BusTalk

[subbuff]

alot of problems with the hybrids in New Haven.at least 2 had to be towed back with major fluid leaks...also saw A114 at James St. today.

[eddie4life2]

Hey can any one here tell me what rutes the artic buses are running on in the new haven o stamford area i want to ride one but have no idea were to get on them on a weekend

[NHRider]

[eddie4life2]

[subbuff]

One on the D route, One on the B route.

[subbuff]

thats on weedays two buses..there may be one on saturday, but thats not likely, and they are not running them at all sundays.

[Bill D]

Status of the Waterbury fleet as of April 9, 2011

1996 RTS in service (25 buses)
A101, A103, A104, A105*, A106, A107, A108, A109, A110, A113*, A115, A116, A118, A119, A121, A122, A123, A124, A125, A127, A128, A130, A131, A133, A134

* A105 and A113 are slated to be removed from service Monday, 4/11.

1996 RTS retired - stored at New Haven - James Street garage (9 buses)
A102, A111, A112, A114, A117, A120, A126, A129, A132

2004 D40LF in service (5 buses)
381 - 385

2010/2011 XD35 in service (4 buses)
A31, A33, A34, A35

2010/2011 XDE35 in service (4 buses)
A48, A49, A50, A51

2010/2011 XDE at Waterbury in prep for service (3 buses)
A52, A53, A54

Most, if not all of the remainder of the Xcelsior order for Waterbury are at CT Transit, Hartford. The plan is to bring 5 or 6 to Waterbury each week, and retire an equal number of RTS's until the deliveries are complete.

I had the opportunity to travel both to New Haven and Hartford Friday, first driving RTS #A120 to James Street for storage, and then after being shuttled to Hartford, delivering XDE35 #A54 to Waterbury. Here are some pictures that I took.

The James Street garage is beginning to fill with retired Classics, RTS's, D40HF's and El Dorados.




Some of the Xcelsiors at Hartford awaiting being placed in service.






Also on the lot were a pair of Nova LFSA's and Ford Escape hybrids (for supervisor use).




Two of the fuel cell buses were also on the lot.




Construction of the maintenance building for the fuel cell buses is nearing completion.


Bill

[subbuff]

i think there is only 13-14 9600's left in service..today i observed 9601,9606,9608,9610,9611,9616,9618,9622,9623,9643,9644.and two in the shop i couldnt see the numbers.Drove 1033 today, nice quiet ride.now only if the passengers were nice and quiet =).

[amorek13]

two arctics are in hartford for training purposes

[NHRider]

I rode on an artic for the third time today! I've very pleased with them, I must say. They are a comfortable ride, they aren't loud, and they're really damn cool.

[Bill D]

This past Sunday saw the last regular use of the RTS fleet in Waterbury. The RTS's had been providing service on the 13 - Fairmount / 25 - Hitchcock Lake routes due to an issue with the front end of the Xcelsiors bottoming out at one location, but a route change effective yesterday resolved that problem. RTS buses A103 and A106 are being held servicable for at least another week, in the event that any other problems arise.

The last of the Xcelsiors will be delivered to Waterbury today, and should be in service by the end of the week. Although they are generally performing well, we have three buses out of service with engine related issues and one with an electrical problem. As member Timecruncher mentioned in another post, we have also encountered many defects with the buses as delivered, and there are inconsistancies between the build of same type buses. Compounding the problem is the fact that just as deliveries began, our New Flyer service rep was laid off, and his replacement is covering a much larger territory and trying to get up to speed on the Xcelsior product. Although I understand the reasons for New Flyer making cuts in personnel, the timing was unfortunate for us. Hopefully there won't be any other major issues with these buses, as we are now dependent on them to provide our service.

Bill

[thehartfordboy]

[eddie4life2]

One of the artic buses in Hartford being used for training o so i thou had the cttransit logo removed on both sides of the bus last week o so and has not been use any more, any one knows y

[amorek13]

well i heard two new rumors
first hartford is only getting 5 busses in july and rest if everything is good by the end of the years

second buses are delayed till august or later

[thehartfordboy]