Bus Photo of the Month: June 2023

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MAN NL-313

Location: Jaffa Road, Jerusalem, Israel
Operator of Vehicle: Egged
Date of Photo: July 7, 2022

Today, green Egged buses such as this one will operate on Jerusalem’s Route 3 between the Central Bus Station and Western Wall.  As of tomorrow, that will no longer be the case, as a relatively new company called Extra takes over the route.  If you are reading this from somewhere such as Europe or Israel, the idea of a route shifting from one operator to another is probably one with which you are familiar.  In this type of model, a government agency (in this case, the Israeli Ministry of Transportation) determines routes and service levels and operating companies, such as Egged, Superbus, and Extra bid on tenders to provide the service.  Conversely, in North America, transit agencies determine the routes and service levels and often operate the services themselves with their own buses and personnel.  Even if an agency contracts with an operator to provide service (such as Loudoun County Transit in Northern Virginia, which is operated by Keolis North America), the vehicles are owned by the transit agency and their appearance remains identical, even if the contracted operator changes.  Not so in Israel.  With the change to Extra as the route’s operator, passengers will be on brand new buses with a different livery and different drivers.  While there are instances where buses get transferred from the prior operator to the new one or staff leaves one company and joins another, neither is a given.  It is just one of many differences in how transit operates in different places around the world.  

For more photos of Egged MAN NL-313 buses, please click here.  

Bus Photo of the Month: May 2023

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Neoplan AN440LF ETB Trolleybus 4104

Location: Massachusetts Avenue at Garden Street, Cambridge, MA
Operator of Vehicle: Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority
Date of Photo: May 2, 2011

About a year ago, the long-running trolleybus network emanating from Harvard Station was discontinued after 86 years of operation.  The first trolleybus route in the Boston area began on April 11, 1936, replacing a streetcar line that operated on the same route.  Over the next three decades, the MBTA (once established) would operate 37 trolleybus routes at the network’s peak, mostly in the Cambridge area but trolleybus routes also ran in the Arborway and Dorchester areas.  Most of these routes replaced streetcars but some actually replaced standard bus lines.  In 1963, all but four of the trolleybus lines were converted to diesel bus routes.  There prevalent theory for why the trolleybuses were not eliminated entirely at that time is that the MBTA wished to reduce the amount of diesel fumes in the bus tunnels at Harvard Station, though some attribute it to the environmentalist movement of the 1970s. The design of the Harvard Bus Tunnel resulted in the MBTA ordering trolleybuses with a door on the left side, as seen in this photo, to facilitate boarding and alighting without passengers needing to cross the bus roadway.

In any case, the trackless trolleys continued to operate through the tunnel and throughout Cambridge on these routes until March 2022.  At that time, the North Cambridge Carhouse where the trolleybus fleet was based was closed in conjunction with public works projects in Cambridge and Watertown that necessitated removing the catenary used to power the vehicles.  The MBTA is converting the North Cambridge Carhouse for electric bus operation, and the former trolleybus routes at this garage will be operated by electric buses when the carhouse reopens.

When the Silver Line opened in 2004, it marked the resumption of trolleybus service within Boston proper for the first time since the early 1960s.  However, the MBTA has ordered hybrid buses with extended battery range to replace the current fleet of dual mode buses that operate on the Silver Line.  When these new buses arrive, the trolleybus era in Greater Boston will truly end.

For more photos of MBTA Buses and Trolleybuses, please click here.  

Rail Photo of the Month: May 2023

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Siemens SD-160 302

Location: I-25 & Broadway Station, Denver, CO
Operator of Vehicle: Regional Transportation District
Date of Photo: July 21, 2014

Last week marked the 10th anniversary of the opening of the W Line in Denver.  On April 26, 2013, this route opened between Denver Union Station and Golden, marking the completion of the first line to be part of the FasTracks program, an ambitious plan to build six new rail lines and a host of other transit infrastructure in the Denver region.  FasTracks also included the A Line to Denver International Airport and the reconstruction of Union Station in Downtown Denver for use by both RTD and Amtrak trains.  Although there were many line openings and extensions in the 2010s, FasTracks will not be officially completed until after 2050.

For more photos of RTD Light Rail, please click here.  

Bus Photo of the Month: April 2023

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Gillig Advantage 8005

Location: Snelling Avenue at University Avenue, St. Paul, MN
Operator of Vehicle: Metro Transit
Date of Photo: April 12, 2017

Six years ago this month, I rode the Metro A Line in Minneapolis and Saint Paul for the first (and to date only) time.  There are now two additional BRT routes in the Twin Cities, but this is the first one to have opened.  The A Line incorporates some standard features of bus rapid transit in order to provide improved trip times over the local bus service in that same corridor.  Most notably, these are priority signaling at intersections, off board fare collection, all door boarding, wider doors, and high profile station designs with level boarding, on demand heating during the winter months, and other features.  However, Metro Transit opted not to construct bus lanes in this corridor, saying that they would not significantly improve travel times.  Despite the lack of bus lanes, travel times along the A Line have decreased since the line first opened and ridership has increased.  Some even call the A Line the best bus route in the entire United States.  

