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On my weekend trip, the high level platforms at Portage and Dune Park were used in both directions. The low level platforms might only be used at rush hour.

Rust is hard to maintain let alone band aid once it reaches the beam of the frame. The overall structural integrity of the bus is soon to be compromised deeming it unworthy to even repair. Now it's caught early enough they can attempt to patch it up. However, Rush is still rustvand it will eventually showcase its true power.

The other strange thing I saw from the videos (I have not been out there), is that they operate the 300 series Highliners in 3-car consists instead of even numbers. Thus, even though I thought they ran 2 6-car trains, they might run 4 3-car trains. That may also explain how 26 cars rented from Metra can fill in for 32 cars for the Monon Corridor, while also expanding service on the mainline.

Update: Gary Metro, Beverly Shores and Carroll Avenue are low level platform stations whereas Miller, Portage/Ogden Dunes*, Dune Park* and 11th Street are high level platform stations. *From the videos that I've seen regarding the double track work, I believe the WB (inbound) platforms are high level and the EB (outbound) platforms are low level platforms for Portage and Dune Park, respectively.

It's weird seeing a artic on the 29 seen 4182 on there last night then today somebody on 79th pissed off it was 3 79 buses back to back & 1552 was being towed into 7 like going to sit in the boneyard Snapchat-387902916.mp4 Snapchat-1357109469.mp4 Snapchat-1094140318.mp4

And pertinent to TRANSIT FARE. 🫥 I was going to refer to something else regarding to a certain person heading to the DMV,* but won't. ------------ *Giannoulias says Illinois now has a DMV.

There may be a way, but aside whether it is physically possible to weld a sister to rust and assure its structural integrity, 630 are scheduled for retirement and their replacements are here or on the way in the next maybe 10 months, so it makes no economic sense, especially if shops are short staffed. Except for maybe a couple of Legacy Fleet vehicles, the CTA doesn't run a restomod show for MotorTrend TV.

I'm glad this was a BRIEF POST!

Isn't there any way of repairing the frames to give them addition time in service? Welding in new bracing, for example.

Don't use the Free Ride pass too much in one day or you'll get a nasty letter from the CTA about that. That happened several years ago after using the CTA bus & L extensively on the annual October weekend of Open House Chicago, of which bizarrely the CTA was & still is a sponsor. That's how incompetent the CTA is!

This seems to be the most appropriate topic where to post. I will keep this brief. I did not think I was qualified for this; but when applying for my Illinois license plate renewal in December; because I could renew that for the [i]senior citizen[/i] rate, it had a tick box for querying eligibilty for the Regional Transportation Authority's '[b]Seniors Ride Free[/b]' pass. I already possessed the Half Fare permit. I thought that was all to which I was entitled. I ticked the box. I was prepared for someone to respond I did not qualify (but try again next year). The process involved presenting a copy of a filed Illinois IL-1040 form to check financial limitations. To my amazement, I was eligible for the Ride Free pass. I was approved for it back at the end of January. I thought it would have been sent to me semi-automatically once the R.T.A. learned of my eligibilty. That was erroneous. After a month, I went to the R.T.A.'s World-Wide Web site to inspect how to apply for it there. Because I had the Half Fare permit, [u]I could not apply for the Ride Free pass online[/u]. I had to physically visit one of the R.T.A.'s service outlets. Not all of its outlets have photography; and the R.T.A. wants to have a new(er) picture of you than what is on your Half Fare permit. I chose the outlet with photography at Damen & Lawrence on Chicago's north side. With everything else occuring here at the abode. I did not visit until Wednesday, 17 April. The "[i]up to ten working days[/i]" note notwithstanding, the pass arrived here on Monday, the 22nd. Wow. It must not have had many other applications to process. So I now have this pass. It is a moment when my transit use was going to throttle up anyhow; with warmer days and more significantly, [b]Illinois Craft Beer Week[/b] from 3-10 May, starting with [b]Beer Under Glass[/b] @ Union Station on Friday, the 3rd. We of the [u]Logan Square Draught Beer Preservation Society[/u] will conduct a [u]Pub Crawl[/u] of bars and pubs in [b][u]Avondale[/u][/b] on Monday, the 6th. I will send publications a proclamation of venues and times we will visit. I was out-&-about Monday, making copies of the handbill with the data, and shall distribute those in the upcoming days. If you want the data, contact me; or else look for it online at the Little Three Happiness Forum or FlyerTalk Forum [in the 'Community Buzz' rubric]. My main duplication store is Copy Max (two words - to avert copyright snags) at Milwaukee & Paulina, near the Division & Ashland Blue Line "L" station. After duplicating there, I went back to Ashland Av. to ride north to Cortland for the [b][u]Bucktown Pub[/u][/b]. I did not stay too long there. As I strolled back to Cortland & Ashland, a westbound route #73 Armitage bus came into view. I boarded it to ride to the Western "L" stop. The bus, from Chicago garage #1128, [i]had the new farebox[/i]. Here are photos of it; and for comparison, the new Pace bus farebox, so that you don't get the two of them mixed up.

