2011 - Bus History Association

Bus History Association
2011 Convention
Regina, SK and Winnipeg, MB
June 10 to 13, 2011
Regina, Saskatchewan was chosen as the host city for the 2011 BHA annual convention. When announced in
June 2010, it was anticipated that it would only be a two day (Friday, Saturday) convention. However, an
invitation was extended from the Manitoba Transit Heritage Association (MTHA) to have an additional day in
Winnipeg, hosted by the MTHA. The BHA was last in Winnipeg in June of 2001, so the invitation was readily
accepted.
Friday, June 10th, 2011
Thirty seven BHA members and non-members assembled bright and early in the lobby of the Quality Inn in
Regina. Our charter bus on the Friday was Moose Mountain Lines # 100, an MCI J4500 and a full day was
planned.
The first stop was at the Regina
Transit transfer point at City Hall
which was only a short distance
away from the convention hotel.
It was early in the morning and
the sun angle was not ideal, but
still there were a few interesting
buses that stopped by during our
time there. In addition to the
numerous Nova Bus LFS low floor
buses, Regina also operated a
handful of GMC New Look buses
(most of which were ex-Red
Deer), a couple of Orion V (ExMoose Jaw) and a New Flyer D40
(also ex-Moose Jaw). In addition
numerous GMC, MCI and Nova Classics are also present in the fleet, some of which have been acquired used.
In the photo above, Regina Transit # 211 (ex-Red Deer Transit 515) is seen at the City Hall transfer point.
Next it was on to Saskatoon, located approximately 2.5 hours north and west of Regina. On the way, our
Moose Mountain driver mentioned that we would be passing through Chamberlain, SK around the time that
Saskatchewan Transportation Company had a timed transfer connection. An unscheduled stop was made and
we were able to get shots of two STC buses transferring passengers.
In Saskatoon, the first stop was at Place Riel Student Centre at the University of Saskatchewan. This was a
combination lunch stop and photo stop at the transit terminal. While there, we saw numerous Saskatoon
Transit buses including many classics, most of which are in the new paint scheme. Numerous other buses
were seen at the University, including many in the DART (Direct Access Rapid Transit) scheme. The newest
buses in the fleet are Nova Bus
LFS articulateds (1005-1007) and
GMC/Arboc
Mobility
cutaway
buses (1008-1011). Articulated
Nova 1005 is seen at the left at
the University during the lunch
stop.
After the lunch stop at the
University, it was on to the main
maintenance facility for STC, the
Saskatchewan
Transportation
Company.
The STC maintenance facility
allowed us the opportunity to
photograph a wide selection of the STC fleet. Included were numerous MCI buses and a GMC cutaway (# 877)
with El Dorado Aerotech body. It is shown below complete with parcel trailer. STC does a huge parcel business
and a large percentage of the scheduled service usually tows a trailer. It looks odd to see it on a cutaway
however.
After the STC garage, it was on to
the Saskatoon Transit garage
which is located not too far from
downtown. A couple of buses
were pulled outside for better
photography including a GMC new
look (one ex-Edmonton and one in
the normal paint scheme) and an
ex-Montreal Nova LFS. After a
short visit at the garage, it was
onto downtown for our final stop
of the day. Saskatoon Transit
provided bus 402 (T6H-5307N) for
the quick ride downtown.
We spent an hour at the downtown transfer point and during that time observed most of the vehicle types
operated by Saskatoon Transit. Saskatoon has some ex-Regina Classics like 572 that retain their former
Regina number. Saskatoon also has some ex-St. Albert GMC new look buses, one of which (# 824) was seen
downtown during our visit.
A number of BHA members took the opportunity during our time downtown to walk about half a mile away.
Located near the Bessborough hotel is an ex-British Double Decker (RT) that has been converted to an ice
cream establishment. The “Bus Stop” ended up getting a few customers from the BHA conventioneers.
The ride back to the hotel was quick resulting in an arrival time just after 7:00 PM. It was a long day, but it
was a good day.
Saturday, June 11th, 2011
The second day of the Regina portion of the BHA convention concentrated on Regina and Moose Jaw. Our bus
for the first half of the day was Moose Mountain Lines 104, a D4505 which is the newest bus in their fleet. We
headed west to Moose Jaw for our
first stop of the day at the transit
garage.
Prior to the garage however, we
did
a
minor
unscheduled
deviation. We found out that CP
Railway 2816, a steam engine was
in town for a charity event. The
tracks were not that far from the
MJT garage so we ventured by
the tracks to allow BHA members
to get a shot of 2816.
At the MJT garage, a Nova LFS
and El Dorado EZ Rider II were
parked outside awaiting our
arrival. After a minor repositioning for better sun angles, we got some good shots. Our charter bus was also
posed in the sun for good photography (photo above) with the dramatic dark sky in the background.
