Wanna know what happens to older buses that aren't in service anymore? Check THIS out.
140 unwanted buses head for scrap yard after TransLink fails to find buyers
Buses used during Olympics, for West Vancouver Blue routes
By Kelly Sinoski, Vancouver Sun, October 11, 2010
METRO VANCOUVER - TransLink was forced to sell more than 100 of its old diesel buses to a Surrey scrap yard because nobody else wanted to buy them.
At least 140 transit buses, some of which were used as West Vancouver Blue buses and possibly as extras for the Olympic Games, are being stripped, crushed and stacked three deep at the Amix Salvage and Sales scrap metal recycler near the Pattullo Bridge.
TransLink spokesmen Ken Hardie said the diesel buses were sent to the scrap yard because they had reached the end of their lifespan and no one had come forward to buy them after six to eight months on the market.
“The industry would have been aware these buses were available,” he said. “These days there’s just no market for old buses.... Nobody we knew of was interested.”
In the U.S., he added, transit officials are even parking their new buses because they can’t afford to run them.
Hardie said that while the buses were “absolutely safe as possible right up to the day they left the road,” they were no longer useful to TransLink because they were too old and were not fully accessible. The buses were equipped with ramps rather than lifts, he said, and are not as reliable as those in the new fleet.
Buses tend to have a lifespan of about 17 years. Hardie said the buses are part of a surplus of old transit vehicles, some of which ended up in the Fraser Valley.
He said there was a bit of interest outside the region but that didn’t result in anything. TransLink last year sold its old trolley buses to Argentina, but those are more appealing than the old diesel transit vehicles.
“Nobody wants to buy them and their only value is in metal salvage,” Hardie said.
TransLink is also still trying to sell its two Albion ferries, which have been sitting idle since last June. The service was shut down after the Golden Ears Bridge opened, connecting Langley and Maple Ridge.
The longest escalator in Western Canada, in Granville Station:
One of the first-generation WCE cars, built in 1995: One of the second-generation WCE cars, built awhile ago And one of the brand-new third generation WCE cars, built earlier this year. Shiny!
Notice the colour scheme change. They've changed from purple to blue as their main colour.
Someone posted a link to a new article about 140 unwanted buses going for scrap. Well here's some more photos of the carnage happening down the road from me.
The Vancouver article only scratched the service about these buses if you ask me so I'll fill in the blanks to paint this picture.
A few months ago BC Transit sold a 1989 MCI transit bus on public auction for slightly under $5,000. Translink was asking $19,900 for these 1991/1992 buses. Although they are not identical, these buses are not work 5 times as much. They [Translink] also publicly stated they did not wish to sell used buses due to "liability issues" They fear they could be sued by buyers as a lot of the parts on these buses, as most of older buses, are fabricated "in house" So instead of lowering the price, they went for scrap. The estimated scrap value is anywhere between $800-$2,000.
This being said at least 2 of them were purchased, one is sitting at YVR, the other is planned to be used as a Chilliwack to Metrotown shopping shuttle.
I've also been told these buses will be heading to Tacoma for final "processing"
If anyone has any questions feel free to ask, I probably have an answer
Someone posted a link to a new article about 140 unwanted buses going for scrap. Well here's some more photos of the carnage happening down the road from me.
The Vancouver article only scratched the service about these buses if you ask me so I'll fill in the blanks to paint this picture.
A few months ago BC Transit sold a 1989 MCI transit bus on public auction for slightly under $5,000. Translink was asking $19,900 for these 1991/1992 buses. Although they are not identical, these buses are not work 5 times as much. They [Translink] also publicly stated they did not wish to sell used buses due to "liability issues" They fear they could be sued by buyers as a lot of the parts on these buses, as most of older buses, are fabricated "in house" So instead of lowering the price, they went for scrap. The estimated scrap value is anywhere between $800-$2,000.
This being said at least 2 of them were purchased, one is sitting at YVR, the other is planned to be used as a Chilliwack to Metrotown shopping shuttle.
I've also been told these buses will be heading to Tacoma for final "processing"
If anyone has any questions feel free to ask, I probably have an answer
"I think that I'm going to be sick" was my first reaction to this sight, after being out of the transit fanning loop for a few months now, let alone the ferry fanning loop.
