Puget Sound Rider Posted June 27, 2014 Report Share Posted June 27, 2014 It'll take a while for me to finish uploading. One thing: Why is there a flat cover over the back of the 1400s? This was done in the late 90s when the Type II cars were originally delivered, the type 1s were modified at the time to be able to electrically couple to a Type II. I'm not sure however if a Type I and a Type III can electrically couple, I don't recall seeing any combinations like that. I'm pretty sure a Type II and Type III can however. and a Type IV stays to itself due to the single cabs. Type I and II tm 125 2 by zargoman, on Flickr Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benjamin Posted June 27, 2014 Report Share Posted June 27, 2014 (edited) 3215 spotted on Line 12-Barbur/Sandy Blvd. today. Also: 3216 on Line 53-Arctic/Allen 3218 on Line 62-Murray Blvd. ~Ben Edited June 28, 2014 by Benjamin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Puget Sound Rider Posted June 27, 2014 Report Share Posted June 27, 2014 Before returning home, I went downtown during the afternoon commute and got to see only two of the 1700s. Very fortunate that I was able to catch one, #1752 TriMet 1992 Flxible C 1716 by zargoman, on Flickr This was done in the late 90s when the Type II cars were originally delivered, the type 1s were modified at the time to be able to electrically couple to a Type II. I'm not sure however if a Type I and a Type III can electrically couple, I don't recall seeing any combinations like that. I'm pretty sure a Type II and Type III can however. and a Type IV stays to itself due to the single cabs. If you look real close, you'll see a Type I (121) coupled to 319. I also had another pic that was blurry of another Type I and III together tm 319 by zargoman, on Flickr Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Puget Sound Rider Posted June 27, 2014 Report Share Posted June 27, 2014 I got all the "old" stuff uploaded. Interesting how they redid the seating fabric in some 1992 Flxibles, but not in the 1990 Phantom (I rode on 1427). There is definitely some sort of cover placed over the rear. I thought at first that I was looking at a Phantom with no louvers on the rear, but upon closer observation, there is a panel attached to the rear. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Puget Sound Rider Posted June 27, 2014 Report Share Posted June 27, 2014 I'm wondering if maybe the flat surface was put there to allow for full rear ads. A flat surface makes is MUCH easier to do so Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MST-Scheduler Posted June 27, 2014 Report Share Posted June 27, 2014 I have yet to see the BYD E-Bus. According to this link: http://www.oregonlive.com/commuting/index.ssf/2014/06/trimet_pulls_plug_on_electric.html the BYD bus is not currently running. :angry: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benjamin Posted June 28, 2014 Report Share Posted June 28, 2014 According to this link: http://www.oregonlive.com/commuting/index.ssf/2014/06/trimet_pulls_plug_on_electric.html the BYD bus is not currently running. :angry: I'll bet TriMet would be wise to cancel its contract with this manufacturer. ~Ben Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PUB Transit Posted June 28, 2014 Report Share Posted June 28, 2014 I'll bet TriMet would be wise to cancel its contract with this manufacturer. ~Ben As far as I know, it was just a demo bus, and no contract was signed. Still, I don't think TriMet should rule out a BYD bus because of this. TriMet got the demo bus at a random point in its lifetime, and the battery happened to fail, just like diesel engines, transmissions, and other traditional components fail. Before I go judging BYD's buses one way or another, I'd like to look at the Altoona report and compare it to a traditional 40-foot bus. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Puget Sound Rider Posted June 29, 2014 Report Share Posted June 29, 2014 3205 TriMet 2014 Gillig Low Floor 3205 I like the interior of the 3100s. Neat to have an actual pattern on the floor. I also like the blue marble bulkheads. I think the plain blue seats are boring though TriMet 2013 Gillig Low Floor interior (3170) TriMet 2013 Gillig Low Floor interior (3170) I like the 2005 seat colors, but the type of fabric they used is really aging badly (you can't really see the dirt and fading from this angle) TriMet 2005 New Flyer D40LF interior (2804) I like the black bulkheads with the colorful seats on the 2000 D40LFs too. TriMet 2000 New Flyer D40LF interior (2537) TM sure has a lot of interior color schemes. Each one has things that I like, along with some that I don't like. The original colors on the Flxibles/Gilligs and Type 1 LRVs seem unique for that time period. From what I've seen, a majority of operators were going with blue or brown in the late 80s/early 90s. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Puget Sound Rider Posted June 29, 2014 Report Share Posted June 29, 2014 As far as I know, it was just a demo bus, and no contract was signed. Still, I don't think TriMet should rule out a BYD bus because of this. TriMet got the demo bus at a random point in its lifetime, and the battery happened to fail, just like diesel engines, transmissions, and other traditional components fail. Before I go judging BYD's buses one way or another, I'd like to look at the Altoona report and compare it to a traditional 40-foot bus. New York tried one for 2 months and seemed to like the coach they had. http://www.byd.com/news/news-201.html (Thats the word from BYD). Being that it is such a new product, it's going to take time to tell how well it holds in the real-world environment. The concept sounds good, but only time will tell. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benjamin Posted July 17, 2014 Report Share Posted July 17, 2014 (edited) I had been following the TriMet interactive map for three days straight now and it appears all the remaining 1992 Flxibles (the 1700s) have been canned--none of the Merlo-based commuter and express runs had them, either. Is this true? ~Ben Edited July 17, 2014 by Benjamin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benjamin Posted July 27, 2014 Report Share Posted July 27, 2014 (edited) BUMP For Jared Kam and others... how do you feel right now, now that all the 1700 series Flxible Metros seem to have vanquished? That of course would mean Merlo is ready for new occupants in 3231-3260 (the last 30 of the FY2014 budget order to be delivered, along with the first few 3300s and the 30-foot 3400s). Center Garage, too, is to acquire more 3200s as well as some 3300s and 3400s. ~Ben Edited July 27, 2014 by Benjamin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jared Kam Posted July 29, 2014 Report Share Posted July 29, 2014 Ben, I think at first I was happy to see them go, but now it is a little sad to actually see those buses go - I honestly never thought I'd see the day.n They definitely put in some solid years of service, and I'm sure there's a transit nut like us who will purchase one just to hold on to the historic value of those Metro's... Unfortunately there were quite a few 1400's out there in the heat today...guess they will still live on for a while more... That being said...why doesn't TriMet just give Center Garage the remainder of the 3100's (3151-3170) and keep the full fleet of 3200's at Merlo, or vice versa? The big complaint I've heard is that there are minor differences between the two series and it can be challenging remembering which series they are driving. I like the Gilligs, but the transmissions are so tuned down for fuel economy that it is sometimes hard to enjoy the ride...the shift from 1st to 2nd sounds like the engine is grinding with the RPM's so low. In addition, re-tuning those Voith transmissions would give the buses considerably more pickup, especially in that 15-mph range. I also wish that they would order these passenger seats with some padding, at least in the lower section (since vandalism seems to happen from the steps to the back of the bus). As a side item, I think that all white LED signs would really make those buses pop. I'm sure you mourned the loss more than I did...but hopefully they'll still be around in some way, shape, or form... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benjamin Posted July 29, 2014 Report Share Posted July 29, 2014 (edited) Ben, I think at first I was happy to see them go, but now it is a little sad to actually see those buses go - I honestly never thought I'd see the day.n They definitely put in some solid years of service, and I'm sure there's a transit nut like us who will purchase one just to hold on to the historic value of those Metro's... Unfortunately there were quite a few 1400's out there in the heat today...guess they will still live on for a while more... That being said...why doesn't TriMet just give Center Garage the remainder of the 3100's (3151-3170) and keep the full fleet of 3200's at Merlo, or vice versa? The big complaint I've heard is that there are minor differences between the two series and it can be challenging remembering which series they are driving. I like the Gilligs, but the transmissions are so tuned down for fuel economy that it is sometimes hard to enjoy the ride...the shift from 1st to 2nd sounds like the engine is grinding with the RPM's so low. In addition, re-tuning those Voith transmissions would give the buses considerably more pickup, especially in that 15-mph range. I also wish that they would order these passenger seats with some padding, at least in the lower section (since vandalism seems to happen from the steps to the back of the bus). As a side item, I think that all white LED signs would really make those buses pop. I'm sure you mourned the loss more than I did...but hopefully they'll still be around in some way, shape, or form... Jared, Well, the 1400s are indeed staying longer since Gillig is still alive and kicking... and they are the same company making Tri-Met's current low-floor buses. And yes, the 3100s and 3200s are often confused... that will manifest further after the 3300s come in later. But then again, the same can be said for all the New Flyer LF buses... the 22/2300s and 2500s, and the 26/2700s and 2800s. Merlo currently has all the 2800s (and the new-look LFR 2900s), while Center has most 26/2700s and Powell all the 22/2300s and roughly half the 2500s. ~Ben Edited July 30, 2014 by Benjamin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bradfordbrian Posted July 30, 2014 Report Share Posted July 30, 2014 Ben, I think at first I was happy to see them go, but now it is a little sad to actually see those buses go - I honestly never thought I'd see the day.n They definitely put in some solid years of service, and I'm sure there's a transit nut like us who will purchase one just to hold on to the historic value of those Metro's... Unfortunately there were quite a few 1400's out there in the heat today...guess they will still live on for a while more... That being said...why doesn't TriMet just give Center Garage the remainder of the 3100's (3151-3170) and keep the full fleet of 3200's at Merlo, or vice versa? The big complaint I've heard is that there are minor differences between the two series and it can be challenging remembering which series they are driving. I like the Gilligs, but the transmissions are so tuned down for fuel economy that it is sometimes hard to enjoy the ride...the shift from 1st to 2nd sounds like the engine is grinding with the RPM's so low. In addition, re-tuning those Voith transmissions would give the buses considerably more pickup, especially in that 15-mph range. I also