Blitz

Would it make sense to just hand the whole bus operation (both NYCT and MTAB) over to the DOT? Given they own the roads the buses run on and control stop placement they have more than enough skin in the game to be operating the buses on their own terms. It would also lower the need for MTA funding since the city would have to come up with the cash for the buses and the MTA would just have to worry about the subway, commuter rails and bridges and tunnels. The DOT is the major force behind the SBS push so instead of having to go through and work with the MTA they can just do their thing.

If this really made any sense, MTAB would not exist. The private lines would have remained private and contacted by DOT.

Why did they ditch the BRT front cap? I thought that it was essential to keep the artic joint from "wiggling" around at higher speeds...

The Hybrids are faster at lower end speeds cause the acceleration is electric on the hybrids, the diesel engine takes over at higher speeds IIRC. 

 

I know at one point buses with the ISL/Allison combo (Like the 1700s in Nassau for example) was so fast the B/O's had to be gentle with the gas pedal... I wonder if the XD40s are like that?

The engine has nothing to do with moving a hybrid bus other than turning the traction generator to charge the batteries. They shouldn't even be called "hybrids" because that implies that their are 2 sources of propultion. They should be called diesel electric buses. The acceleration is 100% electric at all speeds. The speed going up hill depends on the charge of the batteries and/or the settings in the PCS.

Where did you get the leter from? There are a lot of people that have been asking me about that job. I was under the impression that they did not hire cleaners from the outside anymore

Is there a reason why the hybrid NGs tend to vibrate so much when idling?

One or all of the motor mounts are probably bad...

CP 2203 2204 2208 Detroits

Wow, welcom back KR

and older artics in wf.

All of those older 1999/2000 D60HF's around the bronx and manhattan will most likely be replaced by the 2003's from jfk once all of their XD60'S are delivered.

Kinda interested to see what the MTA/Goodyear all-season tire testing brings about. From the writeup, got the idea Goodyear was developing a specific tire for the MTA's test that has mileage/cost near to the ones currently used. Could be a lock-up for the transit (and similar) market for Goodyear if it works out, with cold-climate TAs going with them as a supplier.

It's not a test anymore. All buses, excluding the orion V's, have or are scheduled to have all season tires. I find that it was a waste of money because they still put chains on them.

The new CNG artics are most likely going to Jackie Gleason and West Farms leaving a whole lot of NYCT C40LFs lying around .I doubt we are going to see MTAB C40LFs move there.CP taking other routes is a possibility.

 

Another option I see, is moving the Q7 or Q8 to Spring Creek and sending more C40LFs to SC.

The CNG artic are primarily replacing the earliest Orion VII CNG buses...

Every day.

 

Everything is done (refuel, farebox probing, sweeping/mopping of floor, oils & fluids refilled) in one spot, then the bus gets washed and parked.

This about half right. Fueling, farebox probing, and fluid checks are done daily on most buses. All buses get SWEPT daily, moped if theres vomit, urine, or feces present. A full interior and exterior scrub is suppose to be done once a month. This consists of sweeping and moping the floors, cleaning the windows, cleaning the seats, and hand washing the exterior of the bus. Once again, this is what is suppose to happen for each bus. It doesn't always get done.

5541 to Mother Hale

Probably there for some repairs. Earlier in the year, there a bunch of buses from 100 street showing up at mch for repairs.

How often does MTA wash the buses? Always impressed how sharp they seem to look when forum members post their pics. Around here, even in summer, ours look like they must do it by hand with one guy and a hose -- meaning it's a rarity to see some shine to them.

As long as a bus comes in for fuel, it gets washed. Some buses in some depots (express buses) get fueled every other day, so they get washed every other day.

thank you, just , why there isn't an option for additional option for natural gas bus. even with converting the b35 and bx36 to artic u will still need some more 40ft ng buses.

They are only looking to replace the 259 orion VII cng buses right now. They have 248 total cng buses on order. Thats enought to replapce the orion vii's considering the fact that for most internal purpose's, an artic bus counts as 1 1/2 buses.

