General Discussion

[Barry Drive]

I thought the Darts lacked one.

You thought wrongly. Like the Scanias and MANs, the Darts have a lockable compartment above the driver's seat. They all use the same key, so any driver can unlock the compartment.

[Sir Pompously]

Caught the 170 home this evening and was caught in a traffic jam between Hindmarsh Drive and Mawson, turned out 952 had snuffed it and had the breakdown truck behind fixing it up.

[Bus 400]

....turned out 952 had snuffed it and had the breakdown truck behind fixing it up.

It was on the side of the road just before Mawson Drive when I went past at 18:40ish, with 312 Tuggeranong still on the desto

[Snorzac]

They are doing work at the Cameron Ave. Station who knows what's happening.

[Buzz Killington]

Small observation that may have been raised already, but looking at some Scania photos, it seems 320 was the only one to have the "do not overtake turning vehicle" sticker that is one of the old long strip ones across the bottom of the rear window, whereas all the others have the small sticker in the bottom left of the rear of the bus.

Does 320 still have the long strip version of the sticker? it looks quite odd really.

[smitho]

They are doing work at the Cameron Ave. Station who knows what's happening.

They are putting in underground cables; what should have been a quick job ended up a much longer task when they ran into rock unexpectedly. I took my No 7 through there this am around 0745, just using the back end of the platform; it was closed altogether later on in the morning, Base telling us to use Platform 2 instead.

[Snorzac]

There is a Tuggies .2 doing a 905. No idea what the fleet number it is but it was doing the same run that a Tuggies driver that I know did last week. I didn't think that Tuggies drivers were supposed to take anything other than gas buses on weekends.

[Bus 400]

From what I have been told, drivers can take whatever standard they like. Starters would probably prefer drivers to take gasies. Also depending when the refuellers & the driver's shift started, there may not of been a gas bus ready for him. As there are times when all gas buses are out either drivers shift coming towards an end or others that have just started.

[smitho]

There is a Tuggies .2 doing a 905. No idea what the fleet number it is but it was doing the same run that a Tuggies driver that I know did last week. I didn't think that Tuggies drivers were supposed to take anything other than gas buses on weekends.

You're right - Tuggeranong drivers are nearly always allocated gas buses on weekends and weekend shift cards all specify gas buses are to be used.

On rare occasions, there may be personal health reasons or training reasons why a driver needs to use a certain type of bus which might explain what you saw.

Note that the new on-line timetables identify which weekend (and weekday) runs are worked with low floor buses so that's another reason to match up your bus type with what is on  the shift card.

[Lockie]

On rare occasions, there may be personal health reasons or training reasons why a driver needs to use a certain type of bus which might explain what you saw.

Could you elaborate as to what the gas buses lack in terms health requirements? Just curious.

[Bus 400]

There will be some very happy drivers, as it looks like soon they will no longer have to do a u-turn in Forde. As there is a DA for a an access road into Forde to be extended & a bridge to be built. The only road that I can see that would need this is Jessie Street, where buses currently turn around & head back down Amy Ackman Street. This would mean that the 59 would enter from Francis Forde Boulevard & exit via Jessie Street/Gundaroo Road (or I think it is now called Mulligans Flat Road) & then go onto Belconnen & in reverse order to Gungahlin.

Here is the DA:

FORDE
Development Application: 200913825
Address: NO ADDRESS
Block: 1 Section: 85
Proposal: PUBLIC WORKS-ACCESS ROAD-BRIDGE-STREET EXTENSION-STREET LIGHTS-LANDSCAPING.

As per quite a few Government DA's there are no plans attached to the DA.

[smitho]

Could you elaborate as to what the gas buses lack in terms health requirements? Just curious.

Sorry, I can't give particular examples, but I'm aware of the odd driver who has been permitted to use a particular type of bus in very special circumstances because of a particular health condition. But as a general rule, drivers can't be selective about which types of buses they can or can't drive based on their health or fitness circumstances.

[Buzz Killington]

There will be some very happy drivers, as it looks like soon they will no longer have to do a u-turn in Forde. As there is a DA for a an access road into Forde to be extended & a bridge to be built. The only road that I can see that would need this is Jessie Street, where buses currently turn around & head back down Amy Ackman Street. This would mean that the 59 would enter from Francis Forde Boulevard & exit via Jessie Street/Gundaroo Road (or I think it is now called Mulligans Flat Road) & then go onto Belconnen & in reverse order to Gungahlin.

Here is the DA:As per quite a few Government DA's there are no plans attached to the DA.

It is Jessie Street that is being extended, its just waiting on a bridge to take it across to meet up with the roundabout at William Cooper Av/Mulligans Flat Rd, where the Jessie St exit is already in place.

Pretty obvious idea here is that once it comes out of Forde on Jessie St, it'll continue onto William Cooper and through Bonner.