Theres a post from Facebook L group shows #7109 and its mate on the test track. I believe we have up to #7129-30 at the factory being assembled through different stages.

The 1630-2029 rust issue has gotten bad enough that 8350s will be assigned to North Park in the near future. 8596 is assigned to North Park right now for driver training (8596 was previously assigned to Kedzie (this is in the 8350s thread)).

Good stuff. The blue line seems on track to get up to 7150 at least before the year is over.

Ss is probably overloaded with all the 8350s that have been sitting around for a while and the 4300 refurb, and because c runs a lot of routes through downtown/river north, they probably want those routes to have the nicest looking buses.

Previously, 8596 was at Kedzie. Will 8596 return to Kedzie at some point, or is 8596 being assigned to North Park long term (in other words, will 8596 return to service being assigned to North Park after driver training at North Park is over)?

I was commenting : only on that FG lost the 65 buses, not why K needed them. why C was now getting buses, when by saying "C is just about even when it comes to #1000s and #8350s" you left out that it also has 8100s.

They been assigned there since 2022

That mystery was debunked last year in regards to K getting Novas. A combination of option 3-4 #1000s getting sidelined for structural integrity. Those 65 were just the tip of the Iceburg for what I call familiarizing more operators at K with the difference of bus. C Also falls in the same boat with option 3-4 models getting sidelined for structural integrity. It's no secret as to why C and K received newer equipment the way they did. It's a supply demand thing going on as of late. C is just about even when it comes to #1000s and #8350s. There's about 98-99 New buses that out number the 94-95 Flyers left at the garage. NP being next in line doesn't surprise me one bit. I just wonder how many Flyers will get sidelined/ transfered from up there to other garages around the system excluding FG.

#2793-94 is now assigned to Midway

@jajuan about made the point, and @Elkmn didn't quote that part. After FG got essentially 8233-8324 8342-8349, and then the first 8350s, someone sent 8260-8324 (65 buses) to K [all numbers approximate]. I don't know what the justification was or whether it can be undone. I also don't see the justification for packing the current deliveries at C, unless CTA has to get them out of SS and NPisn't ready to take them yet.

I could not agree with this more. FG runs a lot of low use routes but some routes like the 77, 80 and 81 regularly run full capacity buses, and I'm not a mechanic or bus expert, but I dont think regularly packing up dying buses built with weak frames is a good idea, especially every day. I wouldn't care if fg lost the rest of their 7900s as long as they got at least half of the 8700s.

I wasn't referring to those with the 2040 goal. I was referring to the environmental activists saying to cancel the Nova contract (maybe better put, not exercise the options) after getting the first 100. Somehow (after doing the search) I realized that I recalled this Sun-Times article. While CTA didn't go for that bait, Pace's actions have been inconsistent. While Pace acquired 20700 for the purpose "of testing it at various divisions and gaining experience with it," it didn't get the CNG buses it said it needed to inaugurate Dempster Pulse and for some replacements, the net effect being that River (Elgin garage) is left running 30-footers on routes such as 606. By saying "our CNG manufacturer is out of business," I infer that Pace doesn't intend to buy NF or Gillig CNGs. Thus, its entire strategy is based on the order for 22 Proterras for North, which seem to have survived bankruptcy reorganization. Maybe the plan is to ship some 6730s from N to W to retire 6323s, but that's counting on awfully a lot at this stage.

So in other words the people yelling to "cancel diesel contracts" and mandate all electric by 2040 need to face reality 🥴

I attended a Zoom lecture on alternative energy (he included landfill methane and corn alcohol, as not fossil fuels, even though they are carbon-based), and at the end I commented that I was following bus electrification, including the activists saying "cancel the diesel contracts now, " the talk about the inadequacy of the grid, one TA being frozen in making a decision whether one garage should be CNG, BEB, or FC, and inability to keep one manufacturer's buses in service and warranty claims against that manufacturer. His response: "The technology hasn't caught up yet."