SoSpectacular

35 minutes ago, BoRi1976 said:

@lornaevo yes you are 100% correct. Learn from my mistakes is the key. Hand over hand is killing me. I need to get that push n pull technique down and 4" of spacing on the right side. The yelling doesn't get to me cause I get the supt laughing at my sly remarks( supt was like look at him all nervous and scared,, I'm intimidating him) I was like come on now, all that screaming and hollering is only giving me a headache and quite honestly, it isn't good for your blood pressure. All the supt could do is laugh. They even told me that its incredible how I handled the pressure while others in my class has told the supt to please stop yelling cause they are nervous.

I'm wondering who your superintendent is... I vaguely recall someone from my day 8/9 training class talking about her instructor who had a drill sergeant-like demeanor and was always yelling. Does he wear a hat of some sort?

I noticed this ad on my bus earlier and there's a lot of us who are confused as to what's going on...

1. Automated announcements became a thing starting around... 2018. Before that earlier models were tested on certain buses. It was rolled out around 2018 with the then newest order of buses and the retrofitting of some older models. There are some buses that haven't gotten the announcement systems still or have been skipped over. 

2. It's required for bus operators under the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 to call out bus stops if there isn't an automated system calling them out. It's federal law. However, with NYC's transit system being heavy on stops, it's kinda redundant to have to call out every single stop on one of our lines. Some routes could have as many as 120+ stops in both directions! Instead, we are required to call out major transfer points and points of interest if applicable. 

3. There is a microphone on some of our buses that allows us to record quick announcements using a foot pedal near the seat. It isn't very good but it works. We also have the option of using the PA system but that requires actually using your hands to operate. 

4. If the automated system isn't working, yes we are still required to call out the major stops but not everyone is going to do that because habits are hard to break.

On 9/15/2021 at 4:16 PM, BoRi1976 said:

I thought this training was supposed to be so profesional and its the complete opposite. Sh*t is ratchet as hell. Screaming n hollering and supt talking on the phone and stopping in between our training to run personal errands. I must have some bad luck. Went as far as making a student drive on a highway w/o the convex being fixed properly. I understand why the supt pointed the convex mirror all the way up, so the student would look for their pivot on the flat mirror like you're suppose to but to make the student take the highway blindly like that is uncool. I don't think I'm making it through cause I've just had about enough the unprofessionalism. Thats just ludacris.

I was thrown on the highway on Day 4 on our way back to Grand Ave from doing the el pillars. I thought of it as a way to test myself. Plus, you will need to have some highway experience since you have to use it during the CDL road test (also some official run-on and run-off routes have this written in the route descriptions). Most of Transit's buses are governed at 40 MPH but for the road test you will be driving a bus governed at 50-55. Take that as necessary experience!

I was at a point where I didn't think I was going to pass the training but I found my bearings by the 5th day and was moving that bus with no problems. You'll get it dude.

23 hours ago, TomaszSBklyn said:

I respectfully disagree. Couple of inches? I have driven my car (compact) through that and nothing. Considering that chassis of an average car sits perhaps five or six inches above the ground, it theory sitting in three or four inches of water for some time should in theory affect the breaks, perhaps wheels and possibly exhaust. The chassis of buses sit higher above the ground, although in case of the low floor units not by much. And if everything is fine, engine and transmission should not be immediately affected since they are sealed, if they were not the bus would be spewing oil or transmission fluid all over the place.

 There is video of a bus driven through water deep enough to force passengers to stand on the seats. And that bus went through. Had any serious problem occurred, it would have stalled.

The problem is when a vehicle is submerged if water (especially salt) for hours, especially when water gets sucked into the engine or if a hot vehicle is driven through water and it stalls and the level is enough to suck the water into critical parts of the vehicle, especially when this vehicle cools down.

The above mentioned post by a SI politician mentions 4ft (48 inches) of water. This much is of course almost automatic death sentence for any regular vehicle. But I wonder where a million dollar buses are. According to the post below, the 2012 Prevosts (most in UP) cost $550,228 per unit.

https://mtanyctransitfanon.fandom.com/wiki/Volvo_Group_Prevost_X3-45_(Mtamaster_edition)

Water getting into an engine is bad, period.

