BusTalk

[NEW YORK OMNIBUS 2629]

(See previous post)

Also of interest.........

https://www.alaska.org/transportation/bus-lines

["PREVOST"]

[traildriver]

[NEW YORK OMNIBUS 2629]

traildriver:

You are MOST welcome, my friend; I had the feeling that this was something that you would indeed appreciate!

Just think of the blood, sweat, and tears it took to undertake such a massive endeavor.....and to see it through to completion!

The planners, the surveyors, the construction crews, and, of course, the GREYHOUND drivers themselves, all were true "iron men"; just think how difficult it was to build this great highway, in such a remote location, under harsh weather conditions, in an area far different than New Jersey or New York!

Think of the GREYHOUND drivers running through Alaska, piloting those massive behemoths, without the aid of power steering or cell phones!

"Iron men", indeed!

"NYO"

["SILVERSIDES"]

[NEW YORK OMNIBUS 2629]

Also worthy of thought..........

Think of how dedicated GREYHOUND drivers were during the War (those who were not called up for military service); these men, indeed, were of a proud, dedicated, stalwart breed.

One of my all-time wartime GREYHOUND ads has a soldier driving an armored vehicle on a battlefield at the top, and the same fellow, at the bottom of the ad, behind the wheel of a GREYHOUND.

"I DROVE A GREYHOUND.....I'LL DRIVE ONE AGAIN!"

The driver tells us:

".....before I was driving this 'tank-buster' for Uncle Sam, I was what they call a "Ten Year Man" with the Greyhound system. That means ten solid years behind the wheel of one of those big blue-and-white buses, without nicking a fender of scraping the paint........."

"......my buddy, a dispatcher at Greyhound, writes me that they're planning that they are planning the finest buses that the USA has ever seen-and he says he wants me back to drive one of 'em........."

Another true "Iron Man", for certain!

"NYO"

["HELP UNCLE SAM CONSERVE FUEL AND RUBBER-TRAVEL BY GREYHOUND!"

[NEW YORK OMNIBUS 2629]

Further on GREYHOUND during the War.......

In Robert Gabrick's excellent "TRAVELING WITH GREYHOUND: ON THE ROAD FOR 100 YEARS" a number of wartime GREYHOUND magazines "THE HIGHWAY TRAVELER"(hmmmmm....this name DOES sound a bit familiar!) have their covers depicted, carrying us back to the pride and patriotism so powerful during the War years.

One cover, from 1942, depicts a proud and stalwart Air Force man, standing beside a bomber (my late uncle flew B-24's, and was also a decorated War hero!)

Another cover (June-July 1945) has the raising of the American Flag on Iwo Jima, in full color (you cannot help but to FEEL the pride and the courage, looking at this iconic, powerful image!)

During the War, GREYHOUND'S ad men were busy turning out ads that truly spoke to America's "Home Front"; GREYHOUND even published maps entitled:

"DEFENSE MAP OF AMERICA"; one had a Navy man (with a ship in the background) on the cover, and another with an Army man (and his tank) gracing the cover.

During the War, especially ad-wise, the sleek new "SILVERSIDES" was, indeed, an American icon in its own right.......

"NYO"

['GREYHOUND'S AMAZING AMERICA"]

[NEW YORK OMNIBUS 2629]

traildriver:

Did a little research and came across this outstanding page on GREYHOUND during the War (a few of the ads I mentioned are also here; GREAT bus photos!)

"NYO"

www.americainwwii.com/galleries/greyhound-on-the-road-through-wwii-and-beyond/

[" 'V' FOR VICTORY"!"]

[NEW YORK OMNIBUS 2629]

traildriver:

I was also VERY fortunate indeed to come across this OUTSTANDING gallery of rare WW2-era GREYHOUND photos; VERY candid photos of buses, stations, drivers, passengers, etc!

https://www.bygonely.com/greyhound-buses/

None of these photos are at all familiar to me; these wonderful old(RARE!) photos truly take you back to the GREYHOUND of WW2 (be sure to note the soldier using a luggage rack as a makeshift "upper berth", the "laid back" drivers in-between runs, porters tossing the luggage to one another with ease, and, of course, the buses themselves!)

Enjoy!

"NYO"

{"SECOND SECTION"]

[traildriver]

"The Greatest Generation", as NBC's Tom Brokaw dubbed them, indeed!

BTW, that is a great shot of the inside of the GX-1, "Highway Traveler" in one of those links. What an oddball seating arrangement in that double-decker. Totally impractical, but interesting. That ceiling must require some 'crouching' for most...

[NEW YORK OMNIBUS 2629]

traildriver:

Yes, I indeed noticed that interior photo of the GX-1; somehow, with that low headroom, I do not think this coach would have made for a good NBA "team bus"!

