-F.
I liked the bus scenes in that movie. I told him it was just like riding for real, some freak is always staring at you! :)
Ray
RESPECT THE BUSES OF NEW YORK CITY!!!!!!
To commemorate this day I've decided to try and get pics of them in Philadelphia today! I already took my very first SEPTA pics today (interior pics of a NABI), but I missed taking an interesting pic showing what people who have a NABI leave the stop in front of them have to deal with.
Of course, these pics may not be up anytime soon do to my lack of a computer.
I just need to figure out how to control the shutter speed of the digital camera...and no (to those who know of it), it's not the Pen Cam.
-F.
I couldn't really get any good shots, except of one that was parked at Chestnut Hill...I guess I'll just have to keep practicing, but it's very hard to take transit pictures at night.
I have a couple of videos, though.
For night shots, I tend to use something from 2-5 second shutter speeds. Evening is usually .6-1.5 seconds. Both numbers are approximate and also depend alot on the lighting surrounding the subject.
The problem was the turnaround in another location...the 39 line actually went up a dead end street and made a U-turn at the end of the street!! This U-turn seemed to be eleiminated when the AM Generals started running the route.
I rode the route once with the cut-down Macks, and I asked the driver about that U-turn situation. He said there was someone living at the end of the dead end street with some major political pull that prvented Muni from discontinuing that portion of the route.
I guess they either moved or kicked the bucket by the time the AM Generals were delivered!
Funny thing was, we got to the top of the hill on the Hyde Street portion of the route, and the driver said we had to all get off and walk down. The engine was powerful enough to get the loaded bus UP...but the brakes were not enough to safely go DOWN with a load!!!
The NJT Artics have a seperate Perkins 4 cyl diesel engine behind the fold up door in the skirts on the left side of the trailer that powers the air conditioning compressor.
As another poster said, there should be no problems turning at the Coit Tower end of the route as this doubles as a car park. Perhaps the small buses are used due to the steep hill up to the tower - their acceleration seems to indicate a high power-to-weight ratio.
BTW, I visited SF three times in the 1960s when I had family in the Bay Area. Muni has always been one of my favorite transit systems, because it was always so different from the NYCTA and other systems in the Northeast - no GM buses, diesel bus fleet almost all Macks with a few old Whites, heavy reliance on trolley coaches, and of course those incredible hills. The Macks were similar to Surface Transit's 2900s (later MABSOTA 4900s) and NYCTA 6000s. GM New Looks did not appear on Muni routes until 1969. I did not go back again until the early 1990s and Muni did not disappoint - it was still unique. A few of the 1969 GM New Looks were still running in 1991.
Indeed. I even rode one on the 23-Monterey in July of 1991. A few were still running in July of 1992 (I got a pic of 3618, which I believe was the only Muni Fishbowl to be equipped with an A/C unit). I don't remember seeing any when I returned in November of 92, and they were all gone by the time of my next visit in March of 1996.
How true! Besides the Mack buses, the large trolley coach fleet really was unique to this New Yorker's eyes. Three manufacturers - St. Louis, Marmon, and Twin - all built SF Muni trolley coaches. When I first saw the Twin TC I couldn't believe my eyes - had never seen a Twin Coach bus under wires!
Are there any Nova bus fans here on the message board?
If so, you can register on Frank E. Dean's NovaBus yahoo
group at http://autos.groups.yahoo.com/group/novabusfans/
Click
I love the 6v92TA engine...they were awesome...
DD50s today on those Gilligs and New Flyers and Orions aren't that amazing. The NABIs are cool with that engine, and Neos are kinda okay.
On April 9, The X26 last Southbound run leaves Penn Station at 0915 hours and the last northbound leaves at 1900 Hours. I am planning to do it during spring break and if I do it on April 9, I more of less would do the 0915 from Penn Sta to WFC.
AFAIK, the record for shortest-lived "permanent" change to an existing route is 6 days, for the Bx34 via Webster Avenue (instead of Bainbridge/Valentine) south of Bedford Park Blvd; it went in on a Sunday and was undone by Friday. Next up is a tie at 6 months between the M7 Limited (early 1990's) and the Q27 extension to Springfield & Merrick (1957).
Metro sets nine public hearings on proposed fare, fee increases and new advertising initiatives
Nine public hearings in the District of Columbia, Suburban Maryland, and Northern Virginia will be held between March 17 and 29 to receive the public's input into proposed fare increases for Metrorail, Metrobus, and Metroaccess that would take affect in the next fiscal year, which begins the first week of July. At the same time, comments are also being solicited on a series of new advertising initiatives within the Metro system. All of the hearings will begin at 7 p.m. There will be a one-hour open house held at 6 p.m. before each hearing. The hearing dates and locations are as follows:
Wednesday, March 17 at South Fairfax County Government Center, Conference Room 221, 8350 Richmond Highway, Second Floor, Alexandria, Virginia (hearing number 500)
Thursday, March 18 at Westgate Elementary School in the cafeteria, 7500 Magarity Road, Falls Church, VA (hearing number 501)
Monday, March 22 at the Arlington County Board Office, Courthouse Metro Building, 2100 Clarendon Boulevard, third floor, Room 302, Arlington, VA (hearing number 502)
Monday, March 22 at Malcolm X Elementary School in the cafeteria, 1351 Alabama Ave., SE, Washington, DC (hearing number 503)
Tuesday, March 23 at the Montgomery County Executive Office Building in the auditorium, lobby level, 101 Monroe St., Rockville, MD (hearing number 504)
Wednesday, March 24 at the Prince George's Sports and Learning Complex, 8001 Sheriff Road, Landover, MD (hearing number 505)
Thursday, March 25, at Metro headquarters in the Jackson Graham Building, lobby level, 600 Fifth St., NW, Washington, DC (hearing number 506)
Thursday, March 25 at Alexandria City Hall, 301 King Street, Alexandria, VA (hearing number 507)
Monday, March 29 at Janney Elementary School in the cafeteria, 4130 Albermarle St., NW, Washington, DC (hearing number 508)
The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (Metro) is faced with a significant budget shortfall for Fiscal Year 2005, which begins the week of June 27. To address this shortfall without having to reduce Metrobus and Metrorail service, Metro will reduce its operating budget by at least $30 million, receive up to a 4.5 percent increase in state and local government subsidy, and will be required to generate additional passenger and non-passenger revenue. In addition, budget shortfalls are anticipated to occur in the near future, and this may require a predictable mechanism to generate additional passenger revenue on an ongoing basis.
The public hearings will seek comment from the public on: 1) proposed adjustments to passenger fares; 2) proposed adjustments to parking rates and fees; 3) proposals to implement future multi-year fare adjustments; 4) proposals to identify a method of indexing future fare adjustments; 5) proposed modifications to advertising practices and advertising revenue; and 6) proposals to increase parking fees by 30 cents, with the resulting revenues to be dedicated to improving access to the Metrorail system through initiatives such as feeder bus service, additional parking, and pedestrian walkways.
How to register to speak at the public hearings
All organizations or individuals desiring to be heard with respect to the proposed adjustments to passenger fares, parking rates and fees or proposed modification to advertising practices and revenue will be afforded the opportunity to present their views and make supporting statements and to offer alternative proposals. In order to establish a witness list, individuals and representatives of organizations who wish to be heard at these public hearings are requested to furnish in writing their name, address, telephone number and organization affiliation, if any, to Harold Bartlett, Secretary, Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, 600 Fifth Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20001. Alternatively, individuals may fax this information to Mr. Bartlett at 202-962-1133. Please submit only one speaker's name per letter. Lists of individual speakers will not be accepted. Others present at the hearing may be heard after those persons who have registered have spoken. Public officials will be heard first and will be allowed 10 minutes each to make their presentations. All other speakers will be allowed three minutes each.
How to submit written statements
Written statements and exhibits may be submitted until close of business on Tuesday, March 30, to Harold Bartlett, Secretary, Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, 600 Fifth Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20001. Alternatively, individuals may send an email to public-hearing-testimony@wmata.com. Please reference docket number B04-2 and the hearing number listed above in the submission.
These public hearings are being conducted in locations accessible to persons with disabilities. Any individual who requires special assistance, such as a sign language interpreter, to participate in the public hearing should contact Leen'da Chambliss at 202-962-2595 or TDD 2-2-638-3780 at least 10 days prior to the public hearing for Metro to make necessary arrangements.
62899 21 IRS building-filed taxes
9773 F4 PG Plaza Sta-Saw 8850 on a return F4 and 8846 on the F8
4395 B30 BWI-Saw MTA 9429 broken down on the BW Parking lot with the two truck about to tow it back to Bush
I got to BWI used the facilities and went out to catch light rail shuttle. There were two buses waiting to do the shuttle 8626 and 0051. Of course I chose the Flx and it was interesting to say the least. First off the bus has roof vent that opens itself, not electronically, but by itself(I think this would call for a NLT video production). Anyway we had to leave the bus, because the driver was told to deadhead downtown to make its next run. We all hearded onto 0051 and proceded downtown. I walked around downtown took some pics, saw more LRS shuttle buses. Then I headed to take the LRS shuttle back to BWI. I got NABI 9941 and as it got to the stop after mine, there were a heard of people waiting to get on and let's just say almost everybody and their mama got on. Tempers sort of flared as one passenger got mad and told everyone to move to the back of the bus and called one woman a bi***, she just gave him a look. On top of that there was a wheelchair passenger waiting to get on so even less seats to have. About the same time 8653 pulled up and took some of the passengers that would have gotten on our bus, so even packed like sardines, it could have been worse. Finally we got back to BWI. Personally, I think they should have more shuttle buses running during the midday and during rush hour.
4395 B30 Greenbelt-Saw 8761(unrehabbed 87 BTW) arriving and leaving on the 87, so the 87s are still alive, well at least one anyway.
63049 16 New Carrolton-I REALLY wanted to make the 7:45 F14 or else, wait either an hour for the last F14 or take the rail to Landover and take the A12 and a longer walk home.
9757 F14 home(or somewhere close to home anyway).
I do plan to go up to B-more again to ride the shuttles(and try to ride nothing but Flxs).
*insert the staring apes song from 2001: A Space Odyssey here*
OMG, painful realization! I just realized that was the first non-neo bus I've seen in training...
The Neo era is coming to an end...
Heck, I've seen all types of SEPTA's buses in training duty! I even once saw 5606H sitting down at Southern with "Training Bus" on it's destination sign. I think it was a sort of joke done by whoever had last run the bus, since a little while later it was out on the 17.
A real rare one to see is a K-car with the training car poster up. I've only ever seen one, southbound on the diversion route heading back to elmwood, no doubt after training some new Rt 10 T/O. Elmwood is pretty damn small, as depots go, only serving 5 routes with 112 vehicles, and it has low turnover for it's operators, so new-hires, and the associated Training Cars, are relatively rare.
It's a pretty standard box with a gently sloped top, a bill collector, a coin cup, and a small red LED customer display in the upper left corner. I've never seen one with a card reader built-in, but attachments to process magnetically encoded fare media are fairly common.
I know that the following systems use this type of farebox:
- SF Muni
- NJ Transit
- Miami-Dade Transit
- Houston Metro
- Grand Rapids
- Transit Windsor
If anyone has info about this model, please do share...
Thanks.
Dought it:
- SF Muni
- Grand Rapids
- Transit Windsor
- NJ Transit
BTW, Houston was the first. At SF Cubic was BART only.
The TA uses a Cubic upper & a GFI lower ... the "privates" use a 100 % cubic box.
Dought it:
What does 'dought' mean? All four of the following systems have the farebox I have in mind because I have ridden them all. Again: I understand that they might not have massive Cubic systems, but their bus fare collection equipment is definitely Cubic.
- SF Muni
- Grand Rapids
- Transit Windsor
- NJ Transit
At SF Cubic was BART only.
Then what kind of fareboxes does Muni have? BART does not even have fareboxes!
The TA uses a Cubic upper & a GFI lower ... the "privates" use a 100 % cubic box.
Interesting.
Cities with Cubic rail systems, initially anyhow:
- BART; Washington DC; Atlanta
Cities with GFI fareboxes in the 90s:
- Chicago; Washington DC; Atlanta; NJT (incl. Newark City Subway); Clevland; LA; Phoenix; Nassau County; CT Transit; Santa Fe
The one I have in mind does not seem to be a particularly old or early model; I'd say it's of an late 1980s-early 1990s vintage (whereas the GFI Cents-a-Bill has been around since 1984).
And a point I'll clarify for the third time: I am NOT talking about other Cubic products like rail faregates, fare media sales units, and revenue processing hardware - I am talking only about one specific model of farebox found on buses, and in the case of SF Muni, LRVs and PCCs, too.
As for your list of GFI customers, I really don't think that NJ Transit buses have GFI fareboxes! an anyone here back me up on that?! In Phoenix, last time I was there in 2000, all buses operated on Phoenix routes had Duncan (!) fareboxes, though the NABIs running in Tempe did have GFI. LACMTA has some bizarre kind of farebox; I'm not sure who makes it, but it's certainly not the standard GFI Cents-a-Bill model. The only other place I've seen that model is on MdMTA buses.
"... I am NOT talking about other Cubic products like rail faregates ..."
I know that, but to put it in prospective stating what Cubic products are/were at a city can serve to avoid your going on a wild goose chase, i.e. some cities only have Cubic products in part of their system.
"... Phoenix ... Duncan ..."
GFI bought out that product line. Valley Metro modified the box & was selling the modified units to other cities.
Nassau County also had a old Duncan box
I've been on a Newark City Subway PCC that had a GFI box in it.
BTW, too bad you didn't make it to the Springfield Big E show in Feb. One of the vendors was selling fareboxes.
To view the rest, click here.
There are also new pictures from Providence, Worcester, Boston, New York, and the DC area on my site, www.orenstransitpage.com.
Also noticed the ex-Queens Surface RTS in the PVTA pics. Good pics!!
Mark
Which is that, 3009?
Bus Fleet (Potential)
Opus Low Floor 30ft (blue) (Plymouth/Pheonixville)
Thomas SLF 30ft (gold) Pheonixville (and rt A)
Blue Bird LF 35ft (aqua green) (Plymouth)
Orion V Suburban 35/40ft (special suburban scheme) (Pottstown Express)
Gillig Advantage or Orion VI 40ft (orange) (if 40ft bus is ever needed
maybe 131?)
All with Cummins (uniformity) and Allison Transmissions (except maybe the Orion Express buses)
All Buses have Dark/Navy Blue floors, tan fiberglass (except suburban) seats with Dark Blue/Green fabric inserts, Offwhite/beige walls top open inward windows, and All LED (except Blue Birds) destination signs (Blue Birds have flip dot/LED signs)
Depot Locations (Divisions)
Plymouth Meeting, by Metroplex (near Frontier Depot)
Pheonixville area (5 miles from Pottstown?)
Bus Routes (so far)
A: Plymouth Meeting Mall to King of Prussia via Arch St (Sun-Sat)
B: Metroplex Shopping Center/Plymouth Meeting Mall to King of Prussia via Germantown Pike (Sun- Sat)
C:Montgomery County Community College to Norristown via Plymouth Meeting Mall and Sandy Hill Rd (M-F)
D: Chestnut Hill to Willow Grove Mall (maybe)
Pheonixville Routes
P1: Pheonixville Loop
P2: Pheonixville/Pottstown to Lansdale via Collegeville
P3: Pheonixville to Exton Square Mall/Paoli
P4: Pheonixville to Pottstown (M-F)
Pottstown Express: Pottstown to Plymouth Meeting(?) via Pheonixville, KOP, and Norristown
Potential SEPTA Routes:
131, 133
Does anyone know what bus routes these were? Or who operated them?
Other news items include the planned opening of a transit center in the historic Woonsocket Depot, a plan to install automated fare collection equipment in 2005, and the March 1st move of the Route 54 Park n' Ride lot from Lincoln Mall to Lincoln Park.
Jim D.
Complete with photo of a Queens Surface Orion :)
Can you get some photo shots of those Neoplan AN440's in service
before they are gone? Please!
Here is one in service, and a bunch in the yard or awaiting scrap. They rarely see weekend service, and I'm usually not up there on weekdays.
I guess half of them are retired. Are they reliable as the RTS
and Orion V's buses?
I don't know how they rate for reliability, but they already looked like hell by 1990. Most of them have serious body rot, especially around the rear wheelwells. Then again, I've seen rear bumper covers and engine doors fall off the 1998 & 2000 RTSes while in service...
The 1992 RTSes were just remanufactured and seem to be doing quite well.
Governor George Pataki.
That said, though, I find it interesting that LI Bus had continued to purchase Orion Vs while NYCTA is now going the low floor route even though they are (theoretically) part of the same MTA umbrella.
Orion V is winding down as more local transit and shuttle companies
convert to Low floor buses.
NJT is one system that has shied away from low-floor buses so far.
Bee-Line (minus the Orion II they had, now it's sold off, if you wanna count that as a low-floor bus)
MTA Long Island Bus
SamTrans
SF Muni (someone confirm this for me? thanks)
Pioneer Valley Transportation Authority (PVTA)
RIPTA
Transport of Rockland
STO Gatineau (Minus their 4 Orion IIs)
NYCDOT Privates
And a few smaller agencies like:
The City of Poughkeepsie Transit
Dutchess County LOOP Bus
Suffolk Transit
Gardena Municipal Bus Lines
Des Moines MTA
And many more...
Incognito
Low-floor's "benefits" can only be realized in some area's. Most other places these buses travel doesn't make any sense. Newer streets dont' have curbs that high up(not even with the bus), and a lot of area's dont' even have curbs to begin with anyway.
I was walking down some really old brick streets looking for remnents of old tracks today, and I noticed a lot of these brick streets still have the cobblestone curbs too. All of those streets were the only places that the sidewalk lines up perfectly with the bus entryway. I guess low-floors are a 100 years too late.
Don't worry....I will never mistake the Orion II for a transit bus. The last time someone boarded one, Mother Goose charged the person with Breaking & Entering. :)
-F.
Mother Goose says "You wait outside the truck and purchase your ice cream like everyone else".
-F.
-F.
Samtrans just put thier new Gillig Low floors in service.....
These low floors are replacing thier 1990 Gillig Phantoms.
If you want a photo of Samtrans Gillig low floors, let me know!
Centro (Syracuse)
Utica Transit Authority
CitiBus (Watertown)
Glens Falls
Jim D.
But like I said.."And many more..."
I wasn't gonna make a whole landry list of properties especially not off the top of my head...
Incognito
I can confirm that SF Muni is an entirely low floor bus fleet, though they did test a couple of low floor models (I think it was a Neo and an Orion).
Because I think Gillig and Orion are recieving more orders of high floor buses from some customers than NABI and Neoplan.
Previously, I believe when the Flxible Metro and RTS buses were in production, they recieved approximately the same amount of customers as the Gillig phantom and Orion V did.
On another note, the Gillig Advantage is not far behind in the popularity contest lately.
-F.
-F.
I guess due to my Ride-On experiences when I was little I was able to tell the difference in sizes by the amounts of passenger windows. (30ft Gilligs had 5 on the left, WMATA Flxibles had 7). OF course, that was during the time Ride-On was "the company that ran the little buses"
When I passed through Charleston in 1999, I first saw these and thought they looked strange from behind, thinking "What the hell ARE those?". Before that, I was used to seeing their plethora of Flxibles in service. They still have some 30-foot Metro Ds, plus some 35-foot Orion Vs, and of course, the Neos.
Chalk up Charleston as another exclusively high-floor town.
-F.
Their transit system is one of the last to be operated by the local utility company; in earlier times, many Southern TAs were run by electric companies or street railways. For example, our TA, Valley Metro, is a descendant of Roanoke Railway & Electric.
-F.
I have no idea when the short RTS went into mass production. Flxible stopped producing 30-foots in 1978 with the end of the New Look, and it would be another five years before the first baby Metro. No Grumman 870 30-footers were ever made, save for a prototype made around 1982. A little help here, guys? :)
-F.
JD
-F.
ACT had to add an 800 pound weight under the front end to keep front end on the road after the "surgery". I know two people who own former ACT 700's. One still has the weight and it rides decently. The other one, without the weight, can do wheelies!!
LOL! Is that the result of a wheelbase difference on the cut-down buses versus the factory-built 30-foot New Looks, or a heavier powerplant perhaps?
Jim D.
The powerplant stayed the same, a Detroit Diesel 6V71 with Allison V-drive tranny.
The 800 lb. weight sounds like a very intriguing (and wise) concept. By "parlor car" interior, what do you mean? Sounds neat.
-F.
The person who owns the cut-dowo 4517 without the weight ("wheelie capable"...) does post on this board. Perhaps they might eb willing to share more details.
www.regionaltransitservice.com
Do you think it's bad to have a 100% low floor fleet, particularly in the Northeast?
Cutting an RTS to 30 foot length is simple as the bus was designed and built in five-foot modular sections. CCW out in Riverside, California has a division that markets them; their demonstrator was a former SCRTD 40-footer cut to 30 feet. I believe it was SCRTD 8626, but I may be wrong.
Jim D.
People are building light rail because they think of buses as losermobiles. If a bus looks like a different, cooler sort of vehicle, and some of the new buses do, it could change people's minds. The fact that you can hop on and hop off a low floor bus makes a big difference to the passengers, and not just those in wheelchairs.
Curb appeal is one of the deadlast objectives of the low floor bus concept. Surely you can hop on and off a lowfloor bus easier but most people, such as me, do not like looking out the window and staring UP at traffic. You no longer feel superior to traffic in a low floor as opposed to a high floor bus. Not to mention safety is at stake, as you are on-level with the rest of traffic as opposed to being above it. Riding a lowfloor bus feels inferior to riding a high floor bus in my opinion and something like this may turn someone away from buses.
And what has lightrail got to do with buses? People dont spend billions of dollars building light rail because they think buses are "losermobiles"
-Fred
But having said all that, I still prefer an Orion V over the Orion VII.
Also, I think one of the reasons why people spend billions of dollars on light rail because they want a direct service along major thouroughfares directly to major transit centers without having to make as many stops as a bus would. Now of course there are many more reasons for having light rail, and the reason I pointed out can vary slightly from city to city. In this day and age, building a subway system is far too expensive, so the next best thing is to build light rail.
Also, he says that people build light rail because buses are losermobiles. Light rail isn't supposed to serve the same purpose as a bus route. If you wanted it to be like a bus route, then what you would have is a system similar to SEPTA's subway surface lines, which is essentially a streetcar system making more stops than light rail would. Buses/streetcars provide a local service while light rail is like a semi-local, limited stop service.
-F.
-F.
-F.
30 footers= 4 windows
35 footers= 5 windows
40 footers= 6 windows
D4000= 7 windows
D4500= 8 windows
-F.
-F.
I know about a dozen small local transit companies that have
Gillig phantoms out here in Northern California. I have rosters
for some of them....and I use to and once in a while ride on them.
Arthur
-F.
When you're talking a $200,000 bus, that's about $15,000 saved!!
That program DID end around 1990, and that's when you saw California TA's start buying better buses from other manufacturers. Some agencies stay with Gillig...but it is a matter of which manufacturer is the low bidder for the equipment specified.
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
New Flyer is out of Clarkston, Minnesota -- back then, Ibelieve it was Grand Forks, North Dakota.
-F.
-F.
Are the Gilligs replacing 87 or 91 Flxibles?
-Fred
On the bright side, you do have L-10s in the 91s...which would remind me of the 97-9800s. Do they sound anything like their WhyMATA counterparts? :)
-Fred
-F.
It's a miracle that there hasn't been a fatality in the bus whenever a broadside accident happens. When I get on a low floor, I head straight to the back in the high section. I feel safer there.
The high-floor bus may yet make a comeback of sorts. Operating funds are tight these days, and it is no secret in the transit industry that capacity is sacrificed on low-floor buses. I wouldn't be surprised if some systems begin to order high-floor buses once again to provide needed capacity on their heaviest routes.
Jim D.
I too don't high floors are dead. If the wheelchair lift is a problem, then just proper maintenance can keep that functioning properly. Also low floor ramps aren't all they are cracked up to be. I was once on a low floor bus where the ramp malfunctioned and it took a while to get the wheelchair passenger on.
I've been on a packed 113 and a packed 23, and there were still seats available!
On a low floor, you only lose about 4 or 5 seats anyway, right?
Aren't the ramps supposed to be able to be operated manually when that is the case?
It's not that unusual in big cities - I've ridden plenty of buses in Boston that were loaded to capacity.
JD
Does anyone know that Muni won't get any low floor buses in the
near future because they will have scraping problems on steep
and shrap hill crests? Although Muni has 2 CNG Neoplan AN440LF
and 2 hybrid Orion 06.501's buses which they are testing. I rode on
those prototype low floors about almost 2 years on route 28....some
of you know that bus route 28 doesn't go over any very steep hills
in SF?....That's probably why Muni put those buses on that route.
Muni's next order of high floor buses migth be most of AC Transit's
1993 Gillig Phantoms and some 1997 NABI 416's to replace Muni's
1988/89 New Flyer D40's.
Arthur
-F.
Do you mean it scrapes the curb when you pull your flxible next to the curb?
And true, high floor buses can scrape the ground when thier kneeing
system wont raise them up due to some malfunction.
Arthur
-F.
One thing, though -- do NOT attempt to adjust the levelling valves yourself. They might bring the bus DOWN and you'll be stuck underneath...make sure if you do it, you have an assistant nearby.
Even worse, we got the bus stuck, and it would not go up, nor move until it did so. We had to shut the bus down, turn it back on, and repeat. Meanwhile, our passengers were getting VERY anxious. Finally, it went back up..and created a new policy. Under NO circumstances do we EVER use the kneel feature on our equipment!
-F.
-F.
-F.
-F.
-F.
These are the local transit systems in California I know that
recently received CNG and diesel Orion V's between 2000 and 2004.
For the CNG's they are:
Roseville Transit 2003 30 and 40ft.
Foothill Transit 2002-03 40ft
Union City Transit 2001 and 2003 35ft
For the diesels they are:
Vallejo Transit 40ft
Golden Gate Transit 40ft
AGAIN....these are the transit systems I've only seen whith CNG and diesel Orion V's built after the year 2000, there's probably more
in California I don't know about.
Arthur Thomas
I guess the B/O had to record the readings on the farebox and haul all the money in bags and coin changer off the bus. Where would he do his calculations to determine if he was short or over?
When Johnson boxes were converted to "exact change," did operators still have to record readings?
Michael
Wondering in Washington
P.S. Washington had Cleveland fareboxes which had no readings
We did record, at the system I worked at, the starting and ending readings even after exact fare and locked fareboxes. I guess this served to show how much revenue was coming in off each individual bus.
Michael
Washington, DC
Of course, there's something about advertising a competing mode of transportation that seems a little bit wrong.
There's at least two buses with that specific ad and it always runs on the most visable route(19), except on Sundays when it goes to the 60.
This one says Bert Smith. So i have no clue who bought who.
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
1997 NOVA-RTS: 9299
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
7210
7214
7215
7216
Maybe 7210 was already an Allegheny artic, but not the others! Plus, they seem to be somewhat slower than their Allegheny brothers and sisters (of course, they're Midvale buses). Is there any info as to what artics may be in the shops right now?
I still haven't seen 7209 (the first neo artic I ever rode), which is somewhat frustrating.
Either that or Allegheny picked up all of the 54 (it was split with Midvale as of the last sign-ups).
~7215 spotted on the 27...for DC/Baltimore fans, it sounded like the Baltimore MTA Neos, which is unusual for our big neos - got a vid of it too.
~I finally got to ride the "unofficial run" of the 95, you know, the one that I used to take to school before SEPTA eliminated it (well, they cut it back to the mall), yet it still passed me everytime I had to walk the mile and a half/2 mile distance to the mall.
Just a few intersting things....I love taking transit pics.
March 3, 2004
The city is sitting on more than $70 million - and possibly up to $115 million - in federal funds to replace aging privately run commuter buses, according to interviews and records.
Officials are warehousing the funds - some of which have apparently been available for more than four years - until Mayor Michael Bloomberg concludes what has so far been months of negotiations with the MTA over the takeover of the seven private lines.
News of the funds drew criticism from some passengers on the often-maligned routes, which use city-owned buses that are on average twice as old as MTA buses.
"My constituents are not concerned about whether the bus service is public or private, they just want it to be reliable," said Councilman Peter Vallone Jr. (D-Astoria).
Owners of the lines were also critical of Bloomberg's decision.
"It is difficult to understand why the city would not take advantage of available capital funds that could repair or replace the aging buses provided to the private operators by the [Department of Transportation]," added Jerome Cooper, president of Jamaica Buses.
Jordan Barowitz, a City Hall spokesman, said "it would not be prudent to make such a large capital investment until those negotiations are completed."
Despite entreaties from Bloomberg, the MTA has resisted taking over the lines unless the city continues its more than $100 million annual subsidy.
