Many of the buses I saw and rode on as a young child, and they are still going! 
Not any more 
Almost all of the old buses have now been replaced with more modern alternatives, as of a couple of years back
They just cannot do that......it is sacrilege......history destroyed then! 
AFAIK there are a few that are now privately owned and another handful in service as "Tourist Buses". ISTR someone telling me that there a a couple being offered for private hire too. But, other than museum stock, most are either razor blades or rusting shells now 
Certainly SWMBO didn't see a single "Malta Bus" when she was there at the end of last/start of this month, including at the bus station
Mind you... The ones I went on in 2007 (and there weren't that many then... about 50% I s'pose) were death traps You could see the road in several places along the floor length and the exhaust fumes permeated into the passenger compartment, not to mention that they could barely manage more than 15 mph down hill with a tail wind
Thanks for that info LD.
It is sad to hear what was the legend of Maltese Buses is no more, but I suppose things must move on. So many were death traps when I rode them, but that was just the standard of driving that I note in the video is still very much alive!
No, seriously many of the ex-1930s and 40s buses that still went around when I was a child were, shall we say, not up to British standards, but they got you from A to B fairly safely. My school bus only suffered one collision when I was on it, and that was our bus driver and a car driver approaching at right angles at a cross roads ignoring all rules of the Highway Code, although that never really existed and I doubt if it does now!
Last time I was there in 1994 I drove the traditional Maltese way; foot down, pray to The Holy Mother Mary, and just keep going! Not quite like London driving, but a little that way!
Author
Topic: Lorry & Bus Nostagia (Read 1009 times)