I thank you, though, for the contribution, as painful as it is to witness.
I departed Woodgrove on the #90 bus at 6:24pm this evening and parked in the end NIS spot was #9891 all decked out in the New Fleet Livery. I took a Quick peek through the windows and it has New Seats.
This bus did a brief stint in Nanaimo a few years ago as I had a ride on it on route 2. I took a picture of it but don't have the time to upload it now.
Here is the picture of #9891 I snapped last night at Woodgrove. This is a "Temporary" picture untill I can get a better one. I just purchased a new Camera last week and still learning how to use it.
The first bunch of photos were taken after the show as a friend and I chased down a bus loaded onto a semi all the way to Chilliwack. Chris Cassidy
I'm curious: why would you follow a semi with a bus on it all the way to Chilliwack?
Exactly the same reason that we drive hours and hours to get pictures of a new ferry sailing into Canadian waters for the first time. He's a bus-geek, we're ferry-geeks. Same thing, but different.
Another shot of #9891 at Woodgrove in Nanaimo. I rode on this bus later on and it has Cloth seats right from the front to the back, unlike #9845 and 9846.
Also for a quick ride and look at the interior see this link:
And, a program update for the Gateway Program, presented to the Maple Ridge Council on December 6th (this one's only 17 pages): www.mapleridge.ca/assets/Default/Mayor~and~Council/pdfs/Council~Highlights/2010-12-06/gateway_update.pdf I'm waiting anxiously for the day that I'll strap on my seatbelt, make a right turn from my street onto the Abernethy connector, make a right at The SFPR and fast-track it to Tsawwassen!
This DVD is a fascinating look at the streetcars and interurban lines that disappeared from metro Vancouver in the 1950s.
You ride along the Burnaby Lake line to Sapperton and the Central Park line to New Westminster, the latter following much of the present day Expo Line. Along the way, the narrator points out the landmarks and the operational aspects of the line. There is also a trip down Oak Street, an excursion in an odd looking open top car, and another circuit of the Fairview route. Bus fans will also enjoy frequent sights of Fageols, Brills, and Pacific Stage Lines buses, as these videos were shot in the early '50s. They're in colour, and narration is by people who actually operated them- the voice overs were done in 1990. There is some sound, to give you the flavour of what it was really like.
Some of the streets look to be in poor shape because of rail maintenance, and I imagine that a lot of drivers were happy to see the streetcars go. One wonders as well at the safety of having people getting on and off in the middle of Hastings or Granville.
We got the DVD from the Vancouver Public Library, and it's also available from the Transit Museum Society. www.trams.bc.ca/dhr/souveniers.html
Post by FerryDude2012 on Dec 30, 2010 20:52:50 GMT -8
The transit fanning thread seems pretty dead Here's some more from the VRTS (Victoria Regional Transit System) - All photos were taken on Douglas Street from #9038 (2002 Dennis Trident) on the #73 Swartz Bay via West Sidney
9039 (2002 Dennis Trident) Not in Service
9007 (2000 Dennis Trident) on #14 UVic via Richmond
8114 (1996 New Flyer D40LF) on #11 UVic via Uplands
8109 (1994 New FLyer D40LF) on #30 Beacon Hill via Carey 9021 (2000 Dennis Trident) on #50 Downtown via Goldstream
9433 (2009 Novabus LFS T-Drive) on #21 Downtown 9826 (1998 New Flyer D40LF) Not in Service on Douglas at Fort
9305 (2009 Novabus LFS T-Drive) on #30 Beacon Hill via Carey
9392 (2009 Novabus LFS T-Drive) on #28 Majestic 8128 (1996 New Flyer D40LF) Not in Service Unknown 1998 New Flyer D40LF behind on the #21 Downtown 9020 (2002 Dennis Trident) on #70 Downtown Express
Various buses on Douglas at Fort
9374 (2009 Novabus LFS T-Drive) on #31 Royal Oak Exchange via Glanford
3 2009 Novabus LFS T-Drives on Douglas at Hillside/Gorge
Last Edit: Dec 30, 2010 20:54:08 GMT -8 by FerryDude2012
I like this little picture on the back of this bus in Victoria: Translink should do it here in MetroVan too, all we have is the words 'CHEC', or a route# on the back of ours.
