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March 6th, 2010
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General: Fleet Rosters Updated
Posted by Mystic on 2010-03-06 10:29:23 EST
These last couple of weeks have given me the chance to update my STM and RTL fleet rosters. It was a lot more work than I had ever anticipated, and probably would have taken months to complete if I didn't have this time off.
I've also had the chance to sort out and upload hundreds of new transit pics from the STM and other surrounding transit agencies. Hopefully in a few weeks I'll be able to start taking new photos again. I'm already behind and there are close to 200 brand new buses that I have yet to photograph that have just entered service over the last 2 months!
In the meantime, I'll continue updating my site transit rosters with the help of a few friends who will keep me informed on what's in service and what, unfortunately, has been retired.
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January 25th, 2010
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General: Site Updates
Posted by Mystic on 2010-01-25 03:08:50 EST
I won't be using my desktop PC until my ankle starts to get better. So for now I'll be sitting on the couch with my foot up in the air and working on a laptop.
Because of this, the updates to the site, for now, will be made through this news section, since that's the only password I remember off hand.
Unfortunately the FTP software and the HTML files are all located on my main PC, so you'll have to enjoy the Christmas music for a bit longer. :P
I will be updating the photo gallery, since I was smart enough to back up all my recent photos onto DVD, which I'm uploading through the laptop. So stay tuned for hundreds of transit pics to come soon.
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General: Out of Commission (For Now)
Posted by Mystic on 2010-01-25 02:38:11 EST
A matter of bad luck, or fate, I've been spending the last month trying to figure it out. Let me fill you in on exactly what I'm talking about.
It was a cold icy winter evening of December 28th, 2009, I was just getting out of work, and I walked to the edge of the building and saw my bus coming down the street. I was on the other side of the street, so I flagged down the driver, and she stopped and waited for me at the new bus stop that was created just two months earlier. It took a construction company all summer long to carve out the stop to make it safer (supposedly) for pedestrians.
I crossed the street and onto the sidewalk, and turned to board the bus, and I must have hit some really slippery black ice. I slipped and fell onto the ground. I really thought nothing of it, since I didn't feel any pain, I felt mostly embarrassed. So I tried to get up, and I fell right back down, I couldn't even get up!!! I then started to freak out! The driver put the bus in park and climbed down the stairs to give me a hand, I managed to climb onto the stairs, and then looked at my left foot, and realized that it was pointing in the WRONG DIRECTION!!! The driver asked if I needed an ambulance, and after looking at my foot, I said ofcourse.
The dispatcher came on and said it would take atleast 20 minutes and it would be inconvenient or something along those lines, things were pretty blurry by then. After waiting a few minutes, by this time a second bus pulled up behind. I was on a route 23, (rush hour bus) and the bus behind was a 32 (regular service bus). Since the bus I was in was scheduled to end the route at the hospital (how convenient), I said look, how about I just ride to the end of the line at the hospital, and she was like, fine, and the driver of the second bus told everyone to get off the bus we'd make an express run to the hospital.
People on the bus infact grumbled about getting off and asking how they would get to their destination on the 32, she explained to get a mini-bus at the mall and take the 33 (local route) to their stop. 2 people outright refused to get off, and so we made two stops along the way to the hospital and made several short turns to skip the traffic and took the highway the rest of the way to the hospital.
We pulled up to the front entrance of the hospital, and we parked just past the regular bus stop just before the loop to enter the hospital emergency entrance, and the driver parked the bus and she ran inside and brought out a wheelchair and physically lifted me up (!) and carried me down the stairs and into the chair and drove me into the hospital!
We signed in and I waited to be looked at the triage section, and I thanked her so much, and apologized for making her late for her next departure, and she said, "I don`t care, I just have the Kahnawake run after and nobody usually rides that departure anyhow".
I thanked her again, she was really so nice!