Barowitz said it did not appear that there were any deadlines for use of the funds, which date to 1999, according to records from the Federal Transportation Administration.
The records indicate that the city has used only $847,000 of the more than $71 million allocated for buses and bus-related projects. It is possible additional money - up to about $43 million - could be used for buses. Some funds are unspecified, and transit sources suggested they could be used for bus purchases.
By contrast, the city has spent much of the federal funds dedicated to Staten Island transportation projects. For example, of $32 million available for ferry construction only $378,000 remains.
Me too. Could you imagine the uproar from City Hall if it came out that the MTA was witholding funds for new vehicles and letting the currently fleet of trains and buses fall apart?
Bloomberg has been playing politics with the NYCDOT bus companies almost from Day 1, and I hope this issue now gets the full media attention that it deserves. He shouldn't get away with trying to make this a 'City vs., Suburbs' issue the way he has lately.
JD
http://www.nypress.com/17/9/feature/feature.cfm
#3962(missing back door and ex QV bus)
#4769(orignally at AMS)
#4683(orignally assigned to Fresh Pond and sent to UP)
#4866 and #4869(orignally assigned to Castleton).
Now here is the one im in shock over. NOVABUS #9320 has been STRIPPED OF NUMBERS AND FAREBOX!!. Could this bus be scrapped or being the first #9300 assigned to Ulmer Park to get reseated? Any comments would be appreciated
B1-#4779-TMCRTS
B64-#9336-NOVABUS
By the way, #8683,#8689,#9109,#9177 and #9176 REPAINTED!!
BTW-#4769 originally operated from Hale.
Mark
Again, my apologies
My apology for being rather short. It's usually not my way:-).
However, did 9320 have a paper listing as scrap, as I presume the others did? (Ulmer Park really is in need of help, with 6 buses, including PA4331 (not including 9320 yet, who knows what is going to happen) having died in the last two weeks.)
Keep on trucking, 3969 and 3970!
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
B1-#9177-NOVABUS
BIG AL
B1-#9318-NOVABUS
BIG AL
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
Actually it came from Castelton and then to JG and then to UP.
Acela
BIG AL
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
BIG AL
BIG AL
BIG AL
B1-#9327-NOVABUS
B64-#7519-REMAN RTS
BIG AL
From what i understand the conversion from soft to hard seating on the RTS Novas and the Orions were stopped due to the possibility of the takeover of the DOT routes by the MTA.
Did you hear anything similar
Thank You
BIG AL
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
BIG AL
I don't think I've ever seen listings for their system in new bus productionlists, so whatever they have must have come second-hand.
Is it going to be 2 bays for the thru routes(N22, N24). Also, are the N15 and N66(or w/e the chaminade bus route is), and Adirondack Trailways going to stop there, or will they just continue to bypass the terminal(well, the 15 has a stop about a block away from the current terminal, and I think the 66 just bypasses it. Trailways stops on mineola BLVD about a block away from the mineola station).
Is it going to be a line of bus bays, or is it going to be more like HTC???
My plan:
_________________________________________________________________
|__________________________Platform_______________________________|
_____________________________________________________________________
_|_|_|_|_|_|_|_|_|_|_|_|_|_w/b track_|_|_|_|_|_|_|_|_|_|_|_|_|_|_|_|_
____________________________________________________________________
_|_|_|_|_|_|_|_|_|_|_|_|_|_e/b track|_|_|_|_|_|_|_|_|_|_|_|_|_|_|_|_
__________________________________________________________
|_______________________Platform___________________________|
__ ___________ ___
| |LIRR tckt| | <-
| |_office__| |o |
| u | |/ \
| |t / \ /| |
| TVM|s |N15 HTC |
| TVM|i / |
| waiting room MVM|d |N15 Long Beach|
| MVM|e / |
| |N22 Jamaica |
| |w / |
| |a |N22 Hicksville|
|______ _________ |l / |
outside walkway k |N23Manorhaven |
_________________________/ |
N66\N41\N40\N24\N24\ADP\
E.Rkwy Fp Fp EM Jmca Albany-Babylon
<-
| __________________________
\ /
->
| |
| 3rd Av |
| |
Couldn't fit the word bathrooms into the waiting room, but just insert wherever you please.
On the way home, I took the 38. At White Flint, I saw 3900 with its new orange signs. It said SHUTTLE and then flipped to THANK YOU FOR RIDING METRO, better than what it did with the Vultrons (nothing).
This afternoon, I was talking with two of my friends and somehow, the topic of buses came up. After complaining about how dirty and unsafe buses were (one friend said she was assulted on the 11), one of them said "I like the small, squishy buses." My guess is they are referring to the Orion II, but does anyone else have any ideas what bus it might be? I might have to do a lineup from my website with them to figure it out, provided they are willing.
I told them about how we called the Orion II the Good Humor Truck and the conversation moved on to ice cream, swimming pools, and I was able to sneak in a subtle Mohonk reference.
As for a lineup of buses, I'm not so sure the one in NW knows about the website. The one in Bethesda knows about it and has seen a few of my pictures though I generally only show that type of friend my non-transit pictures from the Skyline Terminal (she has called some of them pretty). I'm not so sure its worth the effort but if it is in fact the Orion II that is the Squishy Bus, then we at BusTalk will have yet another name to call it.
-F.
-F.
Now if she said "I want some ice cream..." then I could understand, but this is just...I mean from a busfan's perspective I like the little buggers because they're designed for transit, but..gosh, for other people to say that!
Even my 81-year-old grandmother calls them "ice cream buses" and this was before I made any mention of them.
96 St/CPW (M11)
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
Huh? All three are separate photos. The bottom two have each been cropped.
MetroB
-F.
-Fred
-Fred
I'll be sure to do that. I never did get a chance to do my outing last week as I had a family emergency. I'll tell you about it offline.
Are you interested in this Metro Scavenger Hunt John and Mark might hold? First weekend in June is being thrown around now, or is that Ride-On Rodeo weekend?
Milestone Center is the epitomy of suburbia. Lots of townhouses, a Wal Mart, Target, Home Depot, bunch of restaurants and some other stuff all crammed into one shopping center. Nice that you can go to Wal Mart AND Target at the same time. Fair Lakes Shopping Center in Fairfax is like that as well, but they have a ton of other stores and restaurants in there and its loads of fun to drive through on a weekend. I keep one foot on the gas and one hand on the horn. : )
MetroB
This ended okay and I wasn't hurt at all, but this just goes to show you how immature a kid older than ME can be. Let's face it, I'm half an oddball of an 11-year-old; I read the WHOLE newspaper (Daily News), I'm quieter, the gatekeeper of 11-year-old (and maybe even TEENAGER) maturity, I have a bit of an exposed feminine side (I am not gay, though) because I care more about cleanliness, I'm naive, and I don't like to fight. Oh, and I care more about others' property.
Anyway, let's get to the point. So I discussed that. What I want to know is this: HOW THE HELL is a 7th grade 12-year (or 13-year) old less mature than me to do such a thing as fetish as being a racist or preventing someone from ringing the bell to get off?????????
Well, that's the last time I take a bus DIRECTLY from school that has been parked there for about 20 minutes. Next time, I'm walking over to the bus stop at HHP West & 236th Street, where kids never think to go.
Hey I don't how you feel about the teachers at your school but you should consider telling someone about this incident. They can't help unless they know.
IAWTP.
And that creep on SubTalk/BusTalk would be the handle equivalent to a fast food industry?
My son is also 11, so I've dealt with some of these issues from a parent's point of view. What I tell my son is this - Don't stoop to that kid's level. Keep your cool, and hopefully he will see that he can't get to you and will pick another target. The grade 6 to 8 years are the toughest, and it should get better when you get to high school. And remember, what goes around comes around - that nitwit will get what's coming to him sooner or later.
You're on the right track. You sound like a smart kid, and I'm sure you'll do well. Don't let this crap get to you.
Jim D.
Think again, you have to worry about more things happening in High School, stay out of trouble, etc or it will cause a rough life in high school, it's kool for me, because kids don't f*** mess with me.
Acela
Think again, you have to worry about more things happening in High School, stay out of trouble, etc or it will cause a rough life in high school, it's kool for me, because kids don't f*** mess with me.
Acela
P.S.: I wonder why the kid called me a "nigger". I'm interracial, technically, though I'm more black than white.
I am pretty sure he has his own issues at home and just taking it out on someone.
I'm sorry to hear that happen, it shows how ignorant how some people are :-\. I guess he was trying so hard to be a bully, it's sad how people think they're so tough and think it's funny. If it were me, he would of got his ass kicked.
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
Nope.
But the mayor has not mentioned that the city has roughly $150 million available to begin buying hundreds of new buses for those lines and improve bus facilities, yet has declined to do so because of its political dispute with the authority over who should run them.
City budget documents show that $106 million in federal transportation funds has been available for buses since at least February 2002 but remains mostly unspent. As of January, an additional $50 million in federal and state money was available.
The funds are part of the Bloomberg administration's long-range capital plan, drafted two years ago. It calls for spending $228 million in federal, state and city funds for 730 new buses on the seven private lines and $9.4 million more for improvements to bus facilities. The average bus on the lines is twice as old as those operated by the authority and has 500,000 miles on it, according to company officials.
But the administration does not intend to replace the old buses until it negotiates a takeover of the lines by the authority. "Since we are working towards the M.T.A.'s taking over the private bus lines, it would not be prudent to make such a large capital investment until those negotiations are completed," Jordan Barowitz, a spokesman for the mayor, said in a statement.
Critics of the city's approach to the issue see the refusal to buy new buses as evidence of a plot to increase momentum for a takeover, something the city denies. In a lawsuit filed last fall, the private bus operators assert that the city has decided "to starve the companies of new buses as part of its plan to create intolerable operating and financial pressures."
"To the extent that you don't improve the quality of the buses and the public thinks the bus companies are responsible for that, you're creating political pressure to replace the private companies," Douglas A. Cooper, a lawyer representing the companies, said Tuesday. A quirk of New York City's mass transit system, the seven private bus lines have been a source of political headaches for Mr. Bloomberg since shortly after he took office.
The lines provide local and express bus service to 400,000 riders daily on 82 routes in the Bronx, Brooklyn, Manhattan and Queens, with a combined fleet of 1,200 vehicles that are owned by the city but operated under contract by seven private companies. The city subsidizes the operation of the lines at a cost of $100 million to $150 million a year.
Within months of Mr. Bloomberg's becoming mayor in 2002, workers at three of the bus companies in Queens went on strike, the first of a series of labor disputes in the last two years that have periodically disrupted service. In June 2002, the mayor disclosed that he was in talks with the authority to absorb the bus lines into its transit system, which would relieve the city of its annual operating subsidy.
But the authority has balked at taking them over without financial assistance from the city, and no deal has yet been reached. The issue flared last month when the mayor, angry at a decision by the authority to speed the purchase of rail cars used by suburban commuters, began accusing the authority of neglecting city bus riders by refusing to take over the private lines.
In public comments, Mr. Bloomberg has referred to poor service on the lines and cited survey responses that were published in the mayor's management report showing an increase in rider complaints about dirty buses. However, he has not mentioned that funds have been available to begin buying new buses for at least two years.
In fact, news of the bus money came as a surprise to City Council officials, transit advocates and even Mr. Cooper, the lawyer for the private companies.
"The city says the quality of service has declined,'' Mr. Cooper said. "But there isn't anything we can do with 15-year-old buses to improve that."
In interviews over the last few days, all said they were unaware that financing was available, and they expressed frustration that the money was not being spent.
"It's just irresponsible to leave nearly $150 million on the table that could be used right now to improve quality of life for so many working New Yorkers," said Steve Sigmund, a spokesman for the City Council speaker, Gifford Miller.
"We agree that the M.T.A. should ultimately run these buses, but as of today it's the city's responsibility to ensure a decent commute for hundreds of thousands of people."
Mr. Barowitz, the mayor's spokesman, said in a statement, "The M.T.A. takeover will mean better, more reliable service for the public and a better value for New York's taxpayers."
Some of the federal funding dates to 1999, and has been rolled over annually in the city's capital account for the bus purchases, which has grown larger each year with unspent funds.
City budget documents show that although up to $150 million in accumulated capital funds is now available, the city has budgeted only $70 million of that money each year for buying buses and improving facilities over four years. The city would be halfway through the multiyear plan, which calls for 600 diesel buses, 130 natural gas-powered buses and a new bus facility in Queens, had city officials followed the spending plan.
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
http://tarta.com/utroutes.htm
Apparently these are what replaced their 30-foot Flxible Metros. Does anyone know if Toledo still has any of them around? They were 1988 models, and most were slated for retirement sometime in 2003.
-F.
I always figured he worked for Fifth Avenue Coach. Didn't they have Madison Avenue runs, his regular route? But during his layoff, remember Freddie stopping by the house to tell Alice, "Good news. They're putting Ralph on the crosstown route starting tomorrow." So maybe he was an old Surface Transportation guy, a Surface Transit operator by the time the show aired? How about the dark uniform? I think FAC drivers wore that color uniform, with the zip up jacket, while Surface Transit (nee-Surface Transportation) drivers wore khaki. At least, that's the way I remember it.
I know the famous 'behind the wheel' publicity photo was taken in a NYCTA Old Look GM, but maybe they were just visiting?
I recollect that the publicity photo was taken with 2969, which was then a Fifth Avenue Coach bus, but was formerly a NYC Omnibus bus before Fifth Avenue Coach swallowed up that company. I think the bus was a 4509 model. Many years after the photo, the TA decided to renumber a longer bus (5101 model?) from 4578 to 2969 and called it the Gleason bus. But it wasn't the same bus that was in the much earlier publicity photo, nor was it in the same color scheme.
As Hudson pointed out, the correct TA bus number is 4789, not 4578.
How's that for trivia?? ;-)
8 Street, 14 Street, 23 Street, 34 Street, 116 Street, 79 Street, 86 Street, 96 Street and Spring-Delancy.
Fifth Avenue did not operate on Madison during the tenure of the show. Infact FACOs route ran on Madison when MaBSTOA was created and Fifth and Madison were converted to one way.
In Manhattan, Surface only operated a handful of crosstown routes.42 Street, 59 Street and 125 Street. And nothing on Madison.
Therefore, by process of elimination, if Ralph Kramden really existed, he would have worked for New York City Omnibus.
BTW, the series of publicity photos were taken on an New York City Omnibus old look GM not NYCTA!
While I don't recall all of each route's specifics, they were numbered as follows:
1 - Madison Avenue
2 - Madison/Lenox Avenues
3 - Lexington Avenue
4 - Lexington/Lenox Avenues
5 - 6th Avenue
6 - Broadway
7 - Broadway, Columbus, Lenox
8 - 7th Avenue and Varick Street
9 - 7th Avenue and 8th/9th Streets
10 - 8th Avenue
11 - 9th/Columbus Avenues
12 - Spring/Delancey Streets
13 - 8th/9th Streets
14 - 14th Street
15 - 23rd Street
16 - 34th Street
17 - 79th Street
18 - 86th Street
19 - 96th Street
20 - 106th/116th Streets
21 - Houston Street
22 - Pitt/Ridge Streets
Plus, NYCO may also have had route TB (Triboro Bridge), but I won't bet the farm on it.
In 1960 the conversion of Third and Lexington to one way operation saw the elimination of the NYCO #3 and #4 routes and their absorption in the #101 Surface Transit route. From 1960 to 1969 #2 operated on Madison as far north as 116th Street, and then swung west to Lenox Ave. to cover the old #4 route. In 1969 #2 was eliminated and moved back to Lex and Third becoming the #101A, now today's #102.
NYCO did indeed have route TB, which today is M35 and shorter than the old TB (although M60 also duplicates part of TB as well).
And to answer another poster...Ralph's boss in at least one episode was Mr. Marshall (the episode when Ralph and Ed teach Mr. Marshall to shoot pool and Mr. Marshall offers Ed a job as a "bus driver supervisor", much to Ralph's anger). In another episode, when Ralph was showing off to an old friend and pretended to "run things", the boss was Mr. Monahan.
Sid mentioned the bus the TA renumbered to 2969 had a different color scheme from the original New York City Omnibus 2969. I'm curious to know how they differed.
Anybody ever get one of the MetroCard holders with that famous picture on it? I did. Only the holder was too snug, it was too much trouble getting the card in and out.
The current 2969 (TA bus 4789) has the color scheme in which most of the TA's 4000's (4000-4499 were 35 footers; 4500-4899 were 40-footers) came in originally (green and silver). NYC Omnibus 2969 was green and yellow/creme, the colors also used by Fifth Avenue Coach. There used to be some photos on this site of the green and creme scheme, until they were recently removed. Don't know if someone else has posted those photos.
That "jade green" (as I call it) on the top was also the interior color on many of the earlier new looks....walls and some of them had that color fiberglass seats.
Does anyone recall the last routes to have Old Looks in Manhattan? I seem to recall them on the M10 when nothing else (at least in Midtown) still had them. That's the reason I was prepared, that long ago day, to hop aboard if I happened to see one coming down 7th Avenue, which I did.
The M104s, at least on weekends, were all Fish Bowls by late 1963-early 1964 as I remember it. (Hey, it was only forty years ago!)
Fifth Avenue had numbers 2605-2694. Delivered in 1958-1959
Surface Transit had numbers 3020-3059. Delivered in 1959
The scheme were the same except for the lettering.
Surface also had Mack built counterparts. They were models C-49 and numbered 3000-3009. They came in 1958.
Both the GMs and Macks had padded seats, perimeter seating in the back, fluorescent lighting (the Macks did not have the portruding box), push out doors and my favorite part, a modesty panel door next to the driver. He had his own little compartment. These were removed when MaBSTOA took over.
BTW, Fifth Avenue #3100 was not a 1959 TDH 5106 model. It was built in 1956! It is serial #919
The TDH5301's with air conditioning became 3211-3220 -- and the TDH5106's wre renumbered 3221 and up. Only thing is, bus 3260 was NOT one of the TDH5106's with the bulging-box headsigns, etc. It was an older bus (originally #1060).
Did bus 3020 somehow disappear and avoid having to be renumbered?
I don;t ever remember seeing them on any other route besides the Bx12....
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
2. Whether someone who works in the Brooklyn Division wants fewer runs depends on the position in which the person works. The Union Chairperson would not want fewer runs, since it means fewer members; the General Manager would, since it's more efficient for the agency.
3. There is not enough ridership on any route in the system to fill an artic at 2 AM, though some of Flatbush's "hawks" do relatively well.
David
AHAHAHAH
David
Besides we have the C40LF's and the other boroughs(whatever pathetic place you represent) dont. Plus we have the best routes and most Nova RTS's.
Flatbush41, tell me if the 1996/1998 are at 40mph, it doesn't really matter since most the FP routes have very little chance of letting any bus go that fast.
From rides I took not too long ago, they could get over 40mph. But as you said, since most of the streets are rather narrow there's almost no chance.
Flatbush41, tell me if the 1996/1998 are at 40mph, it doesn't really matter since most the FP routes have very little chance of letting any bus go that fast.
Flatbush is nothing compared to JG fleet and their maintainance(that's one for you Acela) :) .
1996 NOVA-RTS: 9095
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
MetroB
click to this site and head home. they are making Gillig coahes in 1/64 scale and selling them for $20-$25 dollars. Worth the buy.
Oh, here is an exact link to it too:
http://www.geocities.com/gilligcoaches/diecastgillig.html
Jim D.
Corgi buses are 1/50th.
Those friction RTS's and fishbowls are approximately 1/76 (British OO scale).
If you want to have a good estimate of the size, there are some Eagle buses made with various fottball team paint jobs...those are exactly S-scale,w hich is 1/64 (American Flyer trains....)
They are NOT being made yet. The site's owner/author is trying to determine if there is a market to make them.
And seeing as how everything on his site is SCHOOL BUS oriented, don't get your hopes up that it will be a Gillig Phantom or Advantage. It will be a SCHOOL BUS.
Enjoy!
Regards,
Trevor Logan
Trevor
Thanks, Trevor
This photo was taken around where I live at.
Also,i don't remember ever seeing Hino #952. What happened to those buses. Did Hino not want to bulid for the city or the city lost intrest.What is the deal?
Trevor
very interesting site! I was on for quite some time....
So it's a pretty good ride via 3 Av and we bypass about six-eight M101/2/3's along the way and we do good then on the Harlem River Drive we go well then there's buildup of traffic near the exit ramp to 179 St and I et off at Broadway where I get off to catch any bus that comes up first. So I get on 8060 running on the Bx11 and on W 181 I see 7655 on the Bx36 & its a cool ride to West Farms Rd where I see a O7 on the Bx27 but I couldn't see whether it was going to run or not then I see 8783 on the Bx27 with the destination sign not working. Bus fills up by time we reach Morrison Av then it's a fairly slow ride along Rosedale Av then I get off at Sondview Av and a Bx39 comes up in about 5 minutes so I take it to Parkchester to transfer to the Q44.
I wait and I see 425 so I hop on and its a cool ride at first but then the ride is kinda slow once we reach Queens so I get off at the 7 train to take a trip on the Q17 LTD. I get on 8956, the B/O held up the Limited sign in his hand so people know what bus they need LOL 8-) and the bus fills up very quickly and we pass the Kissena Blvd stop and then it gets emptier as we go on. By Union Turnpike there were only 4 people aboard the bus and I get off at 179 St and I ride the F via QB express to 47/50 St then I ride a R40 B train and finish my trip.
O5 598 B8
R68 2828 (Q)
RTS 4973 B51
NF Artic 5537 M103
RTS 5052 M98
RTS 8060 Bx11
RTS 8783 Bx27
NF Artic 5273 Bx39
O5 425 Q44
RTS 8956 Q17 LTD
R46 5793 (F)
R40 4284 (B)
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
Acela
Orion 7 #7640 B65
BIG AL
Why dont u look at what the fuck I was responding too before you open your mouth.
BIG AL
BTW, the repowered Orions suck anyway.
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
Drivers of dollar vans and liveries profit from the sparse service, as commuters tire of the maddening wait for the next bus to come along.
"These livery drivers know it's just a matter of time before we give up," said Leonard Peters, 76, a retired carpenter from Jamaica who was waiting for the Q9 Green Lines bus yesterday afternoon on Sutphin Boulevard. "I've been here 30 minutes already, but I can't afford a cab. I'm on a fixed income."
Mr. Peters happens to live in one of the areas in Queens served not by a city bus but rather by one of seven private bus lines that provide local and express bus service to 400,000 riders daily on 82 routes, in Manhattan, Brooklyn and the Bronx as well as in Queens. The seven lines operate a combined fleet of 1,200 city-owned vehicles, and recently these companies have been in a dispute with the Bloomberg administration over repairing the buses and whether the Metropolitan Transportation Authority should take over the lines.
Yesterday, City Council Speaker Gifford Miller urged the mayor to buy more buses and said the bargaining would "shortchange the commuters who depend on the private bus line system for their livelihood."
Company officials say that the average privately operated bus has 500,000 miles on it and is roughly twice as old as the average city bus operated by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority.
But of about 15 riders interviewed yesterday, not one complained about bus conditions. Their major complaint was that the privately operated buses simply take so long to show up. In addition, many passengers groused about the news yesterday that the city had been sitting on $150 million in federal and state money meant to buy hundreds of new buses for those lines. Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg plans on spending $228 million in federal, state and city funds for 730 new buses on the seven private lines but is waiting for the authority to agree to absorb the aging bus lines, which would relieve the city of its annual operating subsidy.
The companies complain that a lack of city support prevents them from adding more buses. Four of the companies have filed a suit asserting that the city is hoping "to starve the companies of new buses as part of its plan to create intolerable operating and financial pressures."
Douglas A. Cooper, a lawyer representing the companies, yesterday blamed the city for the poor service, accusing the city of not buying new buses, or not paying companies to repair many of their broken ones.
The mayor calls it foolish to buy the buses until the negotiations are completed. Jordan Barowitz, a spokesman for the mayor, said the buses used by the private companies are not the same make or style as those used by the authority. If new private buses were bought now, he said, there would be a compatibility problem if they were folded into the authority's fleet.
"The M.T.A. and private bus lines use different types of buses," Mr. Barowitz said. "If we purchase the buses before the negotiations are complete," he added, "we run the risk of buying obsolete buses that the M.T.A. does not use and cannot service."
Passengers say that crowded buses cause riders to argue and to shove each other at bus stops. On a crowded Q6 bus that lurched its way along Sutphin Boulevard yesterday, there were women holding babies, elderly people clutching shopping bags and schoolchildren wearing backpacks. Riders stared out windows cloudy with little cracks as a tinny mix of music spilled from headphones.
One passenger, Isiah Thompson, 18, a high school senior, said: "You can never rely on these buses. At least when you take a city bus, they run more often."
"The city should buy up the private bus lines and run them like city buses," said Carl Hotnit, 67, who regularly takes a Green Lines bus from his home in South Jamaica into downtown Jamaica.
"Of course the service is bad in this neighborhood. You go into better areas, and the service is fine. Our voice is never heard."
Faiza Akhtar contributed reporting for this article.
To be honest, I wouldn't want to drive a bus in South Jamaica either.
But anyway the MTA does have a point though. If they were to take over the private lines it would be an added expense of running those lines and paying the drivers that drive t hem, meanwhile their revenue probally would hardly increase as most people using those lines would probally get a free transfer to or from the subway, or use Unlimited Metrocards.
I'm not so sure about that, when Im at Jamaica Center, I see "dollar" Vans there doing runs for NYCT routes as well. While walking by they yell out things like "Rosedale" or "Q5 van" "Q4 van".
... who owns the bus ... Most passengers think they belong to the company that operates them. This doesn't help the public to get mad at the right entity.
... lack of purchases ... the real reason is that the City committed to ONLY buy CNG, so for Green, Jamaica, etc. they have to build a new CNG depot first. If the mayor unloads these routes on the TA they haven't made such a commitment, so can buy clean diesel.
It's all about money.
How true! People think that each company owns the buses, but except for the NYBS Fisbowls and GMDD Classics 1600-2, they buses are owned by the DOT. (I always think of these buses as DOT buses, rather than the individual companies.)
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
The mayor calls it foolish to buy the buses until the negotiations are completed. Jordan Barowitz, a spokesman for the mayor, said the buses used by the private companies are not the same make or style as those used by the authority. If new private buses were bought now, he said, there would be a compatibility problem if they were folded into the authority's fleet.
"The M.T.A. and private bus lines use different types of buses," Mr. Barowitz said. "If we purchase the buses before the negotiations are complete," he added, "we run the risk of buying obsolete buses that the M.T.A. does not use and cannot service."
What are they talking about? The private lines operate RTS's and Orion V's, just like the NYCTA does. Why not just order a bunch of 05's and spec them to use the same powerplant as the TA buses?
I hope the Times or another media outlet digs into this, and exposes these excuses for what they are.
JD
This happens on MTA routes as well but not b/c of sparse service. The real reason dollar van drivers are successful is b/c the capacity in the vans is about 1/3 of a standard bus and they start much faster, in turn making less stops. Too bad the MTA can't make a little flexibility in the scheduling of LTD routes.
The mayor calls it foolish to buy the buses until the negotiations are completed. Jordan Barowitz, a spokesman for the mayor, said the buses used by the private companies are not the same make or style as those used by the authority. If new private buses were bought now, he said, there would be a compatibility problem if they were folded into the authority's fleet.
"The M.T.A. and private bus lines use different types of buses," Mr. Barowitz said. "If we purchase the buses before the negotiations are complete," he added, "we run the risk of buying obsolete buses that the M.T.A. does not use and cannot service."
I see how Mayor Bloomberg would call it foolish if the 18-19 year old GM buses are basically on their last legs & ready to fall apart, especially the Green Bus Lines and the Triboro buses. If this guy is thinking of a rebuild, it obviously won't even be worth it but the 1993/1994 TMC's and 1997 O5's [the diesels] can have a medium rebuild to an overhaul. I guess Mr. Barowitz doesn't realize [or know] that we have RTS's and Orion V's. It sounds like someone/people are trying to come up with excuses for not wanting the MTA to takeover.
Passengers say that crowded buses cause riders to argue and to shove each other at bus stops. On a crowded Q6 bus that lurched its way along Sutphin Boulevard yesterday, there were women holding babies, elderly people clutching shopping bags and schoolchildren wearing backpacks. Riders stared out windows cloudy with little cracks as a tinny mix of music spilled from headphones.
One passenger, Isiah Thompson, 18, a high school senior, said: "You can never rely on these buses. At least when you take a city bus, they run more often."
Trust me guys, this is not an exaggeration. I have seen loud arguments and such on the privates before. Well I think they should have interviewed passengers of ALL of the Queens privates and have their say. The Green Bus got the most complaints; and rightly so but they really haven't said much about Triboro, Queens Surface and Jamaica Buses.
