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M.Wright

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H4 5600

H4 5600

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30 minutes ago, Mitsubishi Fuso 6512 said:

Did you check the retirements of older diesel 1999-2004 NABI 40-LFW. 02/17 buses in service yet? 

i still saw a lot of nabis newer then 2001. That one 1999 ended up being the only one out all day that i could track, and it only stayed out AM rush. A lot of 2000's have definetley retired as i didnt see very many on the trackers compared to the other ones.

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Mitsubishi Fuso 6512

Mitsubishi Fuso 6512

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According to Miami Today News, 

For Metrorail Current and Replacement Fleet:

Of the 136 new railcars on order from Hitachi Rail Italy, which will replace the roughly 35-year-old Budd UTV  Metrorail fleet, 82/136 have been delivered, the rest of the Metrorail fleet on-target to receive the remaining balance of railcars, each costing about $3 million, will be delivered next year in spring 2020.

Since July 2018, Hitachi has nearly doubled the number of heavy railcars it delivered to the county. In turn, the county has close to doubled the number of new cars in service over the same period, from 34 then to 64 this week.

For Metrobus fleet:

Of 300 new compressed natural gas (CNG) buses ordered from New Flyer of America for roughly $174.87 million, 256/300 have been delivered as of this week, with 247/300 accepted for service.

Miami-Dade expects the first of a 120-CNG-bus purchase from manufacturer Gillig. Either BRT Or BRT Plus CNG to arrive in early September of this year, Ms. Damian said, with regular deliveries to start later this year in October. 

That $69.2 million purchase, made in January through a Central Florida procurement contract, represented a $6,000-per-bus saving compared to the New Flyer contract.

Commissioners in committee June 12 forwarded a new item that would, if approved, authorize the purchase of additional 140 buses through a Commonwealth of Virginia contract.

But in an uncommon move – at the recommendation of Commissioner Esteban Bovo Jr., who objected to waiving the county’s standard competitive bidding procedures – they made neither a positive nor negative recommendation in advancing the item.

At Tuesday’s full commission meeting, Jose “Pepe” Diaz invoked the county’s four-day rule to punt voting on the item to the next full meeting July 9.

The added time could help county personnel sort through information and requests presented at the committee meeting last week, where representatives of both manufacturers asked that the $80.9 million contract go exclusively to their respective companies.

In a memo from Deputy Mayor Alina Hudak, commissioners were asked to OK a procurement split in which New Flyer would provide 100 of the 140 new buses, with Gillig supplying the remainder.

Ms. Bravo said the New Flyer buses would cost about $578,500 apiece, but each would also come with a $5,000 credit for bus parts. The Gillig buses, conversely, would cost about $1,600 less each but wouldn’t include the parts credit.

Buying from both companies, she said, follows the commission’s directive to expedite the Metrobus fleet replenishment by diversifying its sourcing through multiple procurements.

If commissioners approve the purchase as-is, she said, the 160 buses from Gillig – 120 from the original purchase plus 40 added through the new contract – would all arrive by next year. 

The 100 New Flyer buses, in addition to the leftover 44 from the prior purchase, would come by February 2020. Either Diesel, CNG or Hybrid. 

Asked by Commissioner Daniella Levine Cava how long it would take Gillig to deliver all 140 of the new buses being considered if granted the full contract, Ms. Bravo said it would lengthen the delivery window by up to four months.

But Gillig representative Al Maloof interjected to say it would add just eight weeks to the company’s existing delivery schedule.

Further, he said, Gillig would match the $5,000 credit New Flyer offered.

Mr. Maloof recommended that commissioners and county personnel speak with transportation departments elsewhere in the state, like Tampa, Orlando and Jacksonville, about how buses from the two companies compare.

Miami-Dade transit worker Joseph D’Elia, executive vice president of the local Transport Workers Union, told commissioners the New Flyer vehicles are unreliable and difficult to work with.

“They have problems now that they’re on the road, and you have a bunch of the fleet still sitting [in a garage] that has not even been put out for service,” he said. “We have no stake in the game except to say that, if we’re going to go forward and make this a better county as far as transportation, the union feels that Gillig is the better bus…”

As it stands, said Gordon Derrick, the county’s assistant director of bus services, Miami-Dade has yet to receive any of the Gillig order, making comparing the two companies’ products difficult.

He said “all buses, when they arrive here, come with some inherent issues,” and because they use the same engines and air conditioning systems, “the majority of those problems are going to be probably with both manufacturers.”

But one bonus New Flyer still offers that Gillig doesn’t, he said, is a five-year engine warranty that will save the county another $50,000 when expected breakdowns occur after 150,000 miles.

Another benefit to buying New Flyer, lawyer Michael Llorente said, is the company’s five-year axle warranty, which is two years longer than the one Gillig offers.

Commissioner Eileen Higgins asked Ms. Bravo to check with other governments in the state to compare certification times but said that as a regular Metrobus rider she’d never seen issues with New Flyer buses.

“Nothing as a bus rider can make me happier than getting the fastest delivery schedule, and I am willing to mix and match [at a] $1,600 [price difference] to make that faster,” she said.

Miami-Dade has invested time and money in nonprofit Transit Alliance Miami’s current redesign of the county’s Metrobus route network, and that $630,000 effort, she said, should be supported by a fresh fleet of fuel-efficient buses.

“We need to make sure… every vehicle we put out here is as new as possible, because that is all part of what we’re going to do to communicate to these residents that we have a new and better transportation system for them,” she said. “It’s not just how we’re going to get them around route-wise and how we’re going to deal with first and last mile but what they’ll be riding.”