After the garage it was on to the downtown transfer point. MJT has 3 buses in service on a Saturday which
allowed us to get some more shots of the Nova Bus LFS low floor units.
After Moose Jaw, we returned to Regina and stopped by the Regina Bus Terminal. For people who have not
been there, the Regina Bus Terminal is probably one of the nicest anywhere. We had permission to pull our
MML bus inside the terminal where awaiting our arrival was the Saskatchewan Transportation Company
historic bus. The Western Flyer T40 (ex-Department of National
Defense) is done up as a historic
coach and is shown at left. The
rear of the coach on the inside has
numerous old photographs and
display of STC history. The bus
had been brought down to the
terminal
on
Friday
so
unfortunately there was not a
qualified STC driver available to
move
the
bus
for
better
photography. We had to shoot it
where it was but the inside of the
STC terminal is reasonably lit so
the photos turned out OK.
While we were at the terminal, a few STC buses arrived and departed which allowed for some photography
inside the terminal. We also had a tour of the package express facility which was pretty impressive due to the
amount of cargo that is handled on a daily basis.
After the bus terminal, it was onto Cornwall Centre in downtown Regina for a lunch stop. The Cornwall Centre
downtown on 11th Avenue was another stop that combined lunch (a food court) and buses (Regina Transit
layover point on 11th Avenue).
Regina still has a large number of
Classics in the fleet and they are
still plentiful on Saturday. While we
were there, GMC Classic # 534,
the oldest Classic in the fleet was
laying over and it seen in the
photo at left.
After lunch, we stopped by the
Moose Mountain Lines garage. A
number of bus models were pulled
out for us, including MCI J4500
and Prevost H3-45.
It was then onto the Regina
Transit garage. The staff were very
friendly and a number of vehicles were pulled outside for us. Included in the buses pulled outside for better
photography, was # 200 which is their historic vehicle. It is a 1954 GMC TDH-4801 that is ex-Los Angeles #
6583. Even though it never
operated for Regina Transit, it has
been painted into the scheme that
was on the TDH-5105 buses that
did operate in the city. The very
impressive restoration is seen in
the photo at right.
Regina has a very interesting fleet
in addition to the buses that were
pulled out for us at the garage.
Nova Bus LFS units now make up a
large portion of the fleet which
includes some 3rd generation
versions (most of which were
originally built for Calgary but
rejected). Two of the newer Novas
have been put into a new wrap scheme. Buses 638 and 644 display the new wrap and both buses were seen
quite often over the course of the two day convention.
Only one Thomas SLF200 bus is in the fleet and it is quite often seen on route # 17. El Dorado EZ Rider II
buses are the other small bus type in the fleet. Other vehicles in the used bus fleet include 206 (New Flyer
D40, ex - Moose Jaw), 210 (MCI TC-40102A, ex-Timmins, exx-Santa Monica) and 218 (MCI TC-40102N exLethbridge). Bus 218 is easy to stop from a distance with the larger destination sign.
For the ride back to the hotel, we boarded Regina Transit # 215, another one of the ex-Red Deer buses. A
quick stop was made at a city storage facility where we observed many out of service buses including 212 (exRed Deer) and 221 (ex-Edmonton). Photo stops were also made at the old Dewdney/Horace trolley bus loop
(a suggestion from Wally Young of Victoria) and also at First Nations University at the University of Regina.
The unique looking building shows the native heritage of the Saskatchewan area.
Originally we wanted to charter GMC new look # 506, which was the only original Regina new look in the fleet.
This is the bus that David Onodera had painted into the old brown, crème and silver scheme of Regina Transit.
Although this bus had not been delivered in that scheme, it was meant to be one of the show pieces (along
with bus # 200) for the 100th anniversary of Regina Transit. However, just two days before the BHA
convention, bus 506 was involved in an accident. The damage was minor enough that it will be fixed, but
major enough that it was not available for our charter. Bus 215 was an appropriate substitution though.
The BHA annual meeting was held on Saturday night at the host hotel. After a quick business meeting, a slide
presentation was given by Bernie Drouillard and Kevin Nicol. A power outage after Bernie’s presentation
delayed the second half of the show, but a handful of members waited it out, with Kevin’s presentation
finishing just after midnight.
With the two days in Regina complete, it was off to Winnipeg for the Monday of the BHA convention.
Sunday, June 12th, 2011
Logistically, it created a challenge
to get members from Regina to
Winnipeg, a distance of about 560
kilometres (350 miles). With some
people finding their own way
(Greyhound, Air Canada, etc.)
there was still a demand for car
pools for most people. Bernie
Drouillard did a great job of
arranging rides for everybody and
people made it to the hotel by
Sunday evening.
However, being bus fans, most
people had a few diversions along
the way. A number of people
stopped by a Regina Fire Hall on
the way out of town. The friendly firefighters present allowed the BHA members the opportunity to
photograph an ex-Regina TDH-4519 that is currently used as a command centre.