The way the City has things set up with the private operators is, in my view, all political. The City provides inadequate funding but the public identifies the shortcomings with the private bus lines themselves, not with the City of New York. Thus the city (meaning councilpersons and the Mayor) are insulated against the anger of riders. This is similar to the way the commuter lines out of GCT were operated until Metro-North took over in 1983. The MTA (State of New York) never provided Penn Central and then Conrail with enough money to operate a really dependable service. But once Metro-North was established, the state could no longer duck the blame for lousy service. And finally, after 15 years of phony promises, things REALLY did begin to improve.
That's the major misconception about the DOT-contracted routes. The City privides complete funding in the form of guaranteed "management fees" (regardless of actual performance) plus full reimbursement of all expenses (including executive salaries, B/O and maintainer wages, bus parts, advertising, campaign contributions, liability settlements, and DOT-imposed "penalties" for poor service). Since the funding system is based on reimbursements, it's up to the companies to spend the money first and then send a bill to DOT. Plus, since the companies "own" several key City Council members (paid for by you and me), DOT rarely asks too many questions.
However, DOT was permitted to audit the companies recently, and found the following:
1. New York Bus Service bills DOT about $25,000 per year per bus for maintenance, and manages to keep its buses in very good condition considering their average age.
2. The "Cooper companies" (Triboro, JBI, Green, Command) bill DOT about $75,000 per year per bus for maintenance, and the condition of their buses ranges from semi-decent to totally unacceptable.
NYBS seems to spend its maintenance billings on actual maintenance, while the others seem to spend their maintenance billings on other things.
B49-#8154-TMC-NO REPOWERED
- Triboro has a "test" CNG facility, i.e small & slow.
- Command has a good one, but they have a small fleet.
- QSC has filling stations on 3 lanes, so this is why they got some of the CNGs intented for Triboro.
Also, Gotham can you direct me to where or how you got the $75,000 figure for what you call the Cooper Lines vs. $25,000 for New York Bus Service? A report I read, by the City's Budget Review office, stated that while NYBS (and Liberty Lines, I think) had lower maintenance costs this reflected more the express routes they operated vs. the local routes operated by the Queens privates. The report pointed out that Queens Surface had the lowest costs of the Queens privates but this was probably due to the fact it operated more express routes. I think the costs per mile for Green, Triboro etc were actually lower than for NYCT. (The report was from the year 2000, I think.)
To be honest, I wouldn't want to drive a bus in South Jamaica either.
But anyway the MTA does have a point though. If they were to take over the private lines it would be an added expense of running those lines and paying the drivers that drive t hem, meanwhile their revenue probally would hardly increase as most people using those lines would probally get a free transfer to or from the subway, or use Unlimited Metrocards.
I'm not so sure about that, when Im at Jamaica Center, I see "dollar" Vans there doing runs for NYCT routes as well. While walking by they yell out things like "Rosedale" or "Q5 van" "Q4 van".
... who owns the bus ... Most passengers think they belong to the company that operates them. This doesn't help the public to get mad at the right entity.
... lack of purchases ... the real reason is that the City committed to ONLY buy CNG, so for Green, Jamaica, etc. they have to build a new CNG depot first. If the mayor unloads these routes on the TA they haven't made such a commitment, so can buy clean diesel.
It's all about money.
How true! People think that each company owns the buses, but except for the NYBS Fisbowls and GMDD Classics 1600-2, they buses are owned by the DOT. (I always think of these buses as DOT buses, rather than the individual companies.)
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
The mayor calls it foolish to buy the buses until the negotiations are completed. Jordan Barowitz, a spokesman for the mayor, said the buses used by the private companies are not the same make or style as those used by the authority. If new private buses were bought now, he said, there would be a compatibility problem if they were folded into the authority's fleet.
"The M.T.A. and private bus lines use different types of buses," Mr. Barowitz said. "If we purchase the buses before the negotiations are complete," he added, "we run the risk of buying obsolete buses that the M.T.A. does not use and cannot service."
What are they talking about? The private lines operate RTS's and Orion V's, just like the NYCTA does. Why not just order a bunch of 05's and spec them to use the same powerplant as the TA buses?
I hope the Times or another media outlet digs into this, and exposes these excuses for what they are.
JD
Starting off at Greenbelt approximately around 8am:
87 to Laurel Center Mall
Corridor transit to Columbia Mall
Howard Transit to BWI
MTA Light Rail Shuttle to and from Downtown-If the New Flyers are in and one is running on the 17 we'll take one of those.
Try to ride BWI Neoplan CNGs
B30 to Greenbelt
The Bus 17(I think this might go all the way there from here) to Langley Park
RIDE ON 15 to Silver Spring
S to downtown
38B to Ballston
ART to East Falls Church
GEORGE to West Falls Church
METRORAIL to Vienna
Cue to GMU
17A to Landmark
DASH to Van Dorn Street
FFX Connector to Springfield
PRTC Direct to Potomac Mills and back ending the trip
As I don't have times figured out yet, this might change and yes lunch will be part of the trip. The attempt as you can tell is to try to ride mostly all of DC-Baltimore's T/As (except Annopolis Transit, Loundoun Transit-these are too far off to take). Also personal factors may determine whether the trip will go on. Once the personal factors and scheduling are resolved, then the a draft might come as early as mid April. So if you want to go, clear the week of June 28 through July 1st.
Also where is the connection from the S to the B30? If I'm not mistaken, we will have to take an 80 a few blocks up H Street to get to Farragut Square.
Other Recommendation:
38B to Ballston
ART 52/53 to EFC, Use WMATA 2x as Plan B
GEORGE to West Falls Church
Manassas Metro-Direct to Manassas Mall
Cross County Connector to PRTC Transit Center
Prince William Metro-Direct to Springfield
109/202/204 to Van Dorn Metro
ATx to ... Landmark Mall (ugh)
29K out to GMU
CUE around from GMU to Vienna then Vienna to GMU
17/306 to Pentagon or 404/15 to Rosslyn, ending trip
The odd connections between the Cross County Connector and the Metro Directs were the reason why I didn't make that a part of the trip.
Of course one I just thought of, if VRE makes return trips into DC in the afternoons like MARC does would be to take the PRTC Metro Direct to the VRE Station(don't remember the name) and then take VRE back as the last trip.
4260 F14 New Carrolton-5170 did a 9600 impression. It said in its rear route number sign "RHOD" then "AVE" and its side destination sign was screwed up also. 8761 pulled up to do an F4 run and it had a wheelchair lift sticker by the front door. I think I made a note of this before and also it didn't have on. Also saw mismatched oddities 5169 and 9766 also at New Carrolton.
2052 F6 University of Maryland
9631 C8 White Flint
5805 46 Credit Union
5559 49 Rockville-Talked to Chris G, found out some interesting stuff, but alas no 5802 or 5801 running. Also saw the highest O7 running on the 46 5908.
5621 49 Glenmont
9218 Y8 Wheaton-Do you know how many artics I saw on the Y8 all day that day, 2 counter that with about 8 40 footers most of them packed in like sardines including my 9218. It was so packed that I think people were riding on the roof. BTW while the Y8s were packed to the gildges, there were at least 5 artics sitting waiting for grass to grow under their wheels at Montgomery. THANK YOU WHYMATA. Also saw 9626 needing mechanical help at Wheaton.
After lunch came out to see 9626 still needing help and finally needing a tow truck to help it somemore, probably to tow it away. I guess this bus had "NO POWER" :p
5394 34 Medical Center
5809 46 Rockville
5586 55 Lakeforest-Taking pics at Lakeforest Transit Center when 5908 came up and it seemed to have apparently had the markings of one or two busfans. It looked like it said "NUKE" written in the dirt on the window under the destination sign. hmmmmmmm I wonder which one did that.
5906 62 Shady Grove-Man I wish this bus had a longer ride on the highway before getting to Shady Grove, I was hoping he would floor that sucker. DISCLAIMER-when riding a Ride On Orion VII, make sure you bring you own harness you'll need it :D.
4338 Q2 Wheaton-The Clever devices didn't work until it got to Rockville the all of a sudden it came on as we were leaving the Rockville station. The stop request announcements was working.....till we left Rockville then it stopped working. Eventually both worked before we got to Randolph Road.
2129 C4 PG Plaza-Both this bus and 4338 doesn't announce the "XFR TO SUBWAY STA" part on the clever devices.
9447 F4 New Carrolton
Breda set 3016 lead 3017 Landover
4263 A12 some where close to home.
I rode 3208 down to Hoboken, and then boarded 2628, a 1995 Nova RTS with Cummins/ZF powertrain, soft transit seats, bound for Mill Creek Mall. (This was a spur-of-the-moment decision, because the bus was about to leave, and it ran only one bus an hour at that time.) I rode this bus end-to-end, and then after spending time in Mill Creek Mall in Secaucus, I then went outside and took some pictures of a Sussex Transit bus. (There were three parked by the end of the lot, 123, 124, and 125, all of my pics are of 123.)
Leaving Mill Creek, I got on RTS 2614, and rode this down to Bergenline Avenue and 31 Street. At this point, I was looking initially for the 154 bus to Fort Lee, because I thought I had missed the 190, when the 190 bus came, bound for Paterson. I got on D4000 7883 (Jersey Cruiser IV). This bus did decently until it got to Main Avenue/Main Street in Clifton and Paterson (anyone ever heard of off-street parking, or in the case of Clifton, using it?) The bus went at a crawl down Main Street in Paterson as it headed for the Broadway Bus Terminal. Along the 190 (where it ran with the 72 and 74), I noticed those pesky vans competing for customers from NJT buses (DC BusTalkers, does this remind you of a TA you know and love?) As for the 190, it seemed as though that this was a route that had the frequency of local buses in both directions, yet was exclusively a Jersey Cruiser IV route! The ride on this bus was rather good, except for slow traffic through Clifton and Paterson.
At Broadway Bus Terminal, I took some pictures of some various models of buses, and what caught my eye was D4000 7620, which had a RE/MAX wrap on it. However, I waited about 20 minutes for the bus I wanted, the 171 to New York/George Washington Bridge Bus Station. I got on a MetroD single-door suburban 3732, and sat about 2 seats from the back. This bus was a DREAM to ride! Off that topic however, I saw more vans (the majority of them operated by Express Service, more on that in a bit) competing for passengers on the 171, even through Garden State Plaza and every single turn that the 171 made! Despite traffic at the GWB, this bus pretty much remained on schedule, and I got there at about 5:25.
The 126 and the RTS buses had fareboxes, but the Jersey Cruiser and the MetroD bus were absent fareboxes, with drivers making change.
I then took the A train one stop, and then slept on the C train for a long while before coming home on the B83 bus.
My trip:
8901 RTS-06 B82
7520 RTS-04 B6 Limited
6615 R142 #2
1625 R62 #4
1941 R62A #3
3208 Flxible Metro-B NJT126
2628 RTS-06 NJT85 N/B
2614 RTS-06 NJT85 S/B
7883 MCI D4000 NJT190
3732 Flxible Metro-D NJT171
3965 R38 A
4008 R38 C
4990 RTS-06 B83
And now, some afterthoughts:
The buses that I saw that were competing with NJT, mostly Express Service buses, but a few Vanessa buses as well, included these buses: Starcraft vans, Goshen vans, Orion CL100 vans, Startrans Supreme vans, Krystal vans (all on a Ford chassis; the Krystal van I saw was on a Ford F-series chassis; all the others were on Ford E350 or E450 chasses), and some buses that looked like former school buses. There were some models also that I could not identify, and I did see that weird bus that Carlton (Incognito) posted a few months back. Aside from the Krystal and those strange-looking minibuses, those vans and minibuses looked as though they were all bought secondhand (except for the Krystal vans). They also looked like S*IT (and I do apologize to S*IT in landfills), as though they had just gone to Iraq and come back (sorry if I offended anyone there)! Furthermore, in terms of window replacement, they must truly not know their butt from their elbow, as some of the windows look upside down. Worse, the buses look as though they are rotting away. If I lived in Paterson, I would rather deal with a MetroD (which was a dream to ride), then any of those cutaways! They seem to exist to undercut NJT, and even though they are not allowed in the Broadway Bus Terminal in Paterson, they stop right outside on West Broadway. One came up to me as though I wanted to board, as I was about to take some pictures of 7620 and its RE/MAX wrap, but I implied to him that he must be CAHREZY if he thought I wanted to board that POS van! (I also noticed that Express Service has its lot about 200 feet from Broadway Bus Terminal.) However, at George Washington, they have actually been rewarded for their theft of customers from NJT 171 with their own lane at the bus station (Lane 30, specifically marked SPANISH Transportation ONLY).
As for the MetroB bus, that bus felt a bit cramped, probably because of its 96 width. Other than that, it was okay, but almost every seat was taken leaving PABT.
The 40 buses I was on, except for 3208 and 7883, all had Cummins ZF powertrains, and all seemed to have good acceleration. However, comparing the Jersey Cruiser to the MetroD, I would rather the MetroD any day, as there; I slept part of the trip like a baaaaaaaaby!
This last bit is for the DC BusTalkers: Come up here, ride one of those Express Service vans, and when you get back, go over to Prince Georges County, and then kiss those THE BUS buses as though they are your wives or girlfriends!
I leave you with this question: Red and Tan, Express Service, MTA Yukon Depot local buses, or PG County THE BUS: Which buses look the worst?
Pictures will come in a separate post on this thread, and Trevor (Operational Engineer II), I will e-mail you the Sussex Transit VanHool pics and the pics of NJT bus 7620RE/MAX wrap. If anyone else wants pictures, email me.
And two last questions: What year are the 1200s and 1300s RTS buses (some privately-operated?) Also, sorry I could not get a picture of this, but what was bus 3199 (another MetroB) doing with Academy stickers on the front, but New Jersey Transit everywhere else?
Feel free to comment. Sorry if my afterthoughts sounded like a rant.
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
BTW - was this your first time riding NJ Transit? Judging from your feedback I guess it had a good impression!
Off-topic, be on the lookout for Flxible Metro-D 1937 in the Jersey City-Newark area. This bus is wrapped with Montclair State University, and it looks great!
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
The Veguzti Urbano minibus, Paterson Express Service style. I think they only have ONE of them, thank god!
>>>And two last questions: What year are the 1200s and 1300s RTS buses (some privately-operated?)<<<
Those are part of the 1001-1576 Group of RTS's, those are 1999 models. They have Cummins C8.3 with a ZF Ecomat HP-592 transmission. IMHO, I don't like their shifting, it's a bit too shaky...the C8.3 is not too great to me, i'd rather have an M11 on an RTS than a C8.3, an M11 sounds better in an RTS (like NYCT #9140-9149).
>>>Also, sorry I could not get a picture of this, but what was bus 3199 (another MetroB) doing with Academy stickers on the front, but New Jersey Transit everywhere else?<<<
Oh, sounds like typical 22-Hillside type of shit...some of their buses, #1002-1030(?), 1575-1576, and about five Flxibles that run the Bergenline and HOB-PABT runs, are in the Academy scheme operated by the #22-Hillside Corp., others,like many Flxibles in the 3500-3605 range and many RTS's in the 1100-1200 carry the NJT colors but are run by 22-Hillside Corp with Academy drivers...
Then, there are those that have the NJT colors, Academy logo in the front, operated by Academy, since they are the ones who have the contract to operate most of the Bergen County routes, the 700-series routes. Those lines have 1700-series Flxibles, 3100-series Flxibles, and nearly all of North Jersey's 30-foot RTS's, in the 2500 range.
Hope that helps
Incognito
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
Oh, sounds like typical 22-Hillside type of shit...some of their buses, #1002-1030(?), 1575-1576, and about five Flxibles that run the Bergenline and HOB-PABT runs, are in the Academy scheme operated by the #22-Hillside Corp., others,like many Flxibles in the 3500-3605 range and many RTS's in the 1100-1200 carry the NJT colors but are run by 22-Hillside Corp with Academy drivers...
Buses athat are in NJT colors but have Academy on the front are those running NJT routes under contract. Academny runs the 2, 88, 123, and 125 on the Hudson County Contract, and the 751/52/53/55/56/62/72 on the Bergen County contract.
MetroB
What I would want to see done though, for both companies is: uniform paint schemes, somewhat improved maintenance (many of their buses are likely secondhand), a commitment to buy only one model of bus (If I ran the companies, I would go with the Orion CL100 van-bus), and functioning rollsigns. Whoever thought up of these companies, I have to give credit to, because they fill a HUGE void that NJT does not provide, such as mentioned above, plus a one-seat ride to Newport Center from George Washington Bridge Bus Station.
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
BTW, I was on 4339 on the J2 and it also had the old Clever program. It announced the first NIH stop before turning off and did not announce the Red Line transfer at Bethesda.
This happens on MTA routes as well but not b/c of sparse service. The real reason dollar van drivers are successful is b/c the capacity in the vans is about 1/3 of a standard bus and they start much faster, in turn making less stops. Too bad the MTA can't make a little flexibility in the scheduling of LTD routes.
The mayor calls it foolish to buy the buses until the negotiations are completed. Jordan Barowitz, a spokesman for the mayor, said the buses used by the private companies are not the same make or style as those used by the authority. If new private buses were bought now, he said, there would be a compatibility problem if they were folded into the authority's fleet.
"The M.T.A. and private bus lines use different types of buses," Mr. Barowitz said. "If we purchase the buses before the negotiations are complete," he added, "we run the risk of buying obsolete buses that the M.T.A. does not use and cannot service."
I see how Mayor Bloomberg would call it foolish if the 18-19 year old GM buses are basically on their last legs & ready to fall apart, especially the Green Bus Lines and the Triboro buses. If this guy is thinking of a rebuild, it obviously won't even be worth it but the 1993/1994 TMC's and 1997 O5's [the diesels] can have a medium rebuild to an overhaul. I guess Mr. Barowitz doesn't realize [or know] that we have RTS's and Orion V's. It sounds like someone/people are trying to come up with excuses for not wanting the MTA to takeover.
Passengers say that crowded buses cause riders to argue and to shove each other at bus stops. On a crowded Q6 bus that lurched its way along Sutphin Boulevard yesterday, there were women holding babies, elderly people clutching shopping bags and schoolchildren wearing backpacks. Riders stared out windows cloudy with little cracks as a tinny mix of music spilled from headphones.
One passenger, Isiah Thompson, 18, a high school senior, said: "You can never rely on these buses. At least when you take a city bus, they run more often."
Trust me guys, this is not an exaggeration. I have seen loud arguments and such on the privates before. Well I think they should have interviewed passengers of ALL of the Queens privates and have their say. The Green Bus got the most complaints; and rightly so but they really haven't said much about Triboro, Queens Surface and Jamaica Buses.
The way the City has things set up with the private operators is, in my view, all political. The City provides inadequate funding but the public identifies the shortcomings with the private bus lines themselves, not with the City of New York. Thus the city (meaning councilpersons and the Mayor) are insulated against the anger of riders. This is similar to the way the commuter lines out of GCT were operated until Metro-North took over in 1983. The MTA (State of New York) never provided Penn Central and then Conrail with enough money to operate a really dependable service. But once Metro-North was established, the state could no longer duck the blame for lousy service. And finally, after 15 years of phony promises, things REALLY did begin to improve.
That's the major misconception about the DOT-contracted routes. The City privides complete funding in the form of guaranteed "management fees" (regardless of actual performance) plus full reimbursement of all expenses (including executive salaries, B/O and maintainer wages, bus parts, advertising, campaign contributions, liability settlements, and DOT-imposed "penalties" for poor service). Since the funding system is based on reimbursements, it's up to the companies to spend the money first and then send a bill to DOT. Plus, since the companies "own" several key City Council members (paid for by you and me), DOT rarely asks too many questions.
However, DOT was permitted to audit the companies recently, and found the following:
1. New York Bus Service bills DOT about $25,000 per year per bus for maintenance, and manages to keep its buses in very good condition considering their average age.
2. The "Cooper companies" (Triboro, JBI, Green, Command) bill DOT about $75,000 per year per bus for maintenance, and the condition of their buses ranges from semi-decent to totally unacceptable.
NYBS seems to spend its maintenance billings on actual maintenance, while the others seem to spend their maintenance billings on other things.
B49-#8154-TMC-NO REPOWERED
- Triboro has a "test" CNG facility, i.e small & slow.
- Command has a good one, but they have a small fleet.
- QSC has filling stations on 3 lanes, so this is why they got some of the CNGs intented for Triboro.
wayne
That is one of the Routemasters, photographed in front of Westminster Abbey and with Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament in the background. They do require a conductor to collect the fares and the enterance/exit is at the back.
This is a new AX400, photographed at Trafalgar Square. These buses are "OPTO". The driver sits up front and collects fares. Passengers board up front and can leave by either side door. The one interesting thing I noticed on these buses (I never rode one but saw it from walking by) was that the driver is behind a plastic screen and very isolated from the passengers. Fares are passed between driver and passenger in a little slot much like how transactions are made in NYC subway stations or at a bank.
BTW, what does ARRIVA mean on the AX400 model?
www.londonbuspage.com/
If people love the Routemasters, but the existing fleet is spent, why can't someone build "New Routemasters" like the "New Beetle" -- similar, but updated?
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
I saw 8002 today on the B15 when I was in Albany Projects.
Acela
Incognito
Does anyone have any information in regards to the unfinished 26 bus platforms or if anyone has pictures of these 26 unfinished platforms inside the unfinished 4th floor, please post them.
On the other hand, I can see the sense of combining some of the operations that are separate today. The subway and commuter rail lines carry people to Manhattan, while buses carry people around the other boroughs and the suburban counties.
There is no reason to for bus routes not to continue from Queens into Nassau, or from Nassau into Suffolk, or from the Bronx into Westchester. The overlapping routes and transfers are wasteful. It is especially difficult for low wage workers who live in the city, because they cannot afford to live in the suburbs, but work in the suburbs, because that's where the jobs are.
Therefore, I suggest the following:
1) The Long Island Street Transit (LIST) network would serve all of Long Island, including Brooklyn and Queens.
2) New York and Hudson Bus (NY&HB) would serve Manhattan, the Bronx, and the Lower Hudson Valley.
3) Staten Island Transit (SIT) would include Staten Island buses and the SIR.
The subway would be a separate agency, as would each of the commuter railroads.
Under this proposal, private companies would be allowed to bid for the routes if they offered lesser subsidy levels than the MTA subsidiary, but the network would operate under one name, as in Chicago.
What would the slogan be? "SIT down and shut up"?
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
The 20 mins on the N6 to and from 165th Street to Nassau Border is long enough without serving Queens Customers DOUBLING the entire trip From Jamaica to Hempstead. Look at the Q43, Imagine it being combined with the N22, it would be a complete tourture to the driver and passengers headed to Roosevelt Field and Westbury.
You all are looking at it from a Map perspective and not a passenger perspective. The only way that "merging" the routes would be Tollerable to ANYONE would be to make the Nassau Routes Limited at ALL times in Queens, with the original routes being the Locals.
From an economic persoective, based on where people live and work, some express routes may be warrented, especially from population centers in Brooklyn and Queens to business centers in Nassau. Nassau has essentially zoned-out the lower-wage workers it demands, and their commute is hell.
Agreed.
BTW, did you spend a lot of time coming up with the names for these new companies my friend ?
As long as it took to type them.
It will be interesting to see what happens in the next few months.
Similarly, buying could be centarlized at the MTA level, or through a buying co-op.
(But the real question is what will happen to those departments that currently service both buses and subways. Will those functions now be decentralized into separate departments in Buses and Subways?)
I think they just merged metrocard into something else, but general services could be consolidated at the MTA level or even outsourced. Personally, I'd like to see the commuter railroads adopt Metrocard or something like it.
(It will be interesting to see what happens in the next few months.)
We're talking about the New York State Legislature, bipartisan bad joke of American "democracy." Unless the MTA is taking money it doesn't have and contributing to the right campaigns, the best guess is nothing.
I guess a function such as payroll could be done at the MTA level, and Operations Planning could be done at the MTA Level or split between Buses and Subways. But what happens to a function such as fixing electronic components for buses and subways which currently is done at one location sometimes by the same employees. Would it be logical for Subways employees to continue to fix bus parts under the new organization? Or would you have to have two distinct groups of employees, one for Subways and another for Buses? And could one group of managers continue to supervise both groups or would you have to double the number of managers just because you now have two agencies? If so, where is the savings? And if the same employees continue to do the same work, then Buses and Subways really aren't separate entitities.
I don't think they have worked out the details yet which is why I say it will be interesting to see what develops.
I remember the first propane-powered bus was I believe in the 1950s and Chicago was the first to order them...
Does anyone also know when the first LNG bus was built and purchased and how LNG as a fuel works? Is it like CNG in anyway?
Thank you
Incognito
Did the driver not shut-off the bell in this case?
And some of our buses can still do the bell thing a hudnred times...I just ignore that, too -- because when *I* was a kid in NY City, I used to do the same thing. Now that I've grown up and am driving the bus, I don't let anything bother me that I used to do myself. I admit, I was a brat....
Friday night, arrived at our hotel and decided to take the bus from there to the "Downtown Mall". It was an outdoor place that was blocked off to traffic and had a lot of cool stores and restaurants. Bad thing was I was in definite enemy territory being that is UVA's home and here I am a Univ. of MD. boy. I was tempted to yell, "Terps Rule!" a few times, but decided that I wanted to spend my weekend walking and not in a hospital.
Charlottesville's Transit system was made up of primarily New Flyer D35LF's. I couldn't tell what this other type of bus was, but it almost looked like an Opus. We took the #7 from our hotel and this thing takes you on the grand tour of every single shopping center along US 29 on its way to the Downtown area. No lie, we went into every one and there were over a half dozen. One of the places or bus went was to a Wal Mart where we pulled up to it, then the driver shut the lights off of the bus and backed up into this no parking zone and turned around. I don't know what that was about. My wife was a big trooper and held out ok. Going home, I didn't realize this until we were halfway there, but the bus didn't go all the way back to the hotel, so we got off at the Albermarle Sq. shopping mall and walked a mile. Oops! LOL, a side trip to Kohr Brother's for custard seemed to make the walk bearable and I was able to sleep in the same room to boot! : )
Also on the way there, the bus was going through this one mall, I think it was called Barrack's Road Mall. Who knows, I saw 20 that night. But, we tried to make a left out of one of the aisles into the main roadway and this jerk was parked in the bus stop so we couldn't finish the turn. Our driver leaned on the horn many times and he finally moved only to stop his SUV in front of us and get out and yell at our driver. Our driver yelled back that he was in a bus zone and if he didn't get back in the car she'd call 911. We both looked at each other like, "Should we just get out now and call a cab?" LOL. At any rate, this went on for almost 5 minutes. Finally he got out of the way and left, but I'm thinking I've never seen this is a big city, but come to little ol' Charlottesville and see a nice confrontation.
Needless to say we drove to downtown the next day and instead of almost an hour on the bus, it took 10 minutes to drive. : )
It's ashame isn't it? Makes it perfectly obvious why transit isn't a big thing in some area's. More like a grand tour, instead of going from point A to B, they have to make circles and serve the whole city in one route. Though sometimes you figure out a faster non-direct way to get around than your first inclination.
And the guy in the SUV, if i had a nickel for everytime... Three years now I've been thinking of doing a weblog of every bad driver I encounter(bad as in dangerous to the public, not just dumb as a rock).
I would love to have taken the bus more around Charlottesville, but it looks like they developed the service to just meander around the shopping centers more than a direct shot into downtown. It was nice to see the area, however, and we actually drove to a couple of the shopping centers that we remembered passing on the bus, so it did have its up side.
And the night before, we were at our neighborhood gas station, and my girlfriend's tire was low on air; just as we were turning into where the pump was, a man gets out of his car, comes up and says "Excuse me, we need to get gas...can you get out of our way?" Meanwhile, three other pumps were open, so she suggested him to go around to one of those since we needed air. What does he do? Call my girfriend a "bitch", and proceed to spout the "F" word, threaten both of us repeatedly, and call us "honky crackers"! He also looked at her and said, "I'm a man, so I'm not gonna whoop your ass. But I'll get my old lady out the car and let HER whoop your ass!".
First of all, there is no reason they couldn't have simply gone around. What's more, there was NO need to get racist. I came up with a simple rule that our lawmakers should pass; when someone is discourteous in a motor vehicle, they should have their license suspended for a week and agree to take public transit, or if they refuse to do so, they should have their license yanked for a year. Maybe THAT is a good way to de-stress our highways.
-Fred
I also like my SUV adventures too. Last time i went for a real drive(few days ago), I had some girl in a honda SUV doing 35 in the 55. Not only that, she was swerving all over. I didn't realize the white line meant that's where the mid-point of your vehicle belongs and not between the two. I've never seen a SUV keep it in the lines completely yet, but this girl just plain gave up for all 3 lanes. If it weren't for gas at 1.70 and a tire going flat(it's freakin new too), I'd have more stories per week(least one per day).