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Mitsubishi Fuso 6512

Mitsubishi Fuso 6512

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July 2019: Photo of the Month

64619864_2670333339644928_92520145810463 Miami-Dade Transit (a.k.a. Miami-Dade County Department of Transportation & Public Works – DTPW) # 19154 on Route 137. Photo credie goes to Carlos A. Of South Florida Regional Transit..

This month, Walter head southeast to Miami, FL, where we have the largest transit system in all of Florida – Miami-Dade Transit. The above photo was taken by our South Florida regional moderator Carlos A.

Miami-Dade Transit was established in 1960 and oversees roughly 90 bus routes, 2 elevated rail lines, a people mover system, & paratransit services. The agency is currently planning to execute a major overhaul of its bus system & wishes to expand upon the current Metrorail elevated rail network. However, like many transit agencies across the globe – funding & political issues act as blockades at times when it comes to realizing the system’s full potential.

One of the biggest problems that has faced M-D DTPW is that its entire fleet has become vastly outdated, with buses & trains consistently breaking down, causing customer frustration throughout the network. Fortunately, this scene is being alleviated with new modern trains & buses, which are entering service throughout the remainder of 2019 & continuing through 2020. Once the fleet has been replenished, there could very well be a major expansion effort that follows.

Our South Florida regional moderator Carlos resides in the Miami area & regularly rides the M-D DTPW system. His photos also grace the Global Transit Guidebook website. Pretty soon, you’ll be seeing a dedicated section to the DTPW network – including a list of bus & rail routes, fleet page, & other information.

 

 

 

 

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Mitsubishi Fuso 6512

Mitsubishi Fuso 6512

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Update: Some of 1999-2004 NABI 40-LFW.02/.17 were listed at the auction at Miami Dade Transit Central Division Yard as of this week. Some of the video were posted on YouTube today.

Auction Ends: 7/12/19

3295 NW 31st St

Miami, Florida 33142-5700 

https://www.govdeals.com/index.cfm?fa=Main.AdvSearchResultsNew&searchPg=Classic&inv_num=&category=00&kWord=&kWordSelect=2&sortBy=ad&agency=7167&state=&country=&locID=&timing=bySimple&locationType=state&timeType=&timingWithin=1&rowCount=10&StartRow=21

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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H4 5600

H4 5600

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On 7/26/2019 at 4:11 PM, Mitsubishi Fuso 6512 said:

Yeah some of the 9900s and 2000s were replaced with led headsigns due to the green flipdot signs malfunctioning 

i know that, but i was wondering if any are still active with the flipdot signs

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H4 5600

H4 5600

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i spent 2 days in the last week checking out miami dade transit. The 1999 nabis are still active but not easy to find, i was only able to find 2 of them. 9976 on the 77, and 9986 on the 51. I rode both of them, they seemed to be in quite good condition for a 20 year old bus.

IMG_20190802_180835_335.thumb.jpg.7bfc30cc818afced69395388f33554fd.jpg

IMG_20190727_010225_389.thumb.jpg.a398520fc3fb0fd731bf455b951b3e7f.jpg

a couple other things i noticed:

2033 has a different livery then the other NABI 40LFW's. You can see how the front is blue compared to the black front on 2109.

IMG_20190727_005722_461.thumb.jpg.e4b412a75cbf5f534cd8adcec8a4aa54.jpg

 

Also, i have to say, these 2015 nabis that were built for BCT look really nice in the MDT livery. It was my first time seeing one, very nice looking bus.

IMG_20190727_005423_548.thumb.jpg.4d0b2cc62c6b5ff8af46d4bd2fdd0497.jpg

 

As for the metrorail, i noticed the older budd cars seem to be getting less common, but can still be found.

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Mitsubishi Fuso 6512

Mitsubishi Fuso 6512

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Alert!!! Miami-Dade Transit has 260/300 2018-20 New Flyer XN40 Xcelsior CNG buses in service,. Fleet numbers were #18101-18269 for 2018, #19101-19231 for 2019. The last remaining order for 300 2020 New Flyer XN40s ere expected to be delivered next year if the fleet numbers are Tentatively. 

Pilot Bus #18101 was originally numbered #17101.

70/136 Hitachi Rail Italy Metrorail trains in revenue service. The rest of the fleet will be renewed on schedule by next year. 

The 160 2020 Gillig BRT Plus CNG 40' buses were expected to be delivered starting this September and October. Fleet numbers were 19232 -??. Will be equipped with Cummins Westport L9N and Voith D864.6 Transmissions. 

On 8/2/2019 at 6:39 PM, H4 5600 said:

i spent 2 days in the last week checking out miami dade transit. The 1999 nabis are still active but not easy to find, i was only able to find 2 of them. 9976 on the 77, and 9986 on the 51. I rode both of them, they seemed to be in quite good condition for a 20 year old bus. 

IMG_20190802_180835_335.thumb.jpg.7bfc30cc818afced69395388f33554fd.jpg

IMG_20190727_010225_389.thumb.jpg.a398520fc3fb0fd731bf455b951b3e7f.jpg

a couple other things i noticed:

2033 has a different livery then the other NABI 40LFW's. You can see how the front is blue compared to the black front on 2109.

IMG_20190727_005722_461.thumb.jpg.e4b412a75cbf5f534cd8adcec8a4aa54.jpg

 

Also, i have to say, these 2015 nabis that were originally

 

built for BCT look really nice in the MDT livery. It was my first time seeing one, very nice looking bus.

IMG_20190727_005423_548.thumb.jpg.4d0b2cc62c6b5ff8af46d4bd2fdd0497.jpg

 

As for the metrorail, i noticed the older budd cars seem to be getting less common, but can still be found.

Did you saw the Retired 9800 series 1999 NABI 40-LFW.02 in training fleet and emergency purposes in Miami yet #9801-9819? 

 

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