Author Archives: Oren

Bus Photo of the Month: December 2021

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Orion VII/HEV 6735

Location: East 79th Street & Lexington Avenue, New York, NY
Operator of Vehicle: MTA New York City Transit
Date of Photo: May 8, 2017

With the gradual retirement of the RTS buses that had been a mainstay on the streets of New York for decades, the Orion VII became the most prevalent bus in the Big Apple.  Although the Orion VII is not on the verge of being entirely removed from service, the number of buses in the “original” style of construction is dwindling.  As of this writing, some depots have fewer than 10 buses of this style available for service.  Since the “Next Generation” model of the Orion VII was introduced in 2007 and a transit bus in the United States is typically in service for between 12 and 15 years, it is not surprising to see that the last of the Orion VIIs to be built using the original design are being retired.  

Although the original Orion VII design was quite boxy and not particurily streamlined, I actually prefer it over the “Next Generation” design.  To me, the latter looks like a poor imitation of the Mercedes-Benz Citaro models frequently found in Europe, and just doesn’t look right as a US bus model.  Which one do you prefer?

For more photos of MTA New York City Transit’s Orion VII buses, please click here.

Rail Photo of the Month: December 2021

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Bombardier Type 1 LRV 110

Location: Old Town/Chinatown Station, Portland, OR
Operator of Vehicle: TriMet
Date of Photo: August 2, 2007

Recently, TriMet shared photos of its Type 6 rolling stock, currently being manufactured by Siemens.  The 26 Type 6 LRVs are expected to enter in service in 2022, replacing the original 26 Type 1 LRV cars ordered for the opening of the Portland light rail network in 1986.  These cars, the only Portland LRV cars to not be manufactured by Siemens, have seen a number of changes over the course of their 35 year careers.  Originally, they came equipped with stop request cords that passengers had to use in order to have the train operator stop at stations to alight, just like on a bus.  The Type 1s also lacked air conditioning until it was added during a retrofit in the late 1990s.  More recently, most of the fleet underwent a body overhaul program carried out by Trimet employees.  Finally, the Type 1s had their rollsigns replaced with LED signage in 2016 and 2017.  

When I was in Portland in 2007, the Type 1, Type 2, and Type 3 cars were the only ones in service.  I have yet to visit Portland since the Type 4 and Type 5 cars entered service.  The Type 6 cars will be almost identical to the Type 5 cars, but will have cabs at each end of the car, rather than just at one end.

For more photos of Trimet MAX Light Rail Rolling Stock, please click here.

Rail Photo of the Month: November 2021

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CQ311 272

Location: Five Points Station, Atlanta, GA
Operator of Vehicle: MARTA
Date of Photo: August 12, 2000

This Photo of the Month selection honors the Atlanta Braves, who just won the 2021 World Series.  Back when I took this photo on my first trip to Atlanta in 2000, the Braves were not even five years removed from their first championship in Atlanta, they played at Turner Field, and the CQ311 rolling stock seen here would not begin to undergo rehabilitation for another six years.  While Turner Field wasn’t particularly close to a MARTA station, a short shuttle bus ride connected the stadium to the West End station, about two miles away.  Starting with the 2017 season, the Braves have played their home games at what is currently called Truist Park, which has practically no public transit access.  Two circulators serving the Cumberland area around the stadium operate every 30 minutes on weekdays and every 60 minutes on Saturdays.  A CobbLinc route from the Arts Center MARTA station stops about a 7 to 10 minute walk from the stadium, but does not operate on Sundays.  MARTA route 12 connects the Midtown Station to Cumberland Mall, but then one must transfer to the aforementioned Cumberland area circulator, which doesn’t operate on Sundays.  For all intents and purposes, the best way to get to the stadium is by car, which is why the Braves cited the lack sufficient parking at and the long drive for many fans to Turner Field as reasons they needed to move out to the suburbs.  

