopped and looked.
And as we were filming we passed over Wandsworth Bridge. A motorist wound down his window and yelled at Mark, the driver. I thought we were witnessing a road rage incident. No. He asked Mark: "When we getting them back then?"
