Thursday, April 30, 2009

Came across this Bus that I'm sure would interest our Spring Fling Cook, Pastor Dan Lehman....this is a bus you enter through the rear door, receive a menu instead of a schedule, and pay as you leave. Exact change isn't required.

The bus (TDH3501) is owned by Tom Martinos in Binghamton, NY. Tom's Texas Hot Dog Mobile Stand (at least at the time of the article - Bus World - Summer 1986) was set up on Upper Court Street, Binghamton, NY, opposite Conrail's "BD" Tower on the Ex-Erie Southern Tier Line. At the time the article was written, Tom was planning to buy a railroad passenger car from Susquehanna Railroad to set up a second dining car.

The bus originally operated in Watertown, NY, then Gettysburg, PA, and later worked for Broome Transit in Binghamton, NY. It then became a public relations vehicle for radio station WAAL and ended up at a trucking company before Tom gave it a new career as a dining car.

Wednesday, April 29, 2009

At a special meeting on developing a Strategic Business Plan for the Museum last night, the Board outlined four goals:

1. Maintain a first class display of historical buses and bus-related artifacts, including the regular rotation of vehicles to keep our display fresh and interesting.

2. Educate the public about the buses we own and display, and the history of the bus industry as done with our timeline.

3. Maintain financial viability by making sure that ongoing annual income is sufficient to pay annual ongoing expenses.

4. Increasing our membership to generate additional income, maintain an adequate pool of volunteers and have sufficient number of members to accommodate secession planning as members become older.

Tuesday, April 28, 2009

Soon after the opening of the Pennsylvania Turnpike, Pennsylvania Greyhound Lines reported that it would begin long-haul intercity bus routes over the new highway. Prior to the Turnpike, it would take close to 9 hours to travel between Harrisburg and Pittsburgh, utilizing Route 22. Now the company was offering twice-a-day service taking only five and 1/4 hours which included a rest stop at Bedford.

Greyhound was the first commercial account for the Turnpike. The PUC granted the company intrastate rights to use the Turnpike with stops at Bedford and Somerset. The provision was that this new service did not have a negative impact on its existing routes. Somerset Bus Company was also granted rights to utilize the Turnpike for service between Somerset, Irwin and Pittsburgh with stops at Donegal and New Stantion.

We happen to find this postcard of the Bedford Post House in our collection and I just thought I'd share some information about Greyhound and the PA Turnpike.

Monday, April 27, 2009

My blog about the Greyhound Post House in Breezewood this past week created quite a bit of interest so I went looking for the history of these Post House Restaurants. They originally began them as lunch counters and table service and then with cafeteria lines. Self-service speeded up eating, which was essential to keeping buses running on schedule.

Post Houses were decorated in knotty-pine paneling. Those located in small towns, usually at important junction points in the Greyhound network, were configured both inside and out to resemble stagecoach stops, with buildings tending to follow a standard format: 1-1/2 stories, gable roof with front-facing dormers, windows with shutters and front porches. the restaurant's city locations bore a kind of early American styling that owned much to Colonial Williamsburg's 1930s restoration. In 1955, Greyhound operated 147 Post Houses.

In our Gift Shop (or from our Gift Shop page of our website (http://www.busmuseum.org/GiftShop.html) you can purchase a book that features many of them: GREYHOUND in POSTCARDS - Buses, Depots and Post Houses, Collection of John Dockendorf, Dylan Frautschi, Editor. 78 pages. Soft Cover. $20.00 + $3.50 shipping/handling.

Checkout the rest of the items we have online in our gift shop while you are there.

Sunday, April 26, 2009

I'm not sure about the rest of the country, but the Susquehanna Valley was downright HOT yesterday--our thermometer read 87 degrees!

It was a gorgeous day to mow and be outside and I have to tell you--we live out in the country--people around here actually call is "out in the COUNTY"--we live in Lancaster County--beautiful rolling hills and gorgeous farmland and we actually live on a farm!

We went out early Saturday morning to catch a few garage sales and as we walked out of the house about 7 am we heard a strange bird! Wondering what that was, we stopped in our tracks and listened and sure enough--there it went again.....Gobble, Gobble, Gobble! Yes, a flock of wild turkeys were in our woods! They were so funny during the day--saw them several times but not long enough to get a picture of them--as soon as they spotted us they hiked back into the woods! Sure made our day! And, I might add--with the hot weather we had overnight--our windows were open all night and Tom Turkey was our wake up call this morning! One of them was right under our window. We have lots of beautiful birds come to our feeders--red-winged black birds, cardinals, goldfinches, Baltimore orioles, downy woodpeckers, all kinds of finches, towies, chippies. Across at the barn are the swallows (they are not here yet this year). In the big tree up on the hill behind the house we have a pair of red-tailed hawks and a great-horned owl.