I'm not sure what else I could have done, I was pretty much a dead-weight and couldn't even walk! I spent the evening in the hospital getting x-rays and they temporarily wrapped up the ankle. Two weeks after, several more x-rays and lots of doctors poking my ankle, we found that I had infact shattered 3 of the main bones that held the ankle onto the leg and it would require surgery to fix the broken bones back into place.
So now is the 25th of January, I'm still in a temporary cast, and awaiting another doctor's visit to see if they can remove the staples that they put on the week before to close up the incision where they operated. I can't say that it was the most comfortable experience, and when I looked at it for the first time, I pretty much passed out from the sight of it.
I'm still in a lot of pain and probably will be for quite some time to come. I've been prescribed several narcotics to help ease the pain, including Morphine and Demerol as well as lighter doses including Tylenol that I can take between doses.
I'm going to find out soon when I can get my real cast, and according to the doctor, that even after it heals, it still could take me 3-6 months to get back to normal walking again! This plus several visits to a physiotherapist and lots of exercise. This is going to be a long "walk" back to recovery so to speak.
So for my bus sightings, the last bus I was on was on December 28th, 2009. And it was CITSO #855, and thanks again to the nice driver who was able to help me out...
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October 20th, 2009
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Charters: STM 11-088 Charter (October 25th, 2009)
Posted by Mystic on 2009-10-20 23:57:31 EDT
18 years of service and possibly one of the last chances to ride on a 1991 MCI Classic, a charter was definitely in order. The chosen bus for this charter will be 11-088, which is the last Classic with its original white front fleet numbers. The bus is strong and looks great. Read below for full details of this charter initiative, hosted by YUL Bus Charters right here in Montreal.
Nolisé Privé 2009 Private Charter
SOCIÉTÉ DE TRANSPORT DE MONTRÉAL 1991 MCI CLASSIC 11-000 CHARTER - SUNDAY 25 OCTOBER 2009
A STM 1991 MCI Classic (11-000 series) will be chartered for a three-hour tour of the current Centre de transport Legendre (Garage) service areas.
Cost: The cost of the charter is to be split equally amongst all particpants (estimated cost in the area of $30). If there are insufficient numbers to keep this charter affordable, the event will be canceled.
Contact for reservations and inquiries: yulbuscharter2008>@>gmail.com
Read Full Story...
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October 11th, 2009
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Rumours: Bus Shortage leading to possible return of retired buses?
Posted by Mystic on 2009-10-11 21:41:03 EDT
We've seen it happen before in the past. A bus was retired, parked in the retirement lot, partially gutted, and then a few months later we see it back on the road again. It's been done before, I believe it can be done again!
Infact, it's being done right now to some of the retired 1st gens, that were either confirmed retired on an official roster, or were seen parked in the retirement lot with parts missing. It's not often that a bus will come out of there and back into service, but it is happening right now. A handful of LFSes to start, but what about the possibility of Classics coming back into service after being formally retired? Remember 11-030, 11-002, 12-046 and ofcourse 60-013. Perhaps we will see more of this happening in the near future.
The issue is not how solid or structurally fit a bus is when it's retired, a rebuild can fix up any of those issues and give new life to the bus. And right now Novabus is swamped with orders to fill, and not enough time, space or materials to make this happen all at once.
The STM is supposed to have a fleet of 50+ Artics by the end of the year, that leaves Novabus less than 2 months to complete that order, but at the same time we have to remember that another 80+ 3rd gens are supposed to be ordered for next year, and what about the 340 new buses that were scheduled to arrive this year.(1) Plus now with STM's increased service strategies and ever increasing ridership, we're facing the worst shortage of vehicles since we lost the New Looks back in 2002.
We'll have to wait and see, but perhaps, just maybe we're going to see a 2nd revival of the Classic era and see more and more Classics returning to the road. Perhaps only for rush hour service, but with the ever growing demand, they are still needed, and the STM knows it. (Or else they wouldn't have been putting offers on the table to lease buses from an outside source!)(1)(1) Sources:
http://www.cyberpresse.ca/actualites/200809/08/01-661761-moins-dautobus-plus-dattente.php
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