BusTalk

[NEW YORK OMNIBUS 2629]

The toxic, hideous fallout of urban vandalism, with no regard whatsoever for private property, nor local history..........

https://www.nycsubway.org/perl/show?92377

https://www.nycsubway.org/perl/show?92374

https://www.nycsubway.org/perl/show?92375

(courtesy: nycsubway.org)

["LAST STOP!"]

[NEW YORK OMNIBUS 2629]

"PRESERVATION"

https://www.nycsubway.org/perl/show?7461

(courtesy: nycsubway.org)

["S T A T E N I S LA ND"]

[Cyberider]

Pitiful!

[NEW YORK OMNIBUS 2629]

[NEW YORK OMNIBUS 2629]

W.B.:

Just curious as to when you might be making another "expedition voyage" to "The Isle of Staten", to see how many sets of retired "Fordy-Fours" are still on the property.

Hard to believe these "ME-2s" are no longer on "soivice", after 50 years.......

"NYO"

["SIRT"]

[NEW YORK OMNIBUS 2629]

Interesting..........

When the "Fody Fours" entered SIRT service in '73, the B&O was still operating car floats/lighterage out of St. George.

Of course, as the "Bee & Oh" still lopertated frieght service over SIRT rails, the "ME-2s" had to be FRA compliant...............

"NTO"

["Tottenville"]

[NEW YORK OMNIBUS 2629]

W.B.:

Are you planning any near-term expeditions to "The Isle of Staten", to document how many of the faithful old "ME-2s" ("R-44s") are still on SIRy property?

Am, of course, curious..........

"NYO"

["St. George"]

[W.B. Fishbowl]

[NEW YORK OMNIBUS 2629]

W.B.:

Your's Truly (as always!) eagerly awaits your always "in depth" report!

Am also curious as to SIR signalling; did the MTA modify the existing B&O CPLs, or, are all new signals in place?

Yeah,it IS odd that the bew rolling stock is not officially classified as "ME-3s".......

"NYO"

["5:15 TOTTENVILLE LOCAL"]

[W.B. Fishbowl]

Well, I've done my "Isle of Staten" "excoision" today, and first up, at Tottenville, the motorman told me a few things:
- They have a combo of ATC and dispatch control; this, he says, is necessary to prevent thefts of train sets as happened especially in Queens of late.
- We both thought it odd that the R-211S's a.k.a. "Staten Island Rattlers" did not have the "ME-3" designation.
- The more than satisfactory performance of the "Rattlers" in the mild snows this winter was one thing; however, when the big blizzard hit, five such sets ended up stuck, as snow and ice all built up along the "toid" rails, so they couldn't move. It was so bad they didn't even pull up the "resoive" "Fordy-Fours" to fill in. And weren't a few Triplexes and "Broadway Battleships," in the 1947 blizzard, likewise stopped dead in their tracks by all the snows outside?
- He is among those who say that when the day comes to mothball ALL the R-44's, they will be sorely missed.

34 "Fordy-Fours" are all in "resoive," at different places; one set did operate today, though I couldn't tell if there were passengers or if was a "ghost train" that just moved on. That combo was (S) 440-413-448-390 (T). The other R-44's I saw:
- At St. George: (S) car 456, (T) car 426 (couldn't get the numbers of the middle two)
- At Clifton: 416-403; 404-420-464-412
- At Tottenville: 454-405-419-428; 434-446-429-388; 450-433-411-408; and two other sets, one starting with (S) 398 and ending with 414 (T), the other starting with (S) 462 and ending with 400 (T). All those cars as above are still on "resoive," and a few have also been used on trips.
- The usual 12 cars set for scrap were still near Bay Street: 406-418-391-436; 394-389-415-396; and 430-425-392-458.

I was on train set 150-154. The others on duty at St. George, with one other also operational, were 115-119, 165-169, 140-144, 160-164, 129-125, 130-134, 110-114, 145-149 and 135-139. Those whose whereabouts were unknown today were 105-109, 120-124, 155-159 and 170-174.

Coming to Staten Island, I was on the SSG Michael H. Ollis; I returned to Manhattan on the Sandy Ground.

[NEW YORK OMNIBUS 2629]

W.B.:

As usual, an OUTSTANDING, THOROUGH report; EXCELLENT work, my friend!

(wonder what was up with that "ghost train" you observed

Surprised that there are still that many "ME-2s" ("Fordy-Fours") still awaiting their final fate on the "Isle of Staten"!

Speaking of the new "Staten Island Rattlers", I wonder if they will be experiencing any "meltdowns" this summer (no hot tunnels to negotiate, aside of the short stretch between St. George and Tompkinsville.

(I would also assume that the new "Rattlers" have door chimes that are different sounding than the "Avon" chimes of the "Fordy-Fours)

Do the new trains display ad cards?

For decades, I remember the ferries also carrying interior ad cards.

again, EXCELLENT report....thanks for tajung the time to recount your "excousion" here!

"NYO"

["RIDE THE RAPID"]

[W.B. Fishbowl]

[NEW YORK OMNIBUS 2629]

W.B.:

Thanks for the clarification!

"NYO"

["BING-BONG"]

[NEW YORK OMNIBUS 2629]

What's a little snow to grizzled "old timers" like these?

https://www.nycsubway.org/perl/show?45208

(courtesy:nycsubway.org)

["LET IT SNOW!"]

[NEW YORK OMNIBUS 2629]

(SEE PREVIOUS POSTS)

SIRT "oddity"..........

Strange that none of the old "NE-1s" were converted into work cars, once the "Fordy Fours" entered "soivice", back in 1983.

Almost ever class of retired NYC subway car has been converted into an MOW car, upon retirement (interestingly, only one or two of the "Broadway Battleships" ["Standards"] were converted into work cars).......

"NYO"

["SIRT"]