Sorry, I know this wasn't bus related--but sure was fun writing about it!

Saturday, April 25, 2009

Wow, going to be 85 here today in the Susquehanna Valley--gets me to wondering if we are going right into summer! With the Spring Fling just a mere 6 weeks away--just want to impress on everyone that we do not have control of the weather.

Last year, we had cool nights and then several VERY HOT days just as we came upon the Spring Fling and unfortunately this created a problem with the floors--they continued to weep moisture -- so please be aware we have no control over this if it happens again. Remember, the building is NOT heated during the winter--so the cement floor has been cold for many months. The floors are clean--but the moisture can sit on the floors (even after we put down and swept up moisture rentention material several time) because of the weather conditions.

But on a brighter note--we are heading towards nicer weather--and our outside display of buses is always a treat--this is the only time of the year that we do this and have it open to the public! So come and take advantage of this opportunity. We try to arrange the buses so that they can be photographed--not always a possibility--but we do our best.

Someone asked me how to post a comment to our blog--let's see if I can explain it here--it is fairly simple but there are several steps to the process. First, click on the "comments" words at the bottom of the post you are interested in chatting about. Then type in your comments. You will see a box that says "post comments"--click on that and then you will be taken to a screen with words/letters/numbers that you have to type into a box--this helps to avoid spammers from commenting on the blog. Type those letters/numbers into that box and click okay. Then I am notified there is a comment--I check on it to be sure it is legitimate and not a spammer--and I okay it for publication. It is fairly easy and I encourage you to make comments on my blog. If you are still experiencing problems doing this--email me (thebusmuseum@yahoo.com). Thanks.

Friday, April 24, 2009

Can you imagine--in just 6 shorts weeks the 2009 Museum of Bus Transportation SPRING FLING will be starting (June 5-6 - 9 am to 3 pm)! We have already done so much planning that I'm sure the next 6 weeks are going to fly by.

This is a reminder to you: Have you made your reservations for a hotel? Did you send in your reservation form if you want to be a vendor? Tables are going fast--don't miss out! Checkout our Current Activities page on our website (http://www.busmuseum.org/CurrentActivities.html) for links for both of these items.

We already have several sponsors onboard this year. We want to say a BIG thank you to APTA (American Public Transportation Association), SETRA Coach; UMA (United Motorcoach Association); Lancer Insurance; Prevost; Michaud Buses for Sale, MCI (Motor Coach Industries) for their sponsorship. With this seed money we are able to set up the finest bus memorabilia flea market in North America--so don't miss it!

Thursday, April 23, 2009

If you have ever traveled the PA Turnpike towards Pittsburgh, you should be familiar with the Breezewood exit. I was recently reading about the Greyhound Post House that was there for many years.

In 1964 nearly 100 Greyhound trips a day pulled off the turnpike at Breezewood. By 1968, after schedule consolidation, 14 of the 16 westbound trips from NY City--most bound for Pittsburgh and points west--stopped at Breezewood, as did all seven daily westbounds from Baltimore and Washington (plus two extras on weekends). Eastbound, 14 of 15 Pittsburgh-NY City trips and all seven Pittsburgh-Baltimore/Washington runs (one additional on Sundays) pulled into Breezewood. For some trips, Breezewood was the last stop before NY City (a 4-1/2 hour run) and in the opposite direction it was the first scheduled stop after departing Manhattan. In addition there were three Pittsburgh local trips in each direction travelling via Johnstown of which one pair originated and terminated at Breezewood. Altogether 48 daily trips departed from this small PA community. By 1992, the count was down to 15 a day, all but three enroute to or from Baltimore and Washington.

The big attraction at Breezewood was, of course, the Greyhound Post House, the company-owned chain of cafeteries where passengers could grab a snack or eat a hearty meal, all chosen from a Greyhoud menu and consumed on Post House crockery. The Greyhound Post House opened in 1964 replacing three other meal stop locations along the Turnpike, at Brandywine, Midway (Bedford) and Butler. The end came at 11 pm on Sunday June 27, 2004, when the doors closed and were actually locked--possibly for the first time in 41 years. Aramark, a national restaurant operator, took a lease on the Post House in December 1998 and it was expiring on June 30. The property owners wanted to sell the land and buildings and Aramark wasn't interested. Within days of its closing, movable metal gates barricaded the driveway into the darkened Post House and signs bore a start and unprecedented message: "Keep Out."

