SidneyTransitfan

There appeares to be a bit of a glitch with the T-Comm bus tracker. A few days ago I was looking for the 1999 D40LFs to record and waited at Park Royal for 997 (80997 on T-Comm) to appear, yet 1214 showed up in its place. Looking at the tracker now both 1214 and 997 are showing the same blocks and assignments - in some cases appearing to be on two blocks at once.

On the wiki at the top there is a little link called 'View History' - you can click that and view all previous versions of the page.

Because then it would all be irrelevant discussion about the 2018-ordered buses. That thread was for buses ordered in 2018 to be delivered through early 2019. So far the only 2019 order confirmed is the 32 double-decker units. Other orders may be announced later this year, but for now that's the only firm order for buses to be built and delivered in 2019-2020.

Do these buses still run commuter services into Winnipeg?

I must admit I had forgotten about the handful of high-floor shuttles, not just the Internationals but the few Polars still in service in the far north. Still, they are the exception. The only reason they're around is that there's nothing low-floor that's suitable for their jobs. They're all nowhere near Vancouver or Victoria, so most of the province doesn't see them. I stand by what I said though. BC Transit will not buy them. I suggested a return of two 1990 Orion Vs to Chilliwack two years ago when three of their Novabuses went up in flames. The response was 'Cool, but they don't jive with the rest of the fleet any more and we don't really need them'. Still, that's enough speculating the future. Let's get back to TransLink's fleet of Orion Vs, shall we?

So, something extraordinary happened tonight on my way back to Chilliwack. Bus 9221 left McCallum as normal and everything was fine, until we passed the Whatcom exit. On came a continuous beeping alarm, and going slower and slower until pulling over with a total loss of power. In the words of the driver a "great big plume of smoke" just before the alarm came on. Also noticed a pool of Hydraulic fluid under the bus when everyone disembarked. Bus 9203 came to take over from Abbotsford and we were on our way again in less than 30 minutes. So it seems occasionally a CFV bus does end up on the 66, in the event of a breakdown. It's likely 9203 will be in Chilliwack while repairs are made to 9221.

Also Red Arrow in Calgary could be interested in a handful to replace their non-accessible Classics for Spruce Meadows, or Southland for any additional commuter runs to Okotoks or Cochrane. They won't go to BC Transit, that much I CAN guarantee. They're too proud of their 100% LOW Floor fleet. 100% accessible was TransLink's goal. BC Transit went even further by having an all low-floor fleet by the end of 2011, province-wide. Nothing will change that.

Highly doubtful in the next 10 years, unless they are TransLink ones running to Mission on the 701. The busiest route in the CFV fleet is the 31 Mission-Abbotsford, and even it barely passes a full-seated load. The only other route is the 66 FVX between Langley and Abbotsford which can sometimes reach a crushload, but that can be fixed with additional frequency when the new garage is built - or TransLink taking over that portion with an extended 555 and double-deckers/artics. I don't see BC Transit buying artics anytime soon. Even the real estate boom of the lower mainland has left most of Abbotsford still looking little more than a shanty town. Only development on the scale of Richmond in the last 10 years could change that.

From the evidence presented here, shuttles are not renumbered - Conventional buses are. The most likely reason shuttles are not renumbered is they are usually in service for less than six years, and it's easier to transfer them between fleets without having to change the numbers all the time. Conventional bus transfers are much longer term, and therefore they are the ones that get renumbered.

I haven't seen any evidence that TransLink retires its' cutaways any earlier than BC Transit does. The exception to this of course was the order of International Champions, which were retired due to defects, and unsuitability for transit style service.

I'm going to jump the gun here and say not. On the Spirit of Mobility ARBOCs, the angled doors are a feature, not a defect. The ARBOC model with the door parallel to the body is the Spirit of Freedom.

There isn't much stopping any TransLink expansion eastwards. The SCBCTA mandate (as mentioned some years previously) gives TransLink jurisdiction all the way to Hope. The main reason they haven't already done so is Abbotsford is not willing to contribute taxes to the authority. A 555 extension to Aldergrove is possible, as it's completely in the existing service area. Abbotsford runs could be added during AM and PM peak periods. This would be ideal as most current BCT runs on the 66 are full-seated loads from Carvolth to Abbotsford.

The 2008 Orions have until 2025. I can see them being allocated on the 555 and 701. Maybe we'll see them on out-of-GVRD runs. I'm hoping the 555 will be extended to Aldergrove and Abbotsford once the EB HOV ramp opens from 202nd next year.

The most suitable solution I could see would be the proposed tunnel. Either under Stanley Park and emerging near Park Royal South, or under Burrard Inlet where the Seabus currently runs. What do I know though. I'm still dreaming about TransLink Orions running to Abbotsford and Squamish. Even with the current provincial administration and generous federal funding, I don't see that happening.

There is one with ZF - also in Victoria. It was a 2007-built demonstrator that went to Community Transit (WA), Strathcona County Transit (AB), and now it is number C31 in the Cruise Victoria fleet. (Transmission is ZF EcoMat 2).