Have you been on the A Line?  Do you have thoughts about what the best bus route in the United States (or somewhere else) might be?  How do you even determine what the best bus route is?  Leave a comment below in response to any or all of these questions!

For more photos of Metro Transit buses, please click here.  

Rail Photo of the Month: April 2023

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Tünel Funicular

Location: Karaköy, Istanbul, Turkey
Operator of Vehicle: İETT
Date of Photo: August 13, 2009

I’m going to assume that most of the people reading this would immediately know that the world’s first underground railway opened in London.  Any guesses as to what the second and third underground railways are?  The second oldest is in Athens, where I visited for the first time in September (photos forthcoming eventually).  The third oldest is the Tünel in Istanbul, a underground funicular that opened in January of 1875.  Today, the Tünel is part of a much larger transit network that has expanded rapidly in the years since I visited Istanbul for a few days in August 2009.  However, if it were a standalone transit system, the Tünel would be one of the world’s shortest if not the absolute shortest, traveling a distance of less than 600 meters (or 2000 feet) between Karaköy and Beyoğlu (Tünel Meydanı).  The Tünel’s current rolling stock, seen here, was introduced in 2007.

For more photos of the Istanbul Tünel, please click here.  

Bus Photo of the Month: March 2023

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New Flyer XN60 1218

Location: Kettner Boulevard at B Street, San Diego, CA
Operator of Vehicle: San Diego Metropolitan Transit System (MTS)
Date of Photo: March 9, 2022

Last March, a business trip took me to San Diego, my second time visiting the city.  I didn’t ride any buses this time (though I did ride the San Diego Trolley extension to University Towne Center), but I did get some bus photos that seemed Travelogue post worthy.  Here is one of them.

If you’re familiar with San Diego’s geography and transit routes, you may realize that Kettner Boulevard is the street where the Santa Fe Depot, which serves as the terminal for Amtrak’s Pacific Surfliner and the COASTER Commuter Rail, is located.  However, the building seen in the background of this photo is noteworthy in its own right.  The McClintock Storage Warehouse is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and is one of the few remaining examples of a large commercial warehouse built in the 1920s when San Diego was experiencing significant growth.  The building is constructed in the same Mission Revival style as the Santa Fe Depot, which is adjacent to the McClintock Warehouse (to the left of the vantage point in this photo) and was the site of the Greater San Diego Exposition when it opened.  The building was converted to live-work lofts by 2012.

Rapid is the brand name for MTS’s BRT network.  MTS purchased New Flyer XN60 buses specifically for the Rapid routes in 2014.  These buses feature passenger information displays and those assigned to the longer distance Rapid routes have interior layouts that make the passenger experience on these longer trips more comfortable.

For more photos of San Diego MTS buses, please click here.  

Rail Photo of the Month: March 2023

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MP89CC Stock 89 S 093

Location: Pont de Neuilly, Paris, France
Operator of Vehicle: Régie Autonome des Transports Parisiens (RATP)
Date of Photo: March 18, 2008

It’s hard to believe, but this month marks 15 years since I visited Paris for the first time.  I’d also argue that trip has been my only trip to Paris, as I transited the city twice to change trains (Bercy to Gare du Nord and Gare d’Austerlitz to Gare du Nord).  My sense from the occasional reading I’ve done online is that the Paris Metro is quite a bit different since my 2008 visit.  Line 1 is now a fully automated operation and the MP89CC stock seen here has been transferred to Line 4.  Now Line 4 is in the process of being fully automated, so these cars will be transferred to Line 6 as Line 4 becomes fully automated.  

Like New York or London, Paris is one of those cities that one will never have enough time to truly explore, and certainly can’t be seen in just a week (or a day), so I certainly hope to have the opportunity to go back some day.  

For more photos of MP89CC stock trains, please click here.  

Rail Photo of the Month: February 2023

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R62A 1946

Location: Grand Central, New York, NY
Operator of Vehicle: MTA New York City Transit
Date of Photo: June 20, 2009

On this date in 1913, Grand Central Terminal opened following ten years of construction.  Today’s Grand Central is not the first train station to be built on that site.  The first Grand Central Depot opened in October of 1871 with 12 tracks.  At that time, it was the largest open space in the United States and the largest railroad station in the world.  However, the station reached capacity by the mid-1890s.  An annex was added but capacity was reached again in 1897.  The terminal was reconstructed and in 1900, became known as Grand Central Station. 

At that time, the trains serving the station were steam hauled, which meant that the busy tunnel under Park Avenue leading to the station from the north (the only way for trains to access the station) was filled with smoke and soot.  Following a January 1902 crash that killed 15 passengers, the New York Central Railroad (which owned Grand Central) and the New York State legislature agreed to only operate electric trains into the terminal.  Less than 12 months after that fatal collision, New York Central Vice President William J. Wilgus proposed an extension of the Park Avenue Tunnel by covering the existing open cut used by the railroad from 46th Street to 59th Street.  This was now feasible because once Grand Central was only served by electric trains, there would be no need to vent smoke and soot from steam trains (since there wouldn’t be any).  The air rights over the terminal could then be sold to raise money for the railroad.  This proposal had to be approved and enacted upon quickly because plans were already underway for the Interborough Rapid Transit Company (better known as the IRT and now a part of the New York City Subway) to build subway lines around Grand Central, at which time the New York Central would lose its rights to construct underground in that area.  The new station was built in phases around the existing station so as to maintain train service throughout the duration of the project.  The rebuilt terminal, now known as Grand Central, saw its first train arrive just minutes after midnight on February 2, 1913.

