BusHunter Posted January 30, 2016 Report Share Posted January 30, 2016 Out In California, someone sheared off the first 7-10 feet of the only double decker SLO transit has. They tried to take a 14 foot tall bus through a 12 foot viaduct. Here's the link, maybe they should called them SOL transit!! http://www.sanluisobispo.com/news/local/article56481033.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Busjack Posted January 30, 2016 Report Share Posted January 30, 2016 Brings up the old joke "we could have snuck under if we went faster." Also demonstrates, despite foamer entreaties, why there aren't 14 foot double deckers in Chicago. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BusHunter Posted January 30, 2016 Author Report Share Posted January 30, 2016 Well we do have double decker sightseeing tours and Megabus here, just not at CTA. At least now they can work on their tans!! It's California!! I thought it never rains in southern California!! At least that's what the song says. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Busjack Posted January 30, 2016 Report Share Posted January 30, 2016 16 minutes ago, BusHunter said: Well we do have double decker sightseeing tours and Megabus here, just not at CTA They also don't have to go under any UP or CTA viaduct between NP garage and LSD or Anthony Ave. viaduct between 103 and LSD. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sw4400 Posted January 30, 2016 Report Share Posted January 30, 2016 2 hours ago, BusHunter said: Out In California, someone sheared off the first 7-10 feet of the only double decker SLO transit has. They tried to take a 14 foot tall bus through a 12 foot viaduct. Here's the link, maybe they should called them SOL transit!! http://www.sanluisobispo.com/news/local/article56481033.html 2 hours ago, Busjack said: Brings up the old joke "we could have snuck under if we went faster." Also demonstrates, despite foamer entreaties, why there aren't 14 foot double deckers in Chicago. People try all the time, as seen in this video.... yes, it's a repeat of the same trucks in different shots mostly, but it's an example of how people just don't seen to read the signs posted about clearance, or know their vehicles' clearance. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Busjack Posted January 31, 2016 Report Share Posted January 31, 2016 At about 1:00: "It sure Hertz, don't it." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
geneking7320 Posted January 31, 2016 Report Share Posted January 31, 2016 I think I have seen diamond shaped warning signs around town which show the height and say EXACTLY. I live on Rogers in Rogers Park and I have seen at least one instance where a truck driver has gotten stuck under the UP North viaduct over Rogers Avenue west of Clark. The sign for that viaduct does not say EXACTLY. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pace831 Posted January 31, 2016 Report Share Posted January 31, 2016 18 hours ago, sw4400 said: People try all the time, as seen in this video.... yes, it's a repeat of the same trucks in different shots mostly, but it's an example of how people just don't seen to read the signs posted about clearance, or know their vehicles' clearance. So, there is a sign on the bridge that says OVER HEIGHT WHEN FLASHING, the lights are in fact flashing, and enough people still hit that bridge to devote a website to it. I wish I could say that surprises me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Busjack Posted January 31, 2016 Report Share Posted January 31, 2016 10 hours ago, geneking7320 said: I think I have seen diamond shaped warning signs around town which show the height and say EXACTLY. I live on Rogers in Rogers Park and I have seen at least one instance where a truck driver has gotten stuck under the UP North viaduct over Rogers Avenue west of Clark. The sign for that viaduct does not say EXACTLY. I think there was an article at one time saying that some overpasses are posted lower than they actually are. Most people can't figure out how CMC ran double deckers, although the books say they were not as high as the comparable NY Fifth Ave. lines ones. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pace831 Posted January 31, 2016 Report Share Posted January 31, 2016 10 minutes ago, Busjack said: I think there was an article at one time saying that some overpasses are posted lower than they actually are. Here is the MUTCD standard. There is indeed a small amount of leeway. Looking at the website 11foot8.com, the height of the bridge in the video was measured at 11 ft 10.8 in. To the contrary, I've heard of accidents happening because too many layers of asphalt were added over the years without removing the old ones, making the posted clearance less than the actual. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Busjack Posted February 1, 2016 Report Share Posted February 1, 2016 8 hours ago, Pace831 said: To the contrary, I've heard of accidents happening because too many layers of asphalt were added over the years without removing the old ones, making the posted clearance less than the actual. That was one explanation of the picture of the double decker buses going under the L at Sheridan and Kenmore, but it didn't look to me like there is asphalt now there, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MTRSP1900-CTA3200 Posted February 1, 2016 Report Share Posted February 1, 2016 In Oak Park, the bridges for the Green Line and Metra embankment are always pushed in at the bottom where tall vehicles have struck them in the past. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
strictures Posted February 1, 2016 Report Share Posted February 1, 2016 On 1/30/2016 at 0:22 PM, Busjack said: Brings up the old joke "we could have snuck under if we went faster." Also demonstrates, despite foamer entreaties, why there aren't 14 foot double deckers in Chicago. My dad told of the time in the early 1930s when his kid brother was on the upper level a CMC double decker, without a roof & he got cold cocked by a bridge, because he was a smartass & didn't duck! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MetroShadow Posted February 3, 2016 Report Share Posted February 3, 2016 In between my trips to West Coast (and settling in San Jose), I've seen tests of the Enviro 500 (the victim of the SLO fiasco) on AC Transit, and it's a problem they are experiencing here - but it's the trees, not so much the bridges. This...good lord. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andrethebusman Posted February 3, 2016 Report Share Posted February 3, 2016 CMC 1930's DD's were what YC called "low deckers" - 12'6" high. Lower level was similar in floor height to a current low-floor, if not even lower to the ground. Ceilings were about 5'9" high, so a tall person had to keep their head down while standing. 