There's A Genuine Reason Why Bus Seats Are Covered In Hideous Patterns And This Proves It

Have you ever sat on the bus and wondered why the seats are covered in retro multi-coloured prints that look like they've been there since 1981? Admittedly, probably not, but we stumbled across a blog that has found out why and we thought you might like to know.

You never know when you might need this info - after all, pub quizzes are only getting more difficult. Plus it's always worth remembering how generally bad fashion and design was in the 80s so we never return to those times.

Anyway, the actual reason they design the seats so badly is to hide just how minging they are. That doesn't make any sense, right? Give us a moment.

Bus seats are ugly because they're designed in such a way, using complex mind-reading algorithms, so that our eyes are distracted from all the actual muck and grime that can be found on them.

Credit: Mark Hillary/Flickr
Credit: Mark Hillary/Flickr

To the commuter's eye, it almost always seems relatively clean, when in actual fact there is all kinds of dirt and grime on there that we would only be able to see if the seat fabrics were plain. It's an illusion basically... because we absolutely dread to think what kinds of things are on there.

The BBC also reports that this is one of the key reasons - but also explains that there are several others, too.

First up, there's the fabric to consider.

"Transport for London has historically adopted a wool moquette fabric," Harriet Wallace-Jones, co-founder of Wallace Sewell - the UK-based design studio that's designed fabrics for TFL - told the BBC.

"Wool is naturally flame retardant, and moquette is a pile fabric which has more durability than a flat woven cloth. The fabric is usually a mix of cut and uncut pile, which also makes it more durable."

Credit: PA
Credit: PA

There's also the problem that fashions and trends often pass pretty quickly, so if you go for something that looks great at the time, chances are it'll look naff within months.

Thankfully, someone's managed to see the beauty in all of it, having chosen to craft some unique trainers from some upcycled bus seat fabric.

The distinctive shoes were a publicity stunt by First Buses in Ashton, Tameside, as the latest step in the firm's green policy, Manchester Evening News reports.

Aimed as an interesting way of using up old materials no longer needed, the shoes - which were designed by recycling company Above and Beyond - were not only made using fabric from bus seats, but also the rubber from the tyres of disused buses. Definitely a look, eh?

Featured Image Credit: YouTube/SemiServis/Flickr

Stewart Perrie


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