Buses World News: May 2005

TECHNOLOGY - USA - Free Internet access available on express buses

San Diego,CAL,USA -UNION-TRIBUNE,by Michael Burge -May 18, 2005: -- Express buses traveling between Murrieta and Oceanside are taking a companion trip through cyberspace, giving passengers access to the Internet and satellite TV... Since yesterday, commuters have been able to check their e-mail and surf the Web during the one-hour trip between southern Riverside County and the North Coast... Or they can watch TV on one of the buses' newly installed monitors...

PRODUCTION - INDIA - HYUNDAI mulls trucks, buses in India

Mumbai,Taramani,Chennai,INDIA -Sify -18 May 2005: -- Hyundai Motor Co. South Korea's top carmaker, the world's fifth-biggest bus and truck market, is examining the possibility of launching commercial vehicles in India... Hyundai Motor India Ltd., a subsidiary, which entered the country in 1998, is already India's second-biggest carmaker...

PURCHASES - INDIA - PMT was to purchase 500 new buses during 2005-06

PUNE,INDIA - India Times,by ABHIJIT ATRE -MAY 18 2005: -- A month after finalisation of the (Pune Municipal Transport) PMT's budget for 2005-06, has tabled a proposal seeking a grant of Rs 36 crore from the PMC to purchase 250 new buses... Now, according to PMT's budget which has come into effect from April, the PMT was to purchase 500 new buses during 2005-06 by raising loan on it's own...

BUS STOPS - ALASKA/USA - That it's a sacrifice !!

Feds Give Anchorage $1.5M for Bus Stop

ANCHORAGE,Alaska,USA -Associated Press,by MARY PEMBERTON -May 18 2005: -- Tom Wilson is faced with a problem many city administrators would envy: How to spend $1.5 million on a bus stop, now is a simple steel-and-glass, three-sided enclosure. Wilson wants better lighting and seating. He also likes the idea of heated sidewalks that would remain free of snow and ice. And he thinks electronic signs would be nice...

ECOLOGY - USA - School buses may trim diesel emissions

Bridgeport,CT,USA -Connecticut Post,by EDWARD J. CROWDER -05/17/2005: -- The state Department of Environmental Protection is considering a project to equip city school buses with devices to reduce unhealthy diesel emissions... In New Haven, the DEP paid for pollution-control equipment for the fleet at a cost of about $1,200 a bus... the DEP is particularly concerned about so-called fine-particulate matter: soot with a diameter of 2.5 microns emitted from diesel engines, which can cause health problems or worsen existing ones. She noted that childhood asthma is a particular concern in urban areas such as Bridgeport, and diesel soot is a known lung irritant...

RACETRACK for buses - UK - Princes Street now

Edinburgh,Scotland,UK -The Scotsman,by ANGIE BROWN -17 May 2005: -- IT WAS supposed to bring peace and tranquillity to the capital’s most famous thoroughfare. But the car ban on Princes Street appeared to have backfired yesterday as angry shoppers and tourists accused bus drivers of making the road more dangerous and noisy than before... Far from being a pedestrian paradise, the street was described as a "racetrack" for buses while store owners demanded a mandatory 20mph speed limit, claiming an accident was all but inevitable...

TECHNOLOGY - TAIWAN - BUSES IN TAIPEI GET SMART

Taipei,Taiwan -CNA,by Lilian Wu -May 16 2005: -- Buses in Taipei City just got a little smarter Monday, with the introduction of high-tech tracking equipment that allows passengers to find out where the buses are by using their cell phones...

SAVE - USA - Economy produces more bus riders

CHARLOTTE, N.C.,USA -News 14 Carolina,by Jamie French -5/16/2005: -- Transit officials around the state say they are seeing more bus riders because of high gas prices... With gas prices still hovering around $2 a gallon, more drivers are opting to take the bus. That means transit agencies across the state are enjoying increased ridership...