Wednesday, April 22, 2009

We had a delightful time last night at the Annual Volunteer Dinner hosted by the AACA Museum for all of its volunteers, including the Bus people! Delightful dinner of barbeque pork and roast beef, cheesy potatoes, potato salad, cole slaw, baked beans, green salad and cake/pie/cheesecake for dessert.

Several bus museum volunteers were honored: Sharon Ogden received a lifetime AACA Museum membership for her 1,000+ hours; Dan Lehman was honored for his 2,000+ hours; and Oliver Ogden for his 3,000+ hours! That's 6,000 hours between 3 people! Now that is something! Sue Dittmann reported that a total of 96,000 volunteer hours have be reported since the opening of the Museum.

So please, wouldn't you like to volunteer just a few hours a week or a month? If so, contact Oliver Ogden at seojogden2@aol.com or for work at the Memorial Annex, contact Dan Lehman at Icarrythelight4god@msn.com.

Tuesday, April 21, 2009

I thought I'd give you some interesting information about the surrounding area. 26 miles east of Hershey and about the same distance north of Lancaster, is the city of Lebanon, population 24,600. Located along the Quitapahilla Creek, its name is thought to be derived from the once-numerous cedar trees which, in the 1750s reminded Moravian settlers of the cedars of Lebanon.

Transit service is provided by the County of Lebanon Transit, trading as "COLT" - a moniker shared with Lafayette, Louisiana; Scranton, PA; Longview, TX; Lompoc, CA; and Loveland, CO.

An attractive new waiting room and outdoor pedestal clock act as a transit center. COLT operates 11 routes on weekdays and 7 on Saturdays Four routes have "twilight" service that consists of one or two evening trips. Route 8 connects Lebanon and Hershey, making connections possible with Capital Area Transit; this route also has three twilight trips June through August, the last of which departs Hersheypark at 11 pm. COLT also operates three round trips on Saturdays to Park City, a jumbo-sized shopping center on Lancaster's northwest side and a Tuesday-only run to Roots Farmer's Market in Manheim (April through November).

In streetcar days, Hershey Transit Co. operated hourly trolleys between Lebanon and Hershey until busses came on the scene in 1942.

Monday, April 20, 2009

The weekend here in the Susquehanna Valley of PA was just beautiful. Yesterday, Sunday, we decided to "beat the crowds" and visit the new Visitor Center at Gettysburg National Military Park which is about 1 hour from Lancaster and Hershey.

Well, we didn't beat the crowds because it was jammed but we had a delightful afternoon exploring their new visitor center. There is an admission charge for the museum exhibit hall, the film "A New Birth of Freedom" narrated by Morgan Freeman, and to view the Gettysburg Cyclorama program and then explore their magnificent museum. Well worth the $6.50 Senior Citizen fee we paid--I believe regular admission is $7.50 per person.

Another way to visit Gettysburg is by touring the battlefield by bus. Gettysburg Tours offer 2-hour tours over a 23-mile route through the 5900 acres of Gettysburg National Military Park. Four custom-designed 80-passenger double-deckers are favorites. But if you are there in the middle of the summer--you won't want to be baking on the upper deck (listen to the voice of experience here). They were built by American Carrier Corporation on Ford chassis. Each is named for a general prominent at Gettysburg and blue, gray an white number 11 is the "General Lee." Among the eighteen other vehicles in the fleet is a 47-passenger 22, a Blue Bird LTC40 coach purchased in 1998. Of integral construction and equipped with underfloor luggage bins, the 3-axle LTC40 is Blue Bird's current offering for a verstile, cost effective highway coach.

The Eisenhower farm and National Historic Site is also in Gettysburg, and visitors must travel to it aboard transit-type Blue Birds operated by the Historic Site. And, what better way to see some new coaches but to do a drive-by in the bus parking lot! The coach from the greatest distance was from Iowa--a beautiful new Prevost!