What lesson? They got most of those issues fixed when they were getting at their worst. There hasn't been an incident since the two big fires, and the NGs haven't had a big issue since 2009.

 

Plus, the new Series-E HybriDrive from BAE is far better than the tech we currently have. The Allison Parallel HybriDrive technology hasn't changed much in 5 years, and they too can crap out. The buses in Philadelphia and Seattle crap out with those HybriDrives and they go through a lot of stop-and-go scenarios.

 

Personally, it wouldn't matter what kind of hybrid drive you stick into a bus, it's a matter of how it will take on the environment it will be in. If they were to go the way of fuel savings, the Series-E is the way to go, especially since the hybrid drive shuts off the engine when the bus is at a stop.

Shutting the engine off at a stop wouldn't be a good idea for this city or this company. If anything they should remove the rev matching program. the engine only needs to idle in a hybrid bus. It revs now because drivers were getting caught speeding. They started to blame it on the them not being able to tell how fast they were going because they couldn't hear the engine ()...

Operator has it in a lower gear instead of the bus going through all 6 gears

They do that to keep the bus from jerking, or in the snow to keep the bus from loosing traction. You are only suppose to do that if you are maintaining low speeds. otherwise, its a good way to burn up the clutch packs in the transmission.

When is the recall even supposed to end? The WF RTS are because of the recall, and they have been there for a year.....

They probably just like having them there. No depot likes to give up extra buses

I wonder how many miles those buses put on just making that trip and if any of them have ever been in accidents along the way?

When i was at 126th, the LFSA's has about 550 miles on them when they started rolling in

Real random thought: is 8017 going to be repaired? Or scrapped? It's been gone for almost 4 years, you would think the decision would have been made already.

I'm going to address a lot of points in this thread. After reading all of your responses, I see quite a few of you actually do not know all of the inner working of MTA or the Unions, and you have quite a few of the facts wrong. First off, Brooklyn, Bronx, and Manhattan are the ONLY Transit depots that are TWU 100.

 

TWU 106 - MTA NYC Transportation Bus Supervisors for all of NYCT and MTABC

 

New York City Transit Authority (TA)

 

Brooklyn Division TWU 100

• East New York Depot - MTA RBO Surface Transit Headquarters, Command Center, CMF, Base Shops
• Fresh Pond Depot - Brooklyn Division Headquarters
• Grand Avenue Depot - Bus Engineering Headquarters, CMF

Queens Division ATU 1026

• Queens Village Depot - Queens Division Headquarters future Queens North Division Headquarters (post-merger)

Staten Island Division ATU 726

• Yukon Depot - Staten Island Division Headquarters

Manhattan and Bronx Surface Transit Operating Authority (OA)

 

Bronx Division TWU 100

• West Farms Depot - Bronx Division Headquarters

Manhattan Division TWU 100

• Michael J. Quill Depot - Manhattan Division Headquarters

MTA Bus Company (BC)

 

• Eastchester Depot - TWU 100, RBO Storage Facility
• Baisley Park Depot - TWU 100, BC Training Facility
• College Point - TWU 100, BC Division Headquarters
• Far Rockaway Depot - ATU 1179
• John F. Kennedy Depot - ATU 1179
• LaGuardia Depot - TWU 100, BC Training Facility, and future Queens South Division Headquarters (post-merger)
• Spring Creek Depot - ATU 1181, BC Training Facility

 

Eventually all signs will be changes, new bus shelters will be added as operations are paralleled.

 

 

They will remain as listed above.

 

 

Lol. I hope I don't sound like I'm attacking you here, but you comparing pharmacies to transit agencies is like comparing bananas to monkeys. This would be compared to a merger like Delta and Northwest Airlines. It's nowhere near as easy as it looks. So lets go over the history and operational side of this. Not a viewer/rider point of things.

 

• In 2006 the corporate merger was complete. Meaning all mas the same except for the fact that buses now carried MTA logos. It took 2 years to create a blended management structure.
• Regional Bus Operations was formed in 2008 for the Operational and managerial merger of NYCT and MTABC.

