Greyhound seats and fleet questions

[andrewlhe]

I like this solution

https://www.google.com/search?q=trailers+as+buses&rlz=1C1SKPM_enUS438&tbm=isch&imgil=y4NBpf65wAi1lM%253A%253BQnUgZIrlpO9NGM%253Bhttps%25253A%25252F%25252Fen.wikipedia.org%25252Fwiki%25252FTrailer_bus&source=iu&pf=m&fir=y4NBpf65wAi1lM%253A%252CQnUgZIrlpO9NGM%252C_&biw=1440&bih=813&usg=__L_28w4L4a7Kh3FNsXseHyybtdNQ%3D&ved=0CCcQyjdqFQoTCLL0jbjjmskCFYXKPgodfU8Pgw&ei=5NpMVrLyB4WV-wH9nr2YCA#imgrc=y4NBpf65wAi1lM%3A&usg=__L_28w4L4a7Kh3FNsXseHyybtdNQ%3D

Oh this is a fantastic idea, you can even have multiple trailers in a row if you are overbooked. But this thing must have an awfully big turn radius. Plus, in addition to the driver in the tractor, you probably need a conductor in the trailer.

 

[rickycourtney]

I like this solution

https://www.google.com/search?q=trailers+as+buses&rlz=1C1SKPM_enUS438&tbm=isch&imgil=y4NBpf65wAi1lM%253A%253BQnUgZIrlpO9NGM%253Bhttps%25253A%25252F%25252Fen.wikipedia.org%25252Fwiki%25252FTrailer_bus&source=iu&pf=m&fir=y4NBpf65wAi1lM%253A%252CQnUgZIrlpO9NGM%252C_&biw=1440&bih=813&usg=__L_28w4L4a7Kh3FNsXseHyybtdNQ%3D&ved=0CCcQyjdqFQoTCLL0jbjjmskCFYXKPgodfU8Pgw&ei=5NpMVrLyB4WV-wH9nr2YCA#imgrc=y4NBpf65wAi1lM%3A&usg=__L_28w4L4a7Kh3FNsXseHyybtdNQ%3D

Oh this is a fantastic idea, you can even have multiple trailers in a row if you are overbooked. But this thing must have an awfully big turn radius. Plus, in addition to the driver in the tractor, you probably need a conductor in the trailer.

I've actually rode on a bus like that on Catalina Island.

Source: http://californiaweekend.com/california-vacation/catalina-tour.html

Actually since these buses are articulated... they have a tighter turning radius compared to a normal bus. In fact that's why they use buses like this on the twisting roads of Catalina Island.

In fact in the transit bus world I know 60 foot articulated buses turn tighter than a 40 foot bus.

 

[Swadian Hardcore]

Yep, trailer buses (and articulated buses) do turn tighter. Though, of course, using them as motorcoaches is a joke. He meant it to be funny. A transit man told me artics do like to swing their tails around when turning.

I like those shields used by Winnipeg Transit, though I don't know if it would be easy to install them in motorcoaches. As you know, what looks easy on paper may be difficult in practice. I'll defer to motorcoach driver Railiner for his opinion. I have not yet ridden a transit bus with such shields.

For safety, I advocate for drivers to check all passengers' IDs and also stop visibly suspicious passengers from boarding.

 

[mightyjoe1201]

In a way I like the idea of a bus like the one railiner mentioned. Only problem there is that in areas like the north east where roads are narrow it would be hard to maneuver. Tho not being able to interact with some passengers would be a blessing for drivers. Lol.

 

[Swadian Hardcore]

A GLC (ex-GLI) 102DL3 caught on fire near Field, BC this morning: http://globalnews.ca/news/2350338/greyhound-bus-fire-closes-trans-canada-highway-west-of-field-bc/.

It was running Schedule 5004 Vancouver-Calgary when a tire in the rear blew out and sparked the fire. The driver tried to put out the fire to no avail. He and all the passengers were able to escape the bus unscathed, but the bus was destroyed. The bus number is unclear.

AFAIK, almost all buses that suffer a rear tire blowout will be destroyed by fire. Preventing such blowouts and their resultant fires should be a top priority.

 

[rickycourtney]

BoltBus launched its own bus tracker today. There's a link on the homepage and the function has been added to the BoltBus app too.

It's just in time for my December return trip after celebrating my birthday in Vancouver with my wife (we're taking Amtrak Cascades up to Vancouver).