1930's CMC double-deckers were what YC called "low deckers" - 12'6" if I remember. Where they could or could not run was very strictly enforced. For instance, a DD could run on LSD NB, but could only get off at Foster. Once in the late 30's one attempted to exit at Irving Park, and had a serious problem. Also, a DD going to or from the Keeler Shop HAD to come downtown and then go out Jackson to Pulaski to Wrightwood to Keeler to the back door. The 1920's DD's were a lot lower, being open tops. They were considered to be 12' because of passenger heads, but in fact in an emergency could fit under a 11 foot bridge. The semi-open tops were also about 11' as they had a open center section on the upper deck that you walked down to and from a seat, while the seats had a roof over them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Busjack Posted February 3, 2016 Report Share Posted February 3, 2016 CDOT has the viaduct on W. Sheridan 6400 N. listed as posted at 12'8", so I guess the CMC bus could have made it, barely. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jajuan Posted February 10, 2016 Report Share Posted February 10, 2016 I've seen Peterson Avenue have traffic snarled going as far back as Western because a semi driver thinks he can get his truck with box trailer underneath the UP-N viaduct. Many reconsider and manage to turn up Ravenswood so they can turn back and head back to Western for an alternative east, Lawrence being the roadway that comes to mind since the street does dip really deep to pass under the UP-N. There have been a few smartasses that have actually made the attempt to squeeze underneath only to get stuck. I've never been around long enough whenever I've seen it happen to see how they got unstuck without damage to their truck or the viaduct. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Busjack Posted February 10, 2016 Report Share Posted February 10, 2016 25 minutes ago, jajuan said: Lawrence being the roadway that comes to mind since the street does dip really deep to pass under the UP-N. Foster Ave. is depressed. I recall it being marked at 14', but the CDOT list has it at 13'10". But I remember that when I lived on Ridge (west of the tracks), I told movers to use Western and don't think of going eastbound. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MTRSP1900-CTA3200 Posted February 11, 2016 Report Share Posted February 11, 2016 Imagine the turning restrictions for a big semi around these bridges. I know some of the bridges I've seen have parallel roads right next to the bridges and viaducts. The drivers could easily hit a curb turning right under the bridge. When I used to drive west down Lake St. under the Green Line, there was some sort of industrial building where a semi truck would occasionally load/unload. Watching it navigating the supports for the tracks sure was a sight. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
strictures Posted February 11, 2016 Report Share Posted February 11, 2016 17 hours ago, jajuan said: I've seen Peterson Avenue have traffic snarled going as far back as Western because a semi driver thinks he can get his truck with box trailer underneath the UP-N viaduct. Many reconsider and manage to turn up Ravenswood so they can turn back and head back to Western for an alternative east, Lawrence being the roadway that comes to mind since the street does dip really deep to pass under the UP-N. There have been a few smartasses that have actually made the attempt to squeeze underneath only to get stuck. I've never been around long enough whenever I've seen it happen to see how they got unstuck without damage to their truck or the viaduct. I watched a truck driver take one of those office trailers under the Peterson viaduct a few years ago & shear off an aluminum roof vent. The driver never saw that the vent fell off the truck south on Ravenswood, so I picked it up off the street & put it in the alley. Last week, I was walking on Clark near Pratt, when a pickup with an oversize banner passed me. It was leading a depressed center trailer semi that had a huge transformer on it. I was able to talk to the guy driving the following pickup & he said it was 15' tall & going to Roosevelt & State. I often see oversize loads going south on Clark, usually with huge cable reels. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
artthouwill Posted February 11, 2016 Report Share Posted February 11, 2016 7 hours ago, strictures said: I watched a truck driver take one of those office trailers under the Peterson viaduct a few years ago & shear off an aluminum roof vent. The driver never saw that the vent fell off the truck south on Ravenswood, so I picked it up off the street & put it in the alley. Last week, I was walking on Clark near Pratt, when a pickup with an oversize banner passed me. It was leading a depressed center trailer semi that had a huge transformer on it. I was able to talk to the guy driving the following pickup & he said it was 15' tall & going to Roosevelt & State. I often see oversize loads going south on Clark, usually with huge cable reels. I can tell you that during off peak hours those inbound trains are consistently late. They're supposedly on time when they are 14 minutes late. The only times I take an inbound UP West Train is if I am connecting to another UP or another Metra at Union Station. Otherwise it is Green Line time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pace831 Posted February 11, 2016 Report Share Posted February 11, 2016 59 minutes ago, artthouwill said: I can tell you that during off peak hours those inbound trains are consistently late. They're supposedly on time when they are 14 minutes late. The only times I take an inbound UP West Train is if I am connecting to another UP or another Metra at Union Station. Otherwise it is Green Line time. Did you mean to post this in the Metra delays thread? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
artthouwill Posted February 12, 2016 Report Share Posted February 12, 2016 20 hours ago, Pace831 said: Did you mean to post this in the Metra delays thread? Yes I did. My smart phone being smart. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
artthouwill Posted June 18, 2016 Report Share Posted June 18, 2016 Today I got to check out a Megabus TD Double decker. Praying that i NEVER have to take Megabus anywhere. No one taller than 5'9" should even consider riding these buses. Nothing against Megabus, but those TD models are not comfortable on either level. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BusHunter Posted June 18, 2016 Author Report Share Posted June 18, 2016 1 hour ago, artthouwill said: Today I got to check out a Megabus TD Double decker. Praying that i NEVER have to take Megabus anywhere. No one taller than 5'9" should even consider riding these buses. Nothing against Megabus, but those TD models are not comfortable on either level. I hear the front seat on the top is a rather "smashing" experience. (If I can talk like an englishman) Maybe that's why it's fares are as low as a dollar!! As long as you don't end up three feet tall when you get off it's a success!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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