If they want to blow their horns at me for not moving, go ahead. I've learned in my 33 years of being on this Earth that it is true with the old saying, "What goes around comes around".
-F.
And the night before, we were at our neighborhood gas station, and my girlfriend's tire was low on air; just as we were turning into where the pump was, a man gets out of his car, comes up and says "Excuse me, we need to get gas...can you get out of our way?" Meanwhile, three other pumps were open, so she suggested him to go around to one of those since we needed air. What does he do? Call my girlfriend a "bitch", and proceed to spout the "F" word, threaten both of us repeatedly, and call us "honky crackers"! He also looked at her and said, "I'm a man, so I'm not gonna whoop your ass. But I'll get my old lady out the car and let HER whoop your ass!".
First of all, there is no reason they couldn't have simply gone around. What's more, there was NO need to get racist. I came up with a simple rule that our lawmakers should pass; when someone is discourteous in a motor vehicle, they should have their license suspended for a week and agree to take public transit, or if they refuse to do so, they should have their license yanked for a year. Maybe THAT is a good way to de-stress our highways.
-Fred
-F.
And I agree with you on the express buses. I wanted them to express this route. It's a good 30-40 miles long. I figure that with all the overpasses on this route, you can have a real express bus that shaves a lot of time off of things. Just hit some of the major stops and trasfer centers. Funny thing is I found a bus that acts unofficially as an express to the 19 route two times a day. How it goes isn't even on the map and it shaves 40minutes off, drops you off at the stop at the end of it. Apparently I'm the only one who knows about it, and the only one on that bus. That bus could be completely full if other people knew about it, or were as adventerous as myself.
-Fred
Other buses that used to run in Charlottesville include 5307s, ex-Roanoke Flxible New Looks, Orion Is, and a bunch of Blue Birds.
-Fred
Too long, and $5 bucks for the airtrain? Give me a break.
We should have an express bus from Main St/Tottenville-HylanBlvd/RichmondAv-Eltingville trainstation-arthurkill rd-si mall-victory and then on to JFK. also, some other routes.
Yes, it would probably take just as long, but remember, one seat ride.
Whatever.
-Chris
-Chris
...and there's no SI-Newark bus, either.
Remember that "a lot" is not a number (despite the wishes of politicians and union leaders). Transit would need an actual measure of demand for a new service before proposing to offer it.
I have also been looking at such a market. However, launching a stand-alone airport service is a tough proposition in any market due to the lower load factors of airport service. It may be possible to integrate it into a new Staten Island-Newark Airport-Newark route since there is a significant (read: more than one busload) commuter market to downtown Newark.
Express buses can operate in New Jersey but can not make any stops
Thank You
The MTA CHOOSES not to stop in New Jersey, and the Port Authority would not have been foolish enough to offer $300,000 for buses to go to Bayonne if they couldn't.
Thank You
Picture taken at Broadaway in Paterson, outside the bus terminal.
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
Nice pic!
Oh, and I already have the RiverLINE schedule and inaugaral "owner's manual" to it. Do you Mark? :-)
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
Excellent shot...
Incognito
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
Also, Gotham can you direct me to where or how you got the $75,000 figure for what you call the Cooper Lines vs. $25,000 for New York Bus Service? A report I read, by the City's Budget Review office, stated that while NYBS (and Liberty Lines, I think) had lower maintenance costs this reflected more the express routes they operated vs. the local routes operated by the Queens privates. The report pointed out that Queens Surface had the lowest costs of the Queens privates but this was probably due to the fact it operated more express routes. I think the costs per mile for Green, Triboro etc were actually lower than for NYCT. (The report was from the year 2000, I think.)
-F.
All photos taken at Merrick Boulevard and 89 Avenue. Now that is one good bus for 20 years old!
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
www.regionaltransitservice.com
Peace,
ANDEE
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
However,
When that time comes, when 1987 RTS's is almost dead, I want FP to have one of the last ones.
Two weeks ago, our mutual friend tore the seat of his pants while putting together a coal train at Benning Yard to go down the Pope's Secondary to one of the two PEPCO coal plants. He frantically called his wife who bought a replacement pair of pants to the Museum. She got there as her husband was bringing the coal train pass Jericho Road. They waited at the south leg of the wye (where coal trains leave Amtrak's NEC and go down the former Conrail trackage). As his train passed, my friend hooped up the replacement pants to the conductor. I wonder if that has ever been done before.
Michael
Washington, DC
What's up with that?
But I do have a query. Some of you guys seem pretty knowledgeable, so maybe you could tell me what the manufacturer and model of this bus is.
Thanks to Arthur Thomas (flxiblemetro) for a roster of the SF Muni fleet.
(1) About how many of the old Flyer Trolley Coaches are still running? The original order was 345.
(2) What is the breakdown of the newer types of TC's - New Flyers, Skodas. What is the large box on the top rear of the Skoda TC's?
(3) What is thre breakdown of the diesel bus fleet and what types of artics are running - looks like there are New Flyers and Neoplans. What about the 1988 New Flyer 40 footers - about how many left?
There doesn't seem to be many of the old Flyer trolleys still running, I only ever saw them on line 6-Parnassus.
Maybe the box on top of the Skodas is the air conditioning unit?
See this post for a roster of Muni buses.
I don't know the exact number of buses that are retired, but I'm going to anwser your question to the best of my knowledge....
About 20 out of 345 Flyer trolley buses are still running.
The breakdown of the trolley bus fleet is there are 59 out of 60
New Flyer E60's, 270 Skodas(240 standard 40ft and 33 60ft Articulates)
The breakdown of the diesel bus fleet is there are 104 out of 106
1988/89 New Flyer D40's, 12 out of 24 1991 New Flyer articulates, 205
out of 206 Neoplan standard 40ft, 124 Neoplan articulates
45 Nabi HF's, and about 42 out of 45 Orion 30ft I's.
Regards,
Arthur Thomas
Arthur
Muni has always been one of my favorite systems - unique vehicle mix, high transit riding habit (like here in NY), and challenging operating conditions (those hills!). Glad to see that the unique vehicle tradition is continuing - Muni (along with Seattle) is the only US or Canadian system that has articulated trolley coaches.
I'll be back!
Your last visit in SF was in 1993....back then I was a teenager
and remembered riding on the Flyers/New Flyers. I've seen remaining GM
New look buses but never rode on them. I lived east accross the Bay in
Oakland, CA back then.
Arthur Thomas
310.rm
B1-#9086-NOVABUS
B64-#9324-NOVABUS
Also, does 9247 still have UP or GH stickers on it? (9247 B64, 9247 last week Bx28)
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
Umm...Yeah...So....Since when did Gun Hill operated 9500s? They currently only operate 29 1996 Novas 8891-8898, 9229-9249.
Acela
B1-#9325-NOVABUS
B1-#9183-NOVABUS
Since When has Gun Hill Operated 9600s?
Acela
-Ben Diamond (a.k.a. 4traintowoodlawn)
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
I will make sure to get up there and try to get some rides on those AN455s (assuming those vans don't try to compete down Anderson Avenue!) Off topic, Fairview seems to say that residences and buses CAN cooperate, as it is squarely in a residential neighborhood (the Fairview garage).
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
So change the lights and fix the doors. It is isn't brain surgery...
Tony M.
The afternoon commute was more routine.
See you guys on the trip/search this summer.
Chuck Greene
TransitChuckG
Yes, see you in June for our scavenger hunt! Should be a great time.
Could this be because TMC (or Nova or whoever built these buses) decided to pack them all together to make the frontal blinkers because they could not evenly divide them in the usual complex pattern?
Any explanations are welcome. TIA.
Full frontal nudity.
Oh, for crying out loud. How rude could you get??? And that doesn't even help answer my question.
-Ben Diamond (a.k.a. 4traintowoodlawn)
Could this be because TMC (or Nova or whoever built these buses) decided to pack them all together to make the frontal blinkers because they could not evenly divide them in the usual complex pattern?
Any explanations are welcome. TIA.
-Ben Diamond (a.k.a. 4traintowoodlawn)
I personally think they look ugly in front, but the back is pretty nice...I like the low floor counterparts better though.
I haven't ridden them, so I can't accurately judge them, but I heard someone talk about Neo artics...I love the WMATA Neo artics more than SEPTA's, but nothing beats a good old SEPTA Neo DK
What's your opinion about CNG Orion V's?
Out here in Sacramento CA, our 1993/94 CNG Orion Vs acceleration
is slow from start and our 1996/2000 V's as well as our 93/94's
breaks down occasionally for reason.
Arthur Thomas
SacRT also has 1996 Orion V CNG's that get-up and go.
Acela
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
Yeah I cant stand the sound of it either. It sounds loud and laboring. Plus that "wob wob" sound will drive you nuts (more than the Clever devices).
But they do seem to stall alot. I've heard JC had problems with their Cummins too. They always stall out when you least expect it. Usually the accelerator is pressed and then the engine just dies.
197 could barely move with a full load today, and it sounded like it was gonna die again. Good thing I made it to Jamaica w/o breaking down.
In the past five years, I've noticed a strange reversal in engine/fuel specs. It used to be that CNG meant a Cummins engine, at the same time that only a handful of systems speced diesel buses with Cummins. Now, it seems like a majority of CNG engines are DDC, while Cummins has gained a lot of ground in the diesel market. Anyone?
Incidentally, can anyone confirm the engine on WMATA C40LFs? I know a few of them have oddball John Deere engines, but what about the rest?
I like them a lot better than the TMC RTS'. I especially like the improved back seat comfort. I hate propping my feet on the bulge concealing the back tires.
B100-#4922-TMC-CNG
The following need not show up:
1)Cutaways of any form
2)Goshen CAGVs
3)Startrans ODVs
4)Orion IIs aka Ice Cream Trucks
5)Mini Me cutaways
6)Bread Trucks
7)Mutated Mommy Mobiles
8)And anything else that can't be powered by at least a C8.3 engine.
Your services are not needed as you aren't real buses. Please do not attend, and if you do you will be disposed of promptly by the DC busfan action club. :-P
Well if Baltimore MTA sends buses, they will have to send all their tow trucks or at least most of them. Nothing like a self opening roof bus vent and a smoky idling bus to make this event one to remember.
And speaking of smoking, I saw FFX Connector 7884 rolling down I-395 and when the driver gave it some gas, black smoke came out not only from the tailpipe, but alot from the bottom also.
What are some of your ideas for concepts from using things from today's bus designs?
Here's mine:
NEW FLYER C60LF ARTICULATED:
Contains everything from the design of the 2003-2004 New Flyer D60HF Articulateds, with some modifications:
Inclusions of
-LED Reverser Taillamps
-Orion-styled front doors
-CNG operation (that's why there's a C in front of 60LF)
-Low flooring (that's why there's an LF after C60)
And of course, they are 60' long.
Post some of your ideas. Use your imagination! Any concept ideas are welcome! :)
-Ben Diamond (a.k.a. 4traintowoodlawn)
-F.
I was thinking of 40-50% of the front being low floor, and the back half including the exit doors being high floor.
Probably redundant now, since on a gillig and possibly NABI that would only make 2-3 more seats high instead of low-floor. But hey, low floors are silly anyway!
I've been on packed buses where seats were available in the back, but everyone stood in the front!
Usually transit fans go there as that is where the engine can be heard most clearly. As for others, some people go back there to do devious things in hopes they won't get caught (i.e. vandal the seats, drink a bottle of Hooch, emit bodily fluids on the floor). No WONDER security cameras have been showing up on buses lately!
-F.
And on Idea 3, because I was thinking about that when someone mentioned the RTS, how would you do a low-floor concept on a bus with a slightly rounded/angled body?
-F.
-F.
So technically, with all the details, a high-floored version of an Orion VII would be the interior of an Orion V and maybe keep the exterior of the Orion VII.
You should be 100% sure, Brooklyn67! :-)
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
My dad is headed to New York in the coming week, and was wondering if New York Bus Service has a layover point in Manhattan. I was hoping that he would be able to get some photos of the Fishbowls. If someone would share the location of the layover point, it would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks,
Matt
Your best chance at seeing classic GM Fishbowls is during the AM and PM rush, and sometimes during the weekday. All NYBS buses start their runs at Madison Ave between East 24th and East 26th Streets.
The other buses are betw. 24th and 25th...
Incognito
This morning I caught the "unofficial run" and the driver gave me a transfer, then he asked for it back because it said 97 instead of 95. Now, I've been wondering where that Dorado bus has been coming from, since it basically runs down the 95 Penn Square routing.
Now, if it operates to Penn Square on the 97, why does it have to dead head down to the mall in non revenue service? Doesn't that just lose money? Additionally, I don't even think the drivers realize that it's not in service, because they have the signs and the lights on while driving down Germantown.
Of course, I'm not complaining, because now, if I miss my school bus, I can catch it while walking to the mall, and I get my 7:20 bus with plenty of ease!
Additional note: Strike potentially begins next Monday...I heard it from the 23 driver. Yikes! Will Frontier strike too?
She would need to get from the Great Neck Train Station to the Source Mall on Old Country Road in Westbury for work on Friday. Her boyfriend can pick her up after work so I would just need directions s/b from Great Neck. What's the quickest or the route with the shortest layover at a connection point ?
Thanks in advance for the info
So the N25 to either Hillside for the N22 or Jericho Tpke for the N24 are the best options. The 22 and 24 both merge at Old Country Road and East Gate before heading into RFM, which is a short distance from the Source Mall.
Either that or N25(To hillside av)->N22/22A(to Mineola or Roosevelt Field Mall)->N78/79(To source mall)
Well, it finally arrived. Currently, it wears the mid-90s GRTC purple stripe scheme, but plans for the bus are to restore it to its original orange and tan livery as delivered to Richmond when new. I'm not sure what we will do with the New Look-era Firestone steel wheels up front, but my hope is that we will either find a nice set of five-hole Budds or look into some Alcoas. If we stay with steel wheels, they will be painted orange to match the originals.
Enjoy!
-Fred
Also, is the bus connection easy at the Trenton rail station?
In a crowded city at a busy bus stop, a beautiful young woman wearing a tight mini skirt was waiting for a bus. As the bus stopped and it was her turn to get on, she became aware that her skirt was too tight to allow her leg to come up to the height of the first step of the bus.
Slightly embarrassed and with a quick smile to the bus driver, she reached behind her to unzip her skirt a little, thinking that this would give her enough slack to raise her leg. She tried to take the step, only to discover that she couldn't.
So, a little more embarrassed, she once again reached behind her to unzip her skirt a little more, and for the second time attempted the step. Once again, much to her chagrin, she could not raise her leg.
With a little smile to the driver, she again reached behind to unzip a little more and again was unable to take the step.
About this time, a large Texan who was standing behind her picked her up easily by the waist and placed her gently on the step of the bus.
She went ballistic and turned to the would-be Samaritan and yelled,
"How dare you touch my body! I don't even know who you are!"
The Texan smiled and drawled, "Well, ma'am, normally I would agree with you, but after you unzipped my fly three times, I kinda figured we was friends."
:)
Peace,
ANDEE
A lady in West Virginia was walking around downtown all day with one of her breasts hanging out. People noticed, stared, and whistled but she was oblivious. Finally, a policeman stopped her and said "Ma'am, do you realize you're exposing yourself in public and I can arrest you for that?" She said, "What for?" So he says, "Look down at your chest".
She does just that, looks up in shock, and says "Oh my God...I left the baby on the bus!!!".
Now the only other excuse she could have had was if the bus was in New Orleans, or if she was Janet Jackson.
-43-Roadrunner ( on a whole lot of buses, am I missing the joke)
Ring or ride ( on even more buses)
Please no cellphones
Wish U DA same 2 (on 5416)
(on the bell) DOES NOT WORK (whes it does work)
PIGS!!!! PIGS!!!!!!!
No Hobos
Supposed to mean?
how about cleaning the buses for once instead of vandalizing them, asshole!
And don't flame me, because what I write is VERY true.
Chuck Greene
HAHAHA! I actually saw that one written on the Stop Requested sign in 5273 on the Bx39 the other day. Also I saw 8783 that said NO BELL, in which the bell was working :-\.
BIG AL
Police patrol this bus route on a regular basis?
187 - C's up, B's down -- Crip 4 life
They also showed a quick shot inside Britney's tour bus, and tomorrow's TRL is devoted to a tour inside that very coach. No word yet on exterior shots, but I'm anxious to see what she's rolling in!
-Fred
Not usually. I saw buses out of the corner of my eye, ignored all the crap in the foreground, and observed the rolling stock.
-F.
-F.
-F.
-Fred
-F.
-F.
1) The plush seating covers are purplish-blue instead of the usual dark blue.
2) This bus has lightbulb taillamps but LED rear blinkers (like NYCT RTS #9660) and these LED rear blinkers are different from others in thae fact that they have the LEDs tightly packed together (as described for the frontal blinkers on NYCT RTSs #'s 5170-5180).
3) The rear door panel that is closer to the rear end is different from all other door panels. It has no brush on the bottom and it's white.
What do you think about this bus?
Sorry, I have no photos--can't bring electronics to school.
-Ben Diamond (a.k.a. 4traintowoodlawn)
-F.
Suffolk Transit may have a few - Westchester DOT may also have some that enter the Bronx at the subway terminals of the #1,#2/5 #4, and D lines.
-F.
Arthur Thomas
WOOHOO! Maybe my all-time favorite Muni buses (the 1984 Flyer D902 4500/4600s) will come out of retirement (actually training service) and run in revenue (although there are probably very few left) :(
www.regionaltransitservice.com
Your suggested routes show how poorly designed some of the routes are. There is no direct route from one of the major downtown areas on the North Shore (Great Neck in this case) to a big shopping hub (Roosevelt Field / Source Mall in Westbury). My browser brought up the N 25 schedule, showing a 33 minute ride from GN to Jericho Tpke. It couldn't bring up the N24 so I couldn't figure out the trip time from the connection point to East Gate and OCR. Assuming the buses were on time (a BIG if) the trip has got to be at least one hour.
This doesn't count the walk from East Gate to the Mall. Since her Uncle works at Levitz on OCR, he probably would take a 15 minute break and drive her the rest of the way.
This story illustrates the point that the routes are so poorly designed that people would rather hope in their cars and not put up with this lousy service.
Want to improve ridership? Perhaps use shorter buses but run them more frequently on better planned routes.
Again thanks to all who volunteered the route information earlier today.
Which is why I was glad to move away from the north shore. The bus routes up there suck. Well the N27 from Glen Cove does serve Roosevelt Field and the HUB district, but it takes FOREVER just get there. And with hourly headways and no night service, its almost useless.
Most of the routes in central and southern Nassau serve major shopping districts.
Yeah, the system really does suck. We need to provide more intra-island rail service and improve the bus system so it reaches the hub and beyond.
Buses 8000-8002 have been moved over to ENY. FP and ENY seem to be playing salugi with 8002 as it keeps getting transferred back and forth. I don't know where 8010 went. And there is currently no scraps in FP other than 4701.
BIG AL
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
In a few days I'm officially going to announce my return to NYC, so I'll be able to see what the real deal over there.
I wonder if they did something with the front stripe as well, for it went by too quickly for me to take notice.
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
BTW, 5313 is still at Wyoming awaiting fire repair damage. It's seemingly been there for the past 2-3 months.
Samtrans 310
Port Authority 5254
Feel free to click and watch...:P
Cleveland RTA 2423
Miami Dade Transit 2169
Feel free to click and watch...:P
SEPTA 5663
Feel free to click and watch...:P
MARTA 2138
Feel free to click and watch...:P
For future reference: While the negotiations are ongoing, CFY represents "Contract Fiscal Year" from March 15 to March 14 - ie. CFY 2005 is from March 15, 2004 through March 14, 2005, etc.
I'm just wondering...will Frontier go on strike? Last time they did, but no one made any mention of that!
Victory isn't the only suburban depot, you know.
Also, I'm not very optimistic that a strike will be avoided.
Peace,
ANDEE
BIG AL
-Dead PA system, but the bells worked
-Dead sign system, Oddly enough, the driver controller for the sign was accurately displaying the route and destination.
-Dead HVAC which was spewing large amounts of dust out the vents with every bump the bus went over
-Farebox that wouldn't read most metrocards
I also saw a B/O pissing on the rear doors of a GH artic ( and you wonder why the trailer always smells like pee)while I was buying lunch (I wonder if looking at someone while peeing didn't bother him), at around 11:40AM at the terminal.
Very nice spelling, grammar, and basic syntax, vandal!
And TA workers call the riders pigs...
Incognito
In any case, it's unsanitary and downright disgusting. Learn to control your urges, see a doctor, 'go' before or don't see being a B/O as a viable profession.
Error 1: They left out the 30
Error 2: They left out the N3, N4, and N6, and included the N5, a route that has not run since the mid 1980s!
At any rate, so many buses go by there that you wont even need a schedule to see what goes past the Cathedral. Its stupid that they have to put an ad out like that in the first place.
I guess they were advertising popular routes because it's just plain easy...
It would be nice if the 124 and 125 were advertised, as well as the 123, which now serves Gulph Mills...
I think its great that WMATA publicizes its routes. They picked an odd destination as the choice. I know a lot of people go to the National Cathedral, but there are other things I'd have people take the bus to instead.
Front: Q2 SILVER SPRNG STATION
Side: K6 WHITE OAK
Rear: Z9
And here is a shocker, the bus was nowhere near the Q2, K6, or Z9. It was sitting in the L7/L8 bay at Friendship Heights on layover.
Probably the worst MetroBus signage I have ever seen.
Q2 SLEEPY
Q2 HOLLOW RD
at Rockville West.
I once saw a K6 signed for JEFF DAVIS & S GLEBE in White Oak about 4 years ago.
I don't own Photoshop, that is exactly how things were!
B1-#9325-NOVABUS
B64-#9339-NOVABUS
BIG AL
Ray
BIG AL
B1-#4789-TMCRTS
B64-#9082-NOVABUS
www.routemaster50.org.uk
w w w . r o u t e m a s t e r 5 0 . o r g . u k
.
regards
Rob
London UK
It will be nice to not be the armchair quarterback, but rather working directly with putting the buses on the road and working with the schedules.
And about that free ride to Manassas on a chartered D4500....
I found out that I'm allowed to ride on the deadhead trips back to the garage, so when I move to Vienna, I'll be able to get a free ride to work. : )
Mark
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
What can I say... We made it. I say we because the whole gang was pullin hard for you. I am soooo happy for you. Congrats!
Chuck Greene
Robert
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
At Milestone we dropped into Mickey D's for a quick bite and made it back to the bus stop just in time for a return trip on the 70. Yes, this time it was a Flxible. We got 5700 and I was very impressed with the condition of this bus. It was clearly in very good condition and just solid. It was nice ride back to Bethesda. The only complaint is that it's tied down at 55 MPH.
At Bethesda Chris and I separated. Metro-B 9253 was arriving on the J4 and I couldn't pass up that opportunity so I took that to Silver Spring. There was chaos at Silver Spring as a Neoplan AN-460 (5305) had broken down in the dedicated bus lane between Wayne Ave and Colesville road. A county police officer had to direct traffic as all buses going to Colesville Road had to make a left turn onto Wayne Ave to get around 5305.
I then caught Neoplan 5311 on the 70 which I rode to Kennedy Street. There I caught Western's Orion V 2213 on the E2 which I rode to Fort Totten. Next I rode Bladensburg NF C40LF 2314 to Brookland. I had just missed an H4 so I took the 80 (2430) back to Ft Totten where I got Metro-D 9713 on the K6. At E-W hwy I got the F6 Landover's Metro-B 9426 back to Silver Spring and then Ride-On's Anniversary Bus 5409 back home.
That was a great afternoon of riding in which I rode a bunch of Flx Metros (my favorite).
Now me and the wife-to-be are heading out to a late dinner.
I am hoping that the Friday before I start my new job starts, I'll make my way up to MoCo and get a Flx ride in. You sure took some nice adventures afterwards and got some great buses. Leave it to the weekday for you to be able to ride the classics out there!
I think I'm the only one in the DC crew to not ride the Ride On Flx yet. Grrrr!! Hopefully, that will end soon!
That's an awesome trip you took that time. Next time I go down to MD I hope to go to Bethesda to catch a R-O Flx and hopefully get an Orion 7, so I'LL be able to jedge them now!
I wish I could get one of those Orion Is though...
The Orion VII will be a dime a dozen pretty soon. Right now, its fun since its so new and it isn't so easy to catch one of them, but its definitely easier than the Flx.
I hope to try and get one when I go down to MD in April...
-Fred
Recently I did one for a client in NYCTA colors, then he goes back and says he wanted a Baltimore, so I had to go back over the dark blue stripe with MTA blue by hand, and then over the skirt panels with white again. I know for a fact they ordered a NYC to begin with, but I refuse to argue with a customer. Ah, the happy life.
-F.
-F.
-F.
-Fred
I guess the Orion VII delivery is,...oh, no...BACK IN PROGRESS???
RUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN!
Incognito
P.S., here's a picture of #7682...please excuse the darkness of the picture, i shot it almsot directly at a filtered sunset light...
Incognito
Acela
Trevor
I guess it's that time again...
Start runnin for your lives again!
They're a-coming...
Those...THINGS!
Incognito
For Centro photos and stuff, I have a page on my site with Centro buses...all I know they have is RTS CNGs, 1995-1999 Orion V CNGs, and MCI-102-D3s (or D4000s, whichever it is...)
For T-CAT in Ithaca, I think they only have Orion Is, but idk
Incognito
Incognito
The best spot to photograph Centro buses is downtown. The pulse point itself at Salina and Fayette Streets can be crowded with automobile and pedestrian traffic, but there are more wide open spots north and south on Salina, and west on Fayette. In particular, at North Salina St. and Erie Blvd. there is a wide open public square that is excellent for afternoon photography.
Centro also operates smaller systems in the cities of Auburn and Oswego. Auburn operates a small fleet of blue Orion I 30-footers that are due to be replaced by New Flyer D30LF's soon. Oswego has eight of the blue Orion V diesels. Both operations are connected to Syracuse by intercity routes featuring the MCI's.
As far as Ithaca is concerned, I've only been there once. I caught some good photos around the Ithaca Commons area. Back then, TCAT was running Orion I's and TMC/Nova RTS buses. They've since purchased both the Nova LFS and the New Flyer D40LF.
Hope this helps!
Jim D.
Click Here For Direct Link To Roster
Enjoy!
Regards,
Trevor Logan
BIG AL
MetroB
Trevor
MetroB
B49-#8022-TMC
MetroB
If anything, I know the font you used for the bullet-style logo is 'Akidenz' but how do you get it? Is it a 'pay' font?
So how come I never hear about NJT's labor contracts?
Can that happen in PA? Well, it the politicians learn not to fellate the unions come election time, and have a backbone for once and stand up for the public good, then it might happen.
I have a feeling that PA, especially this region, isn't exactly transit friendly...
What we need is a company that's like Ride-On to take over when SEPTA flubs up like this...it's too bad, people have to suffer for this stupid union/SEPTA disputes...
What goes on with the UTU? You never hear problems between them and SEPTA!
MetroB
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
;)
My computer is kinda slow....some times I don't have patience.
Peace,
ANDEE
-Fred
I'm not sure if anyone may be interested in these items, but I am willing to trade them for either Road Champs buses, friction RTS or Fishbowl diecasts, or a decent price. Please contact me for questions or more info. Thanks!
-Fred
-Simon
-Fred
Second, Ulmer Park now has NovaBus RTS-06 #9236 and #9247. So, I guess they are getting NovaBus RTS-06 #9229-9249 to replace their 4700s, 4800s and 7500s. Then Ulmer Park is suppose to get NovaBus RTS-06 #9655-9699 from Kingsbridge to again replace the 4700s, 4800s and 7500s.
Meanwhile, Queens Village has NovaBus RTS-06 #9270 along with #9343-9344.
Now, follow me here:
I'm thinking that the MTA should bring NovaBus RTS-06 #9270-9277 to Queens (JAMAICA) and #9342-9344 to JAMAICA as well. That will scrap their 4500s and others. As for Ulmer Park, that would be a nice pick up!
Ray
RESPECT THE BUSES OF NEW YORK CITY!!!!!!
BIG AL
At times, there is NOTHING on this board worth commenting on. So I chose that to comment on and since I grew up in Queens...I figured, why not chose that one? Thanks for commenting though!
Ray
BIG AL
Is this the drivers fault, absolutely not. I don't know whether it is management or dispatch, but whoever it is is working these drivers to damn hard. Why the hell do you think some of the drivers can be such assholes? B/c they don't get sleep. Why do you think they fall asleep while driving? B/c whoever it is in charge gives them no other time to do so.
Greyhound really needs to get its act together.
Do you know any truckers? None of them follow those laws.
There are only a few that don't....and they give everyone else a bad name. Just like only a few bus operators make allt he rest of us look like bumbling idiots.