Keep in mind that both gasoline and diesel engines use some form of compression to combust the fuel, especially for diesels which entirely rely on it as they do not use spark plugs. Liquids, no matter how hard you might want to try can never be compressed and something will give should water find itself in an engine's numerous cylinders. That's called hydrolock. Most vehicles are designed to be idiotproof and will shut themselves down should water begin finding ways into areas it does not belong in but so long as water does not reach the air intake you can drive through standing water. You next concern is the electrical system.

3 minutes ago, Moody said:

That's fantastic.  I sometimes can't believe how much this job molded me to work this many hours and anything less feels ackward.  I love working. Best feeling for me is turning in the trip sheet and going home after a successful run 

 

Lol I know that feeling, except I found out I don't handle big/split runs very well, like you feel so exhausted at the end of the damn day especially for an 11-12 hour day.

10 hour runs are my hard limit. I had a run on the 61 that paid like 9:40 for the summer so going back to 8 hours feels like taking some weight off the chest.

9 hours ago, Moody said:

What is working in staten island like ? I understand you first line train on all the depots and train on the MCI busses. 

 

But are the hours more than 40 when you're on the xtra list? I like big runs or alot of hours. Is that available too (without touching your RDOs) ?

 

I'm considering going to staten island because it cuts my commute time. But if their hours are short ill just stay where im at. I love my depot. 

Extra list is a VERY easy way to see 45+ hour weeks. I'm considering it for the system pick come January.

5 hours ago, checkmatechamp13 said:

Open Streets should be banned on corridors where there's bus routes. (But honestly, most of the people pushing for these things don't even know where the bus routes run...one was pushing for a two-way bike lane on Narrows Road North and I asked what about the buses along Narrows Road North that would get caught in traffic? She responded "There's bus routes on Narrows Road North?")

They get so caught up in their agenda of being anti-car, and everyone riding bicycles that they forget about anything else...They got the speed limit on Hylan Blvd lowered to 30 mph, but there's still no sidewalk on the area by Arbutus Woods Park or Blue Heron Park (and barely one by Wolfe's Pond Park).

In the very beginning during the pandemic that's what they mostly did, avoided streets that buses came through. Then when that little pilot program ended some folks pushed for their return and they expanded the scope on which streets could be closed off to vehicular traffic. That was last year during the summer. I worked the B68 and had my weekend runs interlined with the B69 and I hated that detour around Vanderbilt which was closed off between Grand Army Plaza and Atlantic Avenue, and everyone had to either use Flatbush or Washington Ave instead which was pretty bad. Even worse were the confused customers waiting for the B45 because most people don't know to look at their phones for information concerning schedule/route changes and those who probably wonder where the bus has gone seeing that the street they usually catch it on is closed.

I've largely avoided the routes since leaving the B63 that have these ridiculous detours simply for the fact that you end up running ahead of schedule due to missing all those stops and/or having nowhere to really pull the bus over to the side in some cases (like 4th Ave) and hoping some folks realize that the bus makes corresponding stops along the detour route...

3 hours ago, paulrivera said:

Fall pick started yesterday, and it's ToO eXpEnSiVe to write up a supplement schedule just for one route.

I don't even know why the fall pick started this week and not next week. Public schools don't open until the 13th and the beach is supposed to be open until the 12th.

Fall pick has always started just before Labor Day to line up with the school schedule, which is starting unusually late this year but we'll see how things work out considering the pandemic.

On 9/4/2021 at 11:27 PM, train1290 said:

Ok, so that means I won't have to pick up children from schools, Or something else? Im Kinda confused.

Don't worry about school runs until you're on your own. The instructions for those are usually included with the paddle reports, but I would recommend asking a senior operator to learn more about a particular school. 

6 hours ago, B35 via Church said:

I have been on overnight B63's that were straight packed (and this would be me boarding the thing at 39th, after having came off the B35).... Should be is a matter of opinion, but this idea that the B63 & the 4th av. line are, or tend to be used more interchangeably is simply not the case.... For starters, regardless of the time of day, walking that slope b/w 4th & 5th is a MF-er...

