tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-90654120905645289322024-02-06T19:06:43.962-08:00Bus Digest Magazinethegreyhoundgrouphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04435648389124754262noreply@blogger.comBlogger178125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9065412090564528932.post-20765813547778444912016-04-07T22:58:00.000-07:002016-04-06T22:59:26.559-07:00 Five Powerful Reasons to Drive Slower<h2>
<b><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="color: #fce5cd;">
<span style="color: #9fc5e8;"><b>Five Powerful Reasons to Drive Slower, and How to Do It</b></span></span></span></span></b></h2>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">I drive slower these days. While I used to be a bit of a driving
maniac (ask my wife), passing everybody and stepping hard on my
accelerator, I would also get increasingly frustrated when people would
drive slow and keep me from driving fast, or cut me off. Driving was a
stressful experience.</span><br />
<span style="color: #fce5cd;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>Not anymore. These days, driving is a much more calm, serene experience, and I enjoy it much more.</b></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I look around at other drivers and wonder whether they really need to
get to where they’re going so fast, and whether they’ll slow down when
they get there. I wonder if it’s really worth burning all that gas and
getting so angry and risking so many lives. And then I think about other
things, because driving for me has become a time of contemplation.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #fce5cd;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>I heartily recommend driving slower — for many reasons, but one of the best reasons is that it has made me a much happier person</b>. It’s such a simple step to take, but it makes an incredibly big difference.</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #fce5cd;"><span style="font-size: large;">Recently a reader named Vadim wrote to me with the following comment on speeding:</span></span><br />
<blockquote>
<span style="font-size: large;">I have recently acquired a TomTom GPS in car navigator.
Amongst its many astonishing features, it has a display on it that shows
you your estimated arrival time for the route you are traveling … Now
here is the kicker; I used to routinely travel at 130% of the speed
limit everywhere … I thought that I was keeping myself alert and saving
time. My TomTom, however, disagreed. In fact anywhere I traveled (and I
routinely <span class="st" id="st" name="st">drive</span> more than 100
miles) I would only shave off 5-10 minutes of the estimated arrival
time! 5-10minuts of time that is then wasted because I wasn’t late to
start off with!</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Since then, I adopted a new way of driving, I never speed.</span></blockquote>
<span style="font-size: large;">I love this comment, and it inspired me to write this post. People
often think they’re saving time by driving faster, but it’s not very
much time, and it’s not worth your sanity or safety.</span><br />
<span style="color: #fce5cd;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>Here are just 5 reasons to drive slower:</b></span></span><br />
<ol>
<li><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #fce5cd;"><b>Save gas</b>. </span>The best ways to save gas (besides
driving less or driving a fuel-efficient vehicle) are to avoid excessive
idling, more gradual accelerating and decelerating, and driving slower
(see <a href="http://www.edmunds.com/fuel-economy/we-test-the-tips.html">report on Edmunds.com</a>). With gas prices so high these days, wasting gas by driving unnecessarily fast is something we can’t afford.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #fce5cd;"><b>Save lives</b>.</span> Driving fast can kill people (including
the driver). Two stats: Traffic is the biggest single killer of 12-16
year olds. Surprisingly, at 35mph you are twice as likely to kill
someone you hit as at 30mph. (<a href="http://www.thinkroadsafety.gov.uk/">Source</a>)
Faster driving gives you a shorter amount of time to respond to
something in your path, and even a fraction of a second can mean the
difference between life and death. Drive slower for your safety and that
of those around you … especially drive slow around runners, cyclists,
schools, and neighborhoods with kids on the streets.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: orange;"><span style="color: #fce5cd;"><b>Save time</b>?</span> </span>As Vadim pointed out in his email, while
you think you’re saving time by driving faster, it’s not a lot of time.