It's the independents that are the "renegades".
A little pessimism to brighten up your day...
"Please Note:
"Greyhound Lines Inc. is a 24-hour, 7 day a week operation. Drivers will be on call and are required to work holidays, weekends and nights. For the first 5 to 8 years, you work the Extra-Board. There are no set hours to work, this is not an 8 to 5 job."
For 5-8 YEARS, you can kiss any hope of a regular lifestyle byebye.
This is no way to live and work. IMO, the only careers in which on-call status is acceptable are Doctors and other emergency service workers.
Otherwise, this is why we have SHIFTS and people who work them on a REGULAR basis!
However, for the majority of the drivers, assign them to certain routes and that's it. Say for example, I get hired by Greyhound. I live on Long Island. They should simply assign me to their runs from Long Island(Hempstead-Springfield, Islip-Washington DC, Islip-NYC). Hell, even give me one of those commuter runs from NYC to Mt Laurel.
For those working the longer runs, driver changes every 7 hrs might work, maybe every 8.
Typo time...that was $29.00 DC-NY on Amtrak. It was also that low on New York Air. (Never did use a bus, as I drove the things toomany times between DC and NY....didn't want the same scenery.)
It's about the same rate per mile in the Los Angeles-San Diego corridor ($11.00 one way Santa Ana to San Diego, 85 miles each way). But it's a heck of a lot cheaper than Amtrak's Pacific Surfliner...$17.00 each way!
You can go slightly cheaper -- 10 percent off -- if you have AAA membership.
(I also went from Santa Ana to Solana Beach last weekend...66 miles for $23.40 round trip with the AAA discount. Heck, a tank of gas and the aggravation of all that freeway traffic -- yes, it was crawling and creeping when we were running next to it! -- much better to relax on the Surfliner)
Consider this:
When I started with the transit agency I currently work for, fifteen years ago, I had to deal with working the extra board (thoughonly for about two months). Even with having a "regular" run, I had split shifts (working from like 5 a.m. to 7 p.m. to get eight hours pay...) and couldn't even think of getting weekends off.
It's the same way working for most railroads as well.
When I first came back out to California in 1982, I applied at one transit agency and got hired there (but didn't work a single hour because...) They hired all new drivers as "standby" drivers -- you sat at home and waited for the phone to ring. That was before cell phones, so you couldn't leave the f***ing house!! You got paid HALF the regular rate for your "standby" duty at home....unless you actually went in and drove a bus, then you got full pay. BAH!! to that.
Nowadays, most transit agencies otu here hire part-time only, and you have to work six to twelve months before going full-time. Who the hell can afford to live on part-time work, considering the crazy hours we keep as transit bus operators.
It took me about eight years tobe able to attain weekends off -- but that was still with split shifts. Another two years tobe able to hold an early morning, straight run with weekends off so I could spend weekends with my wife.
Here's a link to Ken Baker's Bus and Rail Pictures which has photos of these buses. (Look for Paling Allouette)
http://www.barp.ca/bus/sct/index.html
For GM Artics being rebuilt: OC Transpo has rebuilt one GM Artic (out of three that were purchased from Hamilton Street Railway) into 8222 (ex-HSR 8202) and has since retired the bus and added it to its historic collection with the other two being used for parts. Interestingly enough if you were to walk into the Rideau Centre in downtown Ottawa, you could find the "head" of a GM artic at OC Transpo's kiosk/location within the mall.
As for the other rebuilt GM artics within Ontario they reside in Hamilton at the Hamilton Street Railway where two are rebuilt and one is undergoing rebuild, with rebuild and all they are no longer restricted to school specials/extras and as of last year they run during the midday on HSR's University route.
I have photographs and sounds of these and will be posting them up soon.
Hope this is of some interest,
Allen Dicion
go.to/ttc1001
Hope they get fixed asap before the 100's come.
(Bring back buses with full size slideing windows and top mounted vents/exits)
-Fred
-F.
www.valleymetro.com
www.commonwealthcoach.com
Enjoy!
-F.
As for the Flxible Metros (4801-4867), they were 1983 models and they made it until 1998. They were not retired because of ADA regulations per se, because plenty of systems still have non-ADA buses in service. They were retired because it was time to retire them! Makes sense to me. To my knowledge, none of them ever made it to the Valley Metro paint scheme.
A numbering note: until the 1998+ NABI low floors, Phoenix Transit System and Valley Metro numbered buses based on seating capacity.
Just to clear up the issue of ADA regulations ... these only affect non-lift-equipped buses if the current owner wants to rebuild them or another party wants to buy them. If those buses are rebuilt, they must be made accessible. As far as selling them, there's not much of a market because someone buying used buses must make every effort to obtain accessible coaches before they will be allowed to buy a non-accessible bus. Otherwise, there is nothing preventing a transit operator from running a 1990 or earlier non-accessible bus.
JD
No need for ADA equipment down there; the goats, chickens, and donkeys do just find going up the steps.
I've been watching "Pimp My Ride" on MTV in order to keep some background ambience as I surf the web; they have done some amazing things. Basically, they take clapped-out pieces of crap and fix them up real nice with low-rider gadgets and smooth paint jobs. For example, they totally revamped a Daihatsu Hi-Jet minivan....and actually came out with a work of art!
With the above in mind, what buses would everyone here like to see on that show? (From what the DC BusTalkers tell me, Baltimore's equipment is in serious need of "pimping", so they get my vote.
-F.
9773 A15 PG Hospital
9701 F1 Takoma
2171 62 GA-Petworth Sta.
9814 66 Downtown
4019 P2 Anacostia-saw new rehabs 3922 and 4218, got a pic of 3922 and 4368. My bus's destination sign was not really working. In the front it had A8-Livingston Terrace and on the side and back it had A2-Station.
4017 P6 Downtown-ate lunch and hurried to try to catch the 13A to the Pentagon, just missed 13A 9782 %$*?@#+.
Bread Car set 3065 lead Yellow line to Pentagon
2107 10A Braddock Road-saw 4293 rehabbed
DASH 76 AT5 King street-saw subway rehabs 3114/3115 coupled with 2074/2075 at King street and saw another 20XX rehab while leaving on..
7894 110 Huntington
I was trying to catch a subway rehab, and thought I would have to wait a while to get it, but as soon as I was about to get off the escalator up came the same rehab couple I saw at King Street.
3114/3115 Breda rehabs Yellow line to the Pentagon-They look really good, and unlike the CAF cars, the interior next stop signs ACTUALLY WORKED!!!, BLOW ME DOWN!!! The operator's area wasn't carpeted, only tiled, which made it look odd, but for the most part looks practically the CAF's interior.
2062 13B 7th and Independence-saw 4319 doing a 9A run
8855 34 Naylor Road-saw ex-Western 9450 on the P19(Annex)
9769-scratch that 9425 F14 home-I thought 9769 was going to be my bus but when 9425 pulled up and replaced 9769, that became out bus.
Gee I wish I could have Flxible fun on every bus trip.
When you say the operator's area is not carpeted but tiled, are you referring to where the console and T/O seat is, or is the entire broken down area of the cab tiled?
It's a fairly quick ride via Victory Blvd and takes about 40 minutes to complete so then I wait 15 minutes for the S57 to arrive and I ride 6252 to Victory Blvd so then I decide to ride the S93 for the first time so its likely that there would be no seats so I ride the S62 to the College of Staten Island. I had about 1/2 an hour to kill so I decide to do that, saw about 20 Yukon MCI's then at 4:50pm I see 487 arrive and the students swarm the front doors for a seat and then we depart. After Jewett Av its LTD stops and it was a very fast ride and this was a great idea to come up with such a route since we make very few stops and run express after Richmond Rd and we go 45mph via the Verrazano then I get off at 92 St [this bus is worth riding] and I just missed the B8 :-P. Then I get 7646 again and finish my trip.
NF 870/O7 7646 B8
O5 6259 S53
O5 6188 S78
O5 6189 S67
O5 6252 S57
O5 6229 S62
O5 487 S93
O7 7646 B8
Police said the little boy was racing with another child, when he dashed into the intersection of Bustleton and Strahle.
Investigators said a SEPTA bus swerved to try to avoid him, but wasn't able to.
(Reprinted from NBC-10 news).
Chuck Greene
A lot of peoples days are ruined from this one.
Chuck Greene
Chuck Greene
Chuck Greene
As it states, it appears the boy was at fault for running such a foolish race and the B/O wasn't doing anything wrong in this case. It's too bad it happened this way.
Ray
New York City Transit Authority Bus Permit.
BTW- My old handle here was "Queens_Village_BO"
As an official vehicle, it is also subject to less-stringent enforcement of parking regulations, whether those regulations are permissable or not, according to local law.
The drivers license however, is mine. It is my responsibility to follow both the local law and the authoritative policy regarding such operation. Buses have been known to be ticketed on occasion, as have bus drivers been issued summonses as well. Though much of the time, simple infractions are overlooked as a professional courtesy dating back to the 70's when NYPD hirees were temporarily assigned and trained as NYCTA Bus Operators to ceep civil service status.
It seems to be an unwritten commonlaw practice these days, much to the chagrin of the general public and the Transit Authority who equally frown upon such good-graces from the NYPD. As they too have their rules and memorandi, when you're 'out in the field', you're looking to get through your day as sanely as possible with minimal paperwork (I would assume hence the parallel).
It's just another of those "that's the way it is" (for the most part) things.
-F.
-F.
No coincidence. Chicago Motor Coach and 5th Ave. Coach were under common corporate ownership.
There is no route map on the website. Just individual maps of individual routes with their schedules. Therefore, I couldn't figure out if I could stay at a hotel on say, Wolf Road, and take a bus to and from the games.
(The answer is probably not. I visited Albany once and was checking out the bus system. The last buses departed Downtown Albany at 5:05. Which tell us a lot about of state government).
Yes, the wife and I are both alums of Colgate, me '83, she '85.
We'll walk over to the local pub to watch the 4:30 game tomorrow (we don't have cable, but I hope it will be on). If they win, I will try to get tickets to the game on Saturday, and if we can, we'll make the trip for the championship.
BIG AL
BIG AL
BIG AL
BIG AL
Maybe these 9200 are replacing the 4500s (in my personal opinion, god forbid as these are my favorites).
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
Since I was being told that Metro Transit in Minneaoplis had a strike since week now, that must hit them hard more than one they had in 1996
This is screwing transit agency up becuase people rely on public transportation to get to places.
If you were the CEO of a TA, would you work with union or go your own way?
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
A B/O on the BX26, Orion V 193 which departed its Bedford pk terminal at 3:45p today (sorry, didn't catch the run number), gave new meaning to closing the doors in someone's face. This guy closes the doors (first on a person's leg) when there are still about 15 people left to board, and drove off when there were about 2 people in the stairwell still waiting to pay their fare.
5413 was swimming in garbage today. You literally couldn't take a step without kicking a bottle or scrap piece of paper on the floor.
Someone also took the liberty of drawing a very explicit pornographic image on the first ad panel behind the front doors with the words "DA SAME 2 U" under it, all in black sharpie, on board a bus that was running on the BX40 today (like many other GH buses, this one had no interior coach numbers). Go fuck yourselves Gun Hill, because you're going straight down the toilet to crap town.
Go to www.mta.info and use the feedback page.
David
I know this is Bus Talk, but I wrote the MTA at the aforementioned address regarding a train operator I witnessed reading the Post while operating a #7 southbound local. I got a personal reply from the line superintendent outlining what he had done to address the aituation.
That is indeed the way to call attention to a bad situation
BIG AL
BIG AL
BIG AL
BIG AL
I'd quit whining here if there was a place that listened and took complaints and suggestions seriously, like the E-mail address or telephone number of a person/dept that gave a damn.
2) According to Brooklyn67, 1 out of every 3 employees get discliplined at least once per year. Apparently, there are people who do care about putting forth a decent image, or at least ACT that way to climb the ladder.
3) Every passenger complaint isn't worth discliplinary action. It sometimes may only be a tap on the shoulder in order to rectify things.
4) Passengers don't care about transit employees, particularly drivers. Some people do not understand that they do not pay the drivers directly, and thus, are owed nothing PERSONALLY. I see it when I drive the shuttle here at school and it can be frustrating. Seeing a public service announcement from the drivers should make one think about how they treat them. The bus is manufactured by Orion, New Flyer, or Nova, not the driver.
5) The MTA is $700 million short. Let's start a "Raise The Fare" campaign so that additional quality control staff can be hired to make things (including customer interaction) work better.
As for the representative who couldn't say what run a given bus was on, it's highly doubtful the representative had a list of where all 4,000+ NYCT buses were at that moment. That's the kind of thing that would have to be looked up by depot staff upon their receipt of the complaint from the representative. Besides, with the bus number, route, direction, location, and time of the complaint available (and maybe the badge number as well), it's not necessary for the complainant to know the run number, especially after the fact.
David
Michael
Washington, DC
The tinkerbell on crack said:
I'm not suprised.
What aren't you 'suprised' at? You're the one who flew in, red cape and feathers ruffling all over the place, exclaiming we were all wrong, that you were correct and that complaints are meaningful and taken very seriously. Seriously enough to the point that managers "get hot' over them.
Customer Service is only trained to take down information, not knowing much about run number, depot, etc.
How do you know what training they have? Do you interview them while they interview your complaints?
One person told me "he just writes down the info and sends it in."
What else would you like them to do? Invite you to an evening of dinner and tango with a complimentary metrocard on your pillow?
Do you think it's even remotely possible for you to respond without being nasty?
It's remotely possible, but where you're concerned, highly improbable. You are a troll, and will be treated as such indefinitely.
In fact, none of my messages were addressed to you in this thread but that hasn't stopped you.
That's the beauty of a message board. Don't like the replies? Stop posting your incessant crap. Or email your garbage to someone who cares.
The B/Os in your depot have my sympathy for having to work with you who always sounds angry
They have my sympathy for having to pick up and deal with pissants such as yourself all day long.
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
He could put my name on "killfile" but then he would miss every opportunity to respond. Obviously, he gets his jollies attacking me. It doesn't bother me. It just shows his immaturity.
Wondering what he will say now.
The rep should have had a computer in front of her with that info and also to enter the info into a eCRM system to track issues
David
"Instead of regaling US with these tales on a daily basis, why not complain to NYC Transit? The cited examples don't represent the quality of service the Department of Buses strives to provide"
If this is a true statement as a representative of the NYCT DoB, why is it a good majority of BO's which were written up are turned around 5 minutes later and back onto the pull-out line for service?
Let's be realistic. We have some crummy equpiment out there. Many with defects that go unchecked, let alone repaired. We've got drivers filling out OVCR cards a foot high and the buses are waived onto the tracks by SLD's intimidated to make score by management.
THIS is the type of service NYCT actually provides. What they say is something else entirely.
Nonetheless, in agreement with the rest of your post, these types of 'message board' complaints are meaningless and do nothing to serve the betterment of the system. Or the boards in which they're posted.
5 Brooklyn - Go complain to those who are paid to hear your complaints.
That said, if what "Brooklyn67" said is true, then it's going to be awfully hard for DOB to meet its goals, because buses are going to be breaking down all over the place and the same drivers are going to be going out there and abusing customers. Therefore, upper management needs to know that the customers do not accept this quality of service. The way to make it known that customers do not accept this quality of service (and "Brooklyn67" agrees on this point) is to complain to DOB, not to complain to fellow bus fans.
David
My mistake for indicating you were an employee. Your response seemed to indicate the basic and generic carbon-copy reply given to the general public regarding such matters. Perhaps as a customer, you've heard it many times on the other end of the telephone.
That said, if what "Brooklyn67" said is true, then it's going to be awfully hard for DOB to meet its goals, because buses are going to be breaking down all over the place and the same drivers are going to be going out there and abusing customers.
Please explain 'abusing customrs'. What I've posted is nothing new to DoB employees. Your bus fleet is not maintained at the level you believe it to be. Nonetheless, DoB meets these 'goals' as you say, by placing defective buses into revenue service without repairing them on a regular basis. This statement comes from first-hand knowledge and experience.
Therefore, upper management needs to know that the customers do not accept this quality of service.
Upper-management isn't interested in what type of service their customers will or will not accept. Upper-management is responsible for the directives that turn around the Bad Order Line to make score reflecting the given depots pull-out and service performance numbers. (I thought you were well informed of these matters).
The ONLY time the TA cares what type of service customers will or will not accept is when someone makes an issue public that looks poorly or reflects poorly upon the DoB in the public eye, where someone must then be publically accountable.
The way to make it known that customers do not accept this quality of service (and "Brooklyn67" agrees on this point) is to complain to DOB, not to complain to fellow bus fans.
Agreed.
However legitimate complaints may be discussed here with suggestive dialogue on how to best resolve the issue. When complaints then become constant incessant sarcastic whining, they do nothing to promote the environment here and will be treated as the garbage troll messages they are.
"Brooklyn67" is a Bus Operator and his perspective on things is different than mine. Probably what happens in real life is somewhere between what he posts and what I post. Nevertheless, as we both have said, complaints about NYCT bus service should be given to NYCT to handle, not put here (and I agree with him that constructive criticism is worthy of discussion here, not that that's for either of us to decide -- maybe together we all can come up with better ways of doing things, which can be brought to NYCT's attention by "insiders" or by "outsiders").
As to buses being pushed out the door, I remember there was a big problem with that when Road Control was spun away from the depots ca. 1995. From what I was told, the depots would send buses out knowing full well they couldn't make their trips, just to "make score" with pull-outs. A bus might make it out the door and break down across the street from the depot, but then it would be Road Control's problem, not the depot's. I hadn't heard anything about that lately and had assumed this was no longer a problem -- perhaps things haven't changed all that much. But whether a defective bus is a depot's problem or Road Control's, ultimately it reflects poorly on the Department of Buses as a whole (the customers don't know or care who's responsible, only that they can't get where they're going) and the situation needs to be addressed.
David
Of course, when you try to maintain almost 400 buses at a place like Yukon, where buses are being stuffed into every alcove that can be found, I wonder how much time each bus gets with the maintainer. The facilities there are heavily stressed and it seems like the brass are content with that. The main problem is that poorly maintained over the road buses are expensive to fix and patchwork maintenance is going to break the bank. It's definitely still happening and if we don't find $700 million to put in the MTA piggybank, "cost saving" maintenance may come to a depot near you.
I see. Thank you for the specifics.
But this isn't supposed to be about me.
It sure is supposed to be about you. You, myself, and everyone else who posts here who bring different perspectives to the table based on past experience, knowledge and current insight. Every time you post regarding policy or suggestive policy, you bring with you your experience and knowledge. Each of us who participate here have value whether you're an employee, buff or average customer seeking resolution or answers to problems.
As a former CS representatve, you bring to the table facets of the agency I cannot. Since we each bring something different to the various topics, we can each have the opportunity of both teaching something and learning something at the same time.
"Brooklyn67" is a Bus Operator and his perspective on things is different than mine. Probably what happens in real life is somewhere between what he posts and what I post.
A fair assesment. However it is I, Big Al, and the other 'front line' employees who are out there in the field moving this city one stop at a time. In the real world, it boils down to two factors - getting through the day without liability to the Authority, and making decisions based on knowledge and experience to avoid such liability. Everything else is a numbers game to be played between those in titles higher than mine. It's a very 'go with the flow, don't make waves, see no evil' atmosphere. It only gets 'ugly' when the rulebook and policy is actually used.
Nevertheless, as we both have said, complaints about NYCT bus service should be given to NYCT to handle, not put here (and I agree with him that constructive criticism is worthy of discussion here, not that that's for either of us to decide -- maybe together we all can come up with better ways of doing things, which can be brought to NYCT's attention by "insiders" or by "outsiders").
I agree wholeheartedly. So much so, that I don't have much to add, other than a plea to those who post such messages: Why not inlcude a simple "What can I do about this issue" as your footer, rather than some obnoxious profane comment that will only get you flamed?
As to buses being pushed out the door, I remember there was a big problem with that when Road Control was spun away from the depots ca. 1995. From what I was told, the depots would send buses out knowing full well they couldn't make their trips, just to "make score" with pull-outs. A bus might make it out the door and break down across the street from the depot, but then it would be Road Control's problem, not the depot's. I hadn't heard anything about that lately and had assumed this was no longer a problem -- perhaps things haven't changed all that much. But whether a defective bus is a depot's problem or Road Control's, ultimately it reflects poorly on the Department of Buses as a whole (the customers don't know or care who's responsible, only that they can't get where they're going) and the situation needs to be addressed.
This is the NYCTA. Since when has anything changed for more than the two-week 'initiative'?
It hasn't changed, David. I dare say it's gotten progressively worse. However this is a depot-by-depot issue. I cannot speak for any other depot other than QV (I cannot speak for QV at all, actually, but only as someone employed there witnessing these events as they happen). I don't know what happens elsewhere. But I do know what happens at The Village. First hand.
BIG AL
Gun Hill Depot
New York City Transit
c/o Dave Pirmann's Bus Talk
http://talk.nycsubway.org/perl/read?bustalk=106471
World Wide Web
106471
Grab a broom, Al. AR, bring me that bucket. We've got some work to do.
BIG AL
Perhaps he will initiate some sort of Bus Talk "flame war", not unlike a similar epic previously concluded which he claims was interfering with his ascertaining factual information. Oddly enough, at the very same time he began posting here under that username. Even more interesting, his very first post here under "5 Brooklyn Local".
O_o
BIG AL
Instead of harping on the issue, and if you feel so strongly about it, take your fellow passengers to task when they litter and/or vandalize the equipment. As far as employee vandalism is concerned, yes, I'm aware that it also exists. However, if the overall atmosphere of your bus wasn't so filthy by debris left behind from your fellow straphangers, it wouldn't be as noticible an issue. Not that there's any legitimate excuse for such, just that it wouldn't be as apparent and inclusive in an all-encompassing complaint.
Be a responsible citizen. Don't litter, request to those who do so not to do so, and if you happen to see a trash basket near your stop as the bus approaches, grab that paper on the seat next to you and deposit it. Help become part of the solution to better your transit experience.
Whining here does nothing to solve the problem.
Face it!!!! The pax have no one to blame but themselves for dirty subways and buses.
We agree.
I even called the MTA customer service once about the issue, don't know what happened after that.
1. What happened to the bus pictures that were on here? Are there any good sources for 1960s-1970s NYC bus pictures?
2. Is there a place, other than on eBay, or do any of you know of anyone who collects and would trade bus destination signs?
Thanks for the replies.
Charles Fiori
Also the pics that you referred to on this site can now be found at Trevors site, www.transitalk.info
See Bus Talk post 103264 at http://talk.nycsubway.org/perl/read?bustalk=103264
David Pirmann, the website host, explains about the bus pics being removed.
The new Saturn ION2 and ION3 commercial features a shit load of things banging into the Saturn model to show how dent resistant they are. Of course the highlight of the commercial is when a MTA RTS backs into the side of the ION.
Now slick ass Saturn didn't show the after effects of the RTS, but there is no way in hell a car is dent resistant to a BUS of ANY KIND backing into it.
Can we say over doing it just a bit Saturn?
Regards,
Trevor Logan
www.transitalk.info
Just adding it to spark interest i'd guess.
Allen Dicion
go.to/ttc1001
BIG AL
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
I think all cars should be made out of clay like that 'Adobe' featured in Saturday Night Live years ago. If you have a wreck, just re-mold it back into form. : )
Mark
-Fred
-F.
Do NOT ever reply to some EBay e-mail that asks you for your passwords, account info, etc. They are usualyl a scam.
In recent months more than a few EBay'ers have found stuff listed on their pages that they were NOT auctioning, with the e-mails redirected to the scammer.
Be careful.
-F.
JD
-F.
-F.
Here's the full story.....Microsoft's Hotmail users shut
out for hours
SEATTLE, March 12 (Reuters) - The Hotmail
online e-mail service, operated by Microsoft
Corp., was down for most of the working day
on Friday, affecting "a significant portion of MS
customers."
The world's largest software maker said that
Hotmail, as well as MSN Messenger and other
related services operated by its MSN Internet
business, were down from around 8:30 a.m.
Pacific time (1630 GMT).
"We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience
and disruption this may be causing our
customers," a Microsoft spokesman said.
Redmond, Washington-based Microsoft said it had identified the cause of the
problem, adding that service would be fully restored within a few hours before the
end of Friday.
No customers are at risk of losing data, Microsoft said.
-F.
I'm sure LUCY will be a very profitable run come Monday. I would consider doing something, but only on a charter basis. I am not going to consider crossing union lines unless I have a permanent market in mind.
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
-F.
-F.
www.regionaltransitservice.com
-F.
Thanks
steve
I almost peed my pants because this is so funny.
Chuck Greene
-Chris
Chuck Greene
This is a discussion board to discuss buses, where they go, the fuels, the oddities, the memories, the future, etc...not to post questions and force people to juice out information that you yourself are well capable enough of finding on your own...
so, please, think about your question before you post here....it will be much better on yourself and all of us...because this charade you're putting on is not cool at all...it is unproductive and downright wrong.
And another thing is that not everyone on this board may have the answers to our questions.
Arthur
Chuck Greene
-Chris
>> Effective Mon, Mar 22 until further notice
CLICK THE BUS BELOW FOR THE LINK!
The day started out when I arrived at Greenbelt station and saw Chris G waiting for me, Wayne, and Perry. Eventually Wayne and Perry showed up so then we boarded an Orion V 4392 on the B30 to BWI Airport. At BWI we saw a 1987 7000 series Flxible doing a light rail shuttle, but decided to let it go and wait for the next one so we could buy our light rail tickets. Low and behold, the next light rail shuttle was not a Flxible, but a 2000 NABI 416, 0060. This bus had a partial wrap on the rear windows
as well as torn up seats.
While at Linthicum, we saw a 7000 series Flx trying to do a 3 point turn on a two lane road. Turns out he was lost and had to ask for directions from our driver so he pulled his Flx up to our NABI and started to yell for directions from our driver:-) Then the Flx cut in front of our NABI, pulled into a parking area, and made a U turn:-)
We rode this to Patapsco where we boarded a Neoplan AN440LF 0274B on the 14 to Annapolis. Apparently the bus finished doing a 14 to PATAF.
Not surprisingly, there was grafitti all over the seats. Crossing over the Severn River Bridge on the 14 was quite exciting with the sun gleaming off the water and looking at all the sights in the ports and the bridges. Then we got off at Church Circle in downtown Annpolis and walked towards Comprimise Street where we boarded an Annapolis Transit Thomas SLF, #101 (All of their SLFs have no rear door)
on a Yellow route to the Spa Road Transfer Point, which is where Annapolis Transit's routes all meet up at half past and at the top of the hour. They have these "trust me" fareboxes on their buses, but they're all pimped out in stainless steel, unlike The Bus.
From here we rode another SLF on the Red route to Annapolis Mall,
where we went for burgers at the Official Restaurant of the DC Bustalkers, Red Robin. After lunch Wayne made a comment about how we had to "ride one of those things over there", there being Spa Rd.
After this we caught a Chance RT-52 #69 on the Gold B back to Spa Rd. These "things" are certainly an eye-catcher:
After we got off at Spa Rd Transfer Point,
we got another RT-52 (A deluxe model this time, it had PA speakers and air duct vents all the way to the back of the bus) on the Green and looped around Riva Road and back to Spa Rd. From here we rode a SLF on the Yellow back to the downtown area, where we walked around to kill time because our 14 back to Patapsco was not going to arrive for another hour.
While walking around the downtown area, we were talking about opening up a transit-themed restuarant complete with bus stops, old maps and subway tunstiles and all the stuff. The waitresses would dress like bus drivers and conductors and we'd sell stuff like the SEPTA or Broad Street Sub and the tables would have subway and bus maps inside them.
Then we caught a 1998 NABI 416, 9850(?) on the 14 back to Cromwell. the bus was very solid and fast, but two screws fell out of the rear from the A/C grille and rolled towards us:-)
At Cromwell we boarded a 1987 Flx Metro-B 7002 on the light rail shuttle to Patapsco.
The Malfunctioning Transit Administration practicing "preventive maintenance". This bus had its flip dot signs removed and just had the feeling that this bus is heading immediately to the scrap yard after it has served its duty as a light rail bus bridge.
At Patapsco we boarded Flx Metro-B 7006 to BWI Business District. This bus had holes in the plastic behind some of the longitudinal seats, missing emergency exit hammers, missing rocker handles to open the windows, and a missing grab pole.
The we boarded 4395 on the B30 to go back to Greenbelt. What a relief it was to ride an Orion V! No MTA Maryland rattiness or Annapolis Transit's junk!
As usual, comment, fill in the gaps or correct me if I'm wrong on something.
It almost looks like they started cannabolizing those buses for parts and then realized they were going to put them back in service for shuttles without planning ahead.
