BusTalk

[Q65A]

In a brief 5-year period (1946 to 1951), the BOT had bought nearly 2,100 new buses (including 1,092 GM Old Looks, 632 Macks, and 355 Twins) plus 200 new trackless trolleys from St. Louis Car Co. The NYC Transit Authority replaced the BOT in 1953. Probably because of this intense period of transit vehicle purchases by the BOT, the TA was able to wait 3 years before acquiring their first order of new buses. In 1956, the TA ordered 318 Mack C-49DT’s (NYCTA #’s 6000-6317).The C-49DT had key dimensions similar to those of the Bingham Macks (96” width and 39’11.5” length) but it used a longer 289.5” wheelbase (versus the 272” WB of the C-50DT and the 281.5” WB of the contemporary GM TDH-5106). This probably made the big Mack a little tougher to maneuver in heavy traffic, but it probably improved riding qualities. The C-49DT was equipped with a new air suspension system called “Airglide” (manufactured by General Tire & Rubber Co.) which further smoothed the ride over rough city streets. The new bus employed a new turbocharged 6-cylinder Mack ENDT-673 Thermodyne diesel engine that produced 205 BHP; a Spicer torque converter was used. These new technologies were innovative, but they were not as radical as some of the unusual design features that had appeared on the C-50DT. In many other aspects, the C-49DT closely mirrored the design elements found in the contemporary GM TDH-5106. Conventional upholstered seats were fitted, with a light green over dark green interior paint scheme. In later years, hard fiberglass seats replaced the soft seats in an effort to thwart vandalism; green seats were used on Brooklyn-based C-49DT’s, while Staten Island buses used pink seats similar to those used on contemporary GM TDH-5106’s. Standard air-operated 4-leaf jackknife doors were used front and rear. Most C-49DT’s used vertically-sliding side windows, except for NYCTA 6049, which used the same sliding window arrangement as the Bingham Macks. 6049 also served as a test bed for air conditioning experiments. The C-49DT’s were painted in the gray-over-green TA livery that also would be used on the 7000-series of GM TDH-5106’s delivered to the TA in 1957. These last Macks were assigned to the Brooklyn and Staten Island Divisions. Eventually most of the C-49DT’s finished their careers on Staten Island, and were replaced by relocated TDH-5106’s in 1969. Fortunately, NYCTA 6259 was preserved as part of the DOB’s Vintage Bus Fleet; it rests at Brooklyn’s Jackie Gleason Depot when not on display. Not surprisingly, postwar Mack transit buses also saw service on several PBL’s in NYC. Except for the BOT/NYCTA, no other NYC bus operator embraced Macks as much as Surface Transportation Corp. (known as Surface Transit Inc. after a 1956 takeover by FACCO). Red and cream Macks were operated by ST on certain routes in Manhattan and all throughout The Bronx. In contrast to the BOT, ST bought only diesel powered Macks. Beginning in 1947 with a single C-45DT (ST 1785), ST ultimately would own 425 C-45DT’s built from 1948 to 1953 (ST#’s 1600-2024). They also purchased 15 C-47DT’s in 1954 (ST #’s 2025-2039), the only NYC bus operator to own this Mack model. Finally, 49 Mack C-49DT’s were acquired from 1954 to 1958 (ST #800, #’s 2962-3009). The final 10 C-49DT’s (ST #’s 3000-3009) were equipped with fluorescent lighting and push-type exit doors; perhaps they took these design cues from ST’s contemporary GM TDH-5106’s. ST’s C-45DT’s remained in service in The Bronx and Manhattan. They were displaced by NYCTA buses re-assigned to MaBSTOA depots after 1962, and were scrapped beginning in 1963. Newer ST Macks lasted until they were replaced by new TDH-5303’s in 1965-1966. None were preserved. It may be surprising to note that diehard GM devotee FACCO owned a small 25-unit fleet of Bingham Macks built in 1950 (FACCO #’s 2475-2499). Perhaps FACCO, like the BOT, had Civil Defense issues in mind when they bought these buses. Orphans in FACCO’s enormous GM diesel fleet, they were assigned to FACCO route 15 (covered today by much of the Q32). They apparently did not perform very well, and likely they were sold before the creation of MaBSTOA in 1962. Two other NYC bus operators were loyal Mack purchasers. Jamaica Buses Inc. bought 15 C-45GT’s in 1947 (JBI #’s 400-414), then picked up C-45DT’s in 1949 (JBI #’s 500-509) and in 1950 (JBI #’s 550-559). Painted in red and cream livery, these units worked Queens routes until the mid-1960’s. Unlike many NYC bus operators, who owned fleets of Macks and other makes, Avenue B & East Broadway Transit was an all-Mack property until the mid 1960’s. They bought their first postwar Macks relatively late, buying 10 C-41DT’s from 1954 to 1956 (Ave. B & E. B’way #’s 301-310). They also bought 5 C-49DM’s in 1958 (#’s 501-506. These units were suburban-type buses used for premium racetrack services. They were equipped with torque converters and later were fitted with Thermo King air conditioners. These suburbans were replaced by used ex-GBL buses in 1969. All other Macks were replaced in 1975 by 10 used GM Old Looks leased from Hausman Bus Sales. Avenue B & East Broadway Transit was absorbed by NYCTA on March 28, 1980; none of this carrier’s buses were preserved. Curiously, other NYC bus operators did not purchase postwar Macks, including Green Bus Lines, which owned a significant fleet of pre-World War II Macks (including some Mack CT’s that ran for Triboro Coach Corp.) Mack finally exited the bus business in January 1960. They steadily had been losing share in the transit bus market since the mid 1950’s, while the market for heavy duty diesel-powered trucks was on a constant upswing during the same period (especially after legislation authorizing construction of the Interstate Highway System was ratified in 1956). The corporate fortunes of Mack varied up and down between 1960 and 1989. Acquired by Renault in 1990, Mack eventually became a division of Volvo AB in 2001. It remains a major heavy truck manufacturer in the U.S. and in certain global markets. It is a sister company of Prevost Car and Nova Bus, while parent Volvo is one of the foremost bus builders in many countries outside the U.S. and Canada.

[Mr. Linsky]

Bob,

Another great presentation helping to make us the number '1' archive of New York bus history on the web!

A couple of comments concerning 'Green Bus Lines, The Mack Years';

Aside from a couple of small orders for Indianas (White's economy line) and Brockways, Green Line was devout Mack and, in fact, purchased over 200 Macks between 1933 and 1943.

It was the intent of the company to continue that relationship at war's end and had already signed a contract for delivery of the first buses off the line.

Unfortunately, Mack suffered a labor dispute that lasted from mid 1946 until the end of the year and had difficulty meeting its commitments (enter GM stage right!).

Some of Green Line's prewar CT's were loaned to Triboro in an effort to get them on their feet in the late forties but most if not all eventually went to Jamaica Buses.

Photos of C49 DT Macks below borrowed from Bus Talk Gallery for educational purposes only.

Mr. Linsky - Green Bus Lines, Inc., Jamaica, NY