This was a common complaint I heard from people who wanted to ride the B63 on Saturdays when Open Streets are in effect. Most don't even bother with the bus because of that and I barely picked up any people along the detoured portion.

358-362 are back at Gleason from West Farms, 358 and 360 were sitting in the maintenance area when I left out last night.

8 hours ago, MTAbus677 said:

 You guys are going to love this video!

Definitely sounds like a transmission fault. Bus seems to be stuck in neutral. No first gear.

37 minutes ago, SevenEleven said:

The 77 only existed when I had to take it to school 😂😂

Lmao. I used to pick my brother up from that middle school on the Conduit years ago. Good times watching those buses come around 

On 8/26/2021 at 4:57 PM, trainfan22 said:

I did not know that. But in this case the bus was traveling along its route and made an routine stop then it just shut off. After that it was fine the rest of the time I was on the bus.

That happened to me last year with an Xcelsior I was driving. Even worse, it wouldn't start back up.

That was a nice 4 hours in the cold...

4 hours ago, train1290 said:

Where is the Union Hall?

195 Montague St, Brooklyn, NY 11201 right by the Borough Hall  station

On 8/26/2021 at 8:03 PM, train1290 said:

Yes my group of 4 got to drive the new flyer bus model, We didn't get a chance to drive the Nova bus, tomorrow we will do that. Personally, I don't like the brakes on the new flyer bus, its so hard and stiff, plus it has an interlock feature on it that after depressing it for 3 seconds, itll sink and then you can take your foot off the brake pedal. I'm not a fan of it, I like the Orion brakes, they're very smooth to depress. So after tomorrow, I guess we will be off for Saturday, how about Sunday, do you think we will be working or have to go to Zerega, or we'll be off that day too?

That's one thing I don't like about the newer Xcelsiors and a big reason why I dislike driving them with the retarder off. Very little brake feel or feedback.

You'll be going down to the union hall once the Day 10 folks qualify. The Novas are pretty nice buses to drive. They drive smoothly.

9 hours ago, train1290 said:

So just got back a little while ago, We were in Manhattan driving around central park and the upper east side. And we drove a few times through the traverse underneath central park. I messed up while turning right from central park west onto 86 street. I drifted and turned before I lined up my reference point. We also, did some highway driving. That I did good on so, going forward with tomorrow, I'm going to keep my bus straight and line up my reference point and not turn until I'm at the proper point. I know tomorrow we have to do good along with day 7 to qualify, I just have one question. Will the instructor give us pointers about what to do or its up to us to know what to do what we have been taught? 

Day 6 and 7 is do or die. No pointers. You're being tested on what you've learned! 

I bombed on day 6 because I wasn't watching a certain flashing walk signal that was all the way across the street when I was looking at the turn signal ahead of me turn yellow just as I approached the intersection and got trolley braked. I had to wait until day 9 to finally qualify.

Keep your eyes open and catch all the details!

2 hours ago, train1290 said:

So tomorrow is Day 5, I think we will be in Manhattan doing highway driving and driving locally around Manhattan. I know day 6 we have to do good and along with day 7 to qualify the earliest. So what do we have to do good on Day 6 and day 7 to qualify, anyone know of a list of items we should and shouldnt do on days 6 and 7? Thanks!

Pay attention to the notes your superintendent wrote on your progress sheets and do your best to correct those mistakes. By day 5 you should be pretty confident in your ability to move the bus- this will be your last day to correct any problems you are having.

Use the hook turn when you find yourself too close to the curb and you're about to turn right. You need at least 3 feet of clearance to keep from hitting the curb. Remember, pull the front bumper away from the curb about 6-7 feet, your tail should still be close to the curb. Start your turn once your front bumper reaches the intersection and follow through. Continue to watch your rear pivot and adjust as necessary.

