Scania 14.5m Steer Tags

Started by Buzz Killington, November 26, 2009, 10:51:07 PM

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Buzz Killington

Quote from: CNG on March 17, 2010, 04:52:44 PM
The artics should be kept and dedicated to the school and expresso runs

Agreed.

Bus 400

Bus 465 is now on Tuggeranong Bricks

Buzz Killington

Quote from: Bus 400 on March 16, 2010, 07:44:53 PM
I wonder when the tech sheet will be available from the ACTION site.

The specifications are now available on ACT Bus: http://actbus.net/site/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=852&Itemid=69

smitho

465 was on the Tuggy bricks this morning....

Snorzac

466 should be there (Martin's twitter feed)

Snorzac

Ed reports 467 is at Tuggy, both the others now have number plates.

Bus 400

Saw 468 out at Woden Depot tonight & the front windscreen looks quite dirty, I wonder how that occurred.

Snorzac

hmmm, gee I wonder if driving it half way across a desert had anything to do with it!!!

Bus 400

But then why didn't 400 (at least) arrive dirty?

Snorzac

it did! Every bus has arrived dirty!

Bus 400

Does this look dirty to you?

The delivery driver is bringing Bus 400 into Belconnen Depot & as such into ACTION possession for the first time.

Snorzac

if you look at the front....

Bus 400

I don't have a picture of it arriving as when I saw her approaching I thought it was one of the others on normal routes. She wasn't as bad as 468, I'll try & grab a picture of 468 tomorrow as well as 417 & 418 & the other 2 MAN's at Woden.

The Love Guru

If you did some quick research you'd know that there are currently locust plauges around in western NSW, and as such the front to bus would be covered in 1000s of grasshoppers.

Snorzac

Ed reported that 464 was in service this morning. No route number but was a single digit (one would assume 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 or 9 as they are unable to operate 3s)

The Love Guru

Quote from: Stacka on April 27, 2010, 06:48:41 PM
Ed reported that 464 was in service this morning. No route number but was a single digit (one would assume 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 or 9 as they are unable to operate 3s)

Not sure where you're getting your info from Zac but it is way off the mark. Route 3 is on the approved list that the depots have been provided, whilst routes 6 and 9 are not on the list.

Bus 400

#66
Would Route 9 not be on the list due to the RMC speed humps?

Barry Drive

Route 9 would not be on the list because no-one catches it and a 100-person capacity bus might be a little much to carry 2 passengers.

Not sure if 4 or 8 are on the list either - for the same reason (will have to find that list again).

smitho

Saw 464 doing a southbound Route 5 on Goyder St, Narrabundah at around 0905 this morning.

Barry Drive

#69
4 & 8 are approved routes. As are all Intertowns, Xpressos, Redex and a few others. No weekend or school routes are on the list.

Bidgee

Quote from: Bus 400 on April 23, 2010, 11:17:43 PM
I don't have a picture of it arriving as when I saw her approaching I thought it was one of the others on normal routes. She wasn't as bad as 468, I'll try & grab a picture of 468 tomorrow as well as 417 & 418 & the other 2 MAN's at Woden.
I didn't know buses had a gender!  ::)

Snorzac

and been a MAN bus wouldn't it be a he?

Bidgee

Maybe the Irisbus is an transgender bus? :mono:

Hate to see a Scania and a MAN mating, as you would end up seeing a ScanMANia. ::) >:D

Barry Drive

I'm interested to know: now that 464 is in service (with 465 to follow shortly), is it being used on services where the extra capacity is actually required? Has anyone been on it yet where passengers have been standing/all seats have been taken?

Snorzac

yesterday the 315 it was doing was pretty full, all seats were taken and there was some standers

Buzz Killington

I've been told 469 is at Woden.

smitho

Steer tag driver training appears to have started at Tuggeranong although nothing formally announced yet about a training program...

CNG

The number 5 this am, packed to the rafters

Buzz Killington

It was on a southbound 315 to Tuggeranong that arrived around 1620 and another 315 north at about 1640.

lukeo25

Damn my working hours , but i'll keep an eye out for it :)

Bus 400

A fellow board member use to have a northbound Spence run in the previous shifts just 10 minutes before that. In a MAN CNG, it would be packed leaving the City (vaguely remember some passengers having to be left behind in the City due to loading). The passengers did thin out a little after leaving Belconnen Interchange (it was Belconnen Interchange back then). So going by that I would say the 14.5 is being put to good use.

Snorzac

The 315 tonight was rather busy. Lots of standers, but that is what the bus was made for!

The Love Guru

Saying there are people standing isn't exactly an accurate reflection of the number of folks on board. After all, a .3 will seat just as many. I'm still waiting to hear that any driver has got 101 people on board LOL, and if it ever does happen (i actually believe it would be impossible if people wanted to breath and remain upright) i want to be the first one to take a photo, it would be hilarious.

Snorzac

There would have been at least 15 people standing, in saying that there was also at least five spare seats at the back of the bus....