ECOLOGY - USA - Springfield, Ill, Transit Adopts E-Diesel for Buses

Springfield,ILL,USA -O2Diesel,Prees Release -May 13 2005: -- The Springfield, Illinois, Mass Transit District (SMTD) is shifting its buses to 02Diesel’s ethanol-diesel fuel blend... O2Diesel uses 7.7% ethanol, with up to 1% proprietary additive and a cetane improver... http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=143822&p=irol-newsArticle&ID=709078&highlight=

ECOLOGY - USA - NREL: Rethinking Biodiesel and NOx

Washington DF,USA -nwventurevoice.com -May 16 2005: -- ... a report that a current NREL research project indicates that biodiesel may not increase NOx emissions compared to petroleum diesel... reported that after extended dynamometer testing, NOx emissions from two 40-foot urban transit buses burning B20 were comparable to the buses’ NOx emissions when burning conventional diesel...

ECOLOGY – CHINA - Italy Gases China

UK -Transport News Network -Apr 2005: -- … several initiatives have been put in place by the Chinese administration to improve the high pollution levels in its big cities... One such initiative is the swapping of its aging diesel-powered urban bus fleets for new units with natural gas engines. Initiated by the Beijing Municipality in preparation for the 2008 Games, Iveco has been chosen for the first wave of 300 state-of-the-art NEF 200 engines, each of which will run on Compressed Natural Gas (CNG). The latest generation of public transport vehicles are being manufactured by Beijing Public Transportation Co., not Iveco’s Irisbus subsidiary... http://www.tnn.co.uk/Manufacturers/plonearticle.2004-12-12.4509714981/view

TECHNOLOGY - UK - The future of Dualmode?

UK -Transport News Network -Apr 2005: -- Called the "Bladerunner" this latest concept in road/rail Dualmode transport is the result of years of effort by the engineering consultancy Silvertip Design based in Richmond, North Yorkshire. The project obviously looks as though it has potential as it has received funding from the freight trailer and body builder Don Bur... It is as applicable to freight as to passenger transport... http://www.tnn.co.uk/Technology/plonearticle.2004-12-10.5362161808

REGULATIONS - EU - Rules threaten rural bus routes

UK -Transport News Network -Apr 2005: -- Bus operators in rural areas are threatening to axe hundreds of routes as a result of an "arbitrary" European directive which defines a bus driver on a route of more than 31 miles as a long-distance lorry driver...http://www.tnn.co.uk

FINANCE - USA - Property taxes will finance county's bus system

Fort Lauderdale,FL,USA -Sun Sentinel/The Stuart News,by Jim Turner - May 15 2005: -- Martin County property owners will pay to keep the public transit system rolling next year, picking up the growing fare from gas-buying motorists... However, there could be drastic changes to the bus fleet before it hits the road with direct funding from property owners, many of whom do not use the system...http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/palmbeach/sfl-ptransit15may15,0,6757517.story?coll=sfla-news-palm

ACCIDENT - AUSTRALIA - Texting bus driver crashes into pole

Sydney,New South Wales,Australia -Daily Telegraph -May 16 2005: -- A BUS driver who ploughed into a power pole in the middle of the city was using his mobile phone while driving, The Daily Telegraph can reveal... ICCTV footage retrieved from the bus showed the driver texting at the time of the accident... http://dailytelegraph.news.com.au/story.jsp?sectionid=1260&storyid=3129134

INDUSTRY NEWS - IRAN - KHODRO is not interested in MG Rover

Teheran,Iran -Auto Industry -09/05/05: -- ... Iran-Khodro executive Eshagh Jahangiri said last weekend that MG Rover's sale to China of the rights to its 25 and 75 models meant it was no longer attractive to the state-controlled Iranian manufacturer...

PRODUCTION - CHINA - FORD ‘may build Volvos in China’

Illinois,Mich,USA - Auto Industry/UK -09/05/05: -- Ford may use Volvo Car to augment its presence in the Chinese car market, Mark Fields, the executive vice-president of Premier Automotive Group, Ford’s luxury division... said that production of Volvo models in China was a distinct possibility, but no definite decisions had been made.

