Blue Mountains postcard.....autumn 2021.

[Centralian]

Hope you enjoy my selection of photo's from the last few months across the Blue Mountains.

Just outside of Springwood is a bus shelter that makes a tribute to local artist George Finney and a train 'The Fish'.
George Finney lived at Lawson where he died in 1987.
In 1938 he produced this cartoon of 'The Fish' which has been reproduced in the bus shelter.
The caption in the shelter reads: "..........old timers say in 1883 the engineman's name was 'Herring',
the fireman 'Salmon', and the guards 'Pyke' and 'Trout'. Some think this is a Fishy story.
but George Finney's cartoon of 1938 suggests that there must be something in the old legend after all."

36.jpg (86.9 KiB) Viewed 3048 times

While on trains, I captured 3801 passing through Blackheath Station on Sunday 9 May.
It certainly drew a crowd along the way at every vantage point.

http://www.busaustralia.com/gallery/dis ... ?pid=19691

http://www.busaustralia.com/gallery/dis ... ?pid=19692

Recent trackwork saw on Monday this week something different in Katoomba from the usual Premier vehicles.

http://www.busaustralia.com/gallery/dis ... ?pid=19693
http://www.busaustralia.com/gallery/dis ... ?pid=19688
http://www.busaustralia.com/gallery/dis ... ?pid=19689

Community Access bussing in the Blue Mountains has taken a giant leap forward
with Blue Mountains City Council purchasing this Hino Poncho for its fleet.
Will certainly be appreciated by the elderly especially once groups can get out and about again.

http://www.busaustralia.com/gallery/dis ... ?pid=19690
Another bus shelter that has caught my attention over the years at Blaxland.
Has anyone else seen graffiti that celebrates or includes a bus company - in this case Pearce Omnibus.

37.jpg (107 KiB) Viewed 3048 times

Captured on a very foggy Wednesday morning (no pun intended) in early May near Katoomba Falls Kiosk (under restoration)

http://www.busaustralia.com/gallery/dis ... ?pid=19694
http://www.busaustralia.com/gallery/dis ... ?pid=19695

[Centralian]

A few more images, it has been a quiet time on this page:

A bit of a cheat with this first photo, it was taken in St Mary's, but reasonably close to the Blue Mountains.
http://www.busaustralia.com/gallery/dis ... ?pid=19696

http://www.busaustralia.com/gallery/dis ... ?pid=19697

http://www.busaustralia.com/gallery/dis ... ?pid=19698

http://www.busaustralia.com/gallery/dis ... ?pid=19699

And finally, a blast from the past:
http://www.busaustralia.com/gallery/dis ... ?pid=19700

[LB608]

Great shots as normal, with the new second hand camera

[Centralian]

Thanks, and only $30 at a local garage sale.

[ScaniaGrenda]

Lovely Photos Centralian and to top it off with a $30 camera too that has taken some fine quality images. Who would've thought $30 would pay off?

I'd have to say my two favorites would be the Baxters Scania Higer, always nice to see a bus in full colour livery (not TNSW, booooooooooring) and the retro tours Volvo B10M. Very lucky and fortunate to be based in the Blue Mountains where bus scenery is something different every day and you never know what your going to be in for.

Look forward to seeing more in the future, keep it up!

[Swift]

I'd have to say my two favorites would be the Baxters Scania Higer, always nice to see a bus in full colour livery (not TNSW, booooooooooring) and the retro tours Volvo B10M.

We still have a fixation for the bland choice of white dominated liveries with a token squiggle for relief. At least TNSW brings colour to the table?

So much for Volvo reliability. I guess any old vehicle formerly doing urban government bus duties is prone to failure.
Was PMC really churning out that body in 1984? Sure it looks passably modern for the 1980s but 84 when they had already released their square shape in Sydney by then?

[ScaniaGrenda]

Sure I can agree TNSW brings colour to the table but it's not just for a single operator, instead all operators operating TNSW bus services have it and seeing the same livery on all of the buses regardless of operator does eventually get bland and tiring, that is why I said boring in the first place, it's nothing unique or exciting.

Go back to anytime before 2010, plenty of operators including here, Victoria and Queensland had some fabulous liveries in the past. Now they've died out because the state government mandated the use of their state transport livery if they wanted to have buses leased to them by the state government. Tasmania and possibly NT (not sure about ACT) may be the only areas left without the mandatory transport livery.

[Swift]

Don't tell Qld emulated TNSW?
I know what you mean totally but honestly white based liveries are no better and STA's unimaginative Corporate livery V1 and V2 were terrible also.
It all went downhill from the late 80s, yet other countries manage very attractive liveries.

[Centralian]

My observation of the TNSW contractors and the TNSW livery is that pride for the fleet and livery musn't come into the contract calculation.
I see examples of paintwork and bodywork that is behind with 'maintenance', seeing more tape being used to keep pieces stuck on for longer before finally having to do something. Perhaps these are one of the few areas where the contractors try to make some extra 'profit'.

I then look at the Baxters liveried vehicle ( I know, a different type of operation), that has pride written all over it.