Nostalgia Buses for the Holidays M42 only?

[nuyorican]

Nostalgia Buses for the Holidays just for the M42? How about the other Boroughs? Would be nice to see them in Brooklyn, Queens, Da Bronx and Staten Island. Not sure which lines, but would be great to see.

[MysteriousBtrain]

During the holidays, you can only see nostalgia buses if you are on the M42. No other route.

[Cait Sith]

I think it was in 2011 when they tried running buses in all 5 boroughs. Some had mechanical failures while operators didn't want to drive others.

[DetSMART45]

Nostalgia Buses for the Holidays just for the M42? How about the other Boroughs? Would be nice to see them in Brooklyn, Queens, Da Bronx and Staten Island. Not sure which lines, but would be great to see.

Totally agree.

 

"Why not?" is the question to be answered.

 

Or do only Manhattan tourists only deserve that glimpse into bus history?  The MTA spends lots of money on maintaining the historic bus fleet on the commuters' dime, why don't they offer it outside of that area?  Maybe it would be interesting to see some "expect everything for nothin" butts on some hard seats.  History lesson right there.

 

Just plain pitiful, IMO.

[DetSMART45]

I think it was in 2011 when they tried running buses in all 5 boroughs. Some had mechanical failures while operators didn't want to drive others.

Huh ... mechanical failures, plus b/o that didn't want to step outside their comfort zone.

 

Tells a lot.

 

Even the wonderous MTA can't get their own employees to break with tradition ---- just for a single day or two.

 

Golly, you'd think they'd be put onto a Flintstone-mobile and expected to put foot to pavement to propel it.  OMG!

 

Deffo gotta get some Facepalm emojis on this forum.  That one is worth a double one in itself.  I'll leave the request for a Jewish "Oy Vey" one on the sidelines because never know who might be offeneded by something like that -- breathe easy, those of you in the PC Police ranks.

 

/sarcasm all over this if you didn't notice

[trainfan22]

The point of the vintage buses is so tourists can see them, not busfans..

 

 

Also the M42 is a short easy route, not too demanding on the buses themselves, and it also makes the buses easy to find.

[BreeddekalbL]

isn't MJQ also a block off the M42 Route

[Around the Horn]

isn't MJQ also a block off the M42 Route

Yes that too.

[DetSMART45]

The point of the vintage buses is so tourists can see them, not busfans..

 

 

Also the M42 is a short easy route, not too demanding on the buses themselves, and it also makes the buses easy to find.

Put some asses in the old hard seats, let people UNDERSTAND history.

 

That shouldn't be tourists only.  Most tourists probably already remember those days.  20-somethings on a NYC excursion are NOT out riding buses.

 

If it's too demanding on the buses, then why spend all of that money too keep them in operational order?  Henry Ford (Museum) here in Detroit has the Rosa Parks bus as part of its history display.  They keep it there for educational purposes, not for running on the streets.  Their maintenance costs are pretty negligable.  MTA keeps their historical fleet maintained for on-the-road use as well as display in Brooklyn (or stored away).  Yet somehow they can't keep them operational-enough to actually see street service?

 

Some mighty nice payroll/labor costs could be recouped if that's the case.

[trainfan22]

Put some asses in the old hard seats, let people UNDERSTAND history.

 

That shouldn't be tourists only.  Most tourists probably already remember those days.  20-somethings on a NYC excursion are NOT out riding buses.

 

If it's too demanding on the buses, then why spend all of that money too keep them in operational order?  Henry Ford (Museum) here in Detroit has the Rosa Parks bus as part of its history display.  They keep it there for educational purposes, not for running on the streets.  Their maintenance costs are pretty negligable.  MTA keeps their historical fleet maintained for on-the-road use as well as display in Brooklyn (or stored away).  Yet somehow they can't keep them operational-enough to actually see street service?

 

Some mighty nice payroll/labor costs could be recouped if that's the case.

Its better than nothing lol.

 

Also there's no place for the Vintage buses to be on display year round.. so the Holiday runs are another chance for them to be seen.

 

I don't think those old Fishbowls could handle the M60 in there current state, those Orion hybrids took a beating on that route when it used them and those buses was in the prime of there service life's. I'm even hearing of hearing ENY buses catching fire even outside this forum from non busfans, and there fleet is fairly new...

 

 

Its probably not possible to make them road worthy to the point where they would be as reliable as the current day buses without flat out remanning them and dump there old Detroit Diesel engines for the ISL, etc. Nobody would want that as it wouldn't be the same as riding them back in the day.

[nuyorican]

The point of the vintage buses is so tourists can see them, not busfans..