Since 2008, MTA has integrated and streamlined most all operations of both divisions. However, all of you are saying what should be done, and how it should be done. Bus Company is a legal entity separate of the New York City Transit. So for all of you saying why does it take 10 years to merge anything when you don't know how things actually work.

 

For all operational and management purposes, contrary to popular belief, TA and BC have been merged for more than 7 years now. We also have to factor in how much it costs to replace an entire fleet of buses across all these different private lines. The MTA has done this since the first day they took over and now 99.9% of all the PBL equipment has been replaced. Every last Depot has received some type of upgrade, with many more to come over the next 1-3 years.

 

Now lets talk about laws, regulations, and leasing agreements. By law the divisions have to be separate because they are individual legal entities that have agreements with the NYCDOT. When MTA took over the private lines, each of those individual companies were still subject to the terms of any contracts already in place.

 

For example, I bet 99.9% of you didn't know that if MTA had just decided to do a full on merger they could have been sued by any number of contractors or service providers? For example, The contract for the radio systems, which are on different frequency bands than that of the NYCT didn't even expire till this year. So that means, the MTA is NOW able to merge that part of the operations as they will now seek a new contract covering all buses.

 

Its funny you say who would really give a f@#$ about something as stupid as that when you actually have no clue as to how things actually work. As I type this from my best friends living room on the west side of Detroit and prepare for a tour of DDOT tour before I leave, I want to remind you that you have to look at things from another perspective. The major thing I always hear when I go to any Transit property is that the average rider thinks its just so easy to run a bus operation, when in fact it is not by any means. As a person who has personally worked with the Department of Buses, NYCDOT, conducted surveys, and had direct contact with the highest levels of management, I have been able to access the documents everyone does not see, and not as simple as many think.

 

With that being said, Branding means everything. The buses aren't titled MTA NYC Bus or MTA Bus for enthusiasts. This is ONLY a repeat of history as it took forever to merge OA and TA. Buses were titled MaBSTOA for legal reasons. Not to appeal to customers.

 

 

Different unions can work together at anytime. However most times than none, they choose not to.

 

 

Not accurate. See the top of this post.

 

 

I have to remind you all once again that an extra $.25 is a luxury. Are you aware that 99% of the transit agencies across the country do not offer a premium simple because one rives a bus that is 15 feet longer than an Express coach?

 

MTA is not by any means obligated to pay ANYONE extra just because they drive articulated buses, however they do this in good faith and people still complain. Operators at most all agencies don't even have this as an option.

Small correction...TWU 106 Covers OA, MTAB, and Queens Surface supervisors. Subway Surface Supervisor Association (SSSA) covers Brooklyn and Staten Island supervisors

I remember JG having RTSs in early 2012, IDK how they fueled them though.

The pumps and the tanks are still there, they just don't take deliveries anymore to fill them

It can technically fuel those buses however it is not for a large amount of them. It is just enough for the MTA's special equipment.

No, they cannot fuel diesel buses on the fuel station because they no longer accept diesel fuel deliveries. The diesel fuel that they use for the special equipment is provided by a 55 gallon drum. Not sure where the metrocard buses, HAI buses, or the snow fighter go to get fueled...

Speaking of out of commission, shouldn't your depot thingy be changed since CXXVI is now closed?

Yes, it should be changed. The employee badge should be changed as well because I am not, nor hqve i ever been a bus operator. I pm'd daunte and a couple other people about it. They are probably too busy to change it.

KB has repainted other depots buses in the past. Maybe that is the case here.

KB's paint booth is out of commission. They only paint individual panels in there now.

That came from a foreman

Which foreman?

Well I hope to start seeing fewer of those Orions. In other words, the roster of them at Kingsbridge hasn't decreased at all and they don't have any space to begin with. They really should claim some more space over there and expand that depot.

The parking annex should have been built with another floor. MHV was constructed with the structural beams going straight up through the roof. This was so another building could possibly be erected on top of it. I wonder if the KB annex was built inn the same way.