[Bus 400]

& eventually through to Bonner to terminate at Casey Group Centre.

[Snorzac]

358 is currently getting around with no logos on either side.

[Buzz Killington]

This may have been raised before, but why is there not a Platform 13 at Woden?

[lukeo25]

its bad luck , i think when they built it the builders or ACTION didn't want to jinx the place :)

[Irisbus Rider]

its bad luck , i think when they built it the builders or ACTION didn't want to jinx the place :)

That's exactly right, I was told this by a driver.

Also, an operator in Sydney goes to the extreme in this sense, under it's previous owner, Busways didn't have 13 anywhere in their operation.Although, this has changed in these modern open-minded times.

[Bus 400]

its bad luck

So that's why the 13 goes through Charnwood & why Belconnen Interchange was the only Interchange to have a Platform 13.

[Buzz Killington]

Belconnen Interchange had a Platform 13.


..and then it got decommissioned.


OMG

[bubzie]

Yeah, and woden needs all the..non bad luck it can get..


I think i saw tp3000 sitting outside tuggeranong depot today with what looked to be a clipboard, be warned...

[Irisbus Rider]

I think i saw tp3000 sitting outside tuggeranong depot today with what looked to be a clipboard, be warned...

Oh, Dear God, Run! Children, RUN!

[lukeo25]

i'll  just pop this here , http://www.canberra.edu.au/monitor/articles/new/20070529_bus?SQ_DESIGN_NAME=print

[Bus 400]

Yeah I was out waiting for my ride for Saturday shift. I was at the main gates, but on the wrong side. As I was going to pull over 2 of the Inspectors coming to the depot (in their private cars to transfer for their shift) & pretend to give them speeding tickets.

Apparently there was a special ACTION passenger waiting for a bus on College Street. But this passenger ended up being taken away by special people. What I am saying is that apparently a Kangaroo jumped into a bus shelter & died on College Street (well that is what I understood of it-but I was corrected with another thing said over the radio that I heard wrong).

[Sir Pompously]

Yeah I was out waiting for my ride for Saturday shift. I was at the main gates, but on the wrong side. As I was going to pull over 2 of the Inspectors coming to the depot (in their private cars to transfer for their shift) & pretend to give them speeding tickets.

Ah, What? That is the most idiotic thing I have heard. I Am trying to fathom exactly what would possess you to do so....

From what I gathered on the radio was that the Kangaroo was hit and ended up in the shelter.

[Bus 400]

It's as a joke, I only do it to the ones that are my buddies. I wouldn't do it to the crabby ones.

[Buzz Killington]

i'll  just pop this here , http://www.canberra.edu.au/monitor/articles/new/20070529_bus?SQ_DESIGN_NAME=print

lol!

[Bus 400]

941 now has a reverse beeper.

330 is also one of the buses to be ruined with auto retardant. For those that don't know what I am talking about. As soon as the bus driver takes his foot off the accelerator, the retardant kicks in to slow the bus. This then takes the wear & tear on the brakes.

[Irisbus Rider]

941 now has a reverse beeper.

330 is also one of the buses to be ruined with auto r****dant. For those that don't know what I am talking about. As soon as the bus driver takes his foot off the accelerator, the r****dant kicks in to slow the bus. This then takes the wear & tear on the brakes.

Wear and tear on the brakes? I think you mean off the brakes.
Also, there is nothing wrong with a retarder, it is a good feature to have on a bus weighing 18t.

[Bus 400]

Something like that, that way ACTION spend less money on brakes. So far mostly only Scania's have this feature. The bit that annoys me is when I'm standing & the bus jerks forwards, then brakes. It could also muck up a drivers perception of how much force to apply to the brakes of a bus without retardant.

[Irisbus Rider]

Something like that, that way ACTION spend less money on brakes. So far mostly only Scania's have this feature. The bit that annoys me is when I'm standing & the bus jerks forwards, then brakes. It could also muck up a drivers perception of how much force to apply to the brakes of a bus without r****dant.

That's interesting, as most re-tar-ders work so that when a driver touches the brake slightly, the re-tar-der kicks in. If what you're saying is correct, the re-tar-der cuts in as soon as the driver lifts off the accellerator, which certainly is unusual.
BTW, all 100.2s have a re-tar-der too.

Even if it may annoy you, it's much better for the bus and the driver to have, if it's applied correctly.

[Bus 400]

I have been informed that all lost property goes through Tuggeranong Depot.

So we have gone from each Interchange having a lost property, 2 each depot having a lost property to just the one now.

[belcodriver]

I have been informed that all lost property goes through Tuggeranong Depot.

So we have gone from each Interchange having a lost property, 2 each depot having a lost property to just the one now.

And yet again you are wrong. There is a lost property office at Civic Interchange.

[Barry Drive]

Something like that, that way ACTION spend less money on brakes. So far mostly only Scania's have this feature. The bit that annoys me is when I'm standing & the bus jerks forwards, then brakes. It could also muck up a drivers perception of how much force to apply to the brakes of a bus without re-tardant.