Welcome to the world of the Third World Transit Authority, aka Baltimore MTA. Their buses are in the worse shape known to man, and is the driver's fault-HELL NO-not only is the maintenance crap, but the management makes practically all T/As look like geniuses.
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
To add on there was the window on 7033 that refused to close. Also the transmission on 7002 was quite confused although both Flxibles seem to be better than their appearance. NABI 9855 which we were pleasantly suprised to find in such good shape actually started spewing screws from someplace. I hope the bus doesn't fall apart.
Let me say it again. Boy was it a relief to get back to WMATA which had good heat on a chilling evening.
It was a fun day and those "things" in Annaplois were quite amusing.
1) When we got off of 4392 at BWI, Chris G. counted 42 people waiting to get on the B30 back to Greenbelt. With several seats taken off that bus due to fitting in the luggage rack, we figured that was going to be a mighty packed ride.
2) The NABI we rode back on the 14 was 9855. Very solid for the MTA Baltimore.
3) On the Neoplan, halfway to Annapolis, we saw that the bus driver was having problems with the farebox and its lid was flipped over and the driver was playing around with it while he was driving. Not sure if anyone actually paid a fare after that with the box not looking so good.
4) Those "things" Chris is referring to are the RT-52's. Several of them looked like they would flip over from the drivers turning corners so fast. We figured that on windy days, they have to keep them off the roads. LOL
5) On 4395 on the B30 going home, we lucked out and got on the bus at BWI Business Dist. rather than the airport which was great since a million college kids were waiting to get on with all their bags and crap. First time I've ever been on a B30 that was standing room only. I was hoping the one from this AM would have left before our LR shuttle did to see how all 40 something people fit on there. On the return trip, we had very lively conversations about a variety of topics and somehow dragged some of the passengers around us into the conversation.
6) Wayne, Chris G. and Chris D. got yelled at by a stupid motorist. I somehow froze and didn't cross the street when I realized the light was changing, but they kept going and the SUV driver yelled at them which cause a few expletives to be yelled back. LOL
7) I should copyright our idea for that restaurant.
More like pounding on it with a closed fist:-)
You know you're a diehard busfan when you sink to a new low of riding those crappy RT-52's. The buses were in horrible shape. It looked like the ads on the outsides of some of them had been on there for years; every single bus had dents; when you boarded the SLF's, especially 104, it felt like the platform you stepped on getting on board was just going to snap off and break; the fareboxes looked like they were modified thermos bottles; it goes on and on and on.....
Pic taken by Carl Walton at 88 East Broadway. It walked our Orion V fair and square without any trouble.
Chinabus: We Are Everywhere:-)
If you're coming out of DC, 295/BW Parkway is much more convenient to hook up with I-95.
I have very little reason to go into DC nowadays and have hardly ever had reason to take 495 east of the 95 interchange. Last night was the first time in years that I used Reno Road. I certainly don't claim to knowing the BW Parkway like the way I know some other area roads.
-F.
Mr. Potomac over there on his side of the Beltway just doesn't get over to "the other side of the tracks" too often.
95 is so much more convienent for going north than the BW. The last time I went over to the BW, I recall signs saying NO COMMERCIAL VEHICLES on the BW. Of course, that includes the B30 as well if that is the restriction.
Note the word recall, I never said it definately prohibits commercial vehicles from using the road. Clearly, I am wrong, and I do not claim to know that road as well as others in the area. It is not an attack on Chinabus or anything else, just an incorrect assumption due to a incorrect memory recall.
I guess a trip up the BW Parkway is in order. Perhaps some time when I go watch the O's this year, traffic on 95 will be backed up and I will take the parkway to 32 or 198 before going back to 95.
Now that we'll be living in Vienna, I will be taking 495 to 95 for any Baltimore trips.
Buses are only allowed on Parkways by special permit.
-F.
Between Carlton seeing that same Chinabus the day before we did and Nabinut going right past us in the reverse order of the same buses, pretty small world.
We did see 0057 about 10 minutes behind our 7006 last night, so I guess they were using 4 buses on the LR Shuttle from BWI to Downtown Baltimore.
Thanks for that pic!!
The C40LF was on the #7 74th St-36th St shuttle...three of them, #846, #966, and #981.
The C40LF was on the #7 74th St-36th St shuttle...three of them, #846, #966, and #981. I saw #981 when I got to 74th Street-Roosevelt to check out the shuttle action...I got shots of it and saw the other two in different locations...then, I rode #846 with MDT Route 29 #9037 (Ozzy), Sciguy6586 (Alshawn), and Flatbush41. We rode it until 33rd Street, when the drama unfolded...let's just say, the driver didn't know where to go or where to terminate...he kicked us out eventually, he was about to leave when this Mexican dude started arguing with the driver, cursing him out and yelling at him because he ended right there...the driver just closed the door and took right off...about to run back to 74th...
Shawn and Ozzy can finish the rest...
Incognito
The Former West Farms Kid
I believe at one point all of Brooklyn Division's depots (except Fresh Pond) were represented on the 7 Shuttle. I saw an ENY, Gleasons (including an O5 CNG), an Ulmer Park, and a Flatbush or two.
QV, Jamaica, and Stengel were represented there, too. IIRC, those are all the Queens division depots.
There were a few Fresh Pond buses there too.
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
I have read about AC Transit's 25 remaining VanHool 40' A330 buses that are being sold to WMATA instead, because AC Transit out here
in the Bay Area is having severe financial difficulties. As a result,A C Transit will propose service cuts in June of this year because they will have more buses than they know what to do with.
Are you on joke time or is this serious proposition?
8702, huh? We were talking today about buying all 4 Ride On Flx's when they are retired. haha.
We just got to kick back and see, because transit officials change
thier minds now and then!
Our AC Transit VanHools are low emission diesel. From which I was told are electronicly controlled diesel engines that meet or exceed
California Air Resources Board emission requirements.
The remaining 25 40' VanHools that are to be sold to WMATA will possibly be either diesel or CNG (I'm guessing here).
I believe that the old Hechinger building is for repair of buses, rehabs are still, to my knowledge, are still done at Bladensburg and the powering of the Orions were done at Montgomery. I think Arlington does repair jobs also. This is just a guess, as I am not a WMATA insider.
I miss the old engine combo, and the repower I rode was rather fumy
AC Transit is retiring thier oldest buses(1990 Gillig phantoms) early and leasing out thier third oldest buses(1993 Gillig phantoms) to other local transit or shuttle bus companies and selling thier 25 remaining Van Hool 40-foot buses to reduce the operating cost in order to close a budget deficit.
I thaught the oldest buses where the 1987-1988 NF D35HF's,D40HF's, and D60HF's?
Right now, the 1990 2600 series Gillig Phantoms are the oldest buses
in regular service after Dec 19, 03. Prior to that date, the 1984
1500 series Gillig phantoms were the oldest buses in regular service.
AC Transit officially retired thier remaining 1984 Gillig phantoms
and all New Flyer D35/40 and half D60's on Dec 19, 03 when AC reduced and eliminate service on some routes.
AC Transit's 1993 Gillig phantoms are numbered 2801-2860.
Don't send them to FMR, their buses seem to have breakdownistis lately.
Below is a link to a picture on Transitalk...
© 2003 by John Pappas.
That should be the model that you saw...
Incognito
On the topic of small Van Hool buses, does anyone know anything about those dark gray Van Hool shuttle buses at National Airport? Now those are nice buses; I'd like to see 'em running for transit systems.
Incognito
Are those two numbers VanHools A330's?
Low floors in Montgomery wouldn't work on their routes. They need all the seats/space they can get. Unfortunately WhyMATA messed up when planning the artic-Y8 thing. Oh yea, I saw a station wagon on the Y8 today.
The 37A operated by yours truly has been out of service since mid-March, year to date ridership has been 8 people so far including one trip with capacity at 175%. The 27 revival from Friendship Heights to a certain Chevy Chase residence has ridership projections call for fewer than 20 passengers per year.
No wait I forgot those things are made of plastic, no wonder...
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
Now brace yourself:
I got home and there were still THE BUS's ODVs running at around 10:30pm and yet still running as of 11:56pm. I think hell has frozen over and the devil is ice skating in a tutu.
Then she asked, keep in mind she was probably high:
What are you guys doing taking pictures of buses?
The answer was very funny
Guys, how can I get to Brooklyn?
Take the train
Does this bus go to Brooklyn?
We tell her again to take the 2 train which is right there but gets in the Bx41 anyway :-\.
So then we saw a R142A at the yard then we grab something to eat at McDonalds then we head back down on the 2 train and we ride it to East Tremont Av and we just missed 637 on the Q44 so we see 5470 with an incomplete bluestripe and a couple of 400's & 9100's then we see 266 and this nosy guy was trying to get in our business but basically ignored him and its a good ride into Queens and then Ozzy was doing a sound recording of the engine of 266 then this same punkass tried to take it after it must of slid to his side in thebackseat and called him a child and other bullshit but restrained himself. Then we got off at Flushing and this guy grilled us like he was gonna do something.
So then we go to the 7 train and we ride a R62A to 74 St but then they say that it was running to 61/Woodside but we started at 74 anyway then we meet up with Carlton by chance and to our shock, we saw TWO C40LFS's on the shuttle :-0. So we hop on 846 and at 33 St there was some confusion since the B/O thought that it ended at 33 then this guy rants & curses at him while talking to someone on his cell phone and all the people that was there could do was laugh b/c it was soooooo funny :-D. Then the confusion was cleared up and we go to 36 St and we see a third C40, 956 and a couple of buses for the 39 Av shuttles & we do a round trip and get on 8541 and its a good ride except for some buildup of traffic between 69 and 74 St then its back into the subways for the rest of the way.
First its the N train from Roosevelt and we take it to Canal St where we catch the J train running into Prospect Park [replacing 4 service] to the surprise of many then we make a stopover at Wendy's and we part ways and I take the Q and finish my trip. Of course there was some serious confusion with these GO's.
The buses I saw on the N and 7 shuttles:
QV: 4922,4933,8361,8378,8380,8381,8383,8384,8390,9255
CS: 231,544,576,644,665,674
JG: 846,956,981
ENY: 8079,8899
FB: 4441,4620,4657,5114,7508,8323,8332,8434,9397,9422,9438,9456
JAM: 8941,9563
FP: 4705,8541,8554
126: 8461,8481
UP: 7512,9094,9181,9300,9311
What are you guys doing taking pictures of buses?
The answer was very funny
Guys, how can I get to Brooklyn?
Take the train
Does this bus go to Brooklyn?
We tell her again to take the 2 train which is right there but gets in the Bx41 anyway :-\.
So then we saw a R142A at the yard then we grab something to eat at McDonalds then we head back down on the 2 train and we ride it to East Tremont Av and we just missed 637 on the Q44 so we see 5470 with an incomplete bluestripe and a couple of 400's & 9100's then we see 266 and this nosy guy was trying to get in our business but basically ignored him and its a good ride into Queens and then Ozzy was doing a sound recording of the engine of 266 then this same punkass tried to take it after it must of slid to his side in thebackseat and called him a child and other bullshit but restrained himself. Then we got off at Flushing and this guy grilled us like he was gonna do something.
So then we go to the 7 train and we ride a R62A to 74 St but then they say that it was running to 61/Woodside but we started at 74 anyway then we meet up with Carlton by chance and to our shock, we saw TWO C40LFS's on the shuttle :-0. So we hop on 846 and at 33 St there was some confusion since the B/O thought that it ended at 33 then this guy rants & curses at him while talking to someone on his cell phone and all the people that was there could do was laugh b/c it was soooooo funny :-D. Then the confusion was cleared up and we go to 36 St and we see a third C40, 956 and a couple of buses for the 39 Av shuttles & we do a round trip and get on 8541 and its a good ride except for some buildup of traffic between 69 and 74 St then its back into the subways for the rest of the way.
Riding the subways its the N train from Roosevelt Av and we take it to Canal St where we catch the J train running into Prospect Park [replacing 4 service] to the surprise of many then we make a stopover at Wendy's and we part ways and I take the Q and finish my trip.
A few observations:
-Of course there was some serious confusion with these GO's.
-More Brooklyn division buses were on the 74 St-36/Northern section, mainly from Flatbush depot
-J trains ran to Prospect Park instead of Pacific St
The buses I saw on the N and 7 shuttles:
QV: 4922,4933,8361,8378,8380,8381,8383,8384,8390,9255
CS: 231,544,576,644,665,674
JG: 846,956,981
ENY: 8079,8899
FB: 4441,4620,4657,5114,7508,8323,8332,8434,9397,9422,9438,9456
JAM: 8941,9563
FP: 4705,8541,8554
126: 8461,8481
UP: 7512,9094,9181,9300,9311
R68 2842 (Q)
R142 1185 (4)
R142 1200 (4)
R142 6518 (2)
R142 6398 (2)
O5 266 Q44
R62A 2137 (7)
NF 846 7 SHUTTLE
RTS 8541 7 SHUTTLE
R68A 5014 (N)
R42 4746 (J)
R68 2846 (Q)
Of course NYCT ALWAYS has contradictory signs. You probably saw the G.O. poster on the < 5 > running local in the Bronx during the AM rush. Guess what, it's still running express.
Anyway we went up to 241 St, they had taken some pics [my batteries were dead :=P]
Apparently you forgot to see someone on the Q train in Brooklyn on this issue. :-)
Guys, how can I get to Brooklyn?
Take the train
Does this bus go to Brooklyn?
She must have been so stoned that she couldn't tell the difference between a bus and a train.
and this nosy guy was trying to get in our business but basically ignored him and its a good ride into Queens and then Ozzy was doing a sound recording of the engine of 266 then this same punkass tried to take it after it must of slid to his side in thebackseat and called him a child and other bullshit but restrained himself. Then we got off at Flushing and this guy grilled us like he was gonna do something.
I should've went with you guys on this trip. If I can kick Ozzy's a** on the first D train, than that punkass on the Q44 should be no problem.
So we hop on 846 and at 33 St there was some confusion since the B/O thought that it ended at 33 then this guy rants & curses at him while talking to someone on his cell phone and all the people that was there could do was laugh b/c it was soooooo funny :-D
Yea, that would be confusing but funny, dumping people off at 33th st/Queens Blvd with no place to go. Glad you took care of that and helped the B/O out. Must be from a Bronx or Brooklyn depot and Queens is new to him. It happens to the best of us.
Wait till next weekend with the 2/5 shuttle buses in the Bronx and the Rockaway A split shuttle buses in Queens. I can't wait (and I will take photos too.)
Great trip report!
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
You may be a bit confused with the Empire State Building sort of overpowering everything but note the bus sign below. Check out the retro sign of a Fishbowl! Cool, huh? I thought it was interesting...
Yeah, it may seem a bit boring, but BusTalk is pretty quiet.
:)
-F.
Talk about quaint...does anyone remember the signs that came before the one in the photo - pole-mounted, red "NO STANDING" square atop a yellow "BUS STOP" square. And before those, the 3-foot tall black and white BUS STOP signs that just stood on the sidewalk, anchored by nothing except their heavy steel bases.
Another bit of nostalgia, notice the M16 on the schedule "box". The M16 (Westbound) has not stopped there in almost 20 years.
QM1,1A,2,3 & 4 are operated by Queens Surface
Here's a link to the Queens Surface express bus schedules.
http://www.qsbus.com/express.asp
-F.
-F.
-F.
-F.
When?
And what are you doing in the city? You're supposed to be in Albany.
BIG AL
PSTA on route 19. I thought it was a good picture, how the bus stop is positioned in relation to the bus.
And well, if you're into that kind of thing or city planning or other issues, this is the story it was included in.
Steps Toward Safety
adding 34 to 78 miles of sidewalks. Some of the construction is very interesting and nice looking.
-F.
And Speaking of Gilligs, I like them because they're high floor, though a little smallish when you stand up, but doesn't it look like they could easily make a gorgeous Gillig Advantage high floor model? That would be really nice.
It looks like a high floor from the outside!!!
In short, buses and trains will run in Philadelphia tomorrow...
Chuck Greene
I had the pleasure of taking SEPTA this morning...good thing, because I couldn't wake up early this morning.
The 1 year contract is just deferring to problem to a later date...well, at least hopefully I won't be around at that time to deal with this foolishness again. It's really getting old very quickly, this last minute thing that puts stress on EVERYONE. It almost makes someone wish that they would just go on strike, making up this hype for nothing...they really need to learn to do their negotiations WITHOUT media involvement - you don't see the UTU do that, do you?
And SEPTA complains about losing ridership....
Well, at least I still have my buses :)
FWIW, the next watch date is April 1, when Red Arrow contracts expire.
Pic taken Friday evening. She is parked outside the ENY Depot.
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
This picture was snapped Friday night, at Sutphin Boulevard and 91 Avenue. The bus was on the Q43.
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
When I get the film developed, I'll post the pictures.
You originally posted "How about 4900 and 4901?". Please explain why you include 4900 and 4901 as oddities? As far as 9350 and 9351 are concerned, they've been posted and discussed before (the beige dome, the hard seats). However, I don't believe 4900 has been discussed.
What's odd about 4900/01?
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.coM)
BIG AL
Click image for full-size view
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
Outside of New York, most TMCs have a vent there. I don't know if it has to do with what equipment the bus has or if it's just the whimsy of the customer.
These pictures were snapped earlier today, at the 165 Street Terminal.
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
MCI D4000 Cruiser IV #7564 @ Entertainment Station dressed for the River Line.
Car #3506 Approaching Trenton Station
Car #3506 @ Tweeter Center & Delaware Avenue
Car #3507 @ Walter Rand Transportation Center Station
Car #3511 & 3506 @ Entertainment Center Station
Car #3513 @ Aquarium Station
Car Interior
Click Here for QuickTime Video Clip of Car #3513 leaving Aquarium Station
Regards,
Trevor Logan
www.transitalk.info
Does anyone have an updated track chart of the River Line
Thanks
steve
2531 - Trenton
2535 - Bordentown
7552 - North of Burlington Towne Center (I think it was the 11:55am 409 to Philadelphia laying over)
3082 - North of Burlington Towne Center (419 pulling out for Philadelphia)
7565 - Burlington South (River Line wrap)
7564 - E-Centre (River Line wrap)
I think that 2531, 2535, 7564 and 7565 were protect buses in case there was a major problem along the line, but I didn't have time to verify that.
(NOTE: I know the station is called the "Waterfront Entertainment Center Station" and the facility there is officially known as the "Tweeter Center", but when I moved to West Chester in 1995, it was known as the "Sony/Blockbuster Entertainment Centre" - aka the "E-Centre". I refuse to call it the "Tweeter Center" for much of the same reason I refuse to call S Delaware Av in Philadelphia by it's "new" name (which for the record is Columbus Blvd). In both cases, I just prefer using the old name better.)
NYCT was set to order a whole fleet of those buses, until City Council member Tom Duane (who was openly gay) learned that Neoplan was based in Lamar, Colorado (whose residents had voted for that state's infamous "gay ban" law). As a result, the order was canceled.
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
One would assume that the leading candidates are:
- Neoplan AN440
- Millenium RTS
Secondary players would be:
- Orion V
- NABI 416
In the press releases, Millenium said they were aggressively pursuing existing RTS customers, and NJT has 825 of them. It could be the order Millenium needs to establish themselves.
Stay tuned for developments... this would leave just the 1994 Flxes in NJT service, but it will make the fleet 100% wheelchair-accessible. And I'm sure the south Jersey BusTalkers are jumping for joy at this news.
Amazingly enough, the B's are still working on Sunday runs out of Newton Av. I saw 3085 working the 419 while I was riding the River Line yesterday.
BTW, are the 1700-series Metro B Transits still in service up in North Jersey, or did they retire them?
IMO, the Flxs have put in their duty (the Metro Bs), and are beginning to show signs of age.
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
All I have to say is that NJT would do much better to rehab the Metro Bs as opposed to buying new buses; it could be done at a fraction of the cost. These are the same folks that had enough faith in the ill-fated NYC Grummans to have them rehabbed to last 20 years, and they are tossing Metros at age 15?
-F.
Another complaint is that the buses tend to be EXCRUTIATINGLY late on Saturdays and Sundays. They average 20 minutes late during the mid-afternoon. I always blow connections when I use it on the weekends. Then it gets worse in the summer, when all of the Camden cretins pile on the bus, take up all of the seats on their way to Clementon Lake Park. Sometimes when I luck out and get a MCI, I nearly jump for joy even though it is too much bus for the type of line like that.
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
Tony M.
BTW, I'm heading up North Jersey way this weekend, now that the RiverLINE cuts my trip time to Trenton in half. I hope to see the new Neoplan Artics in service on the 159 line.
If anyone gets the bid, I hope it's Millenium; I would love to see more RTS buses carry on the ADB tradition at NJ Transit.
-F.
Heck no, the MCIs are. There were only 384 B suburbans and 27 B transits (5 of which became the CNGs) in that 1989 order - 91 of the 411 were assigned to private carriers. In contrast, there are nearly 1500 MCIs - 76 CNGs and 1371 diesels - 534 assigned to privates.
Some of the Bs were cleaned up (some were converted to transit interiors with the package racks removed), but 100 of them were replaced with MCI D4000s from the big order. These buses also cost NJT in maintenance - for those not aware, the 2-stroke Detroits (71 and 92 series, including the 6V92TA used in these Flxes) must use single-weight motor oil, while the 4-stroke Detroits (50/60 series), and all Cummins and Caterpillar engines can use the more common multigrade oil. NJT also needs to show that they're being responsive to emissions issues, and the newer clean-diesel engines will take care of that. The Metro Bs are also the last buses in the fleet (with the demise of the Volvos already occurring) that use their own taillights - all other NJT buses use the industry-standard round-light array, regardless of the bus manufacturer. The less parts and fluids you have to stock, the more you save. Plus, there won't be a continuing parts issue - new buses will have the parts available for the life of the unit, while MCI's obligation to build Flx parts ends in 7 years.
-F.
-Barry
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
I wonder what the shortest route will be now, and where 3900 will go. It is too bad they discontinue it right after they get its dedicated bus's sign working for the first time since it got to Montgomery.
So what became of Orion's valiant effort when new buses finally arrived in 2001? More Gilligs arrived for fixed routes, and two Thomas SLFs were obtained for the Downtown Express. Apparently each were the lower bid, hence their presence today. I'm not sure how 3900 got here, but I'm sure Orion had a hand in it. Gillig also sent a red, white, and blue Advantage demo in, but the drivers hated it...and it gave a ton of problems. The SLF demo sent earlier that year buckled up at curbsides, yet two were still ordered. Within a week, their skirt panels were dinged up and in the body shop.
-F.
-F.
In 2001, we finally got a decent sign on our new bus orders; Luminators with orange characters against a black background. We just got in some 04s this week with the same colors, but this time they are stacked a la New Flyers. In single line, some destinations even read out in Helvetica font. I'll put up pics ASAP.
-F.
As you can see, the difference is night and day.
-F.
These are what I see all around town every day!
-F.
-F.
Rather that come on this board and bitch about Long Island Bus and it's ever-so-daunting on-time performance and about Greenvale and Sea Cliff and suburban thugs and Roosevelt Field Mall and the likes, you should be doing other things with your time like looking on the internet and seeing that there are transit agencies (such as Los Angeles Metro, with their Rapid service) that either have this technology you speak of or are getting it or considering to get it...It's part of bus rapid transit technology, although that aspect of it has probably been thought up before that...
Please, before you bitch and moan about shit, look it up, or as they say the old-fashioned way, "Think before you speak!"
Incognito
My Work here is done...
Then, while walking home on Wisconsin Avenue, I saw 5712 on the 42 with what appeared to be "80" on the rear sign. Was this the bus that Ray saw supposedly going to Irvington?
Air pollution, from transportation and other sources, is a major problem in the Washington region. Now, Montgomery County is doing even more to reduce emissions with a recently released Air Quality Protection Strategy that establishes eight priorities for improving air quality. Just one of the improvements well be making is adding five hybrid electric buses to our expanding fleet of compressed natural gas and ethanol powered buses, trucks, vans and cars.
I have more photos of SEPTA, as well as NJT and PATCO here:
A Trip on NJTransit's River Line and then Some
SEPTA at Night
Enjoy folks.
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
Chuck Greene
It shocked me when I saw this. I also saw 2 Neoplans on the #66, one on the #3 and another one dropped off passengers, then went out of service, but I couldn't catch the route because of the poor lighting of the rollsigns. I was surprised that the sign came out on my pictures.
That's where teh ETB's used to be. See taht fence on the left of that pic and the wall. That used to be(or still is) where the 58 and some other bus layed over. Many moons ago I rmemeber standing there, and everytime I would just stare at all the ETB's sitting there packed as tight as possible. Was really something.
Though the ETB's always faced the el terminal, and not facing the way the neo's are.
That must be why there's so many there, that and probably Tripper buses.
I feel stupid for pointing this out since I spent the tail end of the last century riding these routes, but why do they bother putting Bustleton Ave after the 58? Out of the billions of times I used that route, I can't remember if they always said that. But seeing it that bright, it looks stupid.
Where else would it go? Unless they call it the Bustleton line or something, bustleton and 58 means the same thing. Why not just keep it Caster, County Line, Neshanimy, or via on the display?
Oh well, the 20 always had better looking girls on it anyway, and now it looks like the buses too(NABI instead of NF).
Some cities put the main street of operation on their destination signs, like in Chicago, or even with some of the NYCDOT privates...
For example:
In Chicago, one would see:
20 MADISON
20 United Center
where Madison Street is the main street of operation for the #20 line, and United Center (the Bulls' basketball arena) is the terminal.
Or also:
Triboro Coach
Q19A 21 ST
Q19A 82nd STREET
Q19A JACKSON HEIGHTS
It may seem weird, but bus companies do it sometimes, they even did it back in the days of GMC and Flxible New Looks...
Incognito
Need I say more?
58/bustleton ave. can run to castor during rush hour, Bustleton & rennard, Bustleton @ county line, or once an hour(or was it half-hour) Neshanimy mall.
It'd help If i could see the end point quickly instead of waiting for the display to flicker accross is all i'm implying for this situation.
In Brooklyn alone the:
B3, B6, B7, B8, B9, B15, B17, B20, B25, B35, B38, B41, B44, B46, B54 either begin or end at different points, may begin and end at the same points, but via different streets.
On the New Flyers and Neoplans:
58 BUSTLETON AVE -first flash
58 COUNTY LINE -second flash
then return to the first flash.
The NABI's read like this:
58 BUSTLETON AVE
COUNTY LINE
On 90% of the SEPTA routes in the CTD, they will give the exact intersection where the bus route will start/end. The remaining routes will use the name of a major Terminal, or major landmark. Very few SEPTA routes in the city use neighborhood/town names on their destination signs, though it is used in the Suburban division
Maybe that will help you understand Philly destination signs.
When you think of Roosevelt Blvd, what do you think of? 14. Course that doesn't have as many end points, but it would still hold true if it did.
2801 - M27 8646 - Q32 9488 - M104
5025 - M104 8647 - M6 9510 - M104
5032 - M4 8668 - M42 9611 - M104
5050 - M5 8750 - M104 9623 - M104
5125 - M104 8766 - M42 9925 - M104
5130 - M104 8772 - 104
5170 - M104 8794 - M104
5182 - M104 8796 - M104
5184 - M5 8797 - M104
5194 - M104 8798 - M104
5837 - M2 8802 - M104
6125 - Q32 9011 - M6
7038 - M42 9013 - M42
8601 - M42 9188 - M42
8611 - M6 9197 - M50
8616 - M42 9270 - M104
8637 - M42 9370 - M42
2095 F14 New Carrolton
63056 15X Greenbelt-Was hoping to get SLF 63032 but instead got an ODV. Also 8846 was about to do a T16 run, but it didn't get out of its spot. It was broken down with its engine hood up.
4392 B30 BWI-Destination part of the sign not working
7034 LRS Downtown-Got up to Baltimore street and 8937 was broken down, it was able to leave under its own power about 10 minutes later.
Ate some lunch took some pics-
8948 LRS Cromwell
9953 14 Pataspco-I stood practically the whole way
7024 LRS Downtown
7036 LRS a short distance-I got on this bus after a wait of about 20 minutes. This was going to be an express to BWI and I thought cool, a express ride on a Flx(crappy Flx,but Flx nonetheless). A gentleman got on at the same time I did(actually before I did), complained to high heaven that no Cromwell Express bus had came in the past 30 minutes and noted that only 1 person was on the bus other than soon to be me. The guy complained for about two blocks and then when the driver got to the next pickup point, he changed it to a Cromwell Express, I was sort of ticked, and more ticked having to ride another NABI. I have nothing against NABIs, but I ride the damn buses all the time everytime I go to Baltimore. Least here in DC I can ride either an Orion VI, Orion V and Flx or artic, but in B-more unless I get lucky or try to target it, I seem to ride only NABIs. Anyway
0051 LRS BWI-Oh Yea, not to mention I missed my 5:30 B30 connection. I thought I would have been able to take some more CNG Neoplan pics, but there was a cop there and I didn't want to chance it, so I bus watched instead.
