Orion VII 4 Life

Just saw 7310 on 9...

Gonna be weird seeing anything but the 1200s on the M15 Select...

Nice just a few things:

Howell has 7278-7299

Veolia is now Transdev Services

Don't be so quick to think that. Here a big thing that people overlook with the intial CNG order........MCI didn't put in a bid!

 

The way that RFP was spec'd meant that MCI would have had to completely redesign the D series, something that they are not going to do for one customer. EPV won by default.......now we are talking about 1000+ diesel crusiers. MCI will bid as long as NJT doesn't go overboard with the spec's again. With that size of a order the cost per bus comes down.....meaning MCI can get very competitive with the bid.

 

And last but not least, you guys wanna know why MCI isn't cheap (at least in NJT's eyes)? The spec's they write........no other property in America is change happy as NJT. Even why the order is being built spec changes keep coming in. Don't believe me.....look at the NABIs and how many changes were made during the course of that order. NJT has been known to be difficult to work with in the industry, so thats why they get charged higher. The artic order is gonna be very telling because NF does not want anything to do with NJT, and Nova may not want to be bothered with another spec happy property after the SEPTA fiasco.

Exactly it's the specs, that's why MCI couldn't bid on it! Then finally they worked on making a 45 foot CNG that would meet NJT's specs so they could win the next order which they got because DesignLine was bankrupt. NJT will find some BS to spec on the next order so EPV gets it, they want the EcoCoach and they're gonna get it.

Transit doesn't give a f*ck what the customer thinks. EPV has it in the bag...

I think it's the new D4500CT buses, hence the mixed Prevost order

I wouldn't say NJ Transit will order these again, but never say never.

The bus was designed from the ground up with NJT, part of that being the 40 foot turning radius in a 45 foot bus. I don't think Transit was unsatisfied with DesignLine either, they literally only ordered different buses because they had to. Penn Plaza wants that bus just like they want every other bus custom built for them and I don't see the next order going anywhere else..

The ECOCoach is making a comeback...

 

EPV's variant has passed testing(not for NJ Transit). They swapped out the CNG with a Diesel engine and it passed. The ECOCoach remains to be the highest graded bus to pass testing out of Altoona next to the Orion VII EPA10.

 

EPV will soon start taking orders/placing bids on this model.

Well looks like the new MCIs will be the last we'll see around here for a while, between MTA being big with Prevost now and NJT about to order 1000+ of these no doubt (the bus was basically designed for NJT and they really wanted it). Look they even put an EasySpeak in the demo, wouldn't be surprised if it got built to NJT specs like DL's demo.

I actually liked the new MCIs too...

Yeah honestly it feels like it's all run from the same depot now. This isn't the MTA anymore amd they don't have to follow their structure. If they're not having every depot do runs on all the routes then it's a situation like JFK/Far Rockaway at MTA Bus where the fleets are constantly swapped out with each other.

Kinda surprised but I got my MetroCard the machine took my money from last month back today in the mail. I've heard of the TA taking months to do it.

7278 on point.. no comparing to the DesignLine Eco Crap. Smooth ride with some great sounds. Mad comfy too, the seats aren't even that hard like the DLs and recline just like on the other MCIs. Just a little upset there's no outlets in the back row like the MTAs but whatever, its a damn good bus.

If you want to ride one your best bet is to wait until PM rush. They tend to run them Southbound around that time, but they're unpredictable so watch MyBusNow.

Saw a few of them out earlier. Gonna try and get one for the ride back tomorrow morning.

Probably MCH covering a local run. Remember the local is out of TU and select out of MCH now and MCH has no standard non SBS artics

I believe the CS Bowne runs ended, actually. Someone went out to catch the last run like 2 weeks ago.

Is CS not running some Q88 runs anymore. Today it was all QV buses (I was tracking it from outside). Or is CS borrowing buses or something?

The state of Florida has a thing where if you take transit in Miami Dade/Broward/Palm Beach county more than 3 or 4 days a week you can be paid back for an emergency cab ride home a few imes a year.

So, at the Transit HighSchool, do they allow students to go inside and change the roll sign or fix them, etc?

Why don't you go there and see how long you last in that school?

Someone on FB is saying 7090 is being seen "With an orange sign like 7091-7103 (except 7094)."

 

Are they replacing the multicolor signs [thought single color was no longer available], or does that mean the multicolor was only displaying orange? (And if so, then what does 7094 have? It's again hard to tell on most of these pics, where it often does look like a monochrome amber, but on others, it was like lemon yellow).

They seem to only bring out 7278/79 when they feel like it. It isn't making as much an appearance as before.

 

I take it 7280+ are still being inspected?

 

Howell seems to be doing more 139 runs. I'm seeing more NJT buses on Route 9 than Academy buses.

 

Howell isn't planning on sending CNGs down to Egg Harbor for the holidays are they?

If they can fuel the MCIs, then yes...hybrids use the same diesel fuel as any other bus

I think they need some extra equipment for the batteries though...

OK Mr. G so you're ok with the op breaking the TA rules to get his phone out to start harassing the guy taking pictures? Or how about the driver stopping short and jumping out of an in service bus to demand they delete the picture? (that's happened to me in NJ a few times)

I'm in public and I'm gonna take pictures of what I want. I'm not trying to take a picture of the op anyways and if he thinks so there's not much he can do anyways, it's public. I can walk through Times Square and expect to end up in some tourist's pictures even though they're not trying to take my picture.

CS didn't get no new buses either.

And they're the ones with all the Orion Vs. I won't be surprised if they end up doing reassignments and put them on the list, at least if they make the option order they'll get new buses from that.

Aaandd Manhattan gets screwed again with the new buses... what a shock

Oh, okay. Thank you for clearing that up. After I saw the "MTA New York City Bus" label on some of MTABC's buses, my thinking was that NYCT and MTABC were going to share the same label while remaining separate agencies of the MTA.

Thats basically what's gonna happen once it's all done