Archives for National Bus Trader

Ned Einstein (Transportation Alternatives, New York, NY) Anil V. Khadilkar, Ph. D (AVK Engineering, Huntington, Beach, CA) A quick glimpse at the best and the worst of Today’s buses reveals stark differences at the ends of the spectrum: (a) bare-bones body-on-chassis conversions with leaf-spring suspension systems lasting seven years in a schoolbus duty cycle versus (b) lush, integral motorcoaches with pneumatic suspension systems lasting between one and two million miles (notwithstanding a power train replacement). Nothing is, of course, this simple: Vehicles wear out more from slow-speed, stop-and-go duty cycles. And vehicles deployed fewer hours decline in value, to a

Not long ago, trade magazine readers could sit back, read through the current issue of National Bus Trader, and review the details of the latest motorcoach to enter the market. But not long ago, policemen got your cat out of a tree. Today, in the era of deregulation, voice jail and minimal staff, where low-balling bandit fleets crisscross the landscape, and where personal injury lawyers seem to haunt the highways like so many trolls, the real challenge is to stay in business. Those profits from reasonable fares that used to support well-paid, middle class drivers and thick management hierarchies are

Manufacturers do not always think through the scenarios that purchasers of their products are likely to encounter at the operating level. Nor do the purchasers. Sometimes the quirks can be mystifying. But ineffective responses to these quirks can lead to serious incidents, injuries and damage awards. Lift Platforms and Bean Stalks If a wheelchair fits on a lift platform on the way up, it should fit on the way down, right? Not always: A passenger wheeled her 50-inch-long electric scooter onto the lift platform, the driver raised it to the floor level, and the occupant motored the scooter into a

The transit community bemoaned the ADA requirement to equip every bus with a wheelchair lift, two securement positions, and three-point seatbelt systems to accommodate their users. Similarly, that industry bemoaned the requirement to use this equipment. With flip-up seats offsetting the otherwise loss of seating capacity, none of this equipment translated into a loss of capacity – although the unpredictable increases in running time these passengers have triggered, and the failure of drivers to properly accommodate them for this reason, have served as the underlying causes of a spate of personal injury and class action lawsuits. Like our transit brethren,

My Boy Scout experience taught me, above all else, to “be prepared.” My childhood in the Cold War Fifties exposed me to air raid drills and a well-organized civil defense system. My experience as an Air Force ROTC cadet taught me that strategies are generally more effective then tactics. My former career as a jazz musician and songwriter taught me that one can generally compose better melodies than one can improvise. My three decades of experience in paratransit operations taught me, “do not dispatch trips you can schedule.” And my experience as a forensic expert in nearly 200 public transportation-related

A considerable percentage of motorcoach service is provided under contract, in response to requests for bids or proposals (RFPs). These services include field trips for schoolchildren (which represent 30 percent of all motorcoach trips), virtually all commuter/express service (provided under contract to transit agencies), selected charter services purchased by transit agencies (before they are allowed to provide it themselves), and many others – particularly where public agencies or private companies (including many casinos) pay for them. To the detriment of the motorcoach industry, many of the requirements for these services are minimal. Many selections are made purely on the basis

I have argued that accidents more often reflect what one fails to see than what one does not know. The same is also true of hearing: Discharging his passengers temporarily at a rest stop, a motorcoach driver advised them to await the announcement of the coach’s departure from inside the station. When, minutes later, he pulled out to deadhead to a nearby garage for refueling, a passenger who apparently thought she was being stranded began chasing the coach and pounded on it several times while running alongside. Ignoring these tympanic thumps, the driver turned right, knocked the decedent down, and

A fundamental doctrine of U.S. civil law holds employers accountable for the conduct and performance of their employees when negligence occurs within the scope of their employment. This doctrine is known as respondeat superior. The principle of respondeat superior has sweeping implications for the provision of goods and services: Among them, since the employer is responsible for its employees’ conduct and performance, it has an implied responsibility to monitor them. Unfortunately, monitoring is the Achilles Heel of public transportation. Insufficient or non-existent monitoring lie at the root of virtually every accident or incident. But even when monitoring is conducted, drivers

Some folks like to talk about how smart their kids are. Others love to talk about their brainy pets. My old cat, Beep, displayed a special stunt whenever guests came to dinner: He would pounce onto the dining room table and taste the guests’ food as though it were not only acceptable, but routine. Animals can be terrific actors. I made sure both my guests and the furry thespian knew this was not the script: Beep missed his next meal of Dingles & Slibs, and spent the night outdoors. Meow, meow, meow, meow. Eventually, of course, I gave in. I