A BUSMAN'S holiday and trip down memory lane brought a classic double-decker back to the same stop in Greenock that it graced exactly 34 years ago.

Adam Conner — who was a conductor on the iconic Routemaster vehicle — is now its proud owner, and brought it back to the town on a special tour.

Adam, 43, was on the buses in Inverclyde between 1992 and 1995 and has now been reunited with his old driver and friend, Jim McNeal, as a result of the trip.

The Tele's Viator page told recently how local people were taken aback when the London double-decker was brought into service in Greenock and Port Glasgow in 1985.

Adam's resplendent bus attracted admiring looks all over again after he parked it up where it once packed up to 65 passengers at a time on West Stewart Street.

He said: "I've had it for seven years now and use it for weddings, day trips and school proms — but we take it on holiday every year as well.

"There's a group of 15 of us and I personally love bringing her up to Scotland, but to be back in Greenock again, and to see Jim, is very special indeed."

The Routemasters were used in Inverclyde by the Clydeside Scottish company between 1985 and 1995, and Adam's one was on the Slaemuir to Inverclyde Royal Hospital run.

He reckons the bus has 'probably done more than a million miles' since it was built in 1965, adding: "But she still runs like new."

Adam, who lives in Reading, Berkshire, added: "We've also taken her to France, Ireland and the Isle of Man.

"I re-panelled the bus myself and she's been resprayed.

"The engine was completely rebuilt two years ago.

"She's pretty much in her original condition.

"Jim drove the bus and I was the conductor."

Adam — who paid £23,000 for the Routemaster — said: "I've always been into transport."

His old pal Jim said: "They were designed by the people who were going to use them.

"They certainly don't make them like this anymore.

"The maintenance is so easy on it, it's perfectly designed."

Jim added: "If there was a major fault early in the day you could have the engine out, repaired and back in again in time for the afternoon services.

"Modern buses can be out of action for up to two days.

"The Routemasters weigh seven-and-a-half tonnes and can carry 65 people seated, whereas the buses of today are 12 tonnes and carry 38 people — and they call that progress."