MTA New York City Bus & MTA Bus Company Pending Bus Contracts

[Via Garibaldi 8]

MTA Bus' fleet age is younger than NYCTs. Actually at MTA BUS the majority in each depot is a bus less than 12yrs... And hand me downs are still very active across NYCT depots so not really hand me downs. The beeline buses if I remember the meeting correctly were but just as a filler as at the time Joseph smith announced they didn't want to purchase any new buses until 2013... So here we are.

Stop making me hungry...   You may be tasty but I'm still going to disagree with ya... 

[S78 via Hylan]

The point is, they still got newer buses.

[Fresh Pond]

Yes they have... Most of the new buses they got were almost like emergency in terms of necessity... The MCI's they got were because the old buses were constantly breaking down and patrons using the buses made a stink on another level and then they finally caved in and bought new buses.

 

Yeah because they've been in dire need of them. Hell some depots have even been short of buses due to breakdowns.

 

No question there are but Bus has A LOT of old crappy buses... Too many in fact and I don't think they get a fair proportion of new buses.

The only old crappy buses they have (not counting the bees and the V CNGs) is the RTS, and even those are being rebuilt. Besides, its not like every bus they have is old as dirt

[Via Garibaldi 8]

The only old crappy buses they have (not counting the bees and the V CNGs) is the RTS, and even those are being rebuilt. Besides, its not like every bus they have is old as dirt

lol... The condition of some of those buses would lead one to think otherwise... Maybe the needs to get on Bus to take better care of their buses, esp. some of the depots out in Queens. Yonkers is always taking in Bus MCI buses from Queens and fixing them since they just destroy their buses. 

[Cait Sith]

Yes they have... Most of the new buses they got were almost like emergency in terms of necessity... The MCI's they got were because the old buses were constantly breaking down and patrons using the buses made a stink on another level and then they finally caved in and bought new buses.

Not only that, they weren't ADA Compliant (which is the real reason we got the MCIs)

[youngblaze]

Hopefully this goes to New Flyer IMO they have built the superior bus.  Maintenance at KB wants the Nova's out.  I guess we are just all New Flyer biased lol.

[Via Garibaldi 8]

Hopefully this goes to New Flyer IMO they have built the superior bus.  Maintenance at KB wants the Nova's out.  I guess we are just all New Flyer biased lol.

LMAO.... Seems like you guys don't have that many though... I see one pop up on the Bx9 from time to time. Bx1 seems to use the Xcelsiors....

 

 

Not only that, they weren't ADA Compliant (which is the real reason we got the MCIs)

REALLY?? Wow, that's insane.  I imagine the disabled folks in Riverdale must've been crazy... One of the local politicans here actually was the backer of the whole push to get the city to change the type of yellow taxis that would be ordered as they weren't wheelchair friendly.  We get a lot of disabled folks on the BxM2 especially so yeah that would be a big deal.  The only time ever that I've seen TWO wheelchairs on an express bus was on a Riverdale bound BxM2. 

[NewFlyer 230]

Well I can see from this order we all know where those artics are going JFK/BP. I wonder where those diesel buses are going. Only depot I can think of is LGA because they have the most old buses nearly 100 in total. ECH is probably going to hold on to their Orion's unless they get some newer buses. Those Orion's are either going to be retired or moved to CS, KB, GH, or Staten Island.

[youngblaze]

 

LMAO.... Seems like you guys don't have that many though... I see one pop up on the Bx9 from time to time. Bx1 seems to use the Xcelsiors....

 

 

REALLY?? Wow, that's insane.  I imagine the disabled folks in Riverdale must've been crazy... One of the local politicans here actually was the backer of the whole push to get the city to change the type of yellow taxis that would be ordered as they weren't wheelchair friendly.  We get a lot of disabled folks on the BxM2 especially so yeah that would be a big deal.  The only time ever that I've seen TWO wheelchairs on an express bus was on a Riverdale bound BxM2. 

 

 

Really? I seem to get one everyday on the 9 lol.

[LTA1992]

What you guys call crappy, I call history. History I'm glad to ride on an almost daily basis. Because one day, they'll be gone.

[Blitz]

Hopefully this goes to New Flyer IMO they have built the superior bus. Maintenance at KB wants the Nova's out. I guess we are just all New Flyer biased lol.

really? If anything, I would have thought the complete opposite. In maintenance, when we see buses that require constant repair, we the dollar signs (overtime) that they will bring. If anything, transportation wants the Nova's gone.

[Via Garibaldi 8]

Really? I seem to get one everyday on the 9 lol.

lol... I tend to see the Novas moreso at night on the 9... Xcelsiors moreso in the day time...

[Metro CSW]

Hopefully this goes to New Flyer IMO they have built the superior bus.  Maintenance at KB wants the Nova's out.  I guess we are just all New Flyer biased lol.

Would you guys like to have our Xcelsiors at UP? lol

 

Can not believe I asked that question..... lol

[NYCtrainfan01]

Would you guys like to have our Xcelsiors at UP? lol

 

Can not believe I asked that question..... lol

 

Yep! KB would gladly take them lol... I hear the B/Os out of KB like the XD60...

[Around the Horn]

Would you guys like to have our Xcelsiors at UP? lol

 

Can not believe I asked that question..... lol

Xcelsior Boii would KILL you...