COLOURS - UK - Prestige colours cars in depreciation

White prestige badge cars can cost an extra £2,500 in depreciation
Metallic black is now the best colour for strong residual values

UK - Auto Industry -10/05/05: -- Paint colour has always had a major influence over the residual value of used cars, but never has this been more true than for today's prestige-brand vehicles... According to Glass's, making an unwise colour choice when purchasing a new upper-medium prestige car (BMW 3 Series, Audi A4, Mercedes C-Class, etc) could now mean it loses as much as an extra £2,500 off its trade value after one year and 12,000 miles...

TECHNOLOGY - AUSTRALIA - Late? Well, follow that bus

New South Wales,Australia -Sydney Morning Herald(subscription),by Nathan Cochrane -May 10 2005: -- Savvy Victorian motorists who are late to work may soon speed their arrival by catching the tail of a bus running behind time. But other drivers may have to wait longer at traffic lights to allow buses and trams to stick to their schedules. Part of a $7 million contract to supply smart transit systems to Melbourne's public transport network includes technology from Brisbane wireless logistics designer Technisyst, which requests late buses be given priority at controlled intersections - changing lights to green to speed a vehicle's passage...

PENALTIES - NEW ZEALAND - Penalties advocated for bus contracts

Auckland,New Zealand -New Zealand Herald,by MATHEW DEARNALEY -10.05.05: -- Auckland City councillors are calling for tougher performance conditions to be considered for lucrative public transport contracts, to discourage crippling bus strikes...

ROUTES - INDIA/PAKISTAN - Fresh talks to cover more bus routes

NEW DELHI,India -Gulf Times/AFP -7 May 2005: -- India has announced a new series of talks with Pakistan, including meetings next week over the launch of new bus services and later in May over several long-running boundary disputes... Since the launch of the service, more than 100 militants have been killed in Kashmir in scores of clashes with troops. More than 50 civilians and security officials were also killed in the same period...

JOBS - MALVINAS/FALKLAND ISLANDS - Drivers Needed for Stanley's Blue Bus

Malvinas/Falkland Islands -SARTMA,by Juanita Brock -06.05.2005: -- It was in the spring of 1990 that Mrs. Moira Buckland-James approached FINN with a news story that would be of interest... Now there is a great need for people to drive the bus on Mondays and Fridays. Corina Bishop (CB) asked Councillor John Birmingham, one of the drivers, about the need...

CONGESTIONS -IRELAND - Congestion costs Dublin Bus €49m

Dublin,Ireland -Ireland Online -06/05/2005: -- Traffic congestion in Dublin is costing Dublin Bus €49m a year, the company said today.. Despite that cost, Dublin Bus saw a 3% growth in revenue to €178m last year over 2003. There was an operating surplus of €2m...

FRUSTRATING WORK - AUSTRALIA - Students 'abusing' bus driver

New South Wales,Australia -Sydney Morning Herald(subscription)-06/05/05: -- ..."It's important to recognise that driving a bus - especially an afternoon school bus - can be extremely challenging and frustrating work"...

SAFETY - USA - Senator Wants Bus Seat Belt Law

South Bay,NY,USA -South Bay News -May 3 2005: -- Senator... recently renewed his call for the required use of seat belts on school buses throughout New York State. This renewed effort comes in light of the recent school bus accident involving students from St. Christopher’s School in Baldwin, in which the school bus they were aboard overturned on a roadway in Queens...

FREE - USA - Bus passes important to teens

San Jose,CA,USA -San Jose Mercury News -May. 02 2005: -- The Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) got sued for race discrimination... I woke up to find I couldn't go to school because I had no money for bus fare. The Oakland Unified School District doesn't have school buses, so students take AC Transit. Two years ago, I got a free bus pass... Bus service for low-income youth of color is an important investment that helps us graduate from high school and contribute to society...

PRODUCTION - CHINA - Bus firm targets exports rise

BEIJING,China -China View -Apr 30 2005: -- Zhengzhou Yutong Bus Co Ltd, China's No 1 large-and-medium-sized bus producer, plans to build assembly plants in foreign countries to boost its exports... The company, based in Central China's Henan Province, is in talks with partners from Cuba, Iran, Viet Nam, Indonesia, Egypt, Zimbabwe and Ghana to build plants... http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2005-04/30/content_2897524.htm