 

 

Also the M42 is a short easy route, not too demanding on the buses themselves, and it also makes the buses easy to find.

Lots of routes are short and easy in other parts of the city, Q26, Q48, B2 etc. Would be nice to maybe see them running on the Q46, Q43, Q17 so true New Yorkers can enjoy them not just tourists.  

[Eric B]

Its probably not possible to make them road worthy to the point where they would be as reliable as the current day buses without flat out remanning them and dump there old Detroit Diesel engines for the ISL, etc. Nobody would want that as it wouldn't be the same as riding them back in the day.

Not to mention, the gears are apparently rusted away, and so every time one of those old or new looks has to back up, they have to shut down, open up the engine compartment, and then shift it from there.

[QM1to6Ave]

Lots of routes are short and easy in other parts of the city, Q26, Q48, B2 etc. Would be nice to maybe see them running on the Q46, Q43, Q17 so true New Yorkers can enjoy them not just tourists.

Back in that one year they put the buses in other boroughs, the Q46 was one of the chosen routes. I never caught it myself, but saw it at the Kew gardens terminal. People really liked it, but it was such a bad winter they barely brought it out

[Cait Sith]

Lots of routes are short and easy in other parts of the city, Q26, Q48, B2 etc. Would be nice to maybe see them running on the Q46, Q43, Q17 so true New Yorkers can enjoy them not just tourists.  

 

Absolutely not.

 

They've ran on the Q46 when they ran the vintage buses in all five boroughs....and they broke down numerous times in one day. Putting them on those lines, you're just putting a lot more stress into those buses.

[Via Garibaldi 8]

Absolutely not.

 

They've ran on the Q46 when they ran the vintage buses in all five boroughs....and they broke down numerous times in one day. Putting them on those lines, you're just putting a lot more stress into those buses.

He has a point though.  If you're going to argue that some of the lines he mentioned aren't good candidates, then how in the world could the M42 be a good one?  I would argue that routes like the B2 and B31 would be good candidates.  They go through decent areas, and the routes are short.  I would definitely not put it on any SI line though. lol

[Cait Sith]

He has a point though.  If you're going to argue that some of the lines he mentioned aren't good candidates, then how in the world could the M42 be a good one?  I would argue that routes like the B2 and B31 would be good candidates.  They go through decent areas, and the routes are short.  I would definitely not put it on any SI line though. lol

For the longevity of those buses, I would argue that any of the 40ft Crosstown routes would be better than most others, particularly because the deadhead to the depot is particularly short especially if something happens to go wrong with those buses.

 

The M42 has a lot of stop-and-go movement, so it wouldn't be bad for the buses themselves. They want to put them on routes where mass amounts of people are around and routes where there is a lot of stop-and-go, such as the M42, M34, so on and so forth. Several years ago, they had them out on the M42, M34, M8 and M14. Kinda wished they did that again.

 

Putting them on the B2 or B31....ehh.....might be good for the buses themselves, but the transit museum is trying to show off these buses, and those two routes won't do much at all to accomplish that. It's very much a ploy to attract tourists and city folk alike to ride the buses. It's worked. Those two lines hardly has tourists in them to begin with...and I don't think the TA would risk sending one of those down to Kings Plaza.

 

Another problem is the risk of those buses being vandalized. How they managed to run one of these on the S61 and survived is beyond me.

 

There's also the problem of whether drivers can drive them or not. Kingsbridge had two of these vintage buses and drivers refused to operate them, one reason being that there was no power steering in them.

[Via Garibaldi 8]

For the longevity of those buses, I would argue that any of the 40ft Crosstown routes would be better than most others, particularly because the deadhead to the depot is particularly short especially if something happens to go wrong with those buses.

 

The M42 has a lot of stop-and-go movement, so it wouldn't be bad for the buses themselves. They want to put them on routes where mass amounts of people are around and routes where there is a lot of stop-and-go, such as the M42, M34, so on and so forth. Several years ago, they had them out on the M42, M34, M8 and M14. Kinda wished they did that again.

 

Putting them on the B2 or B31....ehh.....might be good for the buses themselves, but the transit museum is trying to show off these buses, and those two routes won't do much at all to accomplish that. It's very much a ploy to attract tourists and city folk alike to ride the buses. It's worked. Those two lines hardly has tourists in them to begin with...and I don't think the TA would risk sending one of those down to Kings Plaza.

 

Another problem is the risk of those buses being vandalized. How they managed to run one of these on the S61 and survived is beyond me.