[RailBus63]

Yes they have... Most of the new buses they got were almost like emergency in terms of necessity... The MCI's they got were because the old buses were constantly breaking down and patrons using the buses made a stink on another level and then they finally caved in and bought new buses.

 

Nobody made a stink - the Federal funds for new buses were in place already when MTA Bus bought the private lines. 

[petabread]

Not only that but the were a ton of them sitting around waiting for the private lines to be taken over.

[Via Garibaldi 8]

Nobody made a stink - the Federal funds for new buses were in place already when MTA Bus bought the private lines. 

Actually they did indeed make a stink and I can recall several examples of this, esp. on express bus lines in the Bronx.  They complained that service was unreliable and buses were breaking down too often. Bus did receive some new buses but not immediately so not all of the old buses were replaced right away.

[MHV9218]

Actually they did indeed make a stink and I can recall several examples of this, esp. on express bus lines in the Bronx. They complained that service was unreliable and buses were breaking down too often. Bus did receive some new buses but not immediately so not all of the old buses were replaced right away.

I think the correlation that you are missing is that making a 'stink' was a fatuous exercise and it was in fact the federal money that brought those buses, coincidentally after those complaints.

[Via Garibaldi 8]

I think the correlation that you are missing is that making a 'stink' was a fatuous exercise and it was in fact the federal money that brought those buses, coincidentally after those complaints.

I'm not missing anything at all because the buses were NOT replaced simultaneously when Bus took over. In fact it wasn't until 2008 IIRC (4 years after Bus took over) that the older buses were fully replaced and I distinctly recalled seeing signs on BM express buses that were still using Orions notifying passengers that they were replacing them with bigger buses and apologizing for the inconvenience.

[Culver]

I'm not missing anything at all because the buses were NOT replaced simultaneously when Bus took over. In fact it wasn't until 2008 IIRC (4 years after Bus took over) that the older buses were fully replaced and I distinctly recalled seeing signs on BM express buses that were still using Orions notifying passengers that they were replacing them with bigger buses and apologizing for the inconvenience.

Reason for that is that they couldn't magically replace all buses at once. The way it works is new buses have to get manufactured, then delivered. MCI couldn't manufacture all of them by waving a wand, sadly. The "stink" thing is great if you want to assure yourself that was the reason. Reality is, money was allocated, buses were ordered, buses were delivered. It takes time to manufacture 546 coach buses.

 

EDIT: Wait, you expected them somehow to replace all the buses at once like the day they took over?

[Via Garibaldi 8]

Reason for that is that they couldn't magically replace all buses at once. The way it works is new buses have to get manufactured, then delivered. MCI couldn't manufacture all of them by waving a wand, sadly. The "stink" thing is great if you want to assure yourself that was the reason. Reality is, money was allocated, buses were ordered, buses were delivered. It takes time to manufacture 546 coach buses.

 

EDIT: Wait, you expected them somehow to replace all the buses at once like the day they took over?

And what do you think causes monies to be allocated for new buses? I can tell you right now that the Prevosts that Ulmer Park has is due to X27 and X28 riders complaining.  Would they have been replaced? Of course eventually but not as quickly as they were because the local politicians (particularly Senator Golden) listened to his constituents, looked for ways to find the funding for the buses and then urged the to use those monies and allocate them for new buses so let's not sit here and act like buses are just bought solely because monies is allocated without it coming from any sort of political pressure.  Sometimes it happens and sometimes it doesn't and in this case it was a combination of both.

[Culver]

And what do you think causes monies to be allocated for new buses? I can tell you right now that the Prevosts that Ulmer Park has is due to X27 and X28 riders complaining.  Would they have been replaced? Of course eventually but not as quickly as they were because the local politicians (particularly Senator Golden) listened to his constituents, looked for ways to find the funding for the buses and then urged the to use those monies and allocate them for new buses so let's not sit here and act like buses are just bought solely because monies is allocated without it coming from any sort of political pressure.  Sometimes it happens and sometimes it doesn't and in this case it was a combination of both.

All this time I thought they ordered new buses because old ones had to be replaced over time. My apologies.

[Via Garibaldi 8]

All this time I thought they ordered new buses because old ones had to be replaced over time. My apologies.

Well of course they have to be replaced but when you use political pressure you can get things perhaps sooner rather than later.

[RailBus63]

And what do you think causes monies to be allocated for new buses? I can tell you right now that the Prevosts that Ulmer Park has is due to X27 and X28 riders complaining.  Would they have been replaced? Of course eventually but not as quickly as they were because the local politicians (particularly Senator Golden) listened to his constituents, looked for ways to find the funding for the buses and then urged the to use those monies and allocate them for new buses so let's not sit here and act like buses are just bought solely because monies is allocated without it coming from any sort of political pressure.  Sometimes it happens and sometimes it doesn't and in this case it was a combination of both.

 

Money is made available by the Federal government every year for capital purchases.  In the case of the MCI's and Orion VII's for MTA Bus, the money was allocated even before the takeover but the city was working behind the scenes on the MTA takeover and held off on buying new equipment.  Once MTA Bus was established, the buses began to be ordered but there is obviously a delay between ordering and actual delivery.  The MCI's were on their way no matter how often or loudly riders agitated.