CNG

Quote from: Chris_Guru on May 03, 2010, 07:52:14 PM
Saying there are people standing isn't exactly an accurate reflection of the number of folks on board. After all, a .3 will seat just as many. I'm still waiting to hear that any driver has got 101 people on board LOL, and if it ever does happen (i actually believe it would be impossible if people wanted to breath and remain upright) i want to be the first one to take a photo, it would be hilarious.
Can a .3 fit the same number of persons as a steer tag.
Should make a steertag Irisbus agoraline, I wounder how that would work

The Love Guru

Quote from: CNG on May 04, 2010, 07:56:22 AM
Can a .3 fit the same number of persons as a steer tag.
Should make a steertag Irisbus agoraline, I wounder how that would work

To be honest, i don't think there is that much more capacity in the 14.5 due to its layout. Someone was trying to justify the purchase of them as an artic replacement so removed the seats to increase the number of pax that could fit onborad. In the front section of the bus they have calculated people standing 3 abreast, of course there are only 2 handles to hang onto, so i'm not sure what the piggy in the middle is supposed to hang on to.

These buses are the worst purchase ACTION have made. They are a great vehicle, but totally impractical for our use. They are suited only to the intertown runs, have major route restrictions and can't have a bike rack fitted. They will never replace the artics as they can't go to many schools due to route restrictions. I will have a guess that we'll see replacement artics evaluated in the very near future.

Barry Drive

And its only in use 5 hours a day, 5 days a week. How does that make economical sense? 

geoffrah

So how is it that ACTION continues to make such woeful fleet choices ....... darts, irisbus, scania 14.5m ..... poor management, political intervention ...

I don't see any money on the horizon for new artics, and the majority of the present artic fleet are beyond 20 years old .....

Buzz Killington

Refurbishing the artics has been mentioned in the past. We may well see that occur, at least as a stop-gap solution.

Irisbus Rider

#89
Absolutely, I agree the 14.5m buses are not appropriate for use at ACTION, a very ill-conceived plan.
Quote from: geoffrahI don't see any money on the horizon for new artics, and the majority of the present artic fleet are beyond 20 years old .....
It seems as though this problem is not just restricted to Canberra but is widespread throughout the country, Metro Tasmania are still operating artics from 1984, and the STA and Adelaide Metro go one better, with artics from 1983, but Transperth take the cake, still having artics in operation from the very early 80's, so it's more than likely ACTION will hold onto these for as long as possible, as in the scope of things, these are considerably 'young'.

It seems as though government operations who don't particularly want to purchase new artics simply use them as much as they can, and run them into the ground. This, in particular, is the method they have adopted at Metro Tas, they will continue to use them until government policy restrics them to keep doing so (30 y/o operation limit). Mind you, their artics (as well as the STA artics and others, I'm sure) have received a refurbishment, something which wouldn't go astray for our artics.

And, approx two years ago, IIRC, there was a budget allocation for artic refurbishment, did this occur (running gear only) or was it shelved?

Bus 400

#90
Quote from: Irisbus Rider on May 05, 2010, 10:09:38 PM
but Transperth take the cake, still having artics in operation from the very early 80's, so it's more than likely ACTION will hold onto these for as long as possible, as in the scope of things, these are considerably 'young'.

The oldest Transperth artic entered service in August 1979. But it did receive an conversion in 1983 & 1993.

Sir Pompously

Quote from: Irisbus Rider on May 05, 2010, 10:09:38 PM
It seems as though government operations who don't particularly want to purchase new artics simply use them as much as they can, and run them into the ground. This, in particular, is the method they have adopted at Metro Tas, they will continue to use them until government policy restrics them to keep doing so (30 y/o operation limit). Mind you, their artics (as well as the STA artics and others, I'm sure) have received a refurbishment, something which wouldn't go astray for our artics.
Refurbishing the fleet in general wouldn't go astray! 100.3's, Irisbuses (You might aswell make them less crap and put a second door in, better yet just sell them to Tasmania), Artics and MkII Renaults all need a good makeover.

Artic's are needed to replace artics, there is no doubt about it. But it all comes down to costs. And what is seen as more cost effective in the short term certainly is not cost effective in the long term in the case of 14.5 vs. Artic.

CNG


Sir Pompously

#93
Good call, I see the mega list of reasons you have provided are enough to keep them in Canberra.

They are non standard ACTION vehicles, the cab is not ACTION spec, the fact that they do not have a centre door but are used on the Intertown is a big problem when loading/unloading. They are mechanically unfit, the amount of times I have been on a route where we have slipped into lateness because the bus was so slow, hearing that engine struggling. They are slow, jerky, they overheat in the summertime with a percentage more than any other ACTIOIN vehicle. You head past Belconnen Depot and see how many Irisbuses, by weekends end, are up by the workshops! When you get on a good Irisbus it can be great, but the majority are just horrible.

CNG

I love the irisbuses, when Im an action driver expect to see me in the irisbuses or .3's

Buzz Killington

As much as you love them, they are the most unreliable, unsuitable pieces of crap that I've ever ridden on.

On another note, although I inspected it a few months back, I had my first trip on 464 today and they are certainly no replacement for artics, passenger wise. Take most of the seats out of the front of a L94UB or a Renault and you'll fit extra people in those too.

I found the seats quite comfortable, although I thought the engine sounded like a gruntier cross between an Iris and a L94UB.

Bus 400

Another Scania 14.5 has been transferred to Woden, but this one is registered.

Barry Drive

That would be 465 - it has left B depot (for now?). Also can confirm 469 is at Woden.

Bus 400

It looks like Bus 464 has broken down as it is empty on the side of Ginninderra Drive (near Kingsford Smith Drive).


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Snorzac