Disagree with you, Evyatar
Evyatar, I hope that both you and your mum are well rested now. Please note what I said before: that the Citaros in London are maintained by Mrecedes/EVObus engineers, and NOT by the local garage staff. So what the Mrecedes people told you was INCORRECT, AS MERCEDES ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR THE DAY TO DAY MAINTANANCE of the buses. I never said that the buses were not popular with the drivers. as a matter of fact, all drivers who drive the citraros were selected from existing staff to drive those buses, as driving citaros is seen as a superior job and the drivers get a better rate of pay. and to say that the british drivers can not drive a bus very well is frankly an INSULT. do not forget that the buses that were supplied to the UK are right hand drive, so they are not 100% compatible with the existing European model. The citaros were /are leased, with Mercedes responsible for their maintanance and for paying [=bearing the costs] of any operational problems due to mechanical failures. So, I am not surprised to read what you were told over the phone or by an email, but much of it is factually incorrect. I doubt it very much if you can really find out what went wrong solely by asking someone in Mercedes, after all there will now be a legal discussion between Mercedes and Transport for London regarding the financial costs of the service disruptions. Over here in the UK, there is an official investigation by the deptartment of transport vehicle safety inspectors,, and their report is the one that should be read . I would not soley go by what Mercedes alone say, or by what TfL say, as they have a stake in a dispute who is responsible. I have mentioned before the reasons for the fire in 3 out of the 4 fires, those results come from the forensic investigations by the fire brigade who investigate every vehicle fire. So, I would not rely 100% of what Mercedes say, especially when THEY ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR bus maintanace and are also liable to financial penalty for this cock up. they are what is called in legal circles 'An Interested Party'. Equally, I would not rely solely on what Transport for London says. I also repeat what I said before: Transport for London and London Buses and the various bus companies operate over 7000 buses and have an excellent safety record, and a good international reputation . This widely publishised incedent did not do much good to Mercedes and or the Citaros. As you know, I actually like the citaros articulated buses. they are also very popular with drivers and passangers. Regards Yoram.