Sunday, April 19, 2009

Our Board Meeting on Tuesday evening was a long one. Ralph Fetrow, our financial advisor, is continuing to work with us to firm up our business plan and we have come a long way with that. There are exciting things for our future. Of course, money is always at the top of our list! We need money to survive. We are all volunteers but there are a lot of expenditures that come up that need to be covered. So any help you can provide, at any time of the year, is always appreciated.

One of the other items discussed at the meeting was the use of the abbreviation "MoBT"--which none of the Board Members like to use. The AACA Museum is currently looking to change the name of their Museum because no one knows what AACA means! So we really would like to get away from using MoBT--if we need to use an abbreviation, in the future, you will see "MBT"--leaving out the "o" so it doesn't appear to be a real word--but a true abbreviation.

Our next Board Meeting will be held Tuesday, May 5, 2009, at 6:30 pm at the Museum. Anyone can attend--it is best, however, if you let us know you are coming because after hours the Museum doors are locked and if we don't know you are coming--we won't have the doors unlocked for you.

Saturday, April 18, 2009

This morning I'd like to tell you about our 1940 WHITE, Model 786-1. It arrived at the Museum on June 30, 2001, donated by Michael Glikin and Jan Okonsky. This bus, serial number 224837, was delivered to its first owner, Michael DeCorso, dba Summit - New Providence Bus Line, in October, 1940. Mr. De Corso had formed his bus line in 1920 and operated the White along with about 15 other buses in school, contract, and local and long distance charter service. The White was one of his first-line charter buses through the early 1950s, seeing many charters to points such as Washington, DC, and Atlantic City, NJ.

In later years, the bus was used in school and contract service. Glikin and Okonsky purchased the bus from DeCorso in 1971, and they have owned the bus almost as long as it was in service for DeCorso. The bus is the first bus registered as an antique vehicle in the State of New Jersey. In 1985, the bus was repainted in the livery of Red & Tan Lines, Fleet No. 19. Red & Tan was a well known user of White buses. Bayshore Bus Company of Bayonne, NJ, has provided inside storage of the bus since the late 1970's.

This White bus has a 12-cylinder opposed-piston gas engine mounted mid-ship under floor of the bus, with a three-speed synchromesh transmission. It has a top speed capability of 75 miles per hour, and gas mileage of two or three miles per gallon!

We know it better as our "World's Fair" bus that was a vital advertising medium for our Museum as it sat out by the signage for the Museum near the road--you couldn't miss the fact that this was the Museum of Bus Transportation! In fact, we were happy to highlight this bus on one of our first postcards, which is today, still one of our best sellers. It is currently having the interior refurbished by Bergen Auto Upholstery in New Jersey and will also have its roof repainted.

Friday, April 17, 2009

Can you believe the Museum of Bus Transportation's SPRING FLING is a mere 7 weeks away? I can tell you from past experience--plan on a HOT weekend--last year I believe it was the hottest weekend of the year! Yes, and it was only June.

We are really looking forward to this year's event because it is our first 2-day affair--beginning on Friday, June 5th and ending on Saturday, June 6th. We have already planned our first work day to begin cleaning up. Tom Mozer and Dan Lehman will be at the Annex today to begin to get the building ready--turning on the water, making sure there are no leaks, mowing the grass for the first time this year. We have a new mower--so that should make things easier. If you have a little time today--and are close enough--you can come down and help out. I'm sure there are weeds to be taken care of and trimming to be done.

If you are a vendor, have you reserved your table? If not, please visit our Current Activities page on our website (http://www.busmuseum.org/CurrentActivities.html) and click on VENDOR Information to print out a Reservation Form which MUST be sent in with your check to hold a table(s) for you. If you are a VISITOR, have you made your reservation for a hotel? Do you have your day/weekend planned out? Don't hesitate to email us (thebusmuseum@yahoo.com) for any additional information.

We will have food available at the Spring Fling--Pastor Dan Lehman does a GREAT job--so not to worry about getting enough to eat--just bring money!

There is still time to volunteer to help the week prior to the Spring Fling--we will be setting up chairs/tables, cleaning the floors, mowing grass, cutting weeds--you know, all the stuff to make it look pretty! If you can help us out even for a few hours one day, please email us at thebusmuseum@yahoo.com to let us know when you will be there. We have already had a great response from people letting us know they are coming--so this should prove to be our best SPRING FLING ever!

Thursday, April 16, 2009

Whew--aren't you glad TAX DAY is over again for this year! Well, I think I probably wrote enough about donations for a while (no I won't give up--just taking a little break)....thought today I'd highlight one of our newer buses - not newer to the fleet - just newer in years--maybe I should say "younger".