4395 B30 Greenbelt-the whole destination sign didn't work
63016 15X New Carrolton-expected the SLF again. Also I heard an amusing chat between the driver and a rider about THE BUS. They get paid around 13.35 per hour. That wasn't the funny part. When he mentioned that he didn't work on weekends I cracked up(on the inside). He said some other things that were funny but I can't remember them all.
9727 F14 home-9834 on the B31 had the wrong destination on its signs. It said "A12-Addison Road Station".
I plan to go up to B-more again, hopefully I won't have to do another rant, because the next one might be all symbols instead of words.
4395's sign worked on our way home. I wonder if the drivers just figure if its pulling into the B30 spot at Greenbelt or coming into BWI, why bother putting the sign up?
We were thinking that they should start that bus earlier on Saturdays than at 8:45AM especially since the metro is running an hour earlier. But since MTA Maryland is subsidizing it, that may explain it. It could also stand to run a little more frequently than once every 40 minutes. At least every half hour, so you have two an hour rather than 3 in two hours.
F12 seem to be the B30 buses second home. I see them as much on the F12 and F13 as I see them on the B30. Of course there was that one time I saw one on the F4.
Second, along with timing not done right, it seems like they are just sending buses on "At Will" runs. That means "We will just send this bus on this run this time and that run another time". It doesn't seems like there is no continuity with the runs. In the 20 minutes I waited for my LRS bus to come about 3 LRS express to North Linthicum came, 2 locals to Cromwell, two to Pataspco, my apparent BWI express and the BWI local I had to take later and no Cromwell express. The last time I was there there seem to be 1 North Linthicum express a couple of Pataspco runs, 1 Cherry Hill one, about 4 Cromwell Express runs, no BWI Express, 2 Cromwell locals and 1 BWI local. If there is no regular schedule, then they will lose riders and I am pretty sure they have gotten complaints out the a**.
I know that everyone in the DC-Balt. area knew that this was going to happen, but it almost seems a little worse than we expected. And on these shuttles, there have been numerous complaints about these shuttles and I am pretty sure that MTA have been getting complaints about them too. The problem is are they listening, I don't think so.
There is my rant, it may not seem as bad as it could be, but me cooling down a little and riding an ODV and hearing THE BUS stuff, I am calmed down a bit.
Easier said than done, bus operators dont work according to a draft system, such as the military. Would you like it if your employer drafted you to a branch in Ohio? ;-)
March 16, 2004 -- An MTA bus driver was dragged off a bus and beaten by a passenger in The Bronx last night, officials said.
The attack began at 11:45 p.m., when an unidentified man confronted the female driver on a BX21 bus at East 138th Street and Lincoln Avenue in the Mott Haven section.
He ordered her to drive him two blocks to East 136th Street, where he grabbed her and pulled her off the bus. He then punched her in the face before fleeing.
The 34-year-old victim was taken to Lincoln Hospital to be treated for minor injuries.
The suspect was described as a black man in his 20's, about 5-foot-6 and was wearing a black knit cap and a black jacket.
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
B1-#8675-TMC
B68-#7652-Orion VII-farebox broke.
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
Sorry to hear about the bus driver victim.
On the west coast, you all know things like this happens too in Sacramento and near San Francisco where I live.
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
Oh goodness - here we go again. So - tell us... what's a good borough since the Bronx is so crappy. Also - The Bx1 and Bx2 does not have 24hr operation. Furthermore - If you look at all of the NYCTA buses that operate 24/7... you'll find that the vast majority of them pass through or near some not-so-good areas.
Bx1 and Bx2 are the busiest combined
Maybe Bx1 and Bx2 be counted separately in the future(for accuracy). Same for Bx40 and Bx42 and Bx25 and Bx26. The Bx28 and Bx30 are counted as separate routes even though the Bx28/Bx30 duplicate each other for a good piece (although the Bx30 runs on Boston Road and opposite direction of Bx28 in some of Co Op City).
Bx31 # 467
Apparently, Valley Metro in Phoeinix, Arizona, got the first LNG 40LFW's, and found that with only one tank, they were shy on operational time/mileage, and had to go back in for fueling after each shift.
Federal law prohibits any liquid fuel to be in storage above a passenger compartment of any vehicle, so the tanks must be in the rear of the bus. CNG is in gaseous state, and therefore IS allowed in rooftop tanks.
It just dawned on me that I recollect seeing the Phoenix Metro NABI LNG buses with an LNG tank above the rear part of the passenger compartment. Or is the small tank on the roof of those buses for something else? (There is a picture of Metro 6001 on NABI's web site.)
We at Bustalk will miss you very much.
Wayne
Tony M.
NJT Bus Operator
Sincerely,
Fred Donaher
(Flxible)
I hope your health improves. I know what it's like to be in a health situation, as I have been going through some serious stuff myself the past six months, yet somehow going to work almost every day. (I'd go nuts staying at home, though the doctors said if I wanted, they'd sign me off on disability while undergoing what I am...)
If there's anything I can do, feel free to get in touch shoskins2001@yahoo.com
Regards,
Jimmy
BIG AL
P.S. I didn't know there was a minimum subject length...
How difficlut (or not) is it to edit announcements which have missing information or the wrong street suffix? I've noticed that LIB has alot of that going on.
For example, on a Jamaica Bound N6, approaching Franklin Ave/New Hyde Park Road the announcement will say "New Hyde Park Road, Franklin Ave, Transfer, N3, N25" While Hempstead bound, it doesn't mention the Transfer. Also the N8 should be added to that announcment.
Some stops like Cherry Valley Avenue, the announcement will say "Cherry Valley Road" Clearly wrong.
Going Jamaica Bound at School Road (PepBoys) the announcement says "Elmont Road, Transfer, N1". Then the next stop which actually IS Elmont Road AND the transfer for the N1, it just says "Elmont Road".
I see that they do sometimes fiddle with the outside announcment when the door opens, how hard is it to chang interior announcements?
Ive heard 3 different versions (In the order in which they were introduced wsing N4 as an Example):
1."N4 Destination Freeport"
2."N4 Freeport"
3."Route N4 Freeport:
-F.
Thanks Many
I read in earlier posts about how much you hate those Gillig phantom buses due to thier unreliabilty.
And the other questions are, have you ever drove OCTA 1978 or 79 Flxible Grumman 870 buses? If so, were they more reliable than the Gilligs? And were they replaced with 1990 New Flyer D40's?
Arthur
The 1990 NFI D40's (5001-5039 and 5101-5114) really didn't replace anything. They were bought using surplus county funds, they were cancellations from MARTA (Atlanta, Georgia). They were put in service in early 1991, to free up some of the 1976 Flxible 53102-8-1's in the 1101-1155 series; these were either being rehabbed (w/c lifts installed, rebuild engine replace tranny with a V730, reskin the exteriors with smooth sides) and add electronic destination signs -or- repaired (rebuild engine and VS-2 tranny and install w/c lift). These returned to service and were replaced by the 1995 NFI D40LF's. I sure loved driving those 100 series Flxibles.
The 1983 Gillig Phantoms, due to major unreliability, were being withdrawn from service at this time. As there were major money cutbacks due to the county bankruptcy situation in 1995, the bus system also went through some cutbacks, so retiring the 1983 Gilligs was not a big problem. By 1997, we also took delivery of more D40LF's, 5301-5397 and 5401-5418 (they were on order before the county bankruptcy, so basically, they had to keep the order). Not sure why they did it (NEVER ask "Wny?" at OCTA!!) but the 5300's came with only a rear-door w/c ramp and the 5400's had both front and rear. Two more 5400's came in 1998, the hybrids. They were in and out of service, mostly out...until about a year ago and they both have been running steadily since. I don't know much about these as they are not at the base where I work out of.
Those OCTA 1990 NF D40's sure looks like MARTA ones.
I belive some of MARTA NF high floors are replaced with Orion
VII's (low floors).
Arthur
What do you think? Should i delete the tangent on why this mall refuses to let benches outside??? Even though I hate that part!
Email me, tristan --at-- tecsbrain.org if you want some space.
Phoenix Buys New Extra-long Buses to Replace Aging Fleet
It's off of the old and onto the new. Valley Metro
passengers soon
will begin taking their last steps off the old 60-foot
buses and onto
brand new ones. Today, the Phoenix Public Transit
Department began
putting into service the first of 20 new articulated buses
- those
with two joined sections that flex in the middle. By
mid-April, they
will replace the existing 20-year-old fleet of articulated
buses.
On the outside, the old and new buses look fairly similar
but inside
they differ in passenger amenities. The new 55-seat buses
have low
floors for easier boarding, three doors for faster
boarding, three
wheelchair positions, and two air-conditioning units; and
they use
ultra-low sulfur diesel. In comparison, the old 66-seat
buses had
high floors that were more difficult to board, two doors,
two
wheelchair positions, and one air-conditioning unit; and
they used
diesel fuel.
The new buses are manufactured by New Flyer of America and
will
service high-use local routes and some Express commuter
trips. The
retiring fleet of 21 buses has traveled almost 10 million
miles in
its two decades of service.
Its interesting though how they have 11 less seats. I wonder what the load factors are like over there.
What were the old artics?
I think the engine compartments of todays buses are much larger than their previous counterparts. Check out the differences in Neos and New Flyers, among others.
Like MANN artic better, Larger windows and Large Rear Window.
New Artics windows are small and the same as New Flyer D40LF (37xx and 40xx).
Last time I was in Phoenix (Sept. 2003), I wandered by the main bus garage southwest of downtown and spotted a Mann Artic in the old Phoenix Transit colors which looked like it had been rehabbed (or, at least, recently repainted). Hopefully, Valley Metro, or someone connected with it, will be retaining this bus as a museum bus.
Dude! C'mon, lay off already. That's just really screwed up, saying that it makes them look like criminals. I know plenty of people who wear 'em and they don't look like criminals, nor are they criminals. Seriously, I enjoy the posts about the buses and w/e, but enough with the gangsta w/e crap already.
On a side note. Here in Port Washington, snow started at 9:30am. Had heavy snow with big ass flakes from about 11:00 to noon, maybe a lil later. Started accumulating all around the school. Had about an inch on the ground by 11:30. (We had to have gym indoors today, instead of taking the bikes out, we rode around inside, bummer. Riding in the snow if fun! lol)
B1-#9337-NOVABUS
I nowest that when were on Route 9 the bus ride fine, but when we hit the Turn Pike the bus get a vibration from the bus. I have not rode many MCI 4000's since Howell mostly have 4500's, So I can't say if the 4000's get this as well. Also since I have not driving a MTA 4500's since they came in after I left Ulmer Park I can't say if they get this vibration as well.
Any thought about what is causing it?
Robert
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
Robert
1]The 409 runs from Philly to Trenton via Route 130. the travel time is about 2 to 2 1/2 hours. Except for Florence, this bus parallels the RiverLINE from Burlington to Trenton. The rest of the Route runs on Rt. 130.
2]The 419 runs from Philly to Brlington via River Rd [RT. 543- its known by several names as it goes through the various communities]. This line parallels the RiverLINE from Camden to Burlington.
What would you do with these lines? The RiverLINE offers cheaper and more frequent service than these two bus lines, though these routes go directly into Philly, hence during Rush hours, the bus may serve a different market that the LRT.
Any suggestions?
if that doesn't work the photo is here...
http://www.octa.on.ca/forum/fileattachments/old%2030ft.jpg
Allen Dicion
go.to/ttc1001
If you notice the lowest panel of glass on the fishbowl windshield is missing and the nameplate is up to high. Also Phoenix in the sign box area may signify that this bus rose from the dead like a Phoenix and not the city in Arizona.
Also the drivers window is from an Old Look. The window just behind the drivers doesn't look like a Fishbwol or an Old Look. I think this bus was patched together from a wreck.
The window you are talking about came on the 3101/3102 and the 3501/3502 as standard body feature on both sides.
GM Engineering put the "New Look" front end on the "Old Look" body as an experiment/Demo. It was to be originally a turbine engine bus. It is preserved by John LeBeau of Illinois.
GM did this to compete with the "shorty" Flxible New Look.
This bus was not patched together from a wreck, ouside shop, etc.
I agree, GM built some great looking buses, but once in a while they went wrong. I can think of two cases: this one and the old look front with the PG 2905 body for the army during the Korean War. They were ugly!
I stand corrected!
-Dan T.
Incidentally, the bus is displaying an Illinois license plate, which indicates that it's privately owned. All publicly-owned vehicles in Illinois, whether buses, police cars, etc. ... have "M" plates
(M xxxxx).
Just nit-pickin'.
-Dan T.
GM wouldn't do something that crappy looking.
What an abortion.
Bill "Newkirk"
Buses are basically custom built to customers specifications....while most are built as the common transit bus withfull windows, etc., some have been built of just about every type, as special orders -- even as motor homes, in the case of moany highway model buses.
I've seen the Mack you describes, in a photo. It is the same body as the Bee Line "new look" Macks...same front end, same window design. The hospital bus just has fewer windows.
Yes, they did keep the same model numbers. Officially, they really weren't a new bus (i.e. "New Look" style...) just a newer year's version of the old C49's.
I forget where, but I have seen a complete productionlist of Mack buses somewhere on the Internet. If I happen to find the site, I'll be happy to pass the uRL along. I learned a few things from it when I read through the lists!!
Here is why, Orion ran into some Quality Control issues during production of the Orion VII. Ride-On's order of CNG was late, our CNG order was paused and few others. Since then, recently, The Ride-On order has gone full steam nad the MTA's CNG order has resumed production. Hopefully we'll be seeing the first of the Hybrid units in the next month or so.
Regards,
Trevor Logan
www.transitalk.info
How long would it take to get to the Islip terminal anyway via ST?
B1-#9327-NOVABUS
Be aware that the LIRR station is near the courts and downtown area, not Tanger. Also don't know the RT cost of a PW-Riverhead ticket.
I'm just curious, and I'm wondering what to expect when the next batch of New Flyers come in.
Ain't it true what they say - Teutonic quality. :-)
For some stupid reason, the Greyhound site doesn't display shortline schedules anymore(well, some of them, but not all)
My understanding is that many web sites use ActiveX in connection with the pdf files on the site. Because ActiveX is an easy conductor of viruses, many institutions reset their computers in recent weeks, given the multiple virus attacks, to not accept pdf or other files which utilize ActiveX. That is probably why your school computer may not be producing pdf files. Not sure why your own computer won't produce them.
As my computer here at work will no longer produce pdf files from sites using ActiveX, I can't get the Short Line timetables either.
Leave Hempstead: 12 noon; 4:55 PM; 8:05 PM
Arrive Lk Ronk: 12:53 PM; 5:48 PM; 8:58 PM
CG
What gives? It was right off the expressway.
I was wondering if anyone has info on what routes the subway shuttles take when the trains are not running? For example, the A train is suspended. All buses would use Broadway to Fulton St but what about going back uptown? Church St would be the best route? Is there a site that I can get that info? I'm curious as to ALL the subway shuttle routes. It's probably impossible to ask but I'm asking anyway. Thanks in advance!
Ray
Same street, Fulton is a two way street(Local), usually when the A is taken out of service, the provide Local and Express Service, Express generally uses Atlantic Avenue as a faster means of transport.
In Comparson
Red Line Is Only 29 Miles Each Way (Metrocenter To Gilbert Road).
Route 72 (Scottsdale/Rural) IS 28 Miles Each Way (Scottsdale Princess to Chandler Fashion Center)
Here's the southbound:
Horace Harding @:
146th St - T*
148th St
150th St
153rd St
Reeves Av
Kissena Blvd @:
64th Av
Queens College - Main Gate
South Campus Rd (Melbourne Av) - T
Melbourne Av @:
152nd St
150th St
149th-147th Sts
Main St
Main St @:
68th Av
68th Dr
Jewel Av
70th Rd
72nd Av
73rd Av - T
Vleigh Place @:
73rd Terrace
77th Av
78th Av
Union Turnpike
Queens Blvd @ 78th Crescent - DT
Footnotes:
T: Time point
T*: Time point for starting runs only.
D: Stops primarily for drop-offs only.
Union Turnpike @:
Queens Blvd - Queens Borough Hall
135th St
141st Street @:
Union Turnpike
78th Avenue
Vleigh Place @:
77th Avenue
73rd Terrace
Main Street @:
73rd Avenue - T
72nd Avenue
71st Avenue
Jewel Avenue
68th Drive
Melbourne Avenue
CUNY Law School
Reeves Avenue
61st Road
Then:
Proceeds southbound
Footnotes:
T: Time point
P: Stops primarily for pick-ups only.
Manhattan
207 St/Broadway
207 St/Sherman Av
207 St/Tenth Av
Bronx
W. Fordham Rd/Major Deegan Expwy-Cedar Av
W. Fordham Rd/Sedgwick Av
W. Fordham Rd/University Av
E. Fordham Rd/Jerome Av
E. Fordham Rd/Valentine Av
E. Fordham Rd/Webster-Third Aves (Fordham Plz)
E. Fordham Rd/Southern Blvd
Pelham Pkwy/White Plains Rd
Pelham Pkwy/Williamsbridge Rd
Pelham Pkwy/Jacobi Hospital
Pelham Pkwy/Eastchester Av
Pelham Pkwy South/St Paul Av (former Our Lady of Mercy Medical Ctr)
Bruckner Blvd/Westchester Av-Pelham Bay
Baychester Av-Bay Plaza
Bay Plaza-JC Penney
I wrote that one down on paper, but I forgot to type it into the post!
Queens Stops - Southbound
14 Ave/Parsons Blvd
17 Ave
20 Ave
26 Ave
31 Rd
35 Ave
Roosevelt Ave/Lippman Plz (DROPOFF ONLY)
Roosevelt Ave/Main St
41 Ave
Sanford Ave
Elder Ave
Booth Memorial Ave
Horace Harding Expwy
etc, etc...
EastBound(Hempstead)
Jamaica Bus Terminal - T
Hillside Ave &:
169th Street Subway Station (F)
179th Street Subway Station (F)
Francis Lewis Blvd
Hempstead Ave & Springfield Blvd
Hempstead Tpke &
Locustwood Blvd
Elmont Road - N1
Meacham Ave - N2
New Hyde Park Road/Franklin Ave - N3,N8,N25
Westminster Road - Transfer: N15, N31/N32 Southbound Only
Fulton Ave & Hilton Ave
Hempstead Bus Terminal - T
Footnotes:
T - Terminal
Underline - Transfer
Westbound(Jamaica)
Hempstead Bus Terminal - T
Fulton Ave & Terrace Ave
Westminster Road
New Hyde Park Road/Franklin Ave - N3, N8, N25
Meacham Ave - N2
Elmont Road - N1
Locustwood Blvd
Springfield Blvd - Q2, Q27, Q110
Hillside ave & Francis Lewis Blvd - Q1,Q36,Q43,Q76,Q77
179th Street Station (F)
169th Street Station (F)- Q30,Q31
Jamaica Bus Terminal - T
has anyone on this board been to Sacramento, CA? I just want to share some photos of our buses out here in Sac.
Here are some photos of Sacramento Regional Transit 1996 CNG Orion V's
enjoy!
The first photo above is a baby Orion 05.505 model before it begins to run RT route 36 on a Sunday. And the second photo below is a standard 40' Orion 05.501 waiting for both inbound and outbound ligth rail trains to pass so passengers can transfer(if any).
enjoy!
Arthur
The 2600s (Flxible Metro Bs) were taken out of regular fixed route service in 2002, upon arrival of the latest batch of LFs. Since then, they have been cut back to tripper and shuttle service.
-F.
We are hemorrhaging good buses! I loved those coach Novas. They are the main reason I ride the M8 over the M14.
BIG AL
The only Nova coach left at Quill now is 9272, I believe.
Mark
BIG AL
-Ben Diamond (a.k.a. 4traintowoodlawn)
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
BIG AL
MetroB
BIG AL
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
BIG AL
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
-Adam
(allisonb500r@aol.com)
Sacramento RT Photos & NJT Bus, LI Bus and a few NYCDOT Rosters are placed up on TransiTALK......ENJOY!
Click Here
Regards,
Trevor Logan
I remembered riding on that 1961 GM New look #5157 back when I was in high school. I also got some pics too if you don't mind?
Arthur
Which route does this bus run on?
What vintage is it?
Does NY Bus Service own/have in service any others?
During the AM & PM Rush, you'll find one of these fishbowls on ANY of the NYBS routes. To catch one, just steak-out at 23rd & Madison at the NYBS Hub in the PM Rush and wait on any route you wanna ride, guaranteed, you'll get one.
These are 1981-82 GMDD T8H-5308A New Looks and NYBS has 25, #1481-1504.
Hope this information helps..........
Regards,
Trevor Logan
Does anyone know when MTA retire thier last 1972 GM New looks
and 1977 Flxible New looks?
The TA buses with Bus-O-Ramas was #8001-8202, but when they were rebuilt by Blitz (renumbered to 5000-5023) they also had the Bus-O-Rama signs removed.
Out here in Sacramento were I live, our GM and Flxible New looks were gone around that time too.
Here's some photos of SacRT's preserved new look buses I took at
SacRT bus garage
enjoy!
type this address or click on it to view a Flxible New look
http://www.pacbus.org/ttpost/sacrt4.jpg
Ray
-F.
On that note, does anyone know of any ex-WMATA Flx New Looks that are still around? 8282 was for sale locally (Salem, VA) in late 1996, and sold by the first of the following year. No word on where that one went to, but it was going for $3900 OBO at the time.
-Fred
Last year when you were conducting fare increase hearings, I wrote that I supported a larger increase than the one that was actually implemented in July of 2003. Now, one year later, it has become apparent that the increase was not high enough then, and you want to go higher now. As a transit enthusiast and advocate, I foresaw this years need for an increase and am reluctant to support it. I said a year ago, Metro is meant to be convenient. The $1.20 fare is even worse than the $1.10 fare, the $1.35 fare you propose is worse than $1.20. If the fare were now $1.25, as I had proposed, a raise to $1.50 may have not been totally unreasonable. I recommend raising fares as proposed in the docket. In addition, the new Odyssey fareboxes for the buses have yet to arrive meaning bus to rail fares are even higher for those riders receive no discount. The fare increase should be held off until the fareboxes arrive.
I am in favor, to an extent, of raising the fare, for I believe that public transportation is a vital asset to our community. But, I believe that the following must be done:
1. Demand higher subsidies from the local governments. There is no reason those choosing not to use transit and creating traffic should not have to share the price paid by those making an effort to clear area roads.
2. Delay the fare increase until the entire MetroBus fleet (if not all the regional bus systems as well) has the new fareboxes. At that time, implement the following fare structure for transfers between rail to bus and bus to rail for patrons using SmarTrip and eliminating paper transfers:
· Rail to bus: Regular station to station fares would be deducted at exiting station, upon boarding bus within two hours of originally entering Metro system, an additional 35 cents would be deducted
· Bus to rail: Regular bus fare would be charged when boarding the bus. Upon entering the MetroRail system within 2 hours of boarding the bus, 35 cents would be charged. Upon exiting the MetroRail, the balance between the bus fare and rail fare would be charged. For example, a person boards a T2 bus along River Road and is charged $1.20 (using current fares). Upon entering the MetroRail at Friendship Heights, he is charged 35 cents for the bus to rail transfer. When he arrives at DuPont Circle, if the trip started at rush hour, an additional 25 cents is charged, so that the total cost of the trip is the same $1.80 as if it were a rail to bus transfer (1.20 + 0.35 + 0.25). If the trip started outside rush hour, no additional fare would be charged, since rail fare from Friendship Heights to DuPont Circle costs 1.20.
The one thing I ask is that this years increase be large enough to actually cover expenses, unlike this past years. I really do not wish to be writing yet another letter concerning fare increases 12 months from now.
As for the Purple Line, I have yet to be convinced that it will solve any of our traffic problems and that it will not spur the overdeveopled area of Downtown Bethesda. Silver Spring has some more room for development but I do not think Bethesda does.
The purple line is necessary...I think it would be nice for us Langly Park folks to have light rail instead of the congested New Hampshire hwy and University Blvd intersection...goodness gracious, that's a lot. Maybe then Ride-On buses wouldn't be so packed.
I would love for the Purple Line to be built. Unfortunately, too many NIMBY's in the way. Nothing a bulldozer couldn't take care of though. : )
but you know the WMATA rail system as it exists today -- hub and spoke. The Purple Line's intent was to tie the ends together with a more-or-less beltway rail line.
Not all buses are "destroyed" when they are sent there.
Acela
Da Hui
Bx31 # 6102
Bx31 # 6102
I always liked the 400s....
Acela
I assume you will be arriving at the Port Authority Bus Terminal. Take the A train to Rockaway/Lefferts or the C train to Euclid, on the southbound tracks, and get out at Jay Street Borough Hall. Get a Brooklyn bus map in the booth, to see where you are.
Walk three blocks south to Scherhorn and one block west to Adams, and look on the southwest corner of Adams and Schemerhorn.
You BETTER come with some padded protection and some lunch money for us NOT to bully you for...
Until then...
Incognito
You Ain't FO' Real!
My question is where can I get lots of bus bunches (buses right behind eachother) in Manhattan. Also what is best taking the B57 or the B75 from A/C Jay street Station? P.S. really my last trip was last year November 27th but i was real late on posting on here my bad observations. Thanks alot everybody!
From St. Pete Times "Special Report"
In quotes because I see this crap at least once monthly.
-Fred
HARTline, and PSTA has a flx image on most of their stuff, and PCPT also has a flx-like picture on their stuff, even though they only use bluebirds.
Either way, I dont' see anyone moving and anywhere for people to go. Which is why I despise Brandon(which is also too cheap to celebrate July 4th). :)
That picture is another reason why express buses are a hard sell for some people.
The first thing I did, when I saw that a few un-air conditioned, back windowed RTS's running around (I always wanted to see one of those, and I saw that they have been putting the AC's in most of them), I waited for one, that took me over to the other side of the loop. I then began riding the different el and later subway lines. That took me til late afternoon. I had seen some low flor NABI artics running around (These were brand new you can tell by the orange LED's), so I wanted to catch one of those too since I have never seen a low floor artic. (Is NYCT looking into some of these? Are some of the Flyers on order low floor? I forget). So after walking up Lakeshore to the Navy Pier, I caught one of those on the Lake Shore Dr. express, and then after seeing a couple of other things, I was ready to leave midnight. The biggest surprise was on the way out. After stopping at Dan Ryan/95, the driver went back and to cut across 87th to the Skyway. I see a Nova LFS approaching with the orange LED's common on new buses, but where the route was supposed to be, I see a strange bluish white color --(like the white made by R+G+B; think the LOEWS sign on 42nd). As it got closer, I saw this flash of pure blue, then red and maybe green-- only where the route number would be. (No number, just colors. The destination remained amber). WOW! this was what I had been waiting for: use of full colr LED's on transit vehicles, to display the route color. (This by the way, is why I am always talking about LED's and why with me it is on topic. I got into them because they would make such a good medium for transit signs). I tried to get the number of the bus, but it was going too fast. I had been in the city all day, and saw several newer buses with the amber, a couple with the yellow-green combined with the flipdots, and most were old (It seems Chicago is always behind in buses. They still have many 6v-92's, which have mostly been either retired or retrofitted here except for the few remaining 4000's. I remember how they were entirely new looks for well into the 90's). But it wasn't until on the way out I saw that. I definitely would have hunted that down. I guess it must have been the newest. Are all of those signs made by Luminator, or are there other vendors? Has anyone seen this anywhere else?*
On the way out there, I went straight, on the I 80 express route, stopping in Cleveland, and a couple of other small towns. I had about an hour in Cleveland, and was looking for the rapid transit system. It was about 10 at night, and very desolate there, and this was when the heavy snow started falling. I got as far as the RR station, and was sure the transit line was in there, but decided to head back. A NABI low floor was heading that way, so I got my first ride on one of those. I always hear about NABI's, as people here have reported a lot of places getting them, but I didn't know exactly what they were. To me, it's almost the same as a Flyer DLF. A couple of window panels have a different shape.
Now, coming back, the plan was to take a detour through Detroit, and then cut across Canada to Buffalo. The Greyhound rep. on the phone, and the agent who sold me the round trip ticket said all I had to do was give it to the agent in Chicago, and they could change it. But when I tried, they said they coundn't do it. The manager was off until the next morning. The next direct to NY was also the next morning. (I stayed for the day, and didn't get a place to stay to save money and time.) I wound up having to refund that half of the ticket and purchase Chicago to Detroit, and Detroit to NY via Toronto, and I had to reason with them to route me that way. This for about 10 or so more than was refunded, plus the refund fee. Lucky I had enough left in the bank.
So I was off.