In the ensuing 110 years, Grand Central has served as a catalyst for development in what is now Midtown Manhattan.  At the time Cornelius Vanderbilt commissioned the original Grand Central, there was not much in the way of development in the area.  However, he was convinced New York City would grow to the north and eventually, his railroad terminal would be in the heart of the city.  His vision proved to be very accurate, to the point that the Long Island Railroad began a long term project (that was first proposed in the 1960s) to connect its tracks to Grand Central Terminal in the 1990s when surveys indicated most LIRR riders worked near Grand Central, not Penn Station where LIRR trains terminate.  That project, known as East Side Access and more recently as “Grand Central Madison” culminated in the opening of eight new tracks served by four new platforms 140 feet below street level on January 25, 2023.  

Prior to the opening of Grand Central Madison, the most recent significant change to Grand Central was on the New York City Subway’s shuttle platforms.  As part of the 2015-2019 MTA Capital Program, the 42nd Street Shuttle that connects Grand Central to Times Square became ADA accessible and as part of that project, Track 3, the center shuttle track and the one the train in this photo is using, was removed.  The single island platform that now exists between Track 1 and Track 4 measures 22,000 square feet (2,000 square meters) and is the largest platform in the New York City by area.  The rebuilt Shuttle reopened on September 7, 2021.  You can see where Track 3 was by looking at the floor tiles on the new platform, the pattern of the tiles and columns between the floor and ceiling indicate where the track right-of-way used to be.

For more photos of R62A trains, please click here.  

Bus Photo of the Month: February 2023

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Flxible Metro-B 9343

Location: Friendship Heights Station, Chevy Chase, MD
Operator of Vehicle: Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority
Date of Photo: May 29, 2007

When WMATA was established in 1967, it was envisioned as solely being an operator of the rail system that was in the planning and construction phases at that time.  However, it soon became apparent that the best way to feed bus passengers into the rail system would be if WMATA operated said buses as well.  In February 1973, WMATA acquired the four private bus companies that formed the basis of what is now known as Metrobus.  These were the Alexandria Barcoft & Washington Transit Company (AB&W), DC Transit, Washington Marlboro & Annapolis Motor Lines (WM&A), and the Washington, Virginia and Maryland Coach Company (WV&M).  Although it has been 50 years since Metrobus was created, in some ways, not much has changed.  For example, the seemingly complicated way in which Metrobus routes are designated (i.e. 54, J2, 1B) is largely dependent on which private company operated it in 1973 and if it was a streetcar in 1936.  WMATA has created new routes since then but has largely kept this scheme in place when creating new designations.  In 2022, WMATA announced the launch of “Better Bus” which is the first comprehensive full Metrobus network redesign since the 1973 takeover of the private operators, so perhaps some or much of this will change in the coming years.

In 1998 when Metrobus celebrated its 25th anniversary, WMATA painted one of its buses, Flxible Metro-B 9343, silver to commemorate the occasion.  Throughout the year, if one was lucky enough to catch the silver bus, the ride was only 25 cents instead of the standard fare.  The bus remained silver after the anniversary year was over, though it was ultimately repainted in the “Fourth Scheme”, as seen in this picture.  

WMATA has dropped hints that the 50th anniversary of Metrobus will be commemorated in some way, but we are still waiting to learn what that might look like, so stay tuned!

For more photos of WMATA’s Flxible Metro-B buses, please click here.  

Some Things Are Worth Waiting For…

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New Flyer XE60 19506
Very observant visitors to this site might have noticed two things recently.  First, it has been a very long time (nearly two years in fact) since any announcements of new photos being posted to Oren’s Transit Page have been made.  Second, the January 2023 Bus Photo of the Month came from a city that was not included on Oren’s Transit Page before.  The reasons for this are several fold.  In 2021, travel was slowly resuming and the Oren’s Transit Page Baby (as he was known then) required a level of care that was age-appropriate but one that does not facilitate frequent website updates.  In 2022, travel really took off again, as my travels took me not only up and down the Northeast Corridor but to the Florida panhandle, San Diego, Los Angeles, Atlanta, Israel, and Greece.  As you can imagine, travels that extensive generate lots of photos, which in turn, take time to organize, touch up, caption, and post.  The good news is I’ve made some headway on that front, and I believe any photos I took prior to May 2022 are now online.

The “highlights” from this update in my opinion in “chronological” order are:

The rest of 2022’s photos are still to come, and I’ve already taken one trip within the US in 2023 and I’m sure more are to come, so stay tuned.  The photos from all those travels will be posted.  Eventually.

Here is the full listing of where new photos were added to the site, with new sections highlighted in bold and italics.