Deadhead trips

[trainman8119]

Is there a reason why so many North Park buses deadhead back to the garage from downtown using the Kennedy and Edens expressways to Foster instead of using Lake Shore Drive to Foster. Would it not be a shorter trip using LSD ???? It is not like the 14's that use the Dan Ryan, since there is not really a better way to get to 103rd. I have also seen some Forest Glen buses deadheading downtown on the Kennedy, presumably for the 56 to start there (since there are no other Forest Glen routes that go downtown). I wonder if all of these extra long trips are really necessary, especially with the cost of fuel the way it is now. Maybe some some consideration should be given to trying to make some of these trips into some sort of revenue trips. I would think a little bit of coin going from point A to point B to cover costs might be beneficial.

[Busjack]

Probably would only be a "little bit of coin," unless there is evidence that reverse rush 146s and 147s are now overloaded. I think the problem is that the CTA has been locating depots (I resist saying "garages," since we are talking about FG and NP) at the extremities. Didn't there used to be a storage yard around 15th & State? Of course, land costs near downtown might make that now prohibitive.

Probably better to cut platform time and send the buses back. At one time, drivers were supposed to finish their routes and haul passengers on depot runs, but I know of situations where they just turned back short, let off the passengers, and ran express to the depot (on city streets). For instance, the old LaSalle-Sheridan was supposed to go via Granville and Broadway to Devon & Sheridan, but the driver would kick the passsengers off at the L station and turn south on Broadway to Limits.

[trainman8119]

I like the term Depot...maybe we could start a trend. Thanks for clearing that up...now it makes some sense to me. My point on the coin thing, is that suppose fuel is 2 bucks a gallon (wholesale) and buses get about 4 miles a gallon. If you put even 5 or 6 people on that bus going back, you might be able to recover some of that cost. In hard financial times, even a little would help (I would think).

Yes there was a yard for midday layovers at 14th and State in the old days. With your note about exterior points for depots, I think you can agree that thoses who planned things in the old days were downright brilliant with the old car houses and garages (such as Limits, Keeler 52nd, etc) being "in the middle".

[Busjack]

Limits was actually in a pretty good spot, as far as operations were concerned, given the number of runs now ending at Belmont (such as 134, 143, 151 and 156) that now have to return to Kedzie, and also the north end of 8 and 9, 125 and 157. However, it was also a blight on a gentrifying neighborhood and the capacity was no longer necessary. In retrospect, the proposed garage at Elston would probably not have served this function.

If North Park should be near the extremities, it should be in Rogers Park (since many of its runs terminate at Howard), but I don't know if there is any land available near there. In effect, its runs have long deadheads from either end, and FG has all of the E-W runs near it (Addison thru Peterson). The p.m. rush has a lot of deadheading from Foster on LSD (marked with "DOWNTOWN" signs).

[jesi2282]

Sorry to bring up thread, but can you ride deadhead trips back to downtown.

[Busjack]

Sorry to bring up thread, but can you ride deadhead trips back to downtown.

I suppose (in the case of North Park trips) you would have to get on at Sheridan and Foster, in which case you can take 147. Are they making local stops on Foster?

[rmadisonwi]

You are supposed to be able to ride them.  That's why they have a sign indicating a destination (albeit a very generalized one) rather than "Not in service."

[jesi2282]

What do the 173 and buses say when they are going back the U of C campus?, and what do the 192 buses say when going back to the Hospital?

[rmadisonwi]

Some of them do say "NOT IN SERVICE." The 192 says not in service, and the 173 should as well.

Many deadhead trips on other routes have a destination sign for their general direction (i.e. "DOWNTOWN"), with a door announcement that says "service to [wherever]."

[jesi2282]

Can you ride 173 deadheads?, even though they say: NOT IN SERVICE.

[Busjack]

Can you ride 173 deadheads?, even though they say: NOT IN SERVICE.

I was surprised to see on the schedule that 173 technically is in service northbound only. I suppose that the U of C can pay for what it wants, but obviously the route does not link the Business School's Gleacher center with the campus any more (at least getting back to campus).

With the late evening weekend runs on 174, they apparently believe that the feeder to the L serves the purpose of the old 173, but being a former student there, I tend to disagree. BTW, I don't see what the 174 adds to the 55, except maybe that if you wait up to 20 minutes, it will drop you off on 57th instead of 55th (but I lived closer to 55th).

[CircleSeven]

As a CTA Rider, I'd rode alot of deadheads before. The one's that states 'NOT IN SERVICE', the driver cannot pick up any passengers. But when it states other destinations like 'DOWNTOWN' or other destinations, your best bet is to flag the driver to get on at any bus stop that driver is driving even if they are off route. Now even though they dont have the Not In Service on their run assignment sheet, they cannot pass anybody up whatsoever unless they're instructed by a Supervisor to do so. I'd caught a few deadheads from Foster & Sheridan before whenever I dont see a 147 present. Now frequently drivers that have destinations, they would still pass the passengers up instead of picking them up. I guess the reason is to get the their destination to start their routes on time.

In the mornings, notice why the 144, 145, 146 & 148 share its run number bracket. Most of those runs might run 2 or even three different routes in one platform. For example, when they pullout from the Garage and they start the 144 from Berwyn & Broadway and end the route at Balbo & State. Then you deadhead back to the Outer Drive (LSD) from Balbo and get off at Montrose to start the 145 (Which in the mornings before 9am, 145 starts at Montrose & Marine to help alleviate the overcrowding of the 146 south of Irving Park). They'll do the 145 trip all the way to Congress & Wells and they deadhead back to the garage via the Kennedy and Kedzie Avenue to the Garage. Other runs are mostly just trippers where they'll only do one trip and pullin from downtown via the Outer Drive. But it's really depending on that run. I remember riding a deadhead back a couple of years ago where a driver was finished doing the northbound #151 Sheridan route from Foster and Sheridan and he deadhead all the way to Clark & Polk (via LSD-Balbo-State-Harrison & Clark) where he was about to do #22 Clark Street route going northbound. Even some drivers along Foster that deadheads to their respective routes, that don't work the #92 Foster school trips picks up passenger.

To Jesi's Question's, if you going all the way to the University of Chicago campus which that bus would take the Outer Drive from Belmont to 57th, Cornell and the Midway Plaisance and start the route back up again. Like I said, If that driver would pick you up and take you over there, you will be lucky. The reason I said lucky is because most drivers wont pick you up even though they're not obligated to pass up their passengers when the deadhead starts. But if their run states 'Not In Service', they can't pick you up.

Yeah, some drivers who dont have the 'NOT IN SERVICE' sign may not pick up passengers, highly because they are too destin to beat the rush hour traffic to start their route at their terminus. You just have to be lucky if that driver stops and pick you up. that's all.