rmadisonwi Posted December 22, 2008 Report Share Posted December 22, 2008 I'm sure you'll all be thrilled to know there are no more TMCs left on the active roster. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MVTArider Posted December 22, 2008 Report Share Posted December 22, 2008 R.I.P. :( Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trainman8119 Posted December 22, 2008 Report Share Posted December 22, 2008 The end of an era !!! I will miss these buses, somewhat. To me, they were decent buses (at least until they put the a/c units on them), but were never well received here. Just another type of series of bus I can put onto the list of buses I have seen come and go in my lifetime. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
artthouwill Posted December 22, 2008 Report Share Posted December 22, 2008 The end of an era !!! I will miss these buses, somewhat. To me, they were decent buses (at least until they put the a/c units on them), but were never well received here. Just another type of series of bus I can put onto the list of buses I have seen come and go in my lifetime. I promise you I won't miss our TMCs one bit. I loved the RTS bus, but not the CTA version, nor will I miss the 5300 Flxs. Again, I loved them when they first came, like the 8200sthat RTA/Pace had, but not the CTA version, the 6000s are better (not great) but that's when Flxble went under. It does seem to mark the end of the era of the high floor bus. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sw4400 Posted December 22, 2008 Report Share Posted December 22, 2008 I'm sure you'll all be thrilled to know there are no more TMCs left on the active roster. Gone.... NOOOOOOOO!!! But in all seriousness, I will miss them. I rode them on #80, and many, many times on #11 and #22. Farewell 4400's(but as said before, 4400 will continue to live on this forum through me!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Busjack Posted December 22, 2008 Report Share Posted December 22, 2008 ... and many, many times on #11 and #22.Basically the only constant in their lives was that NP always had a lot of them. While the Flxs (except for the FG to K swap*) stayed pretty much in place until the final shufflings within the last couple of years, the rest of the TMCs were all over the place. Conversely, NP was probably the only station that didn't have Flx Metros on more than a sporadic basis. ___ *Not relevant to the context of this thread, but I had forgotten the 5300s from 1 to 7. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buslover88 Posted December 22, 2008 Report Share Posted December 22, 2008 The 4400s are gone. Wow. This is history for CTA, in my opinion. Well, I'll miss the TMCs, though not as much as the Flxibles from 1991. The last TMC I rode was two years ago on #11 Lincoln, though I did forget the number. Farewell to the TMCs! You'll be missed! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CircleSeven Posted December 22, 2008 Report Share Posted December 22, 2008 In a way, I remember them when most of those buses had the windows in the back when I was young and they will be missed. On the other side of that same token, after they added the AC/Heating on the back and the overhaul, those buses keep on breaking down and should've been retired a long time ago. Trust me, 17 years is a long time, and the TMCs will be one of the memories of the CTA. But I can't be any happier that all of the TMCs are gone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BusHunter Posted December 22, 2008 Report Share Posted December 22, 2008 It's the end of the TMC era. It's hard to believe there gone. I can still remember when they first came out, all shiny and new. Being used as Xmas buses and more recently as fire dept and police buses. At least some will live on as work buses for now. But at least we still have the Flx's. It will be even worse when they are retired. They have a 50 year tradition of driving the streets of Chicago. That will be one sad day in a series of goodbyes to come. :( Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted December 22, 2008 Report Share Posted December 22, 2008 What a bus!!, They served us well!!. Im glad to have spent many hours behind the wheel of these buses, I really enjoyed driving the TMCs. They were definitely one of my favorite bus models and I will certainly miss them. I liked the design, I liked the familiar "cats eyes" taillamps. I didnt like the rear window, but of course CTA always has to be different!. They took on an even more interesting look when they had the a/c installed on them, they looked more like their RTS counterparts. Ill never forget that goofy farebox track where you had to move the farebox in order to allow the wheelchair to enter. To me the TMC didnt seem like a bus but more like a truck! I loved how high the drivers seat was. I have many memories plus videos and pix of the CTA RTS, sad to hear theyre all gone. We still at the very least have the TMC work buses and the CFD/CPD buses. So theyre not entirely gone, but it is still bittersweet! CTA TMC RTS-08 4400-4875/4900-4914, 1989-2008, Gone but will never be forgotten!! On a different note, I was informed of some terrible news today. We lost a dear member of the Pace/Academy family. Wayne Schollz was a dear friend, good bus operator, fun guy to work alongside. We worked Routes 696/699 together. Wayne passed away one week ago, R.I.P Wayne. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