While you can’t easily take transit to see the Braves defend their title next season, fortunately, many other MLB stadiums are easily accessible by transit.  Truist Park has a “Transit Score” of 43, ahead of only the Tampa Bay Rays (41), Milwaukee Brewers (40), Kansas City Royals (32) and the Texas Rangers (0 due to playing in a city with no fixed route public transit at all).  

For more photos of MARTA Rolling Stock, please click here.

Bus Photo of the Month: November 2021

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MAN NG-363F 44420

Location: David Remez at the Old Train Station, Jerusalem, Israel
Operator of Vehicle: Egged
Date of Photo: May 25, 2018

In many places, bus systems are operated on a tender basis by various companies.  In these systems, a transportation ministry or some other oversight entity puts out a call for bids from interested parties to operate the service.  The idea is that the cost of operating the service will be lower if it is operated by a transportation company rather than directly by the oversight agency.  Sometimes, a company is able to maintain its tender for many years, and it is notable when a change in operator occurs.  

Egged had a near monopoly on bus services within Israel for many years, though in the past twenty years or so, many other companies have won tenders that Egged historically operated.  However, Jerusalem intracity service remained with Egged, as it had dating back to some of Egged’s predecessor companies that merged when Egged was formed.  This Friday, the second phase of transitioning some of Jerusalem’s intracity service to other companies will take effect.  In July, Superbus took over four routes serving the Old City and started operating a new route to the Old City as well.  This Friday, three new routes will be established, and two routes, 74 and 75, will transfer from Egged to Superbus.  The 74 and 75 are not nearly as “historical” as some other transport routes in the city, but the 74 is notable for being the first “rapid” route to be launched in the city back in 2008.  Seeing Superbus vehicles on this route, rather than Egged vehicles, is certainly going to take some getting used to.

For more photos of Jerusalem MAN NG-363F Buses, please click here.

Sepia Vibes in Santa Fe’s Railyard

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MPI MP36PH-3C 107 leaving Santa Fe Depot, August 3, 2018

Just south of the Santa Fe Depot in Santa Fe, NM is an area called the Railyard.  This area has been the terminal of a train line since the 1880s, and the Railyard area was in fact the rail yard serving the adjacent train depot.  As was the case in many places throughout the United States, after the construction of the Interstate Highway System, rail traffic diminished and eventually, the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway discontinued service to one of its namesake destinations (though service was maintained via the short line Santa Fe Southern Railway until 2008, and then by the New Mexico Rail Runner Express).  The area became blighted due to the significant reduction in the railyard’s importance to the city.  Redevelopment plans were announced in 2002, when it was decided to make the 50 acre area an arts district owned by the City of Santa Fe that would retain the historical, industrial feel that the area had been associated with for so many years.  The area is now host to a Farmers Market, Hispanic cultural center, teen art center, restaurants, performance spaces, shops, art galleries, cinema, and residences.

Southbound New Mexico Rail Runner Express trains to Albuquerque pass through the Railyard immediately upon departure from the historic Santa Fe Depot.  When I was walking through this area in 2018 and saw the water tower adjacent to the tracks, I figured a photo of a train passing through this part of the development would be a stunning one.  Although I rarely do this, I applied a sepia tone to the photo for this post in order to give the photo a vibe that might be reminiscent of the area from a bygone era.

What do you think of the sepia tone photo?  You can compare it to the original version by clicking here.  

Rail Photo of the Month: October 2021

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MPI MP36PH-3C 102

Location: Santa Fe Depot, Santa Fe, NM
Operator of Vehicle: Herzog Transit Services (under contract to the New Mexico Department of Transportation and Rio Metro)
Date of Photo: August 3, 2018

Staying in New Mexico for the rail photo of the month, we head up to the state capitol of Santa Fe.  This is the terminal of the state’s lone commuter rail line, the New Mexico Rail Runner Express, which connects Santa Fe and Albuquerque.  Service began in 2006 on a portion of the route from Albuquerque to Sandoval County, and reached Santa Fe in 2008.  The Santa Fe Depot serves as the northern terminal of the line.  The depot building was the namesake of the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway, founded in 1880, but was only connected to the mainline railway by a spur due to steep grades making it difficult to connect the mainline to Santa Fe itself.  The station was little used for many years, housing the offices of the short line Santa Fe Southern Railway until 2008.  This past July, it was announced that the depot building will be overhauled and restored in accordance with the historical preservation guidelines that the station falls under.

