San Diego MTS

[XN40]

http://www.sdmts.com/mts/SanDiegoMTSSecures18MillionfromFederalGovernmenttoPurchaseBusesforEastCounty.asp

MTS won an $18 million grant for 45 new Gillig CNG buses for East County (El Cajon) Division. A new bus yard is in the works that can handle up to 120 buses as well as 120 support vehicles. Apparently, CNG has been installed, but not yet operation as MTS is probably waiting for the new yard to be complete. Not sure if this is a part of the 350 bus order, or if this is a separate order, but the other 9 diesels will be retired in the up and coming years. I guess this is the end of the Diesel era for MTS, as the 1901 class D60LF's will be retired next year as well as East county diesels will be gone too. Though there will still be 26 Diesel Blue Bird commuter buses for Rapid Express services, so not all is lost. I guess those will be the only Diesels in the fleet.

http://www.sdmts.com/marketing/miramartransitstation.asp

Map of the new Miramar College Transit station. Top level of the parking garage will be reserved for Transit riders who have a special pass that allows them to park there. Direct Access ramp will open on October 6 with Transit service on October 12.

[A. Wong]

http://www.metro-magazine.com/news/story/2014/10/san-diego-mts-investing-54m-to-rebuild-bus-facilities.aspx

[XN40]

Yes I have posted this a few times before but have not seen the new models of East county yard. Both look nice.

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk

[PUB Transit]

http://busride.com/2014/10/transit-authority-10/

[XN40]

Good article

[XN40]

Kearny Mesa gillig buses should start at 827 but I don't know how many are being ordered for fy15.

[sdlinguist]

Kearny Mesa gillig buses should start at 827 but I don't know how many are being ordered for fy15.

Any word on when they start getting here?

[XN40]

Getting conflicting info that now that gilligs are at 901 and at IAD, either staying there or awaiting transfer to KMD. The contract states that all buses are to be delivered at Imperial Ave either to stay there or go to another yard.

[Ninja Bus Fan]

I just got a quick question regarding on your 2000 and 2001 NFI C40LF's. How much longer do these guys have left before being retired and scrapped ?

[XN40]

Imperial Ave (Downtown SD) 2000 C40LF (1601-1631) have been retired, but not much else is known about them. They were transferred to Kearny Mesa Division at the end of last year, so they are retired. Not much on the Chula Vista buses, but that operation will be transferred over to South Bay division. Transdev (Veolia) 2201 and 2501 class C40LF have replacements, but not sure if they have been retired. 2001 C40LF at IAD and KMD (1801-1873) don't have much longer and have until November or maybe December and they will be replaced with Gillig CNG. (Imperial Ave already has theirs). I also assume that Transdev 2001 C40LF at South Bay will be replaced as well.

D60LF (1901-1913) will soldier on until FY16, and will be replaced with local/Express XN60 buses that will not have the Rapid branding.

[Ninja Bus Fan]

So in short, majority of the buses have been retired and replaced ? So the remaining 00 and 01 C40LF's got till the end of this year, darn. Wished some would survive till at least next spring, since I'm planning on visiting SoCal next spring or summer.

That's great

Thanks for answering my question regarding on those buses

[XN40]

I have heard that some 1801 series are retired, but not all of them. Next year the only old buses will likely be the d60lf buses, but mts could change the date incase of service changes or increased ridership.

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk

For 2000 buses yes but don't know about veolia and Chula Vista.

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk

Also, check out the rapid routes such as 215 and 235 as those are nice buses and have a good sound.

[Ninja Bus Fan]

But unless their is a service change, the 1801 series will be retired off completely by the end of this year ? I hope some of the older C40LF's could slip through the cracks and still be in service for at least half a year, along side with the 2001 NFI D60LF's.

Oh and what's veolia ? and is Chula Vista a city or the name of a transit garage ?

And are those routes done by your brand new XN60's ? Because I recall lurking here before and seeing someone mentioning that the XN60's were being delivered in a Rapid Scheme or something like that.

[XN40]

D60LF are scheduled to be retired in fiscal year 2016 which starts July 1 of next year, so you should be fine.

Chula Vista is the name of a city and Chula Vista transit is an mts owned service that operates select routes within the city of Chula vista in their own garage. Also in that city is south bay division which is the main garage for contracted routes which Chula vista transit will move within the next couple of years to save money.

Veolia now transdev is a nationwide contractor which operates certain bus routes within the mts bus system to cut costs.

