A battle bus is a luxury coach used by reporters and political commentators to follow a politician, usually a party leader, to their speeches and other engagements during a general election campaign, especially in the United Kingdom.

History

Battle buses were first seen in the late 1970s, before which reporters followed party leaders by car.^[1] The battle bus was a significant feature of the 1987 UK general election as David Owen and David Steel of the SDP-Liberal Alliance each crisscrossed the country in matching battle buses,^[2] each painted bright yellow.^[3]

By 1992, the journalistic trail had taken to the air with the introduction of the battle plane.^[1]

References