Back in 2007, James Ditch, VP and Operations Manager for Long Beach Public Transportation Company, read about us in "Bus Ride" (thanks to Bob Beard) and contacted us about donating the 4701 - a GM RTS II! They completely rehabbed the vehicle in their shop several years ago and felt that they had gotten as much local publicity out of the coach that they could and so they offered it to us. We were pleased to accept it!

Although we could have driven the vehicle from California back to Pennsylvania, we opted to send out a flat bed unit to truck it in, and at the last minute, our generous board member Dino Mandros paid for the transportation! Thanks Dino.

The 4701 looks as though it just rolled out the back door of the Pontiac, Michigan, plant. It is hard to convince our visitors that they are looking at a 30-year old bus.

Wednesday, April15, 2009

YIKES! It is TAX DAY! Have you finished your taxes??? I sure hope so--otherwise you wouldn't have time to be reading this BLOG!

I have recently been writing about donations to the Museum. Another VERY EASY and PAINLESS way to donate to the Museum is to use one of the online donation venues.

http://www.shopformuseums.com/ (founded is 2002) is an online shopping fundraising organization. The program is secure and simple to use.

Simply log onto http://www.shopformuseums.com/ and choose the Museum of Bus Transportation (yes, we have it all set up to choose) - then follow the links to your favorite online retailer and purchase your items as you normally would. The Museum will then receive a percentage of your shopping - there are over 300 retailers available to choose from. This is so easy to do and who doesn't shop on the Internet today???

Tuesday, April 14, 2009

With TAX DAY approaching quickly--I would like to again mention that all donations to the Museum of Bus Transportation are Tax Deductible as we are a 501(c)3 corporation.

Did you know the annual limitation on the use of charitable deductions claimed for gifts to public charitable organizations in 50% of your adjusted gross income for cash gifts. Any unused deduction can be carried over and used for up to five additional years, giving you six full years to use the deduction.

Experience the joy of giving today! Write us a check and mail it to: Museum of Bus Transportation, 161 Museum Drive, Hershey, PA 17033. Put a note in the envelope that says Donation - Blog! Thank you for your generosity!

Monday, April 13, 2009

Continuing my blog on donations--another innovate way to donate:

CASH: A quick and easy gift. A cash gift by check is one of the most common and easiest methods for making an outright charitable contribution. If you itemize income tax deductions on your tax return, the first tangible benefit of making a gift by cash or check is the tax deduction for the full value of your gift.

Did you know you can also PLEDGE a certain amount and pay that monthly to the Museum through PAYPAL??? PayPal is a very secure way to make your payments to the Museum and they can automatically be deducted from your checking account or charge to the credit card of your choice on a monthly basis....somewhat like supporting Public Television--only you would be supporting Your Museum! Our PayPal payment address is our email address: thebusmuseum@yahoo.com. This just might turn out to be a less "painful" way to make a donation--you can still deduct the donation off your taxes--just you are giving it on a monthly basis--rather than in one lump sum.

Why am I talking about donations? Well, as many of you know--we are in need of further indoor storage for our fleet and we would like to be able to have the cash to do that. Storing our buses out of the weather is important. Even with the best laid plans of men, this winter, with all of the heavy winds we experienced in the lower Susquehanna Valley, several of our "covered" buses were "uncovered" by the high winds.

Saturday, April 11, 2009

Innovative Ways to Donate to YOUR Museum:

Over the next few blogs, I'll be reiterating some of the creative ideas that have appeared in our Musings about donating to the Museum.

Insurance is one way - perhaps you don't need all the insurance you have. This may serve as a contribution to us by simply making the Museum of Bus Transportation the owner of the policy. The benefits to you and the Museum are:

Museum as Owner:
- Receive a charitable deduction when you name us as beneficiary and owner.
- Reduce your estate taxes because proceeds are removed from your estate.

Museum as Beneficiary:
- Obtain flexibility by naming us beneficiary but keeping ownership.
- Name us as contingent beneficiary and secure your family's needs first.

As with last week--because tomorrow is Easter--I will not be blogging. Hope you all have a Happy Easter or Happy Passover.

Friday, April 10, 2009

Continuing my discussion on Why Would You Want to Save a Bus.....everyone is concerned about their carbon footprint--look what I have discovered:

If an individual switches a 20-mile round-trip commute to public transportation, his or her annual CO2 emissions will fall by 4,800 lbs. per year, equal to a 10% reduction in a two-car household's carbon footprint.