BoltBus has also improved eTicketing since my last trip earlier this year. In addition to getting the boarding pass emailed, you can now pull it up in the BoltBus app and create a pass that can be stored in the iPhone Wallet.

 

[Swadian Hardcore]

Ha, it's just like Greyhound BusTracker! Clearly the same program. #6670 is in action today on the Seattle-Vancouver, though I wasn't able to find the other H3-45s.

I am still of the firm belief that improving the sales process of your product is hypocritical when not backed up by improvements in the product itself, especially if the product is poor.

Could you please see what Greyhound has up in Vancouver when you go up there? How's the weather up there?

 

[andrewlhe]

Speaking of Bolt bus, is the fleet roaster on Wikipedia accurate?

Did you edit that to include the seats on them? Texas DMV certainly wouldn't have that information. I sensed your hatred...

Bolt bus's mobile app is entirely the same as Greyhound's except the color. Their website is exactly the old GLI website.

 

[Swadian Hardcore]

Wikipedia should not be trusted since anybody can edit it and the "official" GLI fleet page is inaccurate. You can figure out the seats on Texas DMV by looking at the model and year of the bus. For example, VIN prefix "2PCG" is the X3-45. All 2008 X3-45s have the Patriot seats, the same as the DL3. All other X3-45s have Premier seats, which are torturous.

BoltBus X3-45s have 0800-series numbers. Do keep in mind that #0842 exploded on the New York City-Boston route after the engine caught on fire: http://a.abcnews.go.com/images/US/ht_bolt_bus_explosion_kb_150511_16x9_992.jpg.

 

[rickycourtney]

I would argue that the product BoltBus is offering isn't poor. In fact every trip I've taken with them has been pleasant.

The drivers are friendly, the buses are clean, they offer eTicketing, WiFi, power outlets and the price can't be beat.

What more do you want?

My only complaint is with the seats being uncomfortable. That being said, I find them tolerable for the short trips BoltBus offers. Truth be told, I've sat in worse seats on airplanes, for longer periods of time.

 

[Swadian Hardcore]

I've sat in a lot of seats on planes, but I haven't sat in one as bad as a Painful Premier. And I reckon I've taken a lot longer flights and a lot longer bus rides than you have.

I'm pissed at Greyhound, and I'm pissed at BoltBus. That's why I'm boycotting them. You know why I'm boycotting them, and I will not repeat myself. If someone else asks, I might explain again, though I'm tired of doing it.

Some people are hippies. And some people are the antithesis of hippies. I'm one of the latter.

 

[rickycourtney]

I'm neither.

Some people just wants to travel on schedules that work (which Amtrak is failing to provide), safely and at an affordable cost. That's me. In my experience BoltBus provides that, so I don't mind traveling with them.

 

[Swadian Hardcore]

That doesn't mean their product is good. Just because they offer a useable (and barely tolerable) product doesn't mean they offer a good product.

Greyhound offered a better product 50 years ago than what they offer now, other than the fact that they used to make more stops. Frankly, if I came face-to-face with the designer of the Premier, I'd give him the middle finger, and I'd do the same to the engineers who designed the D4505.

You make things better, not make things worse. You don't make things worse and then introduce e-ticketing to cover up your mistakes.

 

[andrewlhe]

Any comment on Megabus?

 

[rickycourtney]

Any comment on Megabus?

He hates them too.

 

[Swadian Hardcore]

Actually, I don't hate them, I hate Van Hools. Similarly, I don't hate BoltBus, I just hate Painful Premiers and D4505s. Just because I'm angry at GLI and think they are stupid doesn't mean I hate them.

After all, it was GLI who refused to fix the route map after I e-mailed them with a list of mistakes. It was GLI who continued to order Painful Premiers even though nearly everybody hated them and complained about them. It was GLI who failed to discipline their drivers for intentionally delaying their buses. It was GLI who governed their buses below the speed limit for "safety" and then deferred maintenance. It was GLI who failed to fix any of their problems and decided to distract us with a new website instead.

If you have to choose between Megabus and BoltBus, choose BoltBus. In the Northeast, you have a decent chance of getting either a 2008 X3-45 (http://www.ttmg.org/photos/tlogan/Bolltbus_Prevost_X345-Interior.jpg) or a Peter Pan BoltBus (http://www.ttmg.org/photos/tlogan/Boltbus_MCI_D4505-Interior.jpg). They also have 6 new CX45s which are poor buses but with OK seats.

