No Preventive Maintenance?
What could possibly go wrong by not filling positions and conducting scheduled vehicle inspections on buses?
- The CTA driver involved in the weekend crash of a packed bus on Lake Shore Drive said Monday that she mustered all her strength to try to straighten out the accordion-style vehicle after it started veering to the right, but it felt like the power-steering system had failed.
- Officials with the bus drivers union said it's clear that a mechanical failure involving the front suspension of the bus occurred. Union officials blasted the CTA for falling behind on bus preventive maintenance and for failing to fill nine vacant mechanic positions. The union also called for an outside agency to conduct an independent investigation.
The union did not present any evidence showing that maintenance was deferred on the bus involved in the accident. The bus, delivered to the CTA in 2008, was still under the manufacturer's warranty, CTA officials said.
They did however present evidence that over one-third of the fleet is behind on scheduled maintenance. That's the trouble with machinery - you have to maintain it. Look at our garage disasters.
Labels: we got nothing
posted by SCC at 12:02 AM
18 Comments:
"Look at our garage disasters."
SGT Haymaker?
To maintain a valid warranty, you have to perform the user preventative maintainance otherwise the manufacturer will tell you, quite correctly, to go pound sand.
If they're short 8 wrenchbenders, how much you want to bet that they deferred PM on the new buses to keep the shitty old buses in service. And now the new buses are worn out POS's too.
I once handled a CTA bus crash in 011 at Pulaski and Jackson Blvd. Fifty "injured" reported to hospital E-Rs. It was later proven that there were only a dozen passengers on the Route #126 Jackson bus when the crash occurred.
Doing preventative maintenance costs money. Not doing PM while a vehicle is under warranty costs more money - you've voided the warranty. Sounds like CTA and the city may be on the hook for $$$$$.
Luberman! You have some splaining to do!
Oh, wait. He's over there fucking up the schools now.
Carry on.
A great idea for consolidation of physical assets, vehicles and organizations along with heightening public awareness of the good job city employees and administrators do while maximizing assets already paid for by the city.
Its time has come.
Put all the police on the CTA and eliminate all the police cars as well as related maintenance personnel/ facilities.
All police would ride CTA buses and trains - no cars on the street. No need. No more 10-99 either.
You would have instant safety on all the CTA (who would commit any crime there?) and you would also have police moving constantly down the main thoroughfares of Chicago instead of spending their whole shift ducking out in an alley or at Dunkin' Donuts.
Look at all the gas you would save, let alone selling off all the cars and ridding the city of maintenance problems for good.
The savings would be tremendous and police presence would be heightened visually. We would also re-cycle the light bars off of the cars and put them on the buses making them even more a visible deterrent against crime.
A blue-light bus barreling down the street would scare everyone from committing a crime.
We would also chrome all the 28" wheels making the buses the envy of all gang-bangers because their chrome 22" wheels would look pretty puny and effeminate in comparison. (A constant pyschological warfare gimmick)
And we would use all the cameras already out there to help film all the episodes.
Episodes? Yes, we would also make this into a cable channel for public access to watch Chicago's new COPS ON BUSES, 24/7 reality TV show.
Any 10-1s would facilitate all buses within a district converging on the site providing instant witnesses as well as more police to the crime scene.
This would give more of the citizens a first-hand view of police in action (sort of like CAPS goes mobile - so all CAPS and administrative people would be rolled in on this getting them away from their desks. We could get about 4-5 police officers per bus)
So fares would automatically include a chance to participate in a reality show, COPS ON BUSES, only in Chicago. A combination amusement ride in the neighborhoods sitting right there with the police on patrol.
The next Mayor will announce the new consolidated strike force and transit team and adventure ride - the CTPA - Chicago Transit and Police Authority - our 24/7 mega-crime fighting force that delivers people to their destinations in a safe and orderly manner while saving millions of dollars in operations with the added bonus of the reality TV show COB - "COPS ON BUSES" starring Ralph Cramden, bus driver policeman.
-- The brain trust of Chicago.
Don't worry, some idiot on HQ staff will think this is a good idea and claim it as theirs. The Chicago way - taking credit for someone else's idea.
Is this what maybe happened to Sgt Haymakers vehichle?
Speaking of preventive maintenance: there has to be a better way to get oil changes done! I once ended up sitting in A2 for three days in one week, 4 hours each time, doing nothing. I may not be a ball of fire, but I know my district could use me out there, not sitting 4 hours for a 10 minute Oil Change! How about contracting it out? The total man hours involved can't possibly be worth using Fleet for preventive.
Ever notice when you go to get a pool vehicle you got to weigh the odds? The car has heat/air, but the wipers don't work. Or this car runs fine but has no emergency equipment. It's like going to one of those Cicero or Western ave. auto sales joints.
As a former employee of the CTA the problem is that the workers drag their asses in the garages doing the maintenance and spend half the time sitting around instead of pushing the buses out the door.
Why didn't the lady just press on the brakes if the sterring was out?I was once driving a car when the steering went out on it, I pressed on the brakes and it came to a stop with out me hitting anything.
The problem with that accident is the driver probably paniced when the steering went out and that contributed to the accident.
Not A Cop(but not that not a cop)
P.S. J-Fled sucks and is an a$$hole.
MASTERS MASTERS MASTERS
Even I hate them both.
In response to the "former" CTA
poster, if the driver had stood-up
on the brake pedal, the air-brakes
would have applied and the bus, with it's weight and speed and the
weight of the passengers would have
skidded into the tree.
So the driver couldn't have avoided
her bus striking some object and
coming to an abrupt stop.
As a former employee of the CTA the problem is that the workers drag their asses in the garages doing the maintenance and spend half the time sitting around instead of pushing the buses out the door.
Why didn't the lady just press on the brakes if the sterring was out?I was once driving a car when the steering went out on it, I pressed on the brakes and it came to a stop with out me hitting anything.
The problem with that accident is the driver probably paniced when the steering went out and that contributed to the accident.
Not A Cop(but not that not a cop)
P.S. J-Fled sucks and is an a$$hole.
MASTERS MASTERS MASTERS
Even I hate them both.
10/12/2010 08:31:00 AM
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That might work with a normal bus, but this was a double-length articulated bus that flexes in the middle. One end doesn't necessarily want to do what the other end is trying to do. (Kind of like this Department.)
RE: 07:34
I must admit, you truly scared me for a second until the tongue-in-cheek set in...very funny
Speed (the movie) - City streets
Speed
The link says it all.
They used the same 'Blue Ribbon' committee that they used on the Sgt. Alan Haymaker tragic accident.
SORRY for the sarcasm brother, just trying to make a point.
So if the CTA had a budget item for maintenance, and it wasn't getting done, where was the money going?
The city has budget items for street repair, salting, etc..where does all that money go? It's obviously getting spent or we'd have a surplus.
Like I've always told my idiot liberal friends that think raising taxes is the answer to everything: If I paid a handyman $1000/month to maintain my house, then 5 years later he tells me I need a whole new house because this one is falling down, I have to ask what the fuck you've been doing with my $60k to let it get this way. Not so with the government and their zero accountability.
This is just another example of the money penis spraying everything in sight but nothing growing.
COPS ON BUSES - Yes.
When will it be on?
" One end doesn't necessarily want to do what the other end is trying to do.
10/12/2010 10:20:00 AM"
sounds like you know my ex.
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