The area around the Santa Fe Depot, known as the Railyard, has been a focus of urban renewal since 2002.  A “Viewfinder” post about that development will be coming later this week.

For more photos of the New Mexico Rail Runner Express, please click here.

Bus Photo of the Month: October 2021

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New Flyer DE40LFR 976

Location: 1st Street at Gold Avenue, Albuquerque, NM
Operator of Vehicle: ABQ RIDE
Date of Photo: August 6, 2018

As transit agencies attempt to recover from the Covid-19 pandemic, some of them are turning to fare free operations to create an incentive for riders to return.  The pros and cons of fare free transit are many, and won’t be discussed here.  However, back on September 20, Albuquerque became one of the largest cities in the United States to pilot a fare free program when the city council voted on the issue.  The buses in New Mexico’s largest city will be fare free throughout all of 2022.

Although I took this picture back in 2018 when fares had to be paid to ride ABQ RIDE, it is likely that the agency is still looking to hire bus operators, as many transit agencies are currently short staffed.  I don’t think I’ve seen many agencies using their bus headsigns has a recruitment tool, but maybe I just haven’t been to the right places to see that.

What do you think of fare free pilots and/or using the bus destination sign to announce operator job openings?  Leave a comment with your opinion!

For more photos of ABQ RIDE buses, please click here.

Bus Photo of the Month: September 2021

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Flxible Metro-E 6177

Location: Madison Street at Wacker Drive, Chicago, IL
Operator of Vehicle: Chicago Transit Authority
Date of Photo: July 30, 2007

It has been over ten years since my last proper visit to Chicago.  I’m not sure when my next one will be, but one thing that won’t be there is a Flxible Metro-E such as this one.  The CTA retired its last Flxible Metro buses in 2010, and the fleet now consists solely of New Flyer and NovaBUS models.  

For more photos of CTA buses, please click here.

Rail Photo of the Month: September 2021

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Class 7200 locomotive 7273

Location: Gare d’Austerlitz, Paris, France
Operator of Vehicle: SNCF
Date of Photo: March 22, 2008

When one thinks of the national railroads of Europe, people often think of high speed trains such as the TGV.  However, there are other types of trains in Europe.  For example, the French national railroad company, SNCF, operates electric locomotives such as this one on a variety of non-TGV passenger services, as well as freight services.  Although slower than their high speed counterparts, the Class 7200 locomotives are capable of reaching speeds of 120 MPH (200 KPH) on long distance express services.  This particular locomotive was photographed at the Gare d’Austerlitz, which is currently undergoing major construction work to accommodate TGV services.

For more photos of SNCF locomotives, please click here.

Rail Photo of the Month: August 2021

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R46 5994

Location: Broad Channel Station, Queens, NY
Operator of Vehicle: MTA New York City Transit
Date of Photo: September 3, 2019

In late June, the first of the new R211 cars was delivered for acceptance testing, While they probably won’t enter revenue service until some time in 2022, their delivery does mark the beginning of the end for what are currently the oldest subway cars in New York, the R46s. The R46s certainly reflect the 1970s when they were built in terms of interior color scheme and other features such as transverse seating, wood paneled windscreens, and a lack of traditional straps for commuters to hold while standing. Fittingly, the R211s that will replace the R46s are also meant to revolutionize subway car design with new LED front end signage, open gangways, interior LED lighting and wider doors.

For more photos of the R46s, please click here.