Bus Observations 2023

[alleve]

If someone is getting artics, let alone imported artics I'd be very surprised

[tonyp]

If someone is getting artics, let alone imported artics I'd be very surprised

And they'd have to be electric, which means new infrastructure. Maybe a transfer of existing?

[alleve]

If someone is getting artics, let alone imported artics I'd be very surprised

And they'd have to be electric, which means new infrastructure. Maybe a transfer of existing?

I thought that TfNSW doesn't allow new artics, electric or not (which is stupid, by the way. Region 9 needs more artics) so would be very interesting if there are new artics.

[743]

what are they getting?

...your username is close ...

I can't help but wonder if this rumour actually refers to the ex STA Volvo B10BLE Oranas which are now in the Busways fleet. While not registered with matching plates, the fleet numbers for these are 1661 (hence the username clue) through 1687 according to the Fleet Lists. They are currently listed as being at Region 1 depots with some at Ryde and also 'to be delivered'. So it's not a stretch to imagine Willoughby may end up with some (the use of the word "import" simply meaning being brought in from somewhere else and not necessarily from overseas).

[ScaniaGrenda]

7117 MO running around Maitland with "Train replacement" Destination display around 7:00 PM tonight, checking Transport INFO alerts showed no outages reported for the Hunter Line and said bus was not trackable on real time tracking, perhaps the driver had flicked up the wrong display?

[Glen]

Whilst reading readers' comments on an article in the SMH I found a link to this pirate bus service in Willoughby:

https://frankenzan.wixsite.com/pirate-bus-lines-wil

[Merc1107]

If this is successful, why not a Pirate-run Manly Ferry?

(Pirates of Sydney Cove just doesn't have quite the same ring to it as Pirates of the Caribbean).

[1whoknows]

Hopefully Sydney's enterprising gunzels will make an appearance on Wednesday to record the first journey. Maybe some will even ride it end to end.

[Stonesourscotty]

Hillsbus 5373 now carries CDC Nsw decals and logos with no visible hillsbus mention

[Fleet Lists]

I suggest you post this sort of thing in CDC NSW changes viewtopic.php?t=55098&start=450

[Randomness]

There's many buses with those now, bit of a pointless endeavour to document them all. Soon enough, the Hillsbus logo will be doomed to only a few buses.

[ScaniaGrenda]

Noticed that there's a NAB (Non-accessible Bus) currently operating the 185 to Gresford this afternoon.

The reason this happens is likely because the route the bus performs prior to commencing the 185 is a school route, there may not be a WAB (Wheel Chair Accessible bus) available to put on that run and rather than make things even more hectic given other numerous ongoing events, it's easier in this case to stay using a NAB.

[Linto63]

Most, if not all, Forest Coach Lines buses appear to have had their red signwriting and tree emblems removed and replaced by CDC NSW decals. Sad to see one of the great liveries, simple but stylish, being bastardised. I believe they call it progress.

[LB608]

What is going to happen after they reach TV999A,they are up to TV950A

[Linto63]

TV000B to TV999B, then TV000C through until TV999Z.

[ScaniaGrenda]

Interesting to see that m/o 1708 now with Keolis Downer has had the older "Sydney Buses" blue logo fitted to it's front. I found a photo of it online where the front shows the Transport Buses logo but it's lost that and had the older SB Logo fitted to the front panel.

Side of the bus still has the Transport buses logo through.

[Linto63]

Mutiny on the Sydney commute: pirate bus hits the road after privatisation leads to axed routes (The Guardian)

...with a chartered North Sydney Bus Charters bus.

[Merc1107]

Same old tired arguments, rehashed by the same old hysterics at The Guardian; "a lie gets halfway round the world before the truth has a chance to get its pants on".

To even allege "cancelled routes" are purely the result of privatisation in the present climate is a furphy; cancellations (due to driver shortages) are rife even in cities with public-run networks (Brisbane, Canberra, probably Hobart too, but I haven't anything about them). The more tired arguments about "privatisation = less buses" really need some better work from the Government and industry to fill this information vacuum; aside from service cuts meaning revenue losses, aren't the bus operators in Sydney rewarded for patronage growth in their contracts?

[pgt]

Mutiny on the Sydney commute: pirate bus hits the road after privatisation leads to axed routes (The Guardian)

...with a chartered North Sydney Bus Charters bus.

I'm probably missing something in why they're "replicating" the old 272 route, which the 120 more or less covers in its entirety?
(Yes I know most 272 buses started or ended at North Willoughby during the peak back in the day, but the same off-peak version extended to Chatswood Station).

That said, privatisation seems to be a very convenient excuse given the events of the last few years - the bus I get most of the time now used to have far worse service under government operation [half hourly service during the peak*], including drivers who would pull in at a major stop when passengers are signalling then drive off [with a near empty bus] leaving them stranded for up to half an hour (no I don't forget incidents like that easily, and this was probably about 7-8 years ago).

[* A complaint when one of these peak services was cancelled back then was responded to saying that the route was a "frequent" service route and they needed a bus for another route that wasn't...]

[ScaniaGrenda]

In addition to my post about NAB (Non-accessible buses), there's a 138 currently running to Newcastle Interchange from the Airport that's it's usual Volvo High-Floor bus.

I think my theory of why their still using NAB's holds weight, I'd be curious if and when driver shortages occur again whether a School bus that is a High-floor that has concluded it's last school run will continue onto a service run or cancelled outright because there's no accessible bus available.

[SthnStarRail]

In addition to my post about NAB (Non-accessible buses), there's a 138 currently running to Newcastle Interchange from the Airport that's it's usual Volvo High-Floor bus.

The 138 you are talking about is the 6:45am service from Lemon Tree Passage and doubles as a school bus as it operates via various schools in the Newcastle area. The 3:15pm service to Lemon Tree Passage does the reverse trip and is usually also a high floor bus

[Linto63]

While arguably a Victorian service, although travel within NSW is available, Dysons were operating a 1998 Snowliner Coaches Scania coach on its Canberra to Bairnsdale V/Line service in January in lieu of the more normal late model Scania. Doubt this would have been DDA compliant.

[1whoknows]

Since Snowliner is a Dineen company I doubt that would have been anything other than either a second division or an emergency replacement.

[Linto63]

Probably the latter, with Dysons heavily involved in the month long rail replacement to the west of Bairnsdale, may have been to release a vehicle for this. A number of the other V/Line services east of Bairnsdale were being operated by 2 axle Dyson liveried coaches in lieu of the more normal 3-axle V/Line liveried coaches.

[ScaniaGrenda]

The 138 you are talking about is the 6:45am service from Lemon Tree Passage and doubles as a school bus as it operates via various schools in the Newcastle area. The 3:15pm service to Lemon Tree Passage does the reverse trip and is usually also a high floor bus

I know that they double as School buses, my thought was that because there's now a requirement for 100% accessibility that even for a situation like this they'd need to switch from a coach to a low entry to meet requirements. Obviously the reason these two I have recently documented on are still using High-Floors is because as you point out, their school buses for starters, that and essentially there's no time either to switch out buses once the school run is complete and perhaps the patronage of said school bus is possibly so high that a low entry just isn't suitable.

I also remember the first 180 of the day going from Singleton Heights to a School in Maitland and then continuing on as revenue service bus between 2016 and 2017 doing the same thing, it was always a highfloor up until at some point after one of the school holidays wrapped up of which Singleton depot switched the high-floor out on that run to a permeant low entry bus, got switched to a Merc O405NH since Singo only had ancient buses back then and is now a Volvo Optimus.