One can only imagine how overworked (and dedicated!) the GREYHOUND mechanics were, during the War, even with multiple shifts in place, not to mention getting this sprawling bus system to work like a fine Swiss watch, with such a shortage of spare parts and tires.

Just imagine how busy the GREYHOUND stations were in those War days, particularly those in the cities; like the rail hubs, they, indeed, never slept.

The "SILVERSIDES", during the War, truly became the "flagship" of the fleet, just as the iconic "SCENICRUISER" would be, during the 1950's.

While on the "SILVERSIDES", it is interesting to note that, while it was primarily a bus greatly associated with "GREYHOUND", other companies also rostered them.

For example, "BURLINGTON TRAILWAYS" and "MK&O" also operated these buses, and, at the time, were among the few non-GREYHOUND companies to be able to purchase them.............

"NYO"

["ST. LOUIS"]

[NEW YORK OMNIBUS 2629]

In retrospect..........

Over the course of several decades, GREYHOUND (pre-MCI) boasted three "flagship" buses:

743

SILVERSIDES

SCENICRUISER

Though both the 4104 and 4106s were, indeed, solid, reliable workhorses, they never seemed to gain the "icon" status achieved by the three aforementioned buses.

"Bit players", too, were buses like the FLXIBLE "Clippers" and the AEROCOACHES; ditto, the "Buffalo" (PD-4107s)

Beginning in the later 60's, it was obvious that the big, tough, no-nonsense MCI became the new "flagship"of the fleet........

"NYO"

["KEY WEST"]

[NEW YORK OMNIBUS 2629]

"Bit players" in the GREYHOUND fleet.......

The suburban model buses which GREYHOUND employed in commuter services in certain areas were indeed buses that one would not generally associate with the GREYHOUND transcontinental empire, in the 50's and 60's.

These buses were Old Looks, MACKS, and Fishbowls.

Of course, the greatest concentration of GREYHOUND suburban operations were in the SF Bay area (these lines were later sold to SamTrans)

EASTERN CANADIAN GREYHOUND LINES, until late 1963/early 1964, operated a single suburban line between London (Ontario) to St. Thomas.

Then there was CROWN COACH COMPANY (Joplin), which, at one time, operated an important long-distance route south to Kansas City.

Though the company was primarily a long-distance operation, it did operate some commuter service, serving the growing area south of Kansas City.

Initially, two Old Looks operated this line, purchased between 1953 and 1954; both were TDH-4509's.

The company was clearly affiliated with GREYHOUND, as the buses carried the "running dog" on their flanks........

"NYO"

["KANSAS CITY-HARRISONVILLE"]

[traildriver]

Some Trailways carrier's also had suburban type buses in their fleets for local runs. Capitol Trailways of Pennsylvania (Capitol Bus Col.), had some used on commuter trips out of Harrisburg, Carolina Trailways (Carolina Coach Co.), had them on its Norfolk-Virginia Beach shuttle, even Continental Trailways components, Queen City Coach Co. used them on its Fayetteville-Fort Bragg shuttle, and I believe Continental Dixie Lines even used them on commuter trips out of Dallas, and pretty sure there were several others around the country.

I recall one of Capitol's suburban fishbowl's coming into the PABT at least once on the "Alphabet Route" pool with Public Service from Harriburg, Reading, and Allentown.

[NEW YORK OMNIBUS 2629]

traildriver:

Thanks for this info.......MOST interesting

I have in my collection a CORGI Old Look TRAILWAYS suburban (TDH/TDM), with destination sign reading:

"NORFOLK VIA BLVD."

I also have a number of vintage tin litho toy TRAILWAYS Fishbowls in my collection........

"NYO"

["EXPRESS"]

[NEW YORK OMNIBUS 2629]

As the intercity outfits (regardless of size) began to obtain newer buses by the 1960s I would think that the oldest buses in the fleet would be relegated to non-"trunk line" routes-relegated these older coaches to routes less "prestigious" than what they had once operated on prior to these buses being sold/scrapped; I know on certain lines Flxibles/4101/4102/4103-types soldiered on for quite awhile through the 1960's-------------- "NYO"

[NEW YORK OMNIBUS 2629]

I just obtained a great little book: "CHICAGO's LOST 'L's" (Sadowski); an EXCELLENT book featuring tons rare old photos; one photo really caught your's Truly's eye: this depicts a prewar PCC on the 63rd St line-with a GREYHOUND 4102/4103 alongside-which-oddly-enough------looking QUITE in need of a good washdown!) (photo looks to date to about 1953/1954)-----------"NYO"