Routemaster bus RML2760

English: Routemaster bus RML2760 (reg. SMK 760F) was the last production RML-class Routemaster, which had superceded the shorter RM class. It was delivered to London Transport in February 1968. Having been used at various garages, from 1975 it began what was to be a long association with Upton Park garage (code U). Due to its special status, by the 1980s it had been adopted as the Upton Park show bus, meaning it was kept in top condition and used at special events, as well as on normal services. Unlike most RML buses, it was not re-engined or refurbished in the early 1990s. In June 1993 it was repainted into classic London Transport livery, with cream band. It saw use in London into the privatisation era, passing in 1994 into the fleet of the East London Bus & Coach Company Ltd, where it continued in service on London Buses route 15. It continued to be used on special events during the privatised era, reaching as far away as Wales on a special Ffestinniog Railway service in 1998. In 2003 its livery was altered to the grey band and underlined fleetname version of classic London Transport livery. When route 15 was converted to one man operated buses in 2003, RML2760 was transferred to London Buses route 8, which meant it departed Upton Park for Bow (BW). In March 2004 it received another AEC engine, before again being made redundant to modern buses with the end of Routemaster operation on route 8 on 4 June 2004. Even though by this time several London routes were still using Routemasters, this marked the last one operated by Stagecoach (the owners of East London). Unlike other Routemasters that had lasted this long in London service, RML2760 was neither sold into private hands or preservation (neither was it retained for use on one of the heritage routes, which use RM class buses - East London did also gain the contract to run Heritage Routemasters on London Buses heritage route 15, which began in November 2005). RML2760 was instead retained by East London, transferring to their special purposes fleet based out of Romford garage (NS), home of the East London Coaches private hire operation. As a special purposes bus, RML2760 also made occasional appearances on both heritage routes, 9 and 15, form the outset. In 2005, RML2760 moved with the special fleet to Waterden Road garage (WA), which was also the first base of the East London Heritage Routemasters. When that garage closed in 2007, RML2760 moved with the Heritage Routemasters to Bow garage (BW). By this time it was no longer part of the coaches fleet, but was still seeing occasional usage, latterly also while being based out of West Ham (WH), the third base for the Heritage Routemasters too, and latterly at Rainham (RM), base of sister company East London Bus Ltd. At some point it was repainted into the white roundel style London Transport livery, which was also appled to some of the Heritage Routemasters. In 2013, RML2760 began a two year loan period with the London Bus Preservation Trust, transferring to their London Bus Museum based on the Brooklands Museum site near Weybridge, Surrey. After some special runs on route 15 and 101 on 13 April, it was officially handed over at the LBPT event, the 2013 Cobham bus rally on 21 April.