Monday, June 13th, 2011
The MTHA (Manitoba Transit Heritage Association) really went out of their way to make the BHA feel at home.
Two buses were donated for our use during the day (ex-Winnipeg Flyer D901 # 107 and T6H-4521A # 751).
With the bus companies and bus manufacturing facilities that were planned to visit, it made for a very long but
enjoyable day. The weather forecast was not promising but for the most part, the rain held off. The MTHA has
a very
impressive historical
collection. In addition to the two
buses that we rode on, there were
4 other buses from their fleet on
display at the Winnipeg Transit
garage.
Bus 111 is a 1936 Twin Coach
23R. This bus runs very well and
the MTHA gave BHA members
rides around the garage in the 75
year old bus. Bus 565 is a 1946
Ford 69-B that also runs. Both
buses are painted in the as
delivered scheme of the Winnipeg
Electric Company. Also on display
were the two buses donated by
New Flyer Industries. Bus 20 is a 1956 Western Flyer T36-2L referred to as a "Scenic Cruiser". Only four of
these deck and a half buses were produced and it is great that one has survived. The other Western Flyer was
a 1958 T38/40 that was ex-Royal Canadian Air Force.
While at the Winnipeg garage, unfortunately bus # 107 experienced an electrical malfunction as was
unavailable for the rest of the day. Winnipeg Transit allowed use of bus 674 (D40). This became the second
bus for the rest of the day.
Prior to arrival at the Winnipeg Transit garage, The BHA toured both the MCI (Motor Coach Industries) plant.
Photos were allowed during the MCI tour which is always appreciated. For the E4500 and J4500, the bus is
constructed as a complete unit. For the D4500, the shell is actually constructed as two halves (upper and
lower) which are joined together at a later stage in the production. Many D4500 buses for GO Transit were
under construction during our plant visit. MCI has acquired a 1952 Courier Skyview coach for possible
restoration. The MTHA has offered to help with the restoration of this bus.
After the Winnipeg Transit garage visit, the group headed to the Graham Transit Mall for the lunch stop.
Sufficient time was allowed for BHA members to get lunch at the City Place food court as well as to photo the
numerous Winnipeg Transit buses that use the Graham Street transit mall when in the downtown area.
After lunch, the BHA visited the Beaver Bus Lines garage. Beaver Bus Lines is a favourite company of bus fans,
having been family owned since 1972. In addition to the tour and charter service buses that Beaver has (both
MCI and Prevost), transit buses are also a large part of the fleet. The buses are used for the SJR (St. John
Ravenscourt high school) contract service as well as the suburban line run between Winnipeg and Selkirk.
Two GMC new look buses are still in the fleet (# 38, 1982 GMC T6H-5307N and # 40, 1971 T8H-5305A).
These buses are the spare buses for the SJR service so they do get out occasionally. They have both been
repainted into the newer color scheme of Beaver with the past couple of years. MCI Classics make up the
majority of the fleet. Most are exUtah Transit Authority. GMC New
Look # 40 is actually ex-Golden
Gate Transit and is still in
occasional use, despite the fact
that it is 40 years old. The newest
transit bus in the Beaver fleet is #
62, a TMC T80208 from 1994. This
bus
is
ex-YVR
Airporter
(Vancouver) # 101 and will be one
of a kind in the Beaver fleet.
With the two vehicles that we
were
using,
two
different
departure times were scheduled
from the Beaver Bus garage. This
was due to the fact that the tour
of the New Flyer Plant was to be done in two halves. The first bus left at 2:30 PM while the second bus left at
3:20 PM. For BHA members who were on the second bus, they had the chance to photograph all of the
afternoon SJR pullouts, which normally occur around 3:00 PM. In addition to the GM New Looks, Beaver
operates Orion 1 buses, a single Orion V bus, New Flyer D40 suburban buses and numerous MCI Classics
which have been bought used.
At New Flyer, photography inside the plant was not allowed; however, we were allowed to photograph some
of the XCelsior shells that were outside waiting to be trucked to St. Cloud, MN for completion. Included were
units for Mississauga, Ontario and Washington, D.C.
After the New Flyer tour, the group headed back to the hotel. One more surprise was awaiting us, courtesy of
the Manitoba Transit Heritage Association. The MTHA had their 1956 Western Flyer T36-2L “Scenic Cruiser”
available for a quick ride to and
from the Greyhound Terminal at
the Winnipeg Airport. This bus is
the pride and joy of the MTHA
fleet and is one of only 4 buses
ever made.
After a most enjoyable ride, it was
back to the hotel where the
convention was officially over. The
BHA really enjoyed the visit to the
Canadian Prairies and looks
forward to the next annual
convention in Albany, NY in June
2012.