artthouwill Posted February 1, 2022 Report Share Posted February 1, 2022 28 minutes ago, YoungBusLover said: Yeah I hate to break it to you but they're going to be less active until the spring. I heard a rumor from another member that doesn't make much sense but he stated that he called the garage and management told them that the reason why they're not active is due the high power consumption they have in those two stalls while charging. I didn't think high power usage would be an issue for charging them consistently but that does explain why the fleet of #600s haven't been in those two bays as long as they've been. I would imagine that these buses would consume a lot of electricity. Electricity to power the bus, the lighrs,lights,, heating and air conditioning. Certainly the buses need to be fully charged before leaving the garage. Im sure ComEd is happy to charge CTA for the increase in electricity use just for 2 buses. Imagine 20 buses or a garage full. To be honest it appears that CTA (and Pace) would need to build new garages to have charging stations for all buses. Maybe the newer garages can be retrofitted but either way the infrastructure costs will be high as well as the cost of electricity which will surely increase. The so called fuel savings will not offset these other costs. What happens when the electricity grids get overwhelmed (and they will)? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Busjack Posted February 1, 2022 Author Report Share Posted February 1, 2022 1 hour ago, artthouwill said: I would imagine that these buses would consume a lot of electricity. Electricity to power the bus, the lighrs,lights,, heating and air conditioning. Certainly the buses need to be fully charged before leaving the garage. Im sure ComEd is happy to charge CTA for the increase in electricity use just for 2 buses. Imagine 20 buses or a garage full. To be honest it appears that CTA (and Pace) would need to build new garages to have charging stations for all buses. Maybe the newer garages can be retrofitted but either way the infrastructure costs will be high as well as the cost of electricity which will surely increase. The so called fuel savings will not offset these other costs. What happens when the electricity grids get overwhelmed (and they will)? If true, it probably is the heat, although 700 and 701 originally had diesel fuel heaters. The last Pace planning meeting had some answers, such as that the garage rehab schedule had to be coordinated with the electrification schedule, and that they were talking with Duluth, which obviously has worse weather than we do. Other sources talk about solar panels on garage roofs. The grid is an issue described in connection with the infrastructure bill. At least several Pace garages (North, Wheeling) are adjacent to transmission corridors, but I don't know about CTA's. One would think that provision for ample power was made for the Navy Pier and Chicago/Austin chargers, but I haven't heard anything about the South Side. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BusHunter Posted February 2, 2022 Report Share Posted February 2, 2022 21 hours ago, Busjack said: If true, it probably is the heat, although 700 and 701 originally had diesel fuel heaters. The last Pace planning meeting had some answers, such as that the garage rehab schedule had to be coordinated with the electrification schedule, and that they were talking with Duluth, which obviously has worse weather than we do. Other sources talk about solar panels on garage roofs. The grid is an issue described in connection with the infrastructure bill. At least several Pace garages (North, Wheeling) are adjacent to transmission corridors, but I don't know about CTA's. One would think that provision for ample power was made for the Navy Pier and Chicago/Austin chargers, but I haven't heard anything about the South Side. Yeah like I said california has already had a grid issue/please dont charge your car today. Not only is infrastructure needed at the garage level, its needed at the power supply company as well. Tue future could be solar panels on the buses or windmill farms. Funny Pure Michigan is actually used in tandem with the state of Michigan's electric bus program. Dont know how it ended up over here. There's supposed to be a bus with solar panels there in a test phase. Also the university of Michigan is piloting an autonomous electric bus at the university. Its not a new flyer though. New Flyer is touting an electric bus the state of Alaska bought with a grant that claims it can run at minus 40 degrees. So there are a few electrics in extreme climates. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Policeman Posted February 4, 2022 Report Share Posted February 4, 2022 606 finally hit service on the 66! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Erin Mishkin Jr. Posted February 4, 2022 Report Share Posted February 4, 2022 2 minutes ago, Policeman said: 606 finally hit service on the 66! Still no sign of 601 ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr.NewFlyer1051 Posted February 4, 2022 Report Share Posted February 4, 2022 608 hit service on the 66 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bus1883 Posted February 4, 2022 Report Share Posted February 4, 2022 2 hours ago, Mr.NewFlyer1051 said: 608 hit service on the 66 Bought time they are finally going into action Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr.NewFlyer1051 Posted February 4, 2022 Report Share Posted February 4, 2022 39 minutes ago, Bus1883 said: Bought time they are finally going into action 606 was out as well Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tcmetro Posted February 4, 2022 Report Share Posted February 4, 2022 #600 is out on the 66 (arriving Navy Pier in a few mins) but not showing on the tracker. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr.NewFlyer1051 Posted February 4, 2022 Report Share Posted February 4, 2022 1 hour ago, Tcmetro said: #600 is out on the 66 (arriving Navy Pier in a few mins) but not showing on the tracker. it’s tracking as of 3:38pm 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Policeman Posted February 5, 2022 Report Share Posted February 5, 2022 600/604/608 out on a Saturday morning Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BusHunter Posted February 5, 2022 Report Share Posted February 5, 2022 1 hour ago, Policeman said: 600/604/608 out on a Saturday morning I wonder if there is a big difference between the 2 models. I look forward to seeing the rear tailights. They remind me of the old 100 series GM new looks of the early 60s. A great time period of cta action. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BusHunter Posted February 7, 2022 Report Share Posted February 7, 2022 Kind of scary electric bus fire in china. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=T71cVhxG_v4 I hope the buses dont ignite that fast or we might as well be riding a bomb. They claim battery fires shouldnt be put out with water. I forgot what they are supposed to use foam maybe? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jackathan Posted February 7, 2022 Report Share Posted February 7, 2022 On 12/17/2021 at 9:43 AM, BusHunter said: Yeah with proterra changing models, I already say #600-#605 are going to have this problem first. As they move into the new model, the product support will slowly fade for the older ones. I dont know if its possible to update the tech, but in a way the #700's did just that very thing. The fact that they are not running is distressing. They are around 7 or 8 years old, they are almost to the 9 or 10 year mark. I just hope new flyer is not getting the cold shoulder because of that. The only thing they are guilty of is having an older electric bus to help maintain. In 10 years Proterra may be in the same boat. Agencies like Pace are definitely at a crossroads. What they slate to happen will exceed what cta has done and they havent even piloted the first bus!! At least cta has an idea of what they face. Thats why Pace should just get the cngs, they will be thanking themselves in the future. Technologies like fuel cells are getting cheaper and you dont have to have towers all over town. Other avenues should be explored. Just dont put your eggs in one basket. Anyone buying electric should have the mindset that the buses may only last 9 or 10 years however. Dont know of thst makes them worth it or not. Pace will get CNG's for the Pulse system, starting with the Pulse Dempster Line. Perhaps they might as well replace the existing ElDorado Diesel buses running on the Pulse Milwaukee Line. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BusHunter Posted February 7, 2022 Report Share Posted February 7, 2022 41 minutes ago, jackathan said: Pace will get CNG's for the Pulse system, starting with the Pulse Dempster Line. Perhaps they might as well replace the existing ElDorado Diesel buses running on the Pulse Milwaukee Line. Dempster Pulse is slated to run out of norrh shore, its unknown if any will run out of nw. Most likely whats now on milwaukee pulse will go to dempster. Milwaukee will get new cngs though. Whether they get the first ones remain to be seen. I see a similar thing happening as dundee outstation garage. New buses might go to the new garage and when theres enough of them the garage might open with all new buses. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Busjack Posted February 7, 2022 Author Report Share Posted February 7, 2022 7 hours ago, jackathan said: Pace will get CNG's for the Pulse system, starting with the Pulse Dempster Line. Perhaps they might as well replace the existing ElDorado Diesel buses running on the Pulse Milwaukee Line. There's a topic for that. It isn't CTA/Proterra. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jackathan Posted February 7, 2022 Report Share Posted February 7, 2022 Anyways, I tried to figure out the difference between the BE40's and ZX5's by looking up various images and videos to no avail. Are they any different? Or are they exactly the same model? It's so confusing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Busjack Posted February 8, 2022 Author Report Share Posted February 8, 2022 2 hours ago, jackathan said: Anyways, I tried to figure out the difference between the BE40's and ZX5's by looking up various images and videos to no avail. Are they any different? Or are they exactly the same model? It's so confusing. Someone else cited the Proterra page. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BusHunter Posted February 8, 2022 Report Share Posted February 8, 2022 4 hours ago, jackathan said: Anyways, I tried to figure out the difference between the BE40's and ZX5's by looking up various images and videos to no avail. Are they any different? Or are they exactly the same model? It's so confusing. You can learn alot by reading wikipedia. Mostly the BE models circa 2014-20 charge slower but tend to have the highest mileage. Both models are heavy 15 tons on a composite frame. The composite ftame has got the company in trouble because philly which bought the B series model has found cracks in the frame. The new X5 models charge faster but based on the battery purchased can run up to 329 miles. You cam choose duo or prodrive with puts one or two driving motors on the axles. Its similar to a tesla performance model versus the base model. You can also buy that on the be models. The X5 is the newest model 2020 and newer, so not much is known about the long term effects of the bus. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proterra_(bus_manufacturer) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
artthouwill Posted February 8, 2022 Report Share Posted February 8, 2022 5 hours ago, jackathan said: Anyways, I tried to figure out the difference between the BE40's and ZX5's by looking up various images and videos to no avail. Are they any different? Or are they exactly the same model? It's so confusing. I think the front windshield is a little bit bigger. Other than that the differences are internal Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Policeman Posted February 12, 2022 Report Share Posted February 12, 2022 607 hit service Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr.NewFlyer1051 Posted February 12, 2022 Report Share Posted February 12, 2022 so that’s 600-608 in service officially Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Erin Mishkin Jr. Posted February 13, 2022 Report Share Posted February 13, 2022 2 hours ago, Mr.NewFlyer1051 said: so that’s 600-608 in service officially yes, but 601 literally like never ran more than once Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Busjack Posted February 13, 2022 Author Report Share Posted February 13, 2022 4 hours ago, Mr.NewFlyer1051 said: so that’s 600-608 in service officially 1 hour ago, Erin Mishkin Jr. said: yes, but 601 literally like never ran more than once The $23 million dollar question is whether CTA has enough confidence in them that they predominate on 66, rather than the 2 or 3 current runs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BusHunter Posted February 13, 2022 Report Share Posted February 13, 2022 12 hours ago, Busjack said: The $23 million dollar question is whether CTA has enough confidence in them that they predominate on 66, rather than the 2 or 3 current I'm wondering when 63rd gets in on the action. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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