 

There's also the problem of whether drivers can drive them or not. Kingsbridge had two of these vintage buses and drivers refused to operate them, one reason being that there was no power steering in them.

lol!  They put one of those buses on the S61?? Now that's funny... The other thing is interesting is you talking about the wanting folks to ride buses.  I'd be curious to know how they've been successful?  If anything, it seems as if tourists are trying to ride the subway or take taxis.  Same deal for city folks.

[Daniel The Cool]

For the longevity of those buses, I would argue that any of the 40ft Crosstown routes would be better than most others, particularly because the deadhead to the depot is particularly short especially if something happens to go wrong with those buses.

 

The M42 has a lot of stop-and-go movement, so it wouldn't be bad for the buses themselves. They want to put them on routes where mass amounts of people are around and routes where there is a lot of stop-and-go, such as the M42, M34, so on and so forth. Several years ago, they had them out on the M42, M34, M8 and M14. Kinda wished they did that again.

 

Putting them on the B2 or B31....ehh.....might be good for the buses themselves, but the transit museum is trying to show off these buses, and those two routes won't do much at all to accomplish that. It's very much a ploy to attract tourists and city folk alike to ride the buses. It's worked. Those two lines hardly has tourists in them to begin with...and I don't think the TA would risk sending one of those down to Kings Plaza.

 

Another problem is the risk of those buses being vandalized. How they managed to run one of these on the S61 and survived is beyond me.

 

There's also the problem of whether drivers can drive them or not. Kingsbridge had two of these vintage buses and drivers refused to operate them, one reason being that there was no power steering in them.

Didn't they also ran on the M23 and M50?

[Cait Sith]

lol!  They put one of those buses on the S61?? Now that's funny... The other thing is interesting is you talking about the wanting folks to ride buses.  I'd be curious to know how they've been successful?  If anything, it seems as if tourists are trying to ride the subway or take taxis.  Same deal for city folks.

 

Assuming that you're referring to the vintage buses, those buses have been pretty packed over the years and often times, some folks take round trips just to ride it and talk with the operators who are knowledgeable about the buses. This year has been no different.

[Via Garibaldi 8]

Assuming that you're referring to the vintage buses, those buses have been pretty packed over the years and often times, some folks take round trips just to ride it and talk with the operators who are knowledgeable about the buses. This year has been no different.

Yes I am, but I don't see how that has any bearing on people using buses in general... I mean some people can be fans of vintage buses, but that doesn't mean that they're switching to buses for every day commuting.  That's what I got from what you stated.

[Cait Sith]

Yes I am, but I don't see how that has any bearing on people using buses in general... I mean some people can be fans of vintage buses, but that doesn't mean that they're switching to buses for every day commuting.  That's what I got from what you stated.

 

That's because I'm not talking about GENERAL usage! I'm talking about THOSE particular vintage buses. Not everyday usage! I never said anything about the TA wanting passengers to ride buses in general. I said that the TA and the transit museum wants passengers and tourists alike to ride the vintage buses, and that's working.

 

As said down below ↓↓

 

 

Putting them on the B2 or B31....ehh.....might be good for the buses themselves, but the transit museum is trying to show off these buses, and those two routes won't do much at all to accomplish that. It's very much a ploy to attract tourists and city folk alike to ride the buses. It's worked. Those two lines hardly has tourists in them to begin with...and I don't think the TA would risk sending one of those down to Kings Plaza.

 

 

You're just reading too far into the context. I simply said that they're trying to attract tourists and city folk alike to ride the vintage buses, which has been working. You're thinking of general everyday commuter usage, which is not what I was talking about.

[Via Garibaldi 8]

 

That's because I'm not talking about GENERAL usage! I'm talking about THOSE particular vintage buses. Not everyday usage! I never said anything about the TA wanting passengers to ride buses in general. I said that the TA and the transit museum wants passengers and tourists alike to ride the vintage buses, and that's working.

 

As said down below ↓↓

 

 

 

You're just reading too far into the context. I simply said that they're trying to attract tourists and city folk alike to ride the vintage buses, which has been working. You're thinking of general everyday commuter usage, which is not what I was talking about.

 

In that case then yes, I would agree 100%.

[Hound]

The point of the vintage buses is so tourists can see them, not busfans..

 

 

Also the M42 is a short easy route, not too demanding on the buses themselves, and it also makes the buses easy to find.

If the vintage buses are for tourists,why aren't they run on weekends when there are more tourists in town?

[BZGuy]

If the vintage buses are for tourists,why aren't they run on weekends when there are more tourists in town?

Because its usually senior drivers who drive them on the 42 and they usually almost all have weekends off. Plus garage support is better during the week as well.

[paulrivera]

There's at least two of them running today on the M42