Yes the rapid buses are being operates by those new xn60 buses and October 13 is the debut of route 237 which is the rancho bernardo to UC san diego service which is good and 215 which goes from downtown to san diego state university via park and El Cajon blvd. Route 215 has its own fleet of buses while 235 and 237 share the 1101 batch with nice kiel seats though the 215 has less comfortable transit seats.

There is a system in Northern part of san diego that operates c40lf with c gas engines called nctd that operates in cities such as oceanside and escondido and oceanside station connects with sprinter train to escondido as well as amtrak surfliner and coaster commuter rail as well as metrolink rail.

Hope this helps.

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk

[Ninja Bus Fan]

That's great as I'll just barely make it before their retirement and are the D60LF's in good shape or are they really worn out ?

I see, so its a city that's transit service is under contract with MTS and wait. You said selected routes, so does Chula Vista have their own transit system ?

Oh I see, I wish they did something like that up here :/

Oh, so the 237 debuted today then and what kind of buses are on the 215 then ? I just saw a video of a 1120 on the 235 and those seats look very comfortable IMO.

I heard about NCTD ( in the OCTA thread ), since you can take OCTA route 1 all the way down to Oceanside and transfer to the 395. Is there a way getting up to the Northern part of SD by bus or do you have to take the train ?

And it helped for sure, thanks.

[XN40]

D60LF's are a little warn off on the interior, but they are mechanically strong, due to MTS' good maintenance crews. They do a good job keeping those old D60LF's and C40LF's working. I know that the D60LF's have a clunk when the transmission goes to another gear. Also, the Series 50EGR does spew black smoke, but that is because they are old engines, and/or not equipped with particulate filters. Not sure if MTS retrofitted them with one. D60LF buses are used on routes such as 7, 20, 50, and 150.

Chula Vista Transit is actually a wholly owned subsidiary of MTS, and selected routes, meaning several routes that use CVT equipment, though South Bay Garage operates CVT routes on the weekends.

Veolia is a huge nationwide and international company that operates transit systems throughout the world but due to a merger with Transdev, they are calling themselves Transdev.

There are train alternatives to get to San Diego from LA, including NCTD 395, and northern part of San Diego is accessible by Bus, and Sprinter rail, Amtrak, and commuter rail. Sprinter is a Diesel Multiple unit system that is called Light rail, but it is not really light rail. It goes from Oceanside to Escondido at 30 minutes on weekdays and on weekends from mid day to evening, and then to hourly service on weekend mornings to evening, though Saturdays have expanded hourly night service. Flyertalk has a good resource on the 395, but there have been reports of people checking for ID when at the Camp Pendleton stops, to make sure you are planning any sort of attack, which is probably not going to happen, but being the US Marines, and the Government, they have to make sure everyone is safe. Greyhound is a great alternative, and you can go from LA to Oceanside and even San Diego and it starts at Union Station which connects with the Flyaway Airport bus. I am not an expert on LA or OC as I have not used their bus systems, nor have I lived there. Metrolink and Amtrak use the LOSSAN corridor, which has really beautiful ocean views, but Greyhound is not bad either.

Route 215 buses are like the ones used for the 235 and 237, just with different seats which are not fully padded and comfortable. They are more what you would find on a normal transit bus, and it does go to places such as the zoo. The exterior uses the same Rapid Branding and some XN60 rapid buses are branded One Sweet Ride which is a part of the Rapid route marketing campaign. Rapid is actually a joint venture between SANDAG and MTS, which MTS is the operator and SANDAG is the one that oversees Roads and transportation in San Diego.

Also, get a Compass card as you can save 2 USD on MTS day passes on MTS operated equipment (excl. NCTD and MTS Minibus service). Compass cards can be purchased at Ticket Vending machines, either NCTD or Trolley, Transit store, or even Albertsons, which is a grocery store chain in the US.

Hope this helps for now.

[Ninja Bus Fan]

Thanks and it sure did.

I'll ask for more questions ( if it's alright with you ) regarding about MTS, later on when It gets near the day I'm traveling to San Diego. Also If you're ever planning on coming up to Vancouver, I would gladly help you out.

[2044]

Just to keep things tidy, please make sure your questions can't be answered with an internet search before asking them here.

[sdlinguist]

South Bay 2000 C40LF 2202 still hanging on this morning. Haven't seen any of these out in months, and their 1600-series main-fleet counterparts are long retired.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Rapid XN60 on the SuperLoop on Tuesday. Very rare to see an XN60 on a non-Rapid route, and for the 201 to run with an artic rather than the specially-branded GE35LFRs.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[XN40]

Yea it is rare and that maybe kearny mesa is operating the route. I know the Superloop buses are causing problems and some drivers find that their deadhead (either garage to UTC in the morning or UTC to garage at night) takes too long. Also, they cannot go over 60 mph or else that can cause the bus to overheat and cause a fire. This is a major safety issue that one bus (510) caught fire because of that. 513 is at thermo king in miramar getting repaired as I assume the hvac is broken.

