Route 15 Startup

The Maroon PCC car is #2799 painted in the red arrow livery.

Daryl Jackson
[email protected] [/b]

jfrey40535 wrote:I spotted a PCC-II at Woodland Depot (sorry, Woodland shop) today. Was parked on the outer track next to the other PCC that is always parked there. Anyone know what that other PCC is by the way(in Maroon paint)?

Woodland is where heavy overhauls are done. Not quite sure why a brand new PCC would be there. Funny how the M4's also get major work done there instead of at Victory Terminal (meaning they get trucked over).

Victory doesn't have the facilites to do major major work on the M4s like Woodland does.

jfrey40535 wrote:PCC-II's are not equipped with the controls to interface with the new signal system in the tunnel.....how convenient!

Nor do they have roof-mounted headlights to illuminate the overhead wire and tunnel roof. Required by the LRO operating rules for the subway-surface lines, according to a contact I know at SEPTA Light Rail Ops.

The cab signal issue is minor.....PCC-II's could run on visual rules like they do now in some segments of the tunnel with long signal blocks, and a following Kawasaki would be governed by the cab signals.

I also heard that the needed specialwork is to be installed at 60th and Girard to allow the pull-outs, and my only comment is "Why didn't they just do that in the first place when they got the initial negative reaction over 59th Street?"

And sad to say.....most SEPTA riders truly don't care what their vehicle is, as long as it shows up, and on time. I hear people refer to the trackless trolleys as "buses" all the time.....and I shudder with horror at the "36 bus" story......

SEPTALRV9072 wrote:

Lucius Kwok wrote:Regarding air horns, are you sure that the newly rebuilt PCCs won't have them? If not, it would be a simple addition. In the meantime, drivers should carry around personal air horns.

They are going to have air horns. The newest car 2332 has an air horn along with an LED STOP sign in the rear curbside window. The rest of the cars being delivered will have them and the cars here already will be retrofitted with them.

Actually, they're more like car horns. I rode 2336 and 2337 on the Super Saturday fan trip last month and the horns sound just like they came off my Chevy....LOL!!!

Silverliner II wrote:.....and I shudder with horror at the "36 bus" story......

yyuhhhhhhh. That's not just something I've heard. Another regular on this board said he's heard the same comment from a number of riders as well.

Frank Beach and Merritt Taylor are no doubt spinning in their graves.

JeffK wrote:

Silverliner II wrote:.....and I shudder with horror at the "36 bus" story......

yyuhhhhhhh. That's not just something I've heard. Another regular on this board said he's heard the same comment from a number of riders as well.

Frank Beach and Merritt Taylor are no doubt spinning in their graves.

Shudder-worthy indeed. But what really drives me nuts is the opposite problem, when people refer to the Phlash buses and their ilk as "trolleys." I once made the mistake of trying to explain the difference while waiting in 30th Street for the train, and the reply I got was "But they [real trolleys] don't exist anymore, so what's wrong with calling them [the Phlash buses] trolleys?"

Sadly the same kind of incomprehensible misinformation goes way beyond transit. I also consult for a numismatic forum (http://www.coinclub.com/wwwboard/wwwboard.html, if anyone cares). About once a day someone freaks when they find a 2-headed magician's coin. We post a big THEY ARE ALL FAKE and almost guaranteed, there's a followup along the lines of, "I know you said her quarter was a fake, but I have one with a different date, so how many millions is IT worth?"

I once heard someone of that ilk described as "flopping through life like a beached flounder". I wonder how much this blindered approach to knowledge extends to the rest of how they live. Probably explains why many of our political and economic decisions are made the way they are.

If parking is the problem, because employees are parking on the street, then SEPTA needs to provide off-street parking to its employees. One-way operation won't impact street parking, so if SEPTA fixes the employee parking problem, I think the residents will be happy.

Why didn't SEPTA consider employee parking at Callowhill Depot when they rebuilt it a few years ago? They could have beefed up the columns and the roof deck, built a ramp, and have rooftop parking. Or they could have SEPTA employees park in the lot a couple blocks east -- it looks quite empty the day this aerial photo was taken:

They built a lot out of what used to be 1 Bay. They split it between the new substation they installed and the lot. Also I see plenty operators park inside the depot itself on numerous occasions. So parking shouldn't be a problem.

Those parking lots to the east belong to the shopping center at 57th and Vine. So that wouldn't work too well for SEPTA parking.

Lucius Kwok wrote:Why didn't SEPTA consider employee parking at Callowhill Depot when they rebuilt it a few years ago?

My understanding is they were expecting to move the facility away from that location. But apparently the right hand was not aware of what the left hand was doing.

The latest rumor (as of today) is that service is intended to start in June, but should the TWU strike it would probably be pushed back to September to allow proper time for "training." Why the crews can't be trained on it right now, don't ask me...

It was unclear in the information I recieved which solution for access to the depot would be used, although I assumed it would be to install the switch on 60th.

My source for this information is reliable, but he said that the person he got the information from was not sure if it was true, so take it for what it is.

From the horse's mouth last week, nothing happening.

As far as I know, the operators are already trained, but they probablly would have to be re-qualified. Plus, the new pick would start in June, and if there are different operators who picked the 15 as their run who were not previously trained, then yes they would have to go through the entire process.

There is some kind of meeting going on tonight with residents of Fishtown and Fairmount who are petitioning Counciman Kenney to get this thing moving. I'm not sure if they're petitioning the city or the state, but from what I heard they are fuming over this.

jfrey40535 wrote:As far as I know, the operators are already trained, but they probablly would have to be re-qualified. Plus, the new pick would start in June, and if there are different operators who picked the 15 as their run who were not previously trained, then yes they would have to go through the entire process.

I predict startup with the fall schedule.