BusTalk

[HwyHaulier]

[Bill D]

Here's an interesting sketch of the Scenicruiser that never was.

http://www.raymondloewy.org/gallery/greyhound.html

Bill

[Mr. Linsky]

Bill,

Excellent find!

This picture, along with a number of others illustrating the design process that eventually led to the production Scenicruiser, may be found in an interesting Japanese publication entitled 'BUS - World Buses and Coaches - 81 82'.

While the main text is in Japanese, important points are translated to English.

Also of interest in the same U.S. section of the book is a two page spread on the evolution of design that produced the 1939 'Greyhound' Silversides.

A very recommended addition to any library, and one that I have used as reference for years.


Mr. Linsky - Green Bus Lines, Inc., Jamaica, NY

[HwyHaulier]

Mr. Linsky - Bill - All -

More of "On The Road To The 1954 Scenicruiser" adventure....

I can't source it at the moment, as a valuable site that had the data has become dark. There was the continuing Greyhound - GX program,
wherein the latest working prototype was identified as a GX-1.

Seems to me I read Greyhound tried a design closely emulating the Loewy - 1946 thinking. Quite an annoyance became quickly apparent
during operating trials. That is, what a challenge to pay the charges at a toll booth!

In the final 1954 designs, Greyhound opted for a plan with an ample amount of space for rider baggage, and especially Express shipments.
Clearly, the final design must have resulted in quite a steady earner on nearly any assigned runs...

...........................Vern.....................

[The Don of All Buses]

[Mr. Linsky]

The Don,

What did Raymond Lowey really know about designing a bus? (only kidding!).

If you will look more closely at the picture below, you will see that the passenger entry is located just behind the front wheel.

What appear to be windows in what would normally be the luggage section are actually seats the access to which are through that same door.

The upper level including the driver's compartment must have been gained by interior stairway.

I would imagine that the luggage would have been stored over the rear wheels.

Not to worry - this bus was never built.

Photo courtesy of Bill D.

Mr. Linsky - GreenBus Lines, Inc., Jamaica, NY

[Mr. Linsky]

HwyHaulier,

Why Ford (Transit Bus) stopped manufacturing in 1948 would have little to do with GM merely because GM concentrated their efforts on large 'heavy duty' transits from 1940 onward.

GM did see the void created by Ford's demise and filled it very nicely with their gasoline powered 2700 series at first and then on to the very successful 3200 model which, in one form or another, continued to sell through 1968.

Mr. Linsky - Green Bus Lines, Inc., Jamaica, NY

[Mr. Linsky]

Showing Raymond Lowey's futuristic vision of a Greyhound Scenicruiser brought to mind another very special GM vehicle called the 'Futurliner' which did make it into production in many forms over the years and will be the subject of this discussion;

Pictured below is the 1941 to 1946 version of the 'Futurliner' (note that the 'e' in the name was left out deliberately for trademark purposes).

These vehicles, which were never meant to be buses, were travelling side shows for the company and were an integral part of their 'Parade of Progress' program carrying animated exhibits that touted GM products all across the country.

Sixteen foot side panels folded out to form a marquee and stage platform along with a raising light tower above and a built in P. A. system.

12 of the 1941 series were built and as many as nine are still in existence including the derilect pictured below.

At 33 feet in length and 96 inches wide with a wheelbase of 248 inches, these Futurliners were powered by Detroit 4-71 Diesels with manual transmissions and carried a fuel capacity of 90 gallons.

You can learn more about GM's 'Parade of Progress' campaign at the following URL;

http://www.joeld.net/futurliner/futurliner.html

BTW; it sure looks as though Lowey had a hand in this design too!

Mr. Linsky - Green Bus Lines, Inc., Jamaica, NY

[Bill D]

Here's a site which has a lot of information on the Futurliner, and documents the restoration of one of these unique vehicles.

www.futurliner.com

Bill

[The Don of All Buses]

The Futureliner looks like an iron on wheels lol!

[Mr. Linsky]

The unusual bus pictured below is fleet # S208 – a 1933 Pickwick Nite Coach and one of a number operating for Santa Fe Trail Transportation Company.

Originally built for Columbia Pacific Nite Coaches, Santa Fe purchased these buses along with the routes of the company which were quickly abandoned in favor of a Kansas City to Chicago service in competition with Greyhound.

Pickwick Manufacturing Company, a subsidiary of Pickwick Stages which was the largest intercity bus company in the country in the early teens, conceived the Nite Coach in the late twenties as an alternative to luxury train travel.

Measuring 33 feet in length and 10 feet in height, these rolling hotels boasted 13 compartments, running water, folding berths, two rest rooms and a full service galley.

Integral construction and a very early application of rear transverse engine mounting coupled with an angle drive made the Nite Coach most advanced for its day.

Interestingly, the lead designer for Pickwick on this project and holder of the angle drive patent was a gentleman by the name of Dwight Austin who, in 1934, moved to Yellow Coach.

While the Nite Coach was about the same size as the more modern GM PD 4104, it was considered overly large for its day and was soon banned from operation in many states.

Note that the wheels and tires in the illustration may indicate that this particular coach is a restoration job.

Photo courtesy of Trailways Memories.

Mr.Linsky – Green Bus Lines, Inc., Jamaica, NY

14965

[HwyHaulier]

[Hart Bus]

On August 2, 2002, the webmaster, myself and several other members of the Shoreline Trolley Museum went to the Gathering of Buses held at Double A Transportation, in Rochky Hill, CT. Peter Pan LInes brought down and displayed Futurliner #7. It is truly a marvel of engineering for its time. To acess the drivers seat, you climb up a staircase on the passenger side of the bus. When you sit in the seat you realize that your eyes are about 14 feet off the ground. I have a picture taken from the seat that clearly shows that you are much higher than the roofs of the buses parked across the aisle. Incidentally, one of those buses was an ex-PSCT Fishbowll A-340, prior to its appearnce in the movie "Munich"

[Mr. Linsky]

Hart Bus,

I guess you might say that sitting behind the wheel of a Futurliner afforded you much the same feeling as the first pilots had who sat behind the controls of a 747 (and you can imagine what that feeling must be taxiing a '380' down the runway!).

I don't get over to the San Franando Valley as much as I used to but there was or still is a Futurliner that always parked along Moorpark Street somewhere between Van Nuys and Sepulveda.

I had no idea what it was because it no longer had the large 'GM' logo under the windshield, but it was well kept and neatly painted in a battleship gray.

Check it out if you're in the neighborhhod (if it's still there!).

Mr. Linsky - Green Bus Lines, Inc., Jamaica, NY

[Mr. Linsky]

Pictured below (fleet # S205) is another view of a Pickwick 'Nite Coach' in a more modern Trailways livery.

Notice the different upper window configuration, front and rear passenger entries, and the false radiator grill (quite a climb to the driver's compartment too!).

Photo courtesy of Trailways Memories.

Mr. Linsky - Green Bus Lines, Inc., Jamaica, NY