Old buses, Cheshire Inn & Lodge, St Louis

A pair of classic London double-decker buses—once a familiar sight on the streets of the UK capital—now sit parked outside the Cheshire Inn & Lodge in St. Louis, Missouri, their bright red paintwork standing out proudly against the leafy backdrop. These imported buses were often used during the 1960s and 1970s as quirky promotional vehicles after being retired from regular service in London. The front coach, carrying the plate KGX 766, is a traditional AEC Regent III RT-type, a model built in large numbers for London Transport from the late 1940s through the mid-1950s.

Repurposed in America, the buses became both a novelty attraction and a nostalgic reminder of British heritage. Their signage—advertising the Cheshire Inn & Lodge with the tagline “A Special Place for Special Times”—reflects the era when themed hospitality venues were booming and imported British décor, red phone boxes, and London buses were seen as symbols of refinement and charm. Though the exact date of this photograph isn’t recorded, the styling, typography, and condition of the vehicles suggest it was taken sometime in the late 1960s or early 1970s, capturing a moment when post-war British engineering found an unlikely second life in the American Midwest.