jesi2282 Posted September 19, 2006 Report Share Posted September 19, 2006 Yesterday I saw bus 504 on the #173, the destination sign still said: CHICAGO IS (flip) MY KIND OF TOWN. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
busfan4022 Posted September 20, 2006 Report Share Posted September 20, 2006 See any Orions? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jesi2282 Posted September 20, 2006 Author Report Share Posted September 20, 2006 Yeah, Just before I saw the Optima an Orion passed by on the same route. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trainman8119 Posted September 26, 2006 Report Share Posted September 26, 2006 I saw an Optima on 55th Street on Saturday. Saw it from the train going through Hyde Park. Was by it before I realized what I was seeing, but it was stopped at the corner of 55th and Lake Park headed west on 55th. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jesi2282 Posted September 26, 2006 Author Report Share Posted September 26, 2006 Yesterday, I had my first ride on bus 504 on the #171, very smooth ride even though our driver was going pretty fast. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
busfan4022 Posted September 27, 2006 Report Share Posted September 27, 2006 My dad said he saw on the X28 I wish i was there! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jesi2282 Posted October 1, 2006 Author Report Share Posted October 1, 2006 Here are some pics I took. http://community.webshots.com/user/wruizjr...vhost=community Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rmadisonwi Posted December 5, 2006 Report Share Posted December 5, 2006 Forest Glen Garage just received two Optimas. Now it seems like Archer may not get any at all (still up in the air whether they will or not). As of right now, 103rd has 11, FG should get about 17, and North Park may wind up with the rest. That's all subject to change, as is the weather. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Busjack Posted December 19, 2006 Report Share Posted December 19, 2006 Forest Glen should also receive two more Optimas very shortly, bringing that garage's total to four.[from "And the next garage to get New Flyers is..."]Above said, subject to change, 17. I drove by on Saturday and saw 512, 515, and 517 in the yard north of Armstrong Ave. If you are saying ultimate total of 4, it currently doesn't add up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rmadisonwi Posted December 20, 2006 Report Share Posted December 20, 2006 I didn't say "ultimate total," I said that the garage would have a total of four after the next two were delivered. They currently have two (or, as of a week ago, they had two). If a third bus was delivered in the past week, then Forest Glen would have five. The buses also may be at the garage but not yet in service, and not yet counted on the roster. In any event, FG should wind up with a total of 17, but, as always, that is subject to change depending on how vehicle requirements pan out from pick to pick. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RIPTA42 Posted December 20, 2006 Report Share Posted December 20, 2006 Here's 516 at Jefferson Park earlier this morning. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jesi2282 Posted December 20, 2006 Author Report Share Posted December 20, 2006 Whats that RTS doing in there? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jesi2282 Posted December 24, 2006 Author Report Share Posted December 24, 2006 Saw 518 and 524 inside FG this morning, 524 Had the ''Chicago Is My Kind of Town'' sign. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
geneking7320 Posted December 26, 2006 Report Share Posted December 26, 2006 I think I've seen Optimas on some of the Evanston routes near the Howard 'L' station and on the North Cicero/Skokie route at the Dempster Yellow Line station. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trainman8119 Posted December 28, 2006 Report Share Posted December 28, 2006 I saw 521 on the 84 today. It seemed that it was too small for that route at the time of day I saw it (1pm). It was westbound about Damen and was already full. Amazing that the destination sign was not functional (CTA Program 1-16-07) with a paper 84 Peterson in the window. I would think that those buses would be best suited for say 56A or 68 evenings (as in after rush hour) or most definitely 90N, as well as the Evanston Route that North Park has no room for (that one still amazes me). Other than that, I don't think Forest Glen is a good place for those buses !!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Busjack Posted December 28, 2006 Report Share Posted December 28, 2006 As Frank said: "much like having the right tool for the job." There are probably a lot of routes on the far Northwest side where having Optimas makes sense (in addition to obviously 64 and 69, maybe 54A, 81W, 85A, 88 and those you mention), but definitely not the cross-town routes (78, 80, 81, 84, 152). There was an unconfirmed sighting reported on another forum that an Opus was on 14, which would be really nuts (cuts down the seating from 61 to 23). Also, I'm somewhat surprised that 55A/55N/62H/63W didn't get them. But maybe not, considering how Archer is privileged. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pace2322 Posted January 2, 2007 Report Share Posted January 2, 2007 Heres some photos from saturday night at fg.Look what is next to it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sw4400 Posted January 2, 2007 Report Share Posted January 2, 2007 The X80(during off-peak hours) might be useful for the Optima, as not many people are on this bus since they want off at the stops that are local only(Kedzie, Spaulding, etc...). Typically, when I take an express to the Harlem mall, there may be about 15-20 people on this bus. As far as Archer Garage goes, I think that would be a mistake because they would dumbly assign these buses to Western around 3:00p when 500+ Lane Tech Students cram a 40' bus from wall to wall practically while the bus driver just sits there for 2-3 light cycles to allow as many board as they want.(those who take Western at this time, you know what I mean). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RIPTA42 Posted January 2, 2007 Report Share Posted January 2, 2007 If there aren't many people on an X-bus, it shouldn't be running. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Busjack Posted January 2, 2007 Report Share Posted January 2, 2007 If there aren't many people on an X-bus, it shouldn't be running.The productivity report indicates low productivity, but apparently Rahm Emanuel got the grant to fully fund it. (See http://www.house.gov/apps/list/speech/il05...el/X80_CTA.html, and if I remember correctly, it was exempted from the doomsday cuts for that reason.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MetroShadow Posted January 3, 2007 Report Share Posted January 3, 2007 So I took this afternoon, in the middle of my winter vacation, to ride on one of these itty bitty things. I rode on 515 on the #68 to Park Ridge, and I'll say this: even though I still detest the livery, the vehicle itself isn't bad. Its got speed and pickup, and the seats are the newer version that will be put on the 1000's. Despite the fact that I like it, the driver did not. She had a ridiculous time trying to adjust the destination controls as well as adjusting the seat. I noticed its somewhat smug of a drivers area, with the [destination] panel along the window side...I'm assuming this was for spatial reasons. I also did notice, that these buses are being operated mainly on the feeders (90N) as well as a couple on the 68. Some full-size buses are being used in the mix, but for the most part, it seems like these buses are fit for the job (and the route) they are given...as long as they're not being used on crosstowns (unless its during the late evening, where it might make sense). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rmadisonwi Posted January 3, 2007 Report Share Posted January 3, 2007 As far as Archer Garage goes, I think that would be a mistake because they would dumbly assign these buses to Western around 3:00p when 500+ Lane Tech Students cram a 40' bus from wall to wall practically while the bus driver just sits there for 2-3 light cycles to allow as many board as they want.(those who take Western at this time, you know what I mean). The reason the driver "just sits there" is because the runs are scheduled to do so, for the very reason you observe. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trainman8119 Posted January 3, 2007 Report Share Posted January 3, 2007 I also did notice, that these buses are being operated mainly on the feeders (90N) as well as a couple on the 68. Some full-size buses are being used in the mix, but for the most part, it seems like these buses are fit for the job (and the route) they are given...as long as they're not being used on crosstowns (unless its during the late evening, where it might make sense). As I stated earlier, 90N and (maybe) 68 would be good routes for these buses. I have seen them on the 84 a couple of times...midday (1pm) and evening (8pm). In both cases, the buses were pretty well filled up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RIPTA42 Posted January 3, 2007 Report Share Posted January 3, 2007 I saw them on the 54A yesterday AM rush, and on the 84 PM rush. I didn't observe the number of passengers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ryanbytes Posted January 6, 2007 Report Share Posted January 6, 2007 I rode bus 523 on 85A. Sweet ride. A little bumpy jumpy but still nice. The seats are amazing. They actually feel soft on my rear even though they're not. Those back doors kill me. So much space is taken up it's funny. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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