pix:ALBANY yesterday (264335) | |
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(264335) | |
pix:ALBANY yesterday |
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Posted by r17-6599 on Thu Jul 26 12:35:03 2012 Some pix in the Saratoga/ Albany area. Got a peek at the preserved GM old look in Saratoga too. Looks like more Gilligs are in service as 4073 and 4074 were seen along with a few other high numbered buses. Does CDTA get a handful of Gilligs each year?jrc |
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Re: pix:ALBANY yesterday |
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Posted by Mr. D - Type on Thu Jul 26 14:22:27 2012, in response to pix:ALBANY yesterday, posted by r17-6599 on Thu Jul 26 12:35:03 2012. Beautiful photos, especially the Orion 6's. I have noticed several of the LFS Novas with tape across the first 2 roof seams going from front to back. Could be the same trouble that the NYCTA had with the 1972 / 73 Fishbowls [6000-6349] where they put metal strips across the roofs. |
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(264350) | |
Re: pix:ALBANY yesterday |
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Posted by r17-6599 on Thu Jul 26 15:09:15 2012, in response to pix:ALBANY yesterday, posted by r17-6599 on Thu Jul 26 12:35:03 2012. Thanx! Why do some buses have red and gold (?) stripes and some seem washed out?jrc |
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Re: pix:ALBANY yesterday |
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Posted by BusRider on Thu Jul 26 18:56:36 2012, in response to Re: pix:ALBANY yesterday, posted by Mr. D - Type on Thu Jul 26 14:22:27 2012. Nice pictures. Did you see 4074 and CDTA gets 20 Gilligs a year until the contract is up which I believe is in 2015. |
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Re: pix:ALBANY yesterday |
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Posted by Huz66511 on Thu Jul 26 19:09:56 2012, in response to pix:ALBANY yesterday, posted by r17-6599 on Thu Jul 26 12:35:03 2012. Superb! |
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(264360) | |
Re: pix:ALBANY yesterday |
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Posted by r17-6599 on Thu Jul 26 21:03:43 2012, in response to Re: pix:ALBANY yesterday, posted by BusRider on Thu Jul 26 18:56:36 2012. Saw 4074 after we pulled away from the shooting area. Also saw a Gillig sitting in the NX/Yankee Trails lay over point.Are the 20 a year a mix of hybrid and diesel? jrc |
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Re: pix:ALBANY yesterday |
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Posted by r17-6599 on Thu Jul 26 21:04:12 2012, in response to Re: pix:ALBANY yesterday, posted by Huz66511 on Thu Jul 26 19:09:56 2012. Sank ya!jrc |
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(264849) | |
Re: pix:ALBANY yesterday |
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Posted by CapitalCruiser on Sat Aug 4 21:09:06 2012, in response to pix:ALBANY yesterday, posted by r17-6599 on Thu Jul 26 12:35:03 2012. Contrary to whats been said in this post, 4074, the 2012 EPA Engine Gillig LF40 has NOT been delivered as of 8/4/12. Appearantly you saw the wrong bus. It's not due to arrive until the end of this comming week, then followed by the rest of the order at a rate of 1 to 2 a week for the following 3 months! They will driven across from California. There is 2 years left on this contract with Gillig, with strong likeliness that this will be the final orders from Gillig as they are not happy with the quality of the workmanship of these buses. The Hybrid (hyshits)model are failing at an alarming record as well as the clean diesels. There is a reason why NYCTA doesn't want them, more than likely from the visits to Gillig's factory scared off NYCTA. No wonder also there's NO Gillig's ordered by or delivered new to any Canadian Operators. |
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Re: pix:ALBANY yesterday |
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Posted by BrianB on Sat Aug 4 23:25:46 2012, in response to Re: pix:ALBANY yesterday, posted by CapitalCruiser on Sat Aug 4 21:09:06 2012. I find it both sad and amusing when those not in the know make comments about equipment.Gilligs are well-built buses that last a long time so long as they are looked after. When they are neglected, their mechanical bits tend to fail, but that is not a reflection on Gillig, that is a reflection on the mechanical part's supplier or the owner's maintenance practices. I'm confident that CDTA likes their Gilligs more than their Novas or Orion 6's. As they only bought the one group of NABI's, I would venture to guess they weren't happy with them either. The Gilligs will last at least 12 years, if not 15, partly due to their aluminum frames, strong and highly resistant to corrosion. |
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Re: pix:ALBANY yesterday |
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Posted by Scrabbleship on Sun Aug 5 12:50:12 2012, in response to Re: pix:ALBANY yesterday, posted by BrianB on Sat Aug 4 23:25:46 2012. I thought the single NABI order was less because of build quality and more because CDTA wanted 35" low-floor buses and they were the low-bid. Remember, 1999 was right at the peak of "Buy New York" and neither Orion or Nova offered a under-40" low-floor bus at that time. |
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Re: pix:ALBANY yesterday |