4 hours ago, train1290 said:

With turns either left or right, on days 6 and 7, will they disqualify me if say im making a right turn and lets say im trying to clear a curb, car parked on the corner, and i have to get my nose dirty and move more towards the left, maybe even go over the double yellow lines a little bit to clear my pivot point ( rear right tire) and theres a car in the left lane facing towards me should i honk my horn besides calling it out to my instructor or I dont have to honk my horn?

As my instructor would say, "They're just lines on the ground." Use up all the space you need so long as it is safe to do so! 

16 hours ago, train1290 said:

Ok, Thank you Lornaevo. So they'll show us how to parallel park? parallel parking will be a little tricky especially with the  wheels behind us the driver seat?

You will be taught two methods to approaching the parallel park. If you have to take the road test you will be practicing this more at Eastchester because you will have to perform it for the DMV administrator. It's really not hard once you get the hang of it.

One method I have remembered and used was the 3/4 method. I don't have any pictures but I'm going to explain it as best as possible:

So there are roughly 7 cones spaced out in a large area, three to the front, one on the right side midway between the first row of three and the remaining three in the back. You're going to pull the bus up and line up the rear axle with the first row of cones (with about a foot or two of spacing between you and the cone). This is your pivot point. Once you get out and check the back of the vehicle for clearance, you will first turn the wheel all the way to the right, and SLOWLY back the bus while watching your LEFT mirror. You will STOP once you see the rear left corner appears to be between the outer left and middle cones of the back row of cones. This is where the 3/4 term comes from. You should not be able to see the center cone in the back row.

Now, straighten the wheel and slowly continue backing the bus until you see the OUTERMOST cone in the front row in your #2 front door window. This cone should be more or less lined up with the window so that you are looking directly at it. That is your next reference point. At this point you will STOP and turn the wheel all the way to the left. Continue backing into the space and watch the left back corner of the bus. You should STOP once the bus is straightened out and the rear left corner of the bus appears to be nearly touching the outermost cone of the back row. 

Hope that helps. Your instructors may use different objects as reference points since I don't think they'll have cones on hand.

13 hours ago, +Young+ said:

 

Is he the Superintendent/Instructor in this and this YouTube video? Just curious...

Nah, but I did have him for my initial 7 days. Real stand-up guy. Funny as hell too.

10 hours ago, train1290 said:

Hi guys, so I just came back from Zerega a little while ago. Mostly paperwork and instructions. So, I got Fresh Pond Depot, which lucky for me thats 10 mins away from my house and first they told me to see superintendant King. But then they said to report to superintendant Bosco. Anybody every have this superintendant?

Didn't have him as my instructor but he did show up at Eastchester to help us with our road test prep. He was also the superintendent who gave me my first check ride. Cool guy.

22 hours ago, KDGallagher said:

How many operators are usually assigned to a bus route? 

And how exactly are you picking a run? From highest seniority to lowest, do they just go around with a list of bus routes, report/clear times, and days off and just allow you to pick what u want? How many slots for each run are there? For example how many people in your depot have a 7 am report, S/S off for the B4 bus route? Once 1 person pick it is it done and then crossed off and the next closest is 7:05 report, crossed off then on to 7:15 report .... all the way until all thats left is 2 pm report, Wednesday and Thursday off?

All the runs are listed on the board and they go down the list in seniority order. Once a run a picked, it's gone and the next person gets their choice. Each route has a set number of runs and work runs are determined by the number of runs that do not have Saturday/Sunday off. You work the days off of that run and several others during the week when that operator has off. Runs aren't picked in any order, it's all personal choice. 

On 8/12/2021 at 11:49 AM, KDGallagher said:

How is the turnover for this position? 

Around how many years into the job are you able to pick from the more desired runs? By year 3? Year 7? Year 15? 

Any of you current B/Os, are there any other civil service jobs you'd leave TA for? For example Firefighter, Suffolk County police, etc 

 

 

Seniority varies by depot. I'm almost 2.5 years in and I'm able to see a few Thursday/Friday runs over here at Gleason, but still nothing really desirable. 5 years in I would say you have a good shot at picking something decent. 

I recently got contacted for an exam I took well before I went with Transit for motor vehicle operator but the pay is nowhere near as good as what I'm getting now unfortunately. Don't think I would change up that quickly.