As I had plotted it years ago, I would have gone through Hamilton, but now it seems you have to go a bit further out of the way and change in Toronto. Well, I always wanted to see that city too. Only I had no time, in order to make the connection. Still, what I did see, it looks very nice. Of course, as soon as I entered Windsor, I began seeing FISHBOWLS. It was like a step back into time; almost like Mexico. Wonder how much longer they plan to keep these fishbowls. I know some were made well into the '80's. The newest is still just beyond the normal lifespan here in NY. Assuming the newest used 6v92 (like the Classics), The ones I heard were the old 6v71, and seemed to be older. It seems every city is a mixture of some fishbowls, Classics, Orions and Flyer DLF's. Pretty much the same thing in London, Toronto and Niagara. In the other US cities I saw, there seemed to be a similar mix of Orions, Flyers, some NABI's, and even new Gilligs somewhere, probably Buffalo. (the only place you can see those around here are the Hertz shuttles at the airports).
Intercity couches were, on the way out, GLI 6500 series (MCI 102 with series 60). Chicago to Detroit was an MC12, now the oldest of the fleet. (when I took my last trip to Florida and Virginia, they were just coming out!). Perhaps last chance for a 6v92, fast disappearing. Detroit to Toronto was another MC12. Toronto to Buffalo was a Coach Canada MCI 102. Buffalo to NY was an Adirondack Trailways older Prevost H, which as a treat, has 8v92! Never thought I'd hear DD8v again. The classic intercity coach sound. (After this, I plan just one more trip to Norfolk, next year, to see the new mall they built on formerly flat vacant space, plus the maglev train at ODU. Then, I'm finished with long intercity bus travel, and will probably fly like everyone else I know; just would feel better if this terrorism thing blows over eventually).
*I remember when we were waiting for the first PATH train to WTC discussing with another railfan who insists all LED's can become any color by simply reversing the current, and many who post here say the same thing. While there are some old r/g units you can find at Radio Shack that work like that, the others use separate chips to mix the primary colors. I forgot to mention on another recent thread where this was discussed, that you can tell right away a single color yellow or white LED from a multicolor one displaying those colors by mixing RG or RGB. Look closely at it, and if it is multicolor, you can see the individual primary color chips glowing. If it is single color, you only see one chip glowing that one color. You can compare the interior and exterio R143 signs to see this. Interior is R+G; exterior is monochromatic amber. Also, in a sign made with them, if they are single color, they will all be the same exact hue. If they are multicolor, some of the primary colors will be stronger or weaker, leading to slight differences in hue (e.g. some yellows will be almost orange; some will be greenish, etc). Just look at the station platform signs, and you'll see what I mean.
So no, they simply did not reverse the current on amber LED's. If that was how it was done, why don't all signs display all colors? If forward is red and reverse is green, how do you get both (yellow), or blue, white etc. Sideways current or up or down? :-b
1)If these buses are going to be MTA compatiable, then I see the manufacturer being either New Flyer OR Orion. Maybe MCI D4500s for the express buses, I'm not sure.
2)With ONLY 450 buses, that's at least 60-65 buses for each company plus an additional 25 from the MTA so that would be about 68 buses for each company. So I would think that each company would be pleased.
Only time will tell though but now we know why a lot of buses from the MTA are in storage!
Ray
RESPECT THE BUSES OF NEW YORK CITY!!!!!!
:)
How so?
Thank You
David
"Bill "Newkirk"
By CLEMENTE LISI
March 19, 2004 -- The city plans to shell out $160 million on a fleet of new buses in a bid to improve service and get the MTA to take over the private lines this year, officials said yesterday.
"We think it would be a plus for the transfer and for the riders," said Transportation Commissioner Iris Weinshall.
"We are committed to transferring control to the MTA."
Mayor Bloomberg wants to give control of the lines to the Metropolitan Transportation Authority so the city would save the $150 million a year it doles out to subsidize them.
The MTA, which is in negotiations with the city regarding a takeover, has said it wants to run the buses at no extra cost to the agency.
Weinshall said the city would use part of its federal mass-transit subsidy to buy 450 new buses over the next two years at about $350,000 a piece.
"We need to move forward and figure out how to provide riders with better service," she said.
The private bus companies serve 400,000 daily riders in Queens, Brooklyn and The Bronx. The city is also interested in buying 25 MTA buses the agency plans to phase out this year.
BM2-#4959-Orion V
Regards,
Kevin
Incognito
NON-RIGID BUSES FOR DOT!
Regards,
Kevin
Ray
Kevin
Command:Will wind up replacing the MCI(since they have no wheelchair accesibility) plus the RTS buses they hav(#358-#374).
Triboro:Most likely the 600's and the 700's RTS and the MCI will get replaced from there.
Green:ALL RTS 200's and 600's. The MCI(while i'd miss them) would leave too).
Queens Surface:Mostly the MCI buses. Can't see the TMCRTS buses leaving, as they look it good condition.
Jamaica:Maybe the 500's to leave and the MCI. Though i'm not sure as Jamaica took care of the Grummans well(they were the last DOT company to still run them).
Any opinions?
Command:Will wind up replacing the MCI(since they have no wheelchair accesibility) plus the RTS buses they hav(#358-#374).
Triboro:Most likely the 600's and the 700's RTS and the MCI will get replaced from there.
Green:ALL RTS 200's and 600's. The MCI(while i'd miss them) would leave too).
Queens Surface:Mostly the MCI buses. Can't see the TMCRTS buses leaving, as they look it good condition.
Jamaica:Maybe the 500's to leave and the MCI. Though i'm not sure as Jamaica took care of the Grummans well(they were the last DOT company to still run them).
Any opinions?
The MTA may be transferred the money to buy those buses according to their specs. By the time they arrive, they will be MTA buses. Hell will freeze over before any city official pays extra money to cut in line on a bus order.
Gun Hill
*bx1 *bx4 Bx5,*bx8 bx12 *bx16 Bx22 Bx25 Bx26 *bx28 Bx29 Bx30 Bx34 ,,,*Bx36 *Bx39 Bx40 *bx42 Bx55
Kingsbridge
*bx1 Bx2 Bx3 Bx7 Bx9 Bx10 *Bx13 *bx16 Bx18 Bx20 *bx28 Bx32 *bx39 Bx41 *bx 42 m100
Mother Clara Hale
Bx33 M1 M2 M7 *m30 M60 MSH
MANHATTAN DIVISION
100 street
*m79 m86 *101 M102 M103
126 street
M15 M31 M35 M57 M66 M72 M116
Manhattanville
M3 M4 M5 M10 M11 M18 M96 M98 *M101 M104 M106
Michael J Quill
M6 M8 M9 M14 M16 M20 M21 M22 M23 M27 *M30 *Q32 M34 M42 M50 *M79 X90
BROOKLYN DIVISION
East new york
B7 B12 B14 B15 B17 *B20 B25 B42 B45 B51 *B60 B82 B83 Q24 Q56
Jackie Gleason
B8 B9 B11 B16 B23 B35 B37 B43 B61 B63 B65 B67 *B68 B69 B70 B71 B75 B77
Flatbush
B2 *B6 B31 *b39 *b41 B44 B46 B47 *b49
Fresh Pond
B13 *b20 B24 B26 B38 *B39 B48 B52 B54 B57 B60 Q54 Q55
*q58 Q59
Ulmer Park
B1 B3 B4 *B6 X25 X27 X28 X29 B36 X37 X38 *B41 *B49 B64 *B68 B74
QUEENS DIVISION
Casey Stengle
Q12 Q13 Q14 Q15 Q16 Q20A Q20B Q26 Q27 Q28 *Q32 *x32 Q44 Q48 X51 *Q58 Q74 Q76
Jamaica Depot
Q3 Q4 Q5 Q17 Q42 X63 X64 Q77 Q84 Q85
Queens Village
Q1 Q2 Q30 Q31 *X32 Q36 q43 Q46 x68 Q75 Q79 Q83 Q88
STATEN ISLAND DIVISION
Castleton
X10 X11 X12 X13 X14 X16 X18 X20 *x22 x30 x31 s40 s42 x42 s44 s46 s48 s51 s52 s53 s54 *S55 *S56 *s57 *S59 S60 *s62 s66 s67 *s74 *s76 *s78 s81 s86 s90 s92 s93 s96 s98
Yukon
x1 x2 x 3 x4 x5 x6 x7 x8 x9 x15 x17 x19 *x22 *s44 *s55 *56 *s57 *s59 s61 *s62 *s74 *s78 s79 s84 s91 s94
Summary of changes since last edition
B41 implemented split depot operation ,,portion of route transfered from Flatbush Depot to Ulmer Park Depot ,,April 12 ,2004
B49 implemented split depot operation , portion of route transfered from flatbush depot to ulmer park depot,,,April 12 ,2004
B60 implemented split depot operation ,. portion of route transfered from E N Y Depot to Fresh Pond Depot Apirl 12 , 2004
X26 discontinued ,,effective April 12,2004
* indicates split depot operation
Note---please do not advise me that my notes are wrong,this is effective april 12 ,2004,,from official documentation
steve
I need the turnaround routings for routes---primarily at the RR Stations or other points --where,,on a schedule map,,the route is indicated by a dead stop in the map line drawing
--without a turnaround routing illustrated!!
I will pay for this detail--within reason ,of course!!!
Steve
914 668 9218
In Mineola, buses go over the bridge, then the 1st right turn after the bridge. One block, turn left, then another left onto old country rd, followed by another left back onto the bridge(Franklin Av or Mineola BLVD)
N40/N41 in Mineola: North on Franklin, left onto street just before bridge, one block, left, left onto old country rd, right onto Franklin.
N28 at Roslyn RR station: They have a little loop there for the buses, so they pretty much just turn around on the street
The above routes will soon change as they are planning a new terminal with bus bays at the parking lot. I instead of the left onto the street leading to old country rd, it'll be a right into the terminal.
Any route that terminates at RFM is pretty confusing, the streets there really have no names I think. There is a terminal with a bunch of bus bays
The areas I am looking at ,are ,as follows,,including Turnarounds ,within a 10 block radius
N2 Floral Park
n3 Franklin Square
N8 Franklin Square
N19 Babylon
N20/N21 Clork Tower Shortturns
N22 Hicksville
N23 Port Washington R R
N24 East Merrick ---Merrick Av
N25 /26 Great Neck R R
N28 Roslyn Harbour Park Drive
N28 Roslyn R R
N35 Westbury Rockland Street
N46 N47 N50 Bellmore Merrick Road
N48 N49 Jericho Quad
N50 Hicksville Sears
N62 Ind.Loop
N65 N66 East Rockaway Main street
N67 Hicksville Stewart Av
N67 Roosevelt---Prince Av
N72 Babylon R R
N70 Melville Pinelawn Rd
N73 N74 Hicksville R R
N78 N79 same as above
N80 N81 same as above
N81 Bethpage Apollo Circle
N94 Crossways
N94 Hicksville
N95 Farmingdale ---Atlantic Av
The areas I am primarily interested in ,are the Hicksville Area---and the Hempstead Terminal ---with their many many variations
Not sure exactly what the 20/21's that originate/terminate at the tower do, but I know the 23 from mineola that does just turns around in the middle of the road
"N23 Port Washington R R"
Quite a few routes for the N23 at the LIRR PW area. Mineola bound via Main St turns left off of Shore Rd, then up Main st to Port Washington BLVD and turns right. The LIRR station is on Main at Herbert Av
Manorhaven bound via Main St is the oppostite
Mineola bound via Harbor Rd turns right onto Port Washington BLVD from Harbor Rd, then right onto Main st, then left onto Bayles Av(stop for LIRR PW on Bayles), then left onto Vanderventer, then right onto Port Washington BLVD
Manorhaven bound via Harbor Rd turns left onto Main St from Port Washington BLVD, then left onto Bayles(yes, it stops on the same side of the street as mineola bound harbor rd buses, go figure), then left onto Vanderventer, then left onto Port Washington BLVD, then left onto Harbor Rd(yes, it does the Port Washington BLVD between Vanderventer and Main st twice)
"N28 Roslyn R R"
Like I said before, it just loops around through the parking lot/road/whatever the hell it is. From there, down RR Av I think it is, then left onto Roslyn Rd, continues to clock tower, left onto West Shore Rd(or is that part actually old northern blvd?), continues straight to the industrial park and turns left
If ya get the routing for the N95, could ya tell me...that route has always confused the shit outta me.
or maybe
Right on Lexington, Right on LLoyd St, Right on Pacific Ave , Left on Hempstead Tpke, and right on Franklin Ave.
I always see the N3 or N8 Make A Left on to Hempstead Tpke from either Pacific or Lexington. Im usually waiting for the N6 when I see it, but never payed attention to which block it is.
b1-#4785
I am shocked about the ones mentioned for the Bronx
Thank You
It won't be long before a QV bus pulls out, pulls into Jamaica for meal, does a trip on a Flushing line, then pulls back into QV for the day. And that's just the beginning.
Stay tuned...
Someone's been checking out the scheduling practices in Los Angeles....
Suppose an eastbound trip is needed on Line 163, leaving Hollywood/Vine at 7:36; if there's no arriving westbound trip available, then a bus must pull out from one of the San Fernando Valley garages to operate the 7:36 trip. Now suppose there is also a northbound Line 210 trip arriving at Hollywood/Highland at 7:08; if there is no returning southbound trip, then the arriving bus must pull in to its south county garage. Instead, the 7:08 arrival on Line 210 will be scheduled to deadhead from Hollywood/Highland to Hollywood/Vine (about 5 minutes), layover for 23 minutes, and take the 7:36 departure on Line 163. During the "peak of the peak" (when buses are very scarce), this avoids having a bus pull in while another is pulling out.
The Los Angeles County MTA (whose drivers are represented by an ATU local!) has done such cross-depot interlining for years, with buses from the far ends of the county often pulling in from 50 or more miles away!!
This is not true. There is no splitting of route B42 among depots in any way, shape, or form in the Spring Pick. I've heard this too...apparently it's crewroom scuttlebutt.
David
David
If i recall correctly they gave drivers 12 minuates to pull out and run off from Rockaway Parkway Station to Flatbush Depot.
I believe that they give East New York Drivers around 17 minuates for the PullOut and Run Offs
Thank You
Thank You for your insight. I was aware that Flatbush had 3 peak hour runs on the B-6
Thank You
Thank You
The good news: 450 new buses The bad news: they won't be ready before 2006
BY JOSHUA ROBIN
Staff Writer
March 18, 2004, 7:37 PM EST
The city Department of Transportation will buy hundreds of new buses by dipping into federal money that had gone unused for years, its commissioner said Thursday at a City Council hearing.
However, riders on the much-maligned private buses, which the DOT oversees, shouldn't expect relief soon: the 450 new buses aren't likely to be ready for another two years.
The private lines, which serve Queens, Brooklyn and the Bronx, will in the meantime get 25 former MTA buses that are said to be more than 15 years old, Commissioner Iris Weinshall told the council transportation committee.
Each bus is expected to cost about $5,000 and would be bought with city funds, officials said.
The age of those buses isn't much different than the average private-line bus, which is about twice as old as NYC Transit buses. Owners of private bus companies said they were nonetheless relieved to be receiving something to add to their decaying fleets.
"They're finally addressing the problem," said Jerome Cooper, president of Jamaica Buses and the chairman of an alliance of four companies. "The administration is finally facing up to their responsibility."
Weinshall said $160 million in federal money would be used to buy about 450 new buses to be turned over to the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, which the Bloomberg administration is pressing to take over the private lines.
It was unclear whether the private companies would get the new buses should no transfer deal be reached; Weinshall said she hopes for an agreement within the two years in which the buses are manufactured.
The purchase announcement points to some progress in otherwise thorny negotiations between the city and the state-run agency, which have gone on for years.
Newsday reported on March 3 that the city had been for years warehousing tens of millions of dollars in federal transit funds earmarked for buses and other large purchases.
"This should have been done a long time ago," added John Liu (D-Flushing), chair of the Transportation Committee.
Copyright © 2004, Newsday, Inc
So no, QSC should not get anything at this point.
On the other hand, other than about 5 or 6 buses, the GBL does not have an express fleet.
450 buses en route in Mike U-turn
New York Daily News - http://www.nydailynews.com
By FRANK LOMBARDI
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER
In a sudden reversal by Mayor Bloomberg's administration, the city will spend $160million to buy 450 new buses for its seven troubled private bus lines.
The city's reversal was disclosed yesterday by Transportation Commissioner Iris Weinshall during a budget hearing before the City Council's Transportation Committee.
Just two weeks ago, Bloomberg insisted the city would hold off on buying new buses until an agreement is reached on an MTA takeover of the private lines.
"If we buy buses before the negotiations are complete, we run the risk of buying obsolete buses that the MTA does not use and cannot service," he said then.
The private lines, which serve 400,000 passengers daily in Brooklyn, Queens and the Bronx, operate with the help of a $150 million annual subsidy from the city. But the city's operating agreement with the lines expires July 1.
The city and the MTA continue to hold protracted, and sometimes contentious, negotiations about the takeover. But based on testimony yesterday by representatives of the two sides, an agreement is nowhere in sight.
Weinshall said the new buses, which will cost about $350,000 each, will have the same demanding specifications used by the MTA. If the MTA does take over the private lines, the new buses "can easily go into the fleet of the MTA," she said.
The seven private lines operate 1,251 buses, many of them antiquated.
The normal procurement process for new buses can take several years. But talks are planned with the MTA and its bus contractors to let the city "cut in front of the line a bit" and get the buses more quickly, she added.
She also announced that the city is negotiating to buy 25 older buses from the MTA that it is retiring. Compared to the buses used by the private lines, the MTA buses, despite being 15 to 16 years old, are in "mint" condition, Weinshall said. They will cost $7,000 each and could be on the road in several months.
Councilman John Liu (D-Queens), chairman of the Transportation Committee, hailed Weinshall's bus announcement as good news. He pressed the city and MTA to "get serious" with their takeover negotiations.
Weinshall assured Liu that the Bloomberg administration won't turn its back on the bus riders or cut off its subsidy if the takeover doesn't happen by July1.
Bloomberg's preliminary budget plan envisions saving $150 million a year from the MTA takeover. But the MTA wants the city subsidy to continue and possibly increase.
Originally published on March 19, 2004
$5,000 Reward in Bus Assault
BY JOSHUA ROBIN
STAFF WRITER; Staff writer Rocco Parascandola contributed to this story.
March 17, 2004
The alleged beating and sexual assault of a Bronx bus driver prompted her union yesterday to offer a $5,000 reward for the capture of her attacker.
"We hope that the perpetrator will be swiftly apprehended and brought to justice," said Roger Toussaint, president of Local 100 of the Transport Workers Union.
The unidentified driver, 34, was attacked late Monday night by the lone passenger aboard the Bx. 21 at the end of the route at the intersection of E. 136th Street and Lincoln Avenue, police said.
Once there, the suspect dragged her to the back of the bus, punched her in the face and tried to remove her sweater, police said. He then fled.
The driver was taken to Lincoln Hospital in the Bronx, where she was treated for facial injuries. She declined to comment yesterday, according to a union spokesman.
Charles Seaton, a spokesman for NYC Transit, said there were 213 assaults on bus operators in 2003 and 179 in 2002. There are about 9,500 bus operators working for NYC Transit.
All buses are equipped with a panic button to alert the dispatchers to problems. Seaton said it was unclear if the victim had pushed the button when the attack occurred.
8877 F14 Capitol Heights Station-bus was a bit sluggish, possible tranny problems
2415 97 near the Capitol
9262 34 7th & Independence
2070 5A Dullus Airport-I approached the bus, since it was about time to leave, I got to the bus and thought it was ok to board, since there was someone else on board. The door open and the driver was sort of rude. He asked "What does the sign say", I replied, and went to wait for the bus. I would have replied back talking about the WMATA buses that have broken signs, but I wasn't. Isn't in my nature.
Also the driver had gold teeth, nuff said.
VRT 66, Dullus 2 Dullus-startrans mini-me cutaway, they have transfers, they look like tokens, they are white and have a mini me on one side and a Virginia regional transit on the other.
VRT 53, 7-7on the 7-Saw VRT gillig heading in the other direction and found out it was running the other 7on7. The one door SLF must be in the shop. So I intended to ride it. I ate lunch at Roy Rogers and then headed out ot see if I could catch it.
VRT 48, 7-7on the 7-Got on the Gillig and immediately noticed two things. One is the seats, the second was these buses were bought second hand. The original fleet number is 8805. Also I thought 45 might have been the only one but it seems like they have around 4. This bus also has a 6V92 and sounds almost like the Orion 1. It was a nice ride.
VRT 66 Dullus to Dullus back to Dullus
2083 5A Rosslyn
2005 38B Downt.....oops, wrong bus, this one was going to Ballston
2006 38B Downtown-Observations aplenty. First off 4248 is now at Arlington(with non-working destination signs,green), 4307, 4345, 4297 and 4285 are all rehabbed. Also 9305 IS at Western, saw that on one of the 30s and 9453 is at Annex.
4026 34 Naylor Road-past up some Orions to get a Flx. I also saw 9744 on either the A2 or 94 not sure which, but could have sworn that the signs read 92, but the 92 doesn't run this way. I got to the station and just missed F14-4268. Lastly 4253 is rehabbed. Saw another rehab, but it was too dark and too far to see the number.
9648 F14 home.
Now for the VRT Gillig. The original fleet number was 8805(so it might be an 1988 Gillig), it has a 6V92 engine, it is soft seated with the seats having vinyl on the sides of each seat and cloth running down the middle of each seat in a wide band of multi-blue, light brown and purple, it has press stop request strips(one was missing by the rear door) and the walls were light grey. Does anyone know whose buses these were originally. I have a guess, but not sure.
because I found a list of them on a RIPTA bus fleet.
Yes, in 1983. They didn't last very long, and some, if not all, went to Pittsburgh.
Out here in the San Francisco Bay Area, Samtrans which serves the
suburbs south of SF had 15 1985 Neoplan AN460 artics and these buses
lasted for 17 years.
Renumbering the bus routes:
1A renumbered to the N5
1B N7
2A N9
2B N10
3A N11
3B N12
3C N13
3D N18
3E N29
5A N30
6A N34
7A N38
7B N39
7D N42
7E N44
8A N56
10A N59
10B N60
10C N61
10D N63
10E N64
S1 N68
S20 N75
S23 N76
S25 N77
S27 N82
S29 N83
S31 N84
S33 N85
S35 N86
S40 N87
S41 N88
S42 N89
S45 N90
S47 N91
S54 N92
S56 N93
S57 N96
S58 N97
S59 N98
S60 N99
S61 N100
S62 N101
S63 N102
S66 N103
S68 N104
S69 N105
S71 N106
S90 N107
S92 N108
S94 N109
Now I would probably combine some routes with other Nassau bus routes like for example combine the S20 with the N54 or something like that. Anotherwords, it may not go up to N109, this was just an estimate or something.
Renumbering buses from Sufflok Transit to MTA Long Island Bus:
Gillig Corporation
(I'm not sure if they will keep these buses but they had them before)
I would retire anything older than 1991
9100-9108 (40 Ft) 1991 renumbered to #396-405 (appro.)
9600-9667 (35 Ft) 1996 renumbered to #406-475 (appro.)
9700-9734 (30 Ft) 1997 renumbered to #476-512 (appro.)
2000-2006 (35 Ft) 2000 renumbered to #513-519 (appro.)
Orion Bus Industries
9900-9970 (35 Ft) 1999 renumbered to #667-738 (appro.)
***NOTE: I skipped #520-666 because bus numbers #578-666 are still in use.***
I would also order more buses in the CNG form to retire those diesel buses anyways.
Flxible Metro Corporation
9300-9349 (35 Ft) 1993 Metro-D......uh, no I don't think so.
Let me know what you guys think? Be gentle with the comments...THANKS!!!
Ray
RESPECT THE BUSES OF LONG ISLAND!!!!!!
If Long Island Bus were to take over SC Transit routes i doubt that they will be renumbered with the N designation. The N indicates that they operate in Nassau County. If anything the routes will be renumbered with the letter S for Suffolk County.
It will be similar to New York City Transit designations for its bus route with the letter indicating the borough except for the express routes.
To renumber the buses really isn't required unless there is a conflict with the current LI Bus fleet numbers.
Thats my opinion
Thank You
M, Q, S(uffolk) and X routes: stay as they are.
B routes: relettered K. (Kings County)
Bx routes: relettered B.
S (Staten Island) routes: relettered R. (Richmond County)
"Take the K16 bus down to 4th Avenue & 86th Street in Bay Ridge and transfer to the R79 bus to get to the Staten Island Mall."
Thats my opinion
Thank You
One is not to confuse the LI Bus routes and the other is more obvious:
Sunday Service, Yay!!!!
Da Hui
David
How would you run it?
Finally, last month with the bus almost gone, I talked to the lot owner and purchased the rollsign, as well as its RTS builder's plate.
The bus turned out to be Norwalk Transit bus number 118. The rollsign is in excellent shape with approximately 20-25 Norwalk readings on superb mylar with white letters on black, white on red, white on orange, and white on green. This is the original equipment GM sign.
Does anyone on this board want the rollsign and GM RTS builder's plate before it goes on e-Bay as one item? The price is $60. Postage is $17 (I know as I shipped it up from Miami). The e-Bay reserve price will be higher.
If anyone is interested, please contact me OFF LIST at PCC7407@wbtv.net, or by mail at
P.O. Box 8417; Parkville, MD 21234.
John Engleman
Does anyone notice these two type of wheels on buses(and trucks)?
I believe more TA's are converting to the silver aluminum wheel below
as the white steel wheel above will become obsolete in the near future. Also, I see steel wheels in other colors as black, red, orange, blue, and grey.
Arthur
Da Hui
The reason NYCT is not going for the aluminum rims on their buses anymore is because the heat caused from the friction caused by the braking of the buses is heating up the Alcoas and thus making them difficult to maintain...The white wheels don't have that problem afaik...however, with the white wheels, that means more paint to spend money on to make them look clean, in addition to washing them.
Incognito
Aluminum shiny rims for all!
Steel wheel advantages:
- stiffer construction (steel less likely to deform from harsh use)
- thinner "face" (uses less of the stud when mounted to the axle)
Companies use appearance as an argument for both types. Companies that are standardizing on aluminum say there's a classier look to these wheels. Companies that prefer to stay with steel like to show more attention to detail by keeping the wheels clean (which is harder with steel - Academy is a good example of such a company).
For the most part, it comes down to preference of the operating company.
Do you think Greyhound may also be an example too?
Because, I've never seen any Greyhound bus equipped with aluminum wheels, but only white steel wheels.
Arthur
-F.
Type A: Your standard typical steel wheel, they come standard with most buses. Most have 5 holes, few have 2. These are amongst most popular because they are reliable and cheap.
Type B: Your silver aluminum wheel, manufactered by Alcoa. They are expensive and come with buses as an additional option. These I believe are more prone to overheating, but they are easier to clean.
And of course you have your steel lowfloor wheel and your Alcoa lowfloor wheel, which are smaller.
-F.
Arthur
You're kidding, right?
Heat is a vehicles enemy, but is the reason for not using the Alcoa's really a fear of an overpressurized tire?
-F.
Which WMATA buses were the first to recieve the flat ligth gray paint?
Arthur
Where I live in Northern California, the majority of TA's out here
have already converted to aluminum wheels....probably because
they look classier like you said Kcram3500.
There are a few other TA's out here in N Cal that didn't change to aluminum wheels, but they still retain the steel wheels on thier
buses.
Arthur
Metropolitan Transit Authority-Los Angeles, CA.
Utah Transit Authority-Salt Lake City, UT.
Metro- St Louis, MO.
-F.
MTA of Los Angeles no longer buys steel wheels for some reason.
Thier 2001 New Flyer C40LF's are the last order delivered with black steel wheels.
Arthur
-F.
Golden Gate Transit-San Rafael, CA.
Toronto Transit Commission-Toronto, ON.
I have you ever seen a red firetruck with red wheels(or rims)?
If so, that's what I mean.
Arthur
And while not a transit company, Rockland Coaches (Red and Tan) always had red wheels on their buses (except for the original GMC decks and the first MC-9s - these were white then later were repainted red with the revised paint scheme in the early 80s). The wheels then went white after the Coach USA acquisition.
-F.
www.regionaltransitservice.com
Those two photos of wheels you all saw, I took them with my digital
cam.
The bus equipped with the standard white steel wheel is a 2003
CNG Orion V owned by Placer County Transit and the one with the aluminum wheel is a Sacramento RT 1993 CNG Orion V.
Arthur
-F.
I like the new silver wheels though, even though it is just cheap paint.
I seem to recall that 9201 was running around with Alcoas; also, I have a pic of 9701 sporting them as well when delivered. Does anyone know what other WMATA buses carried them at one time?
-F.
Da Hui