London Transport Museum’s 1914 ‘Battle Bus’ has taken part in the Last Post ceremony in Ypres, as part of its commemorative tour of the Western Front battlefields.
The B-type bus, repainted in wartime khaki, was watched by hundreds of spectators who gathered for the nightly act of remembrance at the Menin Gate on September 20th 2014.
More than 1,000 buses were taken off the streets of London during the First World War and sent across the Channel to help move troops to the front.
A wreath was laid at the Menin Gate ceremony on behalf of Transport for London in memory of the many transport workers who died in the conflict.
The restored B-type bus, one of only four surviving examples, has travelled from Belgium to France on the latest leg of its pilgrimage to sites associated with London buses and the Great War.
Today (September 23rd 2014), it’s visiting Arras, scene of fierce fighting in the spring of 1917.
Next stops are in the Somme. The bus, accompanied by a mobile exhibition, goes to Péronne on September 25th and Albert on September 26th.
You can follow the travels of the ‘Battle Bus’ on London Transport Museum’s blog here.
Source: London Transport Museum
Images: © TfL, from London Transport Museum Collection
Posted by: Peter Alhadeff, Centenary News