When commuters ride public transportation or walk, contact with neighbors tends to increase, ultimately helping to bring a community together.

Approximately 12% of public transportation users are en route to schools.

Public transportation fosters a more active lifestyle, encouraging more people to walk, bike and jog to transit stops. An analysis of 2001 National Household Travel Survey data for transit users finds that walking to and from transit helps inactive persons attain a significant portion of the recommended minimum daily exercise they need.

Thursday, April 9, 2009

Why would you want to save a BUS??? When you read this blog for the next few days, you will see the importance buses have played in our energy conservation history in this country.

Oh, I just love to do research on the internet--and in the last few days I have been researching transit ridership! You really find some interesting facts when you dig deep enough. So, over the next few days, I'm going to share some of those with you.

There are more than 6,500 providers of public and community transportation offering Americans the opportunity and the choice to travel by means other than a car. In 2007, Americans took 10.3 billion trips on public transportation -- the highest ridership level in 50 years.

34 million times each weekday, people board public transportation. Since 1995, public transportation ridership is up 32 percent. For every dollar spent, the average household spends 18 cents on transportation, and 94 percent of this goes to buying, maintaining and operating cars.
Americans living in areas served by public transportation save $18 billiong annually in congestion costs. Each year an individual can achieve an average annual savings of over $8,000 by taking public transportation instead of driving and by living with one less car.

Each year, public transportation use in the US saves 1.4 billion gallons of gasoline. This represents almost 4 million gallons of gasoline per day.

Each year, public transportation use saves the equivalent of 34 supertankers of oil, or a supertanker leaving the Middle East every 11 days. It saves the equivalent of 140,769 service station tanker truck trips clogging our streets each year and saves the equivalent of 300,000 fewer automobile fill-ups every day.

Wednesday, April 8, 2009

There are many things in addition to buses that we have on display at the Museum of Bus Transportation. For instance, here's a picture of some of the patches we have on display. We also have badges, toys,and a rotating display. We also have very nice bus signage--here's a lighted Trailways sign that hangs from the ceiling near our Golden Eagle.

There is so much to see at the Museum besides our permanent display of full size buses, which continues to amaze visitors as they come into the lower level display area.

We also showcase some of the multitude of colorful bus schedules--many with gorgeous graphics on them. The next time you are at the Museum--take a few minutes and look at all the small wonders we have on display.

Tuesday, April 7, 2009

1971 Golden Eagle 05

On June 12, 1956, Continental took delivery of the prototype Golden Eagle. It was soon put into 5-STAR Service between Dallas and Houston where ridership immediately increased to a 70% load factor. The original Golden Eagle was built in Germany by Kassbohreer and was powered with a M.A.N. D-8 Model D1548MTH Diesel Engine turbo-charged and after-cooled. The gear box on the prototype was a 6-speed, ZF Media 6M-75. The production models that followed had a 5-speed gear box of the same preselector type. The production buses were built in 1967 and were 40' in length and of a hi-level design. A total of 51 Golden Eagles (name derived from the gold-colored aluminum siding and eagle insignia) were built in the 40' length.

A new Bus and Car Plant in Belgium was the manufacturing arm of Continental and started turning out Silver Eagles late 1961 and in 1963 when 31 Golden Eagle were built, with 13 more in 1964. These were known as Model 01 powered by a Detroit Diesel 8V71 and used a Spicer 4-speed transmission. There were no more Golden Eagles until 1969, when 50 Model 06's were built. The last group of 11 was built in 1971 without the Golden Aluminum. They used the Silver Aluminum and painted it gold. Overall, there were about 150 Golden Eagles built from 1956 to 1971. 5-STAR Service was terminated several years later. The Interstate Commerce Commission and Regulatory Agencies had kept the fare surcharge so low in most cases that Continental could not recover the extra cost of 5-STAR Service even when the buses were full.

The bus on display was purchased new by CONTINENTAL PANHANDLE LINES, INC., in 1971 and was used as an extra in the Trailways pool and in charter service out of the Amarille, TX, area. This was the LAST Golden Eagle in revenue service and operated until 2001, when it was donated to the Museum of Bus Transportation by the late Richard Allison. This bus continues to be one of the most popular buses in our exhibit.