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Posted by CapitalCruiser on Sun Aug 5 16:13:05 2012, in response to Re: pix:ALBANY yesterday, posted by BrianB on Sat Aug 4 23:25:46 2012. No offense, but obviously you don't know much! Ask any mechanic, driver or support personel at CDTA and they will tell you how much they dislike the Gilligs They actually like the NABI's more than the Gilligs! And by the way, the Nova's, NABI's and Orions VI all have stainless steel frames. And yet another point, the Gilligs, even when brand new, have been problem plagued before their arrival in Albany. Unless you know someone at CDTA and have talked to them personally, you are "ASSUMING" and you know what happens when one "ASSUMES"!!! |
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Re: pix:ALBANY yesterday |
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Posted by daimlerbuses on Sun Aug 5 16:27:15 2012, in response to Re: pix:ALBANY yesterday, posted by CapitalCruiser on Sun Aug 5 16:13:05 2012. The Orion VI does not have a stainless steel frame. |
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Re: pix:ALBANY yesterday |
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Posted by daimlerbuses on Sun Aug 5 16:28:54 2012, in response to Re: pix:ALBANY yesterday, posted by CapitalCruiser on Sat Aug 4 21:09:06 2012. There are no Gilligs in Canada because Gillig does not have a Canadian operation set up (whether it be manufacturing or sales/service) therefore cannot meet the Canadian content requirements (usually 25% or greater) that tenders up here stipulate. |
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Re: pix:ALBANY yesterday |
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Posted by Edwards! on Sun Aug 5 17:53:00 2012, in response to Re: pix:ALBANY yesterday, posted by CapitalCruiser on Sun Aug 5 16:13:05 2012. I heard the very same thing... |
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Re: pix:ALBANY yesterday |
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Posted by D40LF on Sun Aug 5 19:10:29 2012, in response to Re: pix:ALBANY yesterday, posted by BrianB on Sat Aug 4 23:25:46 2012. I'm a driver and I must say Gilligs are indeed garbage. We have all kinds of maintenance issues with them; not to mention the horrible turning radius they have and the terrible suspension. Drivers, mechanics and the head of maintenance all agree that Gilligs aren't good quality buses; but the director ignores us all. Because Gillig always comes in with the lowest bid, he sticks to them. |
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Re: pix:ALBANY yesterday |
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Posted by CapitalCruiser on Mon Aug 6 08:30:32 2012, in response to Re: pix:ALBANY yesterday, posted by daimlerbuses on Sun Aug 5 16:28:54 2012. Neither does Van Hool but there are Van Hools in Canada, transit as well as coach's! |
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Re: pix:ALBANY yesterday |
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Posted by RailBus63 on Mon Aug 6 08:53:41 2012, in response to Re: pix:ALBANY yesterday, posted by D40LF on Sun Aug 5 19:10:29 2012. Because Gillig always comes in with the lowest bid, he sticks to them.Are your bus purchases partially or fully paid for with Federal funds? If so, then a bid process must be followed and the low bidder wins the award unless they fail to meet the specifications. |
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Re: pix:ALBANY yesterday |
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Posted by CapitalCruiser on Mon Aug 6 09:40:45 2012, in response to Re: pix:ALBANY yesterday, posted by RailBus63 on Mon Aug 6 08:53:41 2012. As far as CDTA goes, they have 5 year purchase agreements with Gillig. They lock in the price for the 5 years and they are allowed to order as many as they want during this period. In 2 more years, the contract with Gillig is up and CDTA will put out a new RFP for new transit buses. They do not have a contract for Over The Road buses as those purchases are infrequent so each order (which goes to contractors for CDTA) is done as needed. There is a process to award the bid based on a scoring of points. Each manufacturer will compete and the winner, although not the lowest bid, can be awarded the bid based on the overall number of points they received. Points are based on reputation of the manufacturer, financial obligations and assets of the manufacturer, credit rating, manufactureing facilities compliances, overall testing of the vehicle, price of the vehicle, parts availablity, delivery time and process and warranties. |
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Re: pix:ALBANY yesterday |
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Posted by Scrabbleship on Mon Aug 6 10:20:00 2012, in response to Re: pix:ALBANY yesterday, posted by CapitalCruiser on Mon Aug 6 09:40:45 2012. If their relationship with Gillig was so strained, what pushed them to enter a second five-year deal?I would assume that they'll use the current Gillig deal to replace the rest of the Orion VI's and most of the LFS's and NABI's. Do you save some stuff to run to 16-17 to justify a one-off order in 2015-17 before doing Gillig replacements at the end of the decade? |
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Re: pix:ALBANY yesterday |
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Posted by CapitalCruiser on Mon Aug 6 11:11:47 2012, in response to Re: pix:ALBANY yesterday, posted by Scrabbleship on Mon Aug 6 10:20:00 2012. If their relationship with Gillig was so strained, what pushed them to enter a second five-year deal? Money! CDTA hasn't been known to make smart buying decissons.As far as the rest of the purchasing: They usually buy 20 a year so with this year, and the 2 remaining years left on the agreement, we're looking at a total of 2012-20 (1 delivered 19 remaining) 2013-20 2014-20 That makes it highly unlikely they will replace all of the Nova's and NABI's. There is 52 (was 53-1 was destroyed by fire) 1999 Nova's 23 1999 Nabi's and then there's the 2000 and 2001 Nova's (I think a total of 23???) The remaining Orions will all be gone when this order of Gilligs is done being delivered. Look to the NABI's to go next then followed by the Nova's. |
