WHAT'S NEW (Saturday December 11, 1999)
I've added 7046 to the picture list. And I've made a few changes on the front page, including the addition of that festive christmas candle....heh,heh. :)
WHAT'S NEW (Friday December 10, 1999)
Sorry for the late update, but a lot's been going on.
The Blue Birds now number as high as 1919. They go through Central first for outfitting, then they come to Coral Way.
Speaking of Coral Way, another one of their Flxibles, 7008, has gone into retirement.
Late Tuesday night another CW bus, 9925, was involved in a terrible accident. The bus was running West on Hibiscus Street in West Perrine, the last Southbound Route 52,, at 11:27 PM when it collided with a Metro-Dade Police cruiser that was going to asist in a disturbance call. Officer Roberto Calderon was killed. The accident was at the Busway, which cops and fire rescue use as well as buses. The 52 crosses the Busway several times, but enters it at SW 152 St. There were 4 passengers on the bus, no one else was hurt except for Off. Calderon's partner, Off. Edgar Perez, who spent 13 hours at Jackson before being released. It appears the car ran the red light, but it's not known if the cruiser had it's flashing lights on. The bus driver also went to the hospital with headaches and dizziness. He may've been kno knocked out for a bit. Off. Calderon left behind a wife and 2 and 2 kids, he worked out of the Cutler Ridge precinct. As for 9925 itself, it returned to the garage today and is in the body shop. The driver's side windshield was shattered.
The last Power 96 bus, 9349, vanished for a while. It seems that the baby wrap was peeled off, the it was redone in the new colors. I just saw it today, replacing a broken-down 7056 on the 104 route...7056 has come from Northeast to Coral Way.
What's New (Monday November 15, 1999)
Today I wass at the William Lehman Metrorail Shops on NW 72 Ave. I found myself at the place I like to call 'The Lehman Rest Home'. This is where the retired buses sit, awaiting their final judgement (Guess it should be called 'Metrobus Death Row' , huh? Heh,Heh!! ). And there is quite a big group there this time. They include:7022,7033,7037,7039,7043,7061,7068,8039,8051,8072,1020,1035,1057,
1133, etc.
Northeast really did a number on the 7000 Flxibles that it's retiring. Bus 7068, which appears in some MDTA brochure published a while back, is missing the following: the passenger side windshield, some of the side panels, the headsign, the windshield in front of the sign, the little acess doors on the front panel. And that's just outside. It's sitting there cockeyed with the frame that once held the headsign hanging out. Another bus that's like it is 7061. Also there is 3 of the 16000 series high-top vans, and 6026, which is like a hermit since it's been there for over a year.