You really don't have a clue, do you? Are you seriously not aware that all (automatic) buses are fitted with some type of re-tarder and have been since at least the 1970's? Interestingly, the imported MAN SG192s, which may have been the first buses in Canberra with re-tarders, had a re-tarder system which did activate when the foot was taken off the accelerator. The driver had to set the level of re-tardation from none to full by pulling and pushing a lever and when the accelerator was lifted, the re-tarder would kick in (or not) depending on where the lever was set. Fortunately, most (all?) re-tarders now work from the brake pedal.

So we have gone from each Interchange having a lost property, to each depot having a lost property to just the one now.

Wrong. There was never a lost property at each interchange.

[Bus 400]

But on some of the old buses, they have a phone number for lost property for Belconnen, City, Woden & Tuggeranong.

The Belconnen Area Supervisor told the driver that all lost property goes through Tuggeranong now

[Ed]

It could also muck up a drivers perception of how much force to apply to the brakes of a bus without r****dant (sic).

All ACTION buses have a re-tarder.

Most if not all heavy vehicles have a secondary braking system of some sort (be it a re-tarder or an exhaust brake).

[The Love Guru]

TP3000 = NFI!!!!!!!

You should go away for a while (longer the better) and study how the buses actually work before posting your half assed comments on how they work.

I would love to be working in the radio room when you have your first breakdown, your description of a problem would be truly comical.

[Bus 400]

I would love to be working in the radio room when you have your first breakdown, your description of a problem would be truly comical.

Who told you where I've been doing work experience?

[belcodriver]

Most if not all heavy vehicles have a secondary braking system of some sort (be it a re-tarder or an exhaust brake).

There's also the Telma frictionless secondary braking (see: http://www.telmausa.com/telma_htm/default.htm) which is basically a big electromagnet (~ 100A current which is heaps) around the axle which works like an electric motor in reverse. The big drawback with them is that extended use can burn out the magnet.

[belcodriver]

Forgot to mention that the retarders on the SNT Hinos come on as soon as there's no pressure on the accelerator or clutch. This feature can be switched off but there's no intermediate settings like on the old MANs someone mentioned.

[Bus 400]

And yet again you are wrong. There is a lost property office at Civic Interchange.

I'll take that I am wrong as I now have confirmation of this from ACTION.

A lost property office is now in Bailey's Arcade & runs from 07:30 to 17:30.

[Bus 400]

To add to the Auto Re-tard-er debate, I have been told by ACTION Fleet Services that the activation of the re-tard-er on the CNG Scania's is a standard application set at the Scania factory.

Apparently it is more apparent in 344 to accommodate for a driver who had an injured leg/foot.

[Barry Drive]

I'll take that I am wrong as I now have confirmation of this from ACTION.

And it was also mentioned here twice.

To add to the Auto Re-tard-er debate, I have been told by ACTION Fleet Services that the activation of the re-tard-er on the CNG Scanias is a standard application set at the Scania factory.

WTF? "activation ... is a standard application"? What does this even mean?

[Bus 400]

WTF? "activation ... is a standard application"? What does this even mean?

That is the exact wording used by ACTION Fleet Services

[Busnerd]

tp3000, and i will ask that drivers comment if i am wrong as i havent driven actions buses yet, but renaults have retarders and are activated when you hit the brakes, or tap them rather. All other buses should have automatic retarders that come on when you lift your foot off the accelarator, that is how all buses work, i have driven things like 0405NH's and 0500's which have this feature very prominent, however some mercs have switches to turn the retarder off as some drivers don't like them.

[Barry Drive]

So far, ACTION has opted for all buses to have re-tarders operated by the brake pedal - and no ability to switch them off. It's possible that some of the early MAN SL200s didn't have them when first delivered, but the artics always had them as did the Merc O.305/O.305Gs (using the brake pedal) and all subsequent buses.

But on some of the old buses, they have a phone number for lost property for Belconnen, City, Woden & Tuggeranong.

If you mean a different number for each then I doubt that. ACTION have for a long time used a single phone number for lost property - it may have changed over the years, but it was always a single number. And anyway, lost property would be handled by depots, not interchanges.

[Bus 400]

This was before the 13 17 10 number. I'm trying to steal the poster that shows a whole bunch of the old numbers (it's ok as it is no longer valid). All the number missed the "6" at the begining.

[lukeo25]

i've a few of them on a few of the .2s

[Bus 400]

Thought so, but all those I check don't have them just those RATEC Open days posters. But so do have the 13 17 10 on big stickers though.

[Busnerd]

Those old stickers with the the old phone number probably won't come off anyway, they've been there for twenty years and would probably chip off if you tried to steal it, which you shouldn't do anyway as it's not yours to take. Just take a photo of it.