Routemaster with a SatNav (not for the driver ... for passengers)

ANOTHER new design for a Routemaster-style bus was unveiled today complete with onboard SatNav for passengers to plan their journeys.

Paresh Chandegra says his concept, the 21st-Century Routemaster, will update the classic vehicle with a digital navigating screen.

The bus has double sliding doors at the front, but the hop-on hop-off feature of the old Routemaster at the back.

Mr Chandegra's design is one of 225 put forward after Mayor Boris Johnson launched a competition to find a successor to the Routemaster. The classic vehicle was withdrawn by Ken Livingstone, but Mr Johnson has pledged to revive it. The contest winner will receive £25,000.

Mr Chandegra, a 27-year-old architect from Ilford, has no previous experience in vehicle design. But he said his east London upbringing inspired him to enter the competition: "I have a great appreciation for the city and the icons that make it up.

"Like New York has its yellow taxis, London has its red double-deckers. The old Routemaster was always in the background of holiday photos as proof of that person having been to London. There was something magical about it and I hope to bring some of the magic back in my 21st-Century Routemaster."

His vehicle has an efficient seating layout, with 54 on the upper deck and 38 on the lower deck. Mr Chandegra, who works for international design firm NBBJ, said he hoped the navigation feature would transform bus travel: "The problem with buses are that unlike the Underground there are many stops for each area. This can cause you to be unsure of where to get off.

"The screen uses satellite navigation technology and displays the bus as a marker moving through a digital map showing you the immediate local area with road names."

He has several rivals for the prize, including the e21 by German designer Michael Kerz, with a glass roof and optional solar panels; the H4, with U-shaped seating and TV screens; and a design by Foster and Partners.

Competition judges are due to meet this week, with the winner announced next month. But London Assembly members have called for a consultation period to allow Londoners to have their say. Liberal Democrat Assembly member Caroline Pidgeon said: "It's good the Mayor received so many entries, but how many are realistic and viable?

"What worries me is when will the actual users of the buses, and indeed all of London's road users, ever get to have their say?"