Good old maintenance

[QM1to6Ave]

I was on the QM1A a few days ago (it was an MCI in the 3040's series, I forgot exactly which one) and the horn kept going off by itself, the B/O kept getting random warning messages for no reason, and the lights kept turning off.

 

He was telling me that CP depot is running a skeleton crew of mechanics, because many were sent to Brooklyn. Anyone know what's going on over there?

[East New York]

I was on the QM1A a few days ago (it was an MCI in the 3040's series, I forgot exactly which one) and the horn kept going off by itself, the B/O kept getting random warning messages for no reason, and the lights kept turning off.

 

He was telling me that CP depot is running a skeleton crew of mechanics, because many were sent to Brooklyn. Anyone know what's going on over there?

 

They could be training in Brooklyn at ENY. I'll try to find out.

[Jojobus]

Management at MTA Bus drastically reduced the workforce at College Point resulting in a dramatic decline in maintenance. They spent millions of dollars to open a MTA Bus shop at East New York Depot which has failed and is being closed 4/15/2010. When MTA BUS was the Private Lines, no it wasn't perfect, but it certainly was run more efficient than it is now.

[petabread]

HAHAHA, run more efficiently than now?? Are you smoking? I know drivers who lost lives at QSC because the brakes failed on their buses. Not to mention the countless times buses exploded while in service, or the time the back door fell off, or all the other events that occured... What needs to happen is to allow NYCT maintenance do overhaul on MTA Bus buses and to consolidate the two work forces!!

[rr4567]

the brakes failed on their buses. Not to mention the countless times buses exploded while in service,

Just like the MTA's "Deferred Maintenance" phase

or the time the back door fell off,

They were thinking of going green back then!?

I know reducing weight gets better gas mileage, but this takes it to a whole new level

[Jojobus]

No need to get defensive Petabread, just telling it like it is. And I have never heard of a driver being killed because of faulty brakes or buses "exploding" and I'm on the job 32 yrs. And for the record, before the MTA took over, everything was done in house, engine,transmission,component rebuild and complete body structure overhauls. Now everything is sent out to vendors ( probably for kickbacks) and not done to the standards that we upheld. The management is incompetent.

[St Louis Car 09]

 

HAHAHA, run more efficiently than now?? Are you smoking? I know drivers who lost lives at QSC because the brakes failed on their buses. Not to mention the countless times buses exploded while in service, or the time the back door fell off, or all the other events that occured... What needs to happen is to allow NYCT maintenance do overhaul on MTA Bus buses and to consolidate the two work forces!!

LOL how the backdoor fell off? I remember the had GOH program for buses And they re-powered all GMC and RTS buses,but it failed as a program.Maybe they should try this program again.

[petabread]

Except that when things were done in house things fell apart!!! Incompetent workforce!!

[St Louis Car 09]

 

Except that when things were done in house things fell apart!!! Incompetent workforce!!

Are you serious?:eek:

[QM1to6Ave]

Management at MTA Bus drastically reduced the workforce at College Point resulting in a dramatic decline in maintenance. They spent millions of dollars to open a MTA Bus shop at East New York Depot which has failed and is being closed 4/15/2010. When MTA BUS was the Private Lines, no it wasn't perfect, but it certainly was run more efficient than it is now.

 

Thanks for the info...just this week, another MCI's brakes wouldn't release when we tried to leave the Main Street stop, and I saw another one getting towed off of Union Turnpike yesterday.

 

If ENY is closing, will some mechanics be sent back to CP?

[Kanarsie Guy]

Outside of queens the PBL did very well it command keep there buses tip top.

[Jojobus]

As far as I know, the mechanics sent to ENY from MTA Bus will be going back to their respective depots. An emergency pick is going to have to be in place before the 15th to accommodate these guys. They (management) are going to have to bring back at least 1 pick that was eliminated,HSO. They implemented HSO at ENY to handle all of MTA BUS ( don't know how they expected that) especially ENY not taken CNG buses into the facility with fuel in them.The union deemed it a safety hazard and demanded they be defueled and towed there. That must have been a real kick in the ass for management.

[East New York]

Management at MTA Bus drastically reduced the workforce at College Point resulting in a dramatic decline in maintenance. They spent millions of dollars to open a MTA Bus shop at East New York Depot which has failed and is being closed 4/15/2010. When MTA BUS was the Private Lines, no it wasn't perfect, but it certainly was run more efficient than it is now.

 

It's hard trying to merge operations with different cultures and standards, and not all MTA Bus(PBL) ops were ran good. College Point(QSC) and Spring Creek(Command) were the best run in my opinion. Things change over time, just look at La Guardia. It went from being the worst ever to being MTA's North Queens Division Headquarters. And College Point is formerly MTA Bus HQ.

 

HAHAHA, run more efficiently than now?? Are you smoking? I know drivers who lost lives at QSC because the brakes failed on their buses. Not to mention the countless times buses exploded while in service, or the time the back door fell off, or all the other events that occured... What needs to happen is to allow NYCT maintenance do overhaul on MTA Bus buses and to consolidate the two work forces!!

 

They have already consolidated much of Regional Bus Ops, but due to union, labor, contract, and a slew of other issues, there is still work to be done. But for the most part the only difference now is in the fine print.

 

As far as I know, the mechanics sent to ENY from MTA Bus will be going back to their respective depots. An emergency pick is going to have to be in place before the 15th to accommodate these guys. They (management) are going to have to bring back at least 1 pick that was eliminated,HSO. They implemented HSO at ENY to handle all of MTA BUS ( don't know how they expected that) especially ENY not taken CNG buses into the facility with fuel in them.The union deemed it a safety hazard and demanded they be defueled and towed there. That must have been a real kick in the ass for management.

 

Some MTA Bus operated buses will still be maintained at East New York, which is headquarters for all of MTA Surface Transit. ENY has one of the absolute best shops in all of MTA, but there are other issues that need to be addressed. It appears to me that the logistics of the whole thing were much more complicated than the MTA had planned.

[NX Express]

Expect maintenance to get worse.

[Locomotion69]

Is it true that they don't let the road truck guys on top of the MTA Buses? I heard on my scanner once that a MTA bus had an open roof hatch and didn't have enough clearance to get through an overpass. The road truck guy said management didn't want them on top of the buses(safety hazard).

[Jojobus]

Send a road-op guy up there, they do alot of the repairs on the road anyway.