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Re: pix:ALBANY yesterday |
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Posted by BusRider on Mon Aug 6 16:13:07 2012, in response to Re: pix:ALBANY yesterday, posted by CapitalCruiser on Mon Aug 6 11:11:47 2012. CDTA is having 20 Gilligs to replace all 23 NABI's in Troy. That's why Troy is sending Albany some Gillig spares in return for some Nova's to maintain service until these buses have arrived. They are going to be 16 Flattops and 4 Hybrids. There are only 8 Orions left and at this rate will be gone by the end of August or mid October where CDTA won't really see any difference with out them. |
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Re: pix:ALBANY yesterday |
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Posted by D40LF on Mon Aug 6 19:58:41 2012, in response to Re: pix:ALBANY yesterday, posted by RailBus63 on Mon Aug 6 08:53:41 2012. the federal gov't partially funds our bus purchases...the rest is matched by the city/county. |
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Re: pix:ALBANY yesterday |
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Posted by BrianB on Tue Aug 7 06:28:36 2012, in response to Re: pix:ALBANY yesterday, posted by CapitalCruiser on Sun Aug 5 16:13:05 2012. At the moment, I live in a region where the entire coach fleet, save 9 Optima Opus 30ft coaches (and 8 MCI's being sold to other properties), is comprised of Gillig Phantoms and Low Floors. I can assure you that they are very happy with Gillig.The transit agency has tested NFI and Orion equipment in the past, and chosen to stick with Gillig, to the point where they actively seek other systems to piggyback on to get them delivered faster. I can state with confidence that our worst Gillig rides better than NYMTA's best Orion V. I speak from experience on both counts. My experience with the Orion 7, both in NYC, and more recently in Seattle, has been that it rides a bit rough, like the airbags are overinflated. On a related note, systems in Washington State can be picky on what they purchase because the funding structure allows for "nice spec" coaches. So the systems tend to have coaches with better parts that don't wear out so quickly, not to mention, are maintained properly. So far, in the last 15 years, King County Metro has been the only agency to buy anything from Orion. Skagit Transit is the only agency to buy any NABI coaches (presumed to have originally been for Opus coaches, they've since gone back to Gillig), even though their regional part distribution warehouse is in Fife. Giving credit where it is due, Seattle bought their Orions because they scored the highest on their evaluation scoring system. Gillig scored 2nd, and NFI scored 3rd. New Flyer has an interesting history in Washington State. The only system that consistently purchases their rigid equipment (40ft or less) is Community Transit. CT has always bought from New Flyer, with the only exceptions being Orion for 3 30ft coaches, Neoplan and Ikarus back in the early '90s, and GMC/TMC for their commuter service, upon recommendation by ATE, the contractor at the time (the Gilligs they used were provided by ATE). Pierce Transit bought their CNG coaches from NFI because the Orion 6 (the purple monster) did not seat enough passengers. Now that Gillig offers a CNG coach, I expect them to buy Gillig when they need to buy more equipment. I'm not really trying to beat you down too harshly, I'm just defending what is a perfectly good bus. Brian Bradford Kennewick, WA |
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Re: pix:ALBANY yesterday |
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Posted by CapitalCruiser on Tue Aug 7 20:58:05 2012, in response to Re: pix:ALBANY yesterday, posted by D40LF on Mon Aug 6 19:58:41 2012. 80% Federal10% State 5% Cities/Counties 5% CDTA Pays |
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Re: pix:ALBANY yesterday |
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Posted by CapitalCruiser on Tue Aug 7 21:00:45 2012, in response to Re: pix:ALBANY yesterday, posted by BusRider on Mon Aug 6 16:13:07 2012. Where do you get these ideas? NABI's aren't going no where for awhile! The higher mileage Nova's will go before them! |
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Re: pix:ALBANY yesterday |
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Posted by BusRider on Tue Aug 7 21:43:27 2012, in response to Re: pix:ALBANY yesterday, posted by CapitalCruiser on Tue Aug 7 21:00:45 2012. Its in the report on the CDTA website, they wanna keep the NOVA's longer then usual and just have the entire fleet be Nova's and Gilligs. |
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Re: pix:ALBANY yesterday |
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Posted by CapitalCruiser on Wed Aug 8 20:56:46 2012, in response to Re: pix:ALBANY yesterday, posted by BusRider on Tue Aug 7 21:43:27 2012. Watch and see, the NABI's will be around for a couple more years! |
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Re: pix:ALBANY yesterday |
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Posted by bond007 on Wed Aug 8 22:42:04 2012, in response to Re: pix:ALBANY yesterday, posted by BrianB on Tue Aug 7 06:28:36 2012. And how about the rumored order for 29/30ft. Gillig LF's for Community Transit (as NFI D30LF replacements)? Does anyone know what happens to that order? Thanks! |
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