T8H5307A Posted December 22, 2008 Report Share Posted December 22, 2008 4519 is outside North Park Garage and inside is Huberman and a farewell to the TMC's cake with a picture of 4519 on the cake! Going out with dignity sort of! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted December 22, 2008 Report Share Posted December 22, 2008 4519 is outside North Park Garage and inside is Huberman and a farewell to the TMC's cake with a picture of 4519 on the cake! Going out with dignity sort of! Anyone check and see if this a newsworthy story. Maybe the news channels captured this?. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cta 5555 Posted December 22, 2008 Report Share Posted December 22, 2008 I will miss then alot to. I never got to drive them but i know when comes time for the last 5300 i be a very sad. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kendo26 Posted December 22, 2008 Report Share Posted December 22, 2008 Farewell TMC's. You served us well! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zol87 Posted December 23, 2008 Report Share Posted December 23, 2008 R.I.P. 4400's. You will be missed. My last ride on one was over the summer on the 49B. It was on that ride that I realized how old these buses were, I grew up riding them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cta_44499_FG Posted December 23, 2008 Report Share Posted December 23, 2008 Anyone check and see if this a newsworthy story. Maybe the news channels captured this?. I can confirm this. A- I was present B- I shook his hand. 4519 was on hand and operators were invited to write on it...sorta like a farewell. It is still there at this hour if anyone wishes to go check. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikeymc77 Posted December 23, 2008 Report Share Posted December 23, 2008 I can confirm this. A- I was present B- I shook his hand. 4519 was on hand and operators were invited to write on it...sorta like a farewell. It is still there at this hour if anyone wishes to go check. Would there be pics available?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
exitzero Posted December 23, 2008 Report Share Posted December 23, 2008 :( *snif* Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sw4400 Posted December 23, 2008 Report Share Posted December 23, 2008 I can confirm this. A- I was present B- I shook his hand. 4519 was on hand and operators were invited to write on it...sorta like a farewell. It is still there at this hour if anyone wishes to go check. Yes, pics please!!! 4519 was one of the many #11's I remember taking to and from work on cold days for many years. Please put farewell pictures of this bus up if you have them!!! #4519, Thanks for the memories! Welcome back to North Park, your home for years, for one last farewell!!! I wish I could've been there to get some photos of you before you are driven/towed to 95th/Ewing for scrapping!!! The sound of your motor shifting gears will forever be remembered by me!!! -sw4400 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sw4400 Posted December 23, 2008 Report Share Posted December 23, 2008 Here's a little farewell photo to our TMC's... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Busjack Posted December 23, 2008 Report Share Posted December 23, 2008 Here's a little farewell photo to our TMC's... That sure looks like the Muslim bus. At least the watermark is there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jajuan Posted December 23, 2008 Report Share Posted December 23, 2008 Since some members are recalling the last time they were aboard a TMC, my last ride on one was back in April on the 12 Roosevelt when Kedzie still had them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trey824 Posted December 24, 2008 Report Share Posted December 24, 2008 Here's a little farewell photo to our TMC's... i will really miss those buses.i liked the sound of that detroit diesel engine and the distinctive gasoline smell. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
busfan4022 Posted December 24, 2008 Report Share Posted December 24, 2008 Good riddance! No, I'm kidding. ]: I'll miss the rain water that would always leak and fall on my clothes while riding them though.~ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MVTArider Posted December 24, 2008 Report Share Posted December 24, 2008 I remember I actually was on a CTA TMC for about ten blocks during the 2005 auto show. I hope I can get a longer ride on a TMC/RTS somewhere though before they are wiped from the face of the earth ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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