wish that they would order these passenger seats with some padding, at least in the lower section (since vandalism seems to happen from the steps to the back of the bus). As a side item, I think that all white LED signs would really make those buses pop. I'm sure you mourned the loss more than I did...but hopefully they'll still be around in some way, shape, or form... The transmissions are set up that way to adjust for the e-fan system. Up here in the Tri-Cities they're the quickest, and fastest buses in the fleet, and will do 79-80mph verified, while getting 9mpg on I-82. My guess is with the brt front-end, TriMet's getting similar if not better results, though I'm sure the governor's programmed down to 60 or so. I would imagine since ours are 330 rating engines (Florida LYNX rating specs), TriMet's probably aren't quite as fast, but probably as quick because the rear end ratio surely isn't as tall. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BCT-3122-D800-10240 Posted August 13, 2014 Report Share Posted August 13, 2014 I'm wondering if maybe the flat surface was put there to allow for full rear ads. A flat surface makes is MUCH easier to do so That is exactly why that was done. Yes, I realize this is an older post, but I haven't been through this thread in some time. Also, looking at the Wiki page for Tri-Met, I cannot find the info on the Transmissions and engines for the new Gillig Low Floor diesels. I would assume the engines are the ISL9 model, but what transmissions are in these units? Maybe I missed it somewhere in another post in this thread, but I can't seem to find that info and I apologize ahead of time if the info is already posted in this thread. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benjamin Posted August 14, 2014 Report Share Posted August 14, 2014 That is exactly why that was done. Yes, I realize this is an older post, but I haven't been through this thread in some time. Also, looking at the Wiki page for Tri-Met, I cannot find the info on the Transmissions and engines for the new Gillig Low Floor diesels. I would assume the engines are the ISL9 model, but what transmissions are in these units? Maybe I missed it somewhere in another post in this thread, but I can't seem to find that info and I apologize ahead of time if the info is already posted in this thread. They are Voith D864.5 units. ~Ben Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SidneyTransitfan Posted August 14, 2014 Report Share Posted August 14, 2014 So are all of the Flxible units retired now, or do some remain? 1701-1808 and 1901-1910 are still listed as Active on the wiki. Also what of 2001-2022? Didn't see them mentioned in the New Flyer LF roster by Ben just a few posts ago. Also never happened to spot any when I was in Portland last year - save for 2012 which I saw in May. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benjamin Posted August 14, 2014 Report Share Posted August 14, 2014 So are all of the Flxible units retired now, or do some remain? 1701-1808 and 1901-1910 are still listed as Active on the wiki. Also what of 2001-2022? Didn't see them mentioned in the New Flyer LF roster by Ben just a few posts ago. Also never happened to spot any when I was in Portland last year - save for 2012 which I saw in May. The 1700s are gone, I know... but the remaining 1900s are still around. Yes, 2001-2022 do still exist. ~Ben Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benjamin Posted August 19, 2014 Report Share Posted August 19, 2014 Latest 3200 sightings: 3231 on route 12 3232 on route 20 3233 on route 48 3235 on route 76 3236 on route 52 3237 on route 62 ~Ben Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benjamin Posted August 20, 2014 Report Share Posted August 20, 2014 Today: 3238 on route 88 3239 on route 62 3242 on route 33 ~Ben Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benjamin Posted August 21, 2014 Report Share Posted August 21, 2014 Today (8-21-2014): 3243 on route 56 ~Ben Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benjamin Posted August 28, 2014 Report Share Posted August 28, 2014 Today (8-28-2014): 3253 on route 20 3254 on route 48 ~Ben Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benjamin Posted September 23, 2014 Report Share Posted September 23, 2014 (edited) I've noticed that the Center Street Garage now has almost all of the 3100 series Gillig low-floor buses as opposed to last year, when they were brand new. They started out with 3101-3145, but this year buses 3146-3159 have been added, leaving the Merlo Road Garage with units 3160-3170 only. The Merlo Road Garage still has all the remaining 1700 series Flxible Metros in storage, but none of them are currently active and are all awaiting scrap or resale. The 3300s are now supposed to be deployed. Let me know in coming weeks when you see one. ~Ben Edited September 23, 2014 by Benjamin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benjamin Posted October 8, 2014 Report Share Posted October 8, 2014 (edited) Whoa-ho-hooooo, Nellie! Get a load of this. . . http://rantingsofatrimetbusdriver.blogspot.com/2014/10/dont-cannibilize-buses.html By the looks of the story depicted in the link above, TriMet is actually starting to get rid of their oldest low-floor buses. These are 1997 New Flyer D40LFs (2001-2022). These made up TriMet's second and last fleet of buses to use the Detroit Diesel Series 50 engine (the first being their 1994 Flxible Metro units 1844-1853, which they got rid of during their 2009 crisis). For those of you who want to take a ride on these Series 50-powered low-floors, better mosey on down here quick! This story was published only 4 days ago. ~Ben Edited October 8, 2014 by Benjamin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Please sign in to comment
You will be able to leave a comment after signing in
Sign In Now