Monday, April 6, 2009

1992 MCI Model 102A3 - This coach was formerly owned by Eschbach Bus Company, Quarryville, Pa. then sold to Executive Coach, Inc, Lancaster, Pa. It operated as Executive Coach #118 until July 2, 2008 when Capital Area Transit acquired it to expand its commuter service.
Currently it is one of two MCI coaches in the fleet – regularly this vehicle makes three round trips, daily, between Harrisburg and Shippensburg, Pa.

The other MCI, a 1989 model, was acquired from Hegins Valley Lines and serves Millersburg in the morning and Shippensburg in the afternoon peak period.

These units replaced standard Gillig transit buses on these long distance runs. SEATS: 47 passenger (note restroom is locked at all times)LENGTH: 40’WIDTH: 8 l/2 '

Coach Donated by: Capital Area Transit Harrisburg, Pa.

Saturday, April 4, 2009

Well, it is just 9 SHORT weeks until the 2009 Museum of Bus Transportation SPRING FLING! If you are a vendor, have you reserved your table? If not, please visit our Current Activities page on our website (http://www.busmuseum.org/CurrentActivities.html) and click on VENDOR Information to print out a Reservation Form which MUST be sent in with your check to hold a table(s) for you.

If you are a VISITOR, have you made your reservation for a hotel? Do you have your day/weekend planned out? Don't hesitate to email us (thebusmuseum@yahoo.com) for any additional information.

What will the weather be like? Well, I can tell you from past experience, that weekend in June is usually VERY HOT! So be prepared--last year we could have fried breakfast out on the macadam! The building is still cool at this time of the year and hopefully we will not experience the condensation problem on the floors that we did last year....unfortunately, we have no control over that--Mother Nature takes care of it for us!

We will have food available--Pastor Dan Lehman does a GREAT job--so not to worry about getting enough to eat--just bring money!

There is still time to volunteer to help the week prior to the Spring Fling--we will be setting up chairs/tables, cleaning the floors, mowing grass, cutting weeds--you know, all the stuff to make it look pretty! If you can help us out even for a few hours one day, please email us at thebusmuseum@yahoo.com to let us know when you will be there.

Please note: since tomorrow is Palm Sunday--I will be taking a break from the blogging. Talk to you again on Monday.

Friday, April 3, 2009

Bus Trivia: Did you know the fuel efficiency of public transit compared to the average commuter car is: 1 bus with 7 passengers = 1 car; 1 full bus = 6 cars!

A transit bus uses 8.7% less energy per passenger mile than a typical car. Public transit reduces fuel consumption by about 1.5 billion gallons annually.

The American Public Transit Association estimates that, for every $1 invested in transit, business revenues increase $3 to $3.50 nationwide. The Federal Transit Administration estimates that the 80 million Americans who live in transit-intensive metropolitan areas save $20 billion in auto costs each year!

One full 40-foot bus is equivalent to a line of 58 moving automobiles stretching 6 city blocks (more than 1/2 mile) if traffic is moving at 25 mph. If all the Americans who take transit decided to drive instead, their cars would circle the Earth with a line of traffic 23,000 miles long! (Yikes! And we think the traffic is congested now!)

Thursday, April 2, 2009

Ever give any thought to what committees are involved with the Museum? Perhaps you would like to volunteer to be involved on one of the committees. Well, here are our committees: Administrative/Finance; Archives/Collections; Museum Relations; Business Plan; Gift Shop; Fleet Management/Maintenance; Volunteers/Guides; Education; Publicity; Website; Annual Meeting; and Spring Fling. As you can imagine--any one of them could keep a volunteer very busy. Interested in helping us out? Just email us at thebusmuseum@yahoo.com. Many of these committees work off-site most of the year so you don't need to live near the Museum to participate. There are many other ways to participate.

Wednesday, April 1, 2009

APRIL FOOL'S DAY - This is no April Fools! I have changed the settings so that registered users can comment on the blogs--perhaps that will interest more people and allow more followers. Right now we have quite a few people reading the blog (other than the "followers")--so let's see how this work.

This particular blog is all business--our next Board of Directors' Meeting date has been changed to Tuesday, April 14, due to the absence of several of our Directors on our regular First Tuesday date (April 7) and therefore, we would not have a quorum. This makes a lot of sense--no reason to meet and not be able to conduct business (which we need a quorum for).

Anyone is welcome to our meetings--it would be best to let us know ahead of time so we can anticipate that you are coming. Meetings are held at the AACA Museum Board Room promptly at 6:30 pm.