And that small amount of time you’re saving isn’t worth it, considering
the other factors on this list. Better yet, start out a few minutes
early and you’ll arrive at the same time as someone who drove faster but
started later, and you’ll arrive much happier than that person to boot.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #fce5cd;"><b>Save your sanity</b>.</span> The above three reasons are very
important ones, but for me the most noticeable difference has been the
huge drop in stress levels when I drive. Far from being a crazy
experience, driving is actually a relaxing and pleasant experience now. I
no longer get road rage, because I simply don’t care whether other
drivers are going slow or cutting me off.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #fce5cd;"><b>Simplify your life</b>.</span> This is related to the one
above, but expanded. In addition to saving your stress levels, driving
slower can reduce many other complications as well — the headache of
accidents and speeding tickets, for one, going to the gas station too
often, for another, but also the hectic pace of life. Why must we rush
through life? Slow down and enjoy life more. If we’re always in a hurry
to get places, when will we get to our destination and finally be happy?
Life is a journey — make it a pleasant one.</span></li>
</ol>
<span style="font-size: large;">OK, assuming that you want to drive slower, here are some of the tips that worked best for me:</span><br />
<ul><span style="font-size: large;">
</span>
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span>
<li><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #d9ead3;"><b>Ignore other drivers</b>.</span> This was my problem before. I
cared so much about what the other drivers were doing, that it would
stress me out. At times, it would cause me to drive faster to spite
other drivers (awful, I know). Now, I just ignore them. Well, I pay
attention so I don’t crash into anyone, but I don’t worry about what
they’re doing or how dumb they are.</span></li>
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span>
<li><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #d9ead3;"><b>Leave early</b>.</span> If you speed because you’re running
late, make it a habit of getting ready early and leaving early. Now you
don’t have to worry about being late, and you can enjoy the ride.</span></li>
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span>
<li><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #d9ead3;"><b>Brainstorm</b>.</span> I like to use my drive time for
contemplation. I come up with ideas for things to write about, I think
about my day (either the day to come or the day in review), I think
about my life as a whole and where I want to go.</span></li>
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span>
<li><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #d9ead3;"><b>Keep to the right</b>.</span> If you drive slower than the
other crazy drivers out there, it’s wise to keep out of their way if
possible and keep to the right. While I tend to ignore other drivers who
might get mad at me for driving slow (I don’t care about them anymore),
it’s good to be polite.</span></li>
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span>
<li><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #d9ead3;"><b>Enjoy the drive</b></span>. Most of all, make your drive a
pleasant experience — whether that’s through music or contemplation or
however you want to enjoy the ride, remember that the ride is just as
important as the destination.</span></li>
</ul>
thegreyhoundgrouphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04435648389124754262noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9065412090564528932.post-59690905553988720642016-03-17T17:47:00.000-07:002016-03-17T15:46:47.354-07:00 'Riding The Dog': Greyhound Coast-To-Coast<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">Tell someone about your bus trip and stand back. The Question is on
its way. "Why would you do it?" they will ask. Why would you ride on
Greyhound instead of driving -- or grabbing a train or plane?</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: x-large;">A friend and I found out a few winters ago that we each had a week to
go somewhere and where we really wanted to go was L.A. We were sick of
security lines and cramped flights, and with gas prices reaching record
levels, neither of us was up for a marathon drive.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><i>What about the bus?</i> we thought, poring over maps and
schedules and making little puffs of mental exhaust. Like the people we
told about our trip, we weren't sure if we could hack a four-day ride
from D.C. to the West Coast. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Still, the plan was to pick up seven-day
Ameripasses that let you get off and back on whenever you want and give
the thing a try for the sake of adventure. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Although my friend was 73 years old and had never been west of
Pennsylvania, we would aim south for warm weather, we'd try to set foot
in Mexico and hope to get a quick glimpse of the Grand Canyon (which we
had never seen).</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">And we wouldn't come back until we had answered The Question once and for all. </span><br />
<center>
<span style="font-size: x-large;">
***</span></center>
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><i>Day Three: Little Rock, AR to El Paso, TX</i>
Little Rock boasts surprisingly tall downtown towers and strange
looking semi-tropical trees that are spring green even though it's
February. There's no soap in the bus station men's room, and the fast
food restaurant we go into is out of it too. Could it be that people use
water only to wash up with in this town?</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Back on the bus, Judy grabs me a handful of the moist towelettes,
though I find that most of them are bone dry inside the foil wrapper.