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk

[MAX BRT]

Love your photo of the XN60!

As for gas-electric hybrids, there is a recent discussion here:

http://www.cptdb.ca/index.php?showtopic=16534&do=findComment&comment=668869

Sounds like you two would have something to contribute. Folks who don't live in SoCal have questions.

[XN40]

Some photos of cutaway bus 3005 which is an aero elite f550 bus that is used for route 270 and coaster connection. Uses twinvision mobilite destination signs. It even has seat belts. Ride quality is pretty good for a cutaway and good performance. Also get to see an xn60 rapid bus in the background as well.

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk

[XN40]

 

 

 

 

 

 

Commericials and a community outreach video for SANDAG and MTS' new Rapid services. Last week, Routes 215 and 237 debuted allowing for convenient rapid options to SDSU and UCSD. It shows the strengths of the new routes, and it is being aired on local TV, to increase awareness of the new service. I have ridden Route 237 from Scranton to Rancho Bernardo and it is One Sweet Ride, that has low ridership, due to it being a new route, and maybe it does not have as many stops. I think the 921 is taking some of that Ridership and the 270 that goes from Rancho Bernardo to the Sorrento Valley job centers had better ridership, than route 237, and that bus only operates unidirectionally 3 times a day with a cutaway. I hope people catch on to it, and maybe the 235 sharing the same corridor as route 237 along with Route 20 is causing that.

18's are getting harder to find, but I am still seeing one. Yesterday, I rode 1806 on Route 20, to an nearby restaurant, and I am starting to miss them, but my route, mainly gets artics on the weekdays, and certain runs are with the 40' buses, but mainly weekends for 40' buses, though a couple of runs are with the NABI 60' BRT stationed at Imperial Ave.

 

Not my video but 1MTSRider on Youtube got some clips of 1840 doing Route 110 Express from Mira Mesa to Downtown, and what an amazing sound from 4:30 on with insanely loud MAN axles, that resonated from the floor and even to the wall at parts. It is sad to see these buses go by November or December, if rumors are to be true.

[XN40]

I rode 3501 on route 945 which is odd as those are the rural buses and route 945 is far from it. I believe those buses got transferred to copley park which operates access and fixed route mini bus. I did not get a picture, but I have been seeing them on those routes. First transit is the operator at copley park.

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk

[XN40]

Stored value is coming, and there were plans to start a trial last month, but so far nothing is coming out, or it's being kept secret for now. CompassCard website (compasscard.511sd.com) mentions stored value and has had an empty pulldown menu for quite some time, but so far there are still some issues. I guess next year is the target, and it is limited to compass card's and the ability to use NFC/Contact less debit/bank/Credit cards as those are not very common in the USA. No plans for smartphones, but maybe at a later date.

How it will work, is that on a bus, you either ask the bus driver or the bus driver will ask you for a one way or a day pass, then you put in the amount you needed for the pass you've selected, and then you should be good to go. This requires the driver to push the right button on the Cubic fare controller to make sure you are getting the right fare. Only two fare options for bus which is One way or Regional day pass. I believe there might be a Rapid Express day pass for routes 280 and 290 which use the Rapid Express formerly Premium Express fare structure of $5.00 one way and $12.00 for Region Plus Day Pass.

Those going to stations with Validators, such as NCTD Sprinter, and/or Trolley Stations must use the TVM unless the passenger prefers to use a one way ticket or something other than a day pass.

This might be helpful for Tourists such as Ninja Bus Fan, or anybody planning to visit, as well as occasional riders such as my parents who like to drive their car to the Rancho Bernardo BRT station to go out and explorer the city.

I believe this is dependent on MTS as well as NCTD to deploy this and it could be that either MTS or NCTD could deploy this first. This system will allow you to load this online at http://compasscard.511sd.com and put a set amount, so it can deduct automatically like a prepaid debit/bank card.

http://sdmts.com/MTS/documents/2014-10-30BOARD.pdf

Starts on Page 79, but page 109 and 110 mention the Stored value language. It is a complex fare system, but pretty simple, as MTS and NCTD do not use transfers though the latter does offer OCTA transfers from 1 and 191 to the 395 and vice versa.