BusTalk

[Dieseljim]

There are 150 of the buses still active in Toronto and they should be plying Toronto's Streets for 3 more years. This year is the 50th Anniversary of the GMC "New Look" bus, one of the most beloved bus designs to come down the pike. Some of the Montreal "fishies" are said to have wound up in Cuba. I hope at least some will be retained for a historical fleet. I sure loved that bus. It rides better than the New Flyer low floor models of today. Not only that it is better looking than that Novabus designed turd on wheels called the LFS.

[timecruncher]

Well, Jim, we can't say you don't have an opinion. The 'Dreamliner' was a good bus in most cases, but there are features on the newer stuff that those of us behind the wheel certainly appreciate.

Dependable, generally solid, decent handling, no doubt. Dicey on the expressway, bad HVAC and especially bad defrosting were some of the negatives. Oh yeah -- no power at all with the a/c on in the pre-1976 units with 6V-71 engines.

And I'd love to drive one again...


From this past October while attending the Motor Bus Society fall meeting in the GTA. Here's one arriving at York University with another following!


Typical of smaller Canadian properties in Ontario -- this is the Brantford garage on Saturday morning. Something for everyone here: Classic (ex-UTA, I think), Eldorado EZ Rider (nothing to brag about here), and two fishbowls!


Don't recall the heritage of this unit -- it wasn't new to Brantford. The "scrolling" destination sign was a bit distracting from an otherwise beautiful T6H4523N.


They had two or three of these ex-Anchorage, Alaska (!!) T8H5307N units. Second-hand buses from there are popular in Ontario because no road salt is used in Anchorage (its too cold. Road salt just pisses off the snow!).


Even tiny Woodstock has a brace of 35-foot fishbowls, mixing them up with their "new" Nova LFS. The big buses look just a wee bit out of place in a small town like this, eh?



These buses are disappearing quickly in a sea of Novas, New Flyers and Orions.

And say what you want about the LFS, Volvo (parent of Prevost, owner of Novabus) intends to make a place for their product line in the US.

I've driven the 3rd-generation version here at TARC, and it is a decent bus. All of the drivers I've spoken with who have driven it like it immensely. Passengers appreciate the quieter interior and our shop forces say that its the first bus to come along in many years where equipment is reasonably easy to get to and the radiator is finally moved to the rear roof, away from the hot engine compartment.

timecruncher

You want to bitch about junk buses, lets talk about the gone-but-not-missed-at-all AMG!!

[kevlaf983]

[Dieseljim]

If it were up to me to build a new generation of "fishbowl" bus, I would use the best features found on today's buses and combine them with a proven design and make the V8 engine standard equipment on units equipped with the airconditioner over the rear window. Of course, programmable destination signs would be used. I, too, rode the AM Generals when Buffalo,NY had them. They may have looked nice, but they did not last very long before NFTA took them out of service. The 7600 and 7700 series GM fishbowls outlasted those buses by a good decade or more. 7754 is still around as the Heritage bus and it IS operable and even capable of revenue service if desired even with the old farebox.

[ripta42]