I'm getting worried about her. She keeps pointing out what she tells me
are "rivers" but when I turn and look, I can see only fields and dust. I
don't know whether these are actual mirages, but it does seem, at
times, as if we are crossing the country by camel. Our sense of distance
is intimate. We get to know every mile, and measure our progress bounce
by bounce.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Dallas in the dark looks like an out-of-control corporate park:
Buildings have weird neon outlines, the streetlights are embedded in
slabs and flagpoles narrow sharply toward the top, like fresh pencils.
Greyhound company headquarters are here, but the bus station, itself, is
confusing and extremely small. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: x-large;">As we wait in line trying to squeeze
onto our 6 a.m. bus, the baggage guy cracks, "I'd wait 'til the 8:30 if I
was you." I'm wondering if I detect a smirk, since the bus door has
just slammed shut. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: x-large;">More trouble: When I try to get a printout for buses between El Paso
and Flagstaff, AZ, the machine spits out pages of nonsense numbers,
mathematical symbols and black squares. "That's because Greyhound
doesn't go there," explains the clerk, but when I protest that
Flagstaff's a big town, she gives me a look, and says to "spell the name
of it, and slowly." We try again, getting some info this time, and Judy
and I are on our way.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: x-large;">The landscape west of Ft. Worth is like a safari theme park where the
animals refuse to come near. If you look carefully you can see specks
along the horizon, and sometimes groups of specks that Judy says have to
be herds. Abilene is a much more close-up surprise. It has the widest
streets in Texas and its buildings are colorful square blocks of brick
that look mysterious since there's hardly a soul in town. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: x-large;">When we get near Midland, the bus driver tells us to look left, and
fingers are pointing as we roar past a family of prairie dogs sitting up
by the side of the road. Wildlife at last.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><i>Day Four: El Paso, TX to Flagstaff, AZ</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: x-large;">The lights of El Paso are spread out in front of the bus, and since
it's "The Star City," we're welcomed by a cheerful, electrically-powered
starfish set up on a hill overlooking town. Judy and I are busy trying
to figure out how we can get over the border to Ciudad Juarez, Mexico,
before our bus to Flagstaff the next afternoon.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Since our motel is on the city's outskirts, there's only one
solution: Bob's Cab. The plan is this: Bob will come to our motel in the
morning and drive us to the downtown border bridge. We'll walk across,
eat a fresh corn tamale in Juarez and, an hour later, cross back over.
There, Bob will be waiting to drive us back to the motel, grab the bags
and floor it to the bus station.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Amazingly, this works pretty much as planned. It costs 25 cents (or
three pesos) to enter Mexico, and suddenly we're in a world of
handpainted signs for "Cerveza," music surging out of grocery stores and
small cafes and vendors yelling at us to take a look at hats and
leather wallets and limes stuffed fat with shredded coconut.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: x-large;">It isn't easy to just get a bite of all this and go back, and Judy
keeps fingering woven tote bags and stretchy, beaded belts as if they
will help her hang on here for just a few seconds longer. I buy a
Mexican soda, and when the can of papaya fizz runs low, I know we have
to go fast to the passport line on the Mexican side of the bridge and to
our idling cab.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: x-large;">We make the bus just as the driver is ripping tickets and are
surprised to find that a fellow passenger, Eddie Arcaro, has saved us a
place in line. "All that I own is in this," he chuckles, hefting a
string bag that you can see is layered with expertly folded white
T-shirts and a Bible on top. Arcaro is on his way home from a year in
the Colorado state penitentiary. But as we get into New Mexico during
our ride, he's one of the few who is impressed with the red and purple,
Road Runner-style scenery. "Mesas," he keeps telling Judy. "Wait until
you see the mesas." </span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><i>Day Five: Flagstaff, AZ to Los Angeles, CA</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: x-large;">After we get off in Flagstaff, Judy and I talk to cab drivers about
getting a ride to the Grand Canyon, which, according to our map, is
about 80 miles from here. One guy just shakes his head. The other tells
us he'd be willing to go with us if we'll pay him $250 up front. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Since it's one of our biggest goals for the trip we're on the verge
of agreeing, when I spot a van with "Keyah Hozhoni Tours" painted on the
side. The driver, a Navajo Indian named Vince, will take us there and
back for 50 bucks apiece -- and fill us in on local history and
geography as we ride.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: x-large;">It