 

[andrewlhe]

Did you see the video on American Seating's website about the safety advantages of Premiers over normal seats? Poor DL3 destroyed in that crash test. Also, Greyhound's CEO appeared in that video saying stupid stuffs. That makes me think there must be something behind the scene.

 

[rickycourtney]

So a bit of background... the Premier is a 6+ year old seat design at this point. When it was introduced it was really the first seat that put safety first, by adding seat belts but still keeping containment. But the problem is that it put safety first... and comfort a far second. Now fast-forward to today, the federal design standards have caught up and most seat manufacturers are now building a safety compliant seat that's also comfortable.

Greyhound was way out in front here. In 2008 when they bought the first Premier seats, they were the only seats on the market that included 3-point belts and containment. I have a hard time faulting them for trying to do the right thing.

The only thing I fault Greyhound for is continuing to buy the Premier seats over the last 3 years or so, when there were more comfortable and safe seats available. Bear in mind that's about 200 coaches in a 1,200+ coach fleet.

 

[Caesar La Rock]

Megabus, they've been doing well down here. So well in fact, they're stealing business from other companies. Due to the fact no serious accidents have occurred with Megabus and the buses often arriving early at their destinations, that furthermore makes them a very tough competitor.

 

[Swadian Hardcore]

The Premier wasn't necessarily the first seat that put safety first. I think many previous seats also put safety first, but they just weren't as safe as the Premier. And some school bus seats already had seat belts and containment, they just weren't comfortable. Furthermore, I thought Kiel Sitze (or maybe whoever makes the Setra seats) had already designed seats equally as safe as the Premier and much more comfortable, they just weren't offered in North America yet.

Apparently, Greyhound tried to do the right thing, but they must've also done some shady dealing behind the scenes, because even after countless people have complained about the Premier, GLI has ordered nothing but Premiers since 2009. And Premiers now comprise 50% of all GLI seats - a total of approximately 30,000 seats in 600 motorcoaches. In contrast, other original Premier customers, such as IT and ADI, have switched to much superior seats for their latest orders.

Meanwhile, GLI is dumbfounded at why they are losing passengers.

 

[Swadian Hardcore]

A GLI driver on Facebook, who had previously exchanged messages with me, has issued a warning about "non-Greyhound employees" in a Greyhound group (which I am part of), suggesting that I am a "terrorist" and saying that I "know too much about GLI.....and us and our union policies". He has called for my eviction from said group and is recommending that other members not communicate to me. Keep in mind that I am the only member of the group who is both not a Greyhound employee and knows more about Greyhound than some of the employee-members.

So now not only is it a crime to take pictures of buses, but it's also a crime to know too much about buses?

This is a blatant insult and I am furious!

 

[andrewlhe]

Do they ban people photographing their bus? I have took decent amount of pictures at their terminals at both C'ville and Richmond for anything I am interested in, and I met no opposition. I walked in their garage at Richmond, taking pictures of each bus in it, and some of their employees saw me but seemed they don't care at all.

 

[Caesar La Rock]

If they say something, they'll probably ask you what you're doing. However, they may not even do anything and might ignore you all together. Especially during this time of the year, when it gets busy. However, with the attacks on Paris and ISIS threatening further attacks in the US, security may have been increased up for precautions.

 

[andrewlhe]

If they have security concerns, the first things to do is to set up security screening for boarding or just for the entrance of the station

In addition, armed guards.

People's Armed Police Corp(China's National Guard) at a Chinese railway station

https://www.flickr.com/gp/138022528@N08/7tJ2bf

 

[Swadian Hardcore]

Back in 2013, I was photographing in Sacramento when a security guard told me to stop taking pictures. Then, in 2014, I taking pictures of an Orange Belt Stages DL3 when the driver told me to stop taking pictures and also forced me to delete the pictures I had taken. However, I was able to sneak out with some of the pictures.

But when I was at the Los Angeles Maintenance Center last Christmas, they actually gave me permission to walk around and take pictures so long as I did not obstruct operations.

I find it quite comical to think terrorists would attack GLI as most GLI passengers are poor and it would do far more damage to attack Amtrak. Furthermore, a real terrorist wanting to attack GLI would most likely get on at a small town with a suicide belt and blow himself up. There would be no need to take pictures.

But what's really comical is that this GLI driver on Facebook has accused me of being of terrorist. Not only does he have no evidence that I am a terrorist, he also has no evidence that any terrorist wants to attack GLI.

Furthermore, a potential terrorist could easily find pictures and videos online of motorcoaches, including detailed videos such as this one: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bNN47FY_vn4.