A video-documentary from 1983 about Skytrain. Some neat points in the video:
At 0:40 in the video, check out that old trolley entering the Dunsmuir Tunnel.
The orange Seabus at 1:30.
The neat old bus at 1:51.
Check out how bleak the East end of False Creek was at 2:08.
Look at the station at 2:27 in the video. What station would this be? They've obviously retrofitted it greatly since the time that Skytrain was started.
4:12 has some great footage of the Waterfront SeaBus station, with an orange Seabus. Also, the old Canadian Pacific Logo is visible on the brown railcars in the foreground.
At 4:25, check out how the train tracks run right beside the Marine Building. Today, all that is covered by skyscrapers.
The entrance to the Dunsmuir Tunnel at 4:38. Today, Skytrain riders wouldn't even notice entering it. Also, diagrams showing the stations along the route start being shown here.
5:04, notice the total lack of today's immensely tall skyscrapers.
Approximately 7:30, Premier Bill Bennett is featured riding a demonstration track in Kingston, Ontario.
At 8:00, they show the construction of the new trains.
9:34, A piece of track is being trucked to the construction site.
11:57, two pieces of train are being shipped by highway.
12:14, notice the model of a 'future' Vancouver Skyline. See that Science World is shown as a small, nondescript box, and the condo buildings over what is currently Concord Place.
The neat 'futuristic' bus shown at 12:40 in the station diagram.
At 13:15, another Skytrain being shipped via truck.
13:40, the first Skytrain is being placed on the rails on March 25th, 1983.
A great video!
I'll be posting another review similar to this one either tonight or tomorrow sometime.
Another video documenting construction of the Skytrain, this one shot one year later, in 1984. It has no sound, but some great imagery is featured.
Points of Interest:
The first eight minutes focuses on raising pieces of track into place along the Expo Line.
For a split second at 8:01/8:02, you can see what looks like it might be the Carrier Princess at the far right of the aerial shot.
At the 8:03 mark, there's an unknown ship berthed along the Vancouver waterfront. Anybody have an idea if it's a ferry?
Also through the 8:00 mark, you can see the Marine Building again, with the railway tracks beneath it. The road that runs past it and over the railway tracks then splits in two is Burrard Street. If you were driving towards the waterfront and made a left turn at the bottom, the road leads to a ferry berth. Would this be the CPR terminal?
At 8:25, you can see the entirety of Canada Place under construction.
8:41, the Waterfront SeaBus terminal and old CPR station come into view.
At 8:47, BC Place, the Armoury, and Stadium Station are in view.
At 9:35, you can see Cambie Street Bridge under construction behind BC Place. The bridge opened in 1985.
Until 14:35, the video focuses on aerial imagery along the track.
AT 14:35, the Skytrain Maintenance and operations facility comes into view.
One last video, and this one's unique. It's a documentary published in 1985 by BC Transit about Skytrain. Some, but not too much, of the footage are repeats from the previous two videos.
Interesting bits to watch for:
The video starts in the Skytrain Operations Center, and is set in 1986, one year after the film was actually made.
At 2:24, there is footage of what we would now call a vintage bus.
At 2:37, footage shows a Seabus, likely freshly painted, as the paint scheme is the Expo Colours, unlike the orange of the previous two videos.
Check out the lighting in the SeaBus shown for a split second at 2:38. Much different from today's.
More close-up footage of a GMC bus, bound for New Westminster Station.
Check out the SeaBus fare machine at 2:49.
An old building gets demolished at 4:40
5:56 has some footage of the entrance of Dumsmuir Tunnel. Might be the same footage as in the first video I posted.
Close-up Footage of a SeaBus at 9:37
12:12, the 1 km test-section of the Skytrain is opened to the public. (1983)
16:32, a freight train is shown running under the guideway.
19:28, the final section of guideway is lain.
At 21:55, what is the transit vehicle shown for a few frames? Some kind of HandiDart, or community Shuttle type bus?
Many buses are shown from 26:20 through to about a minute or so past.
For those of you who are sports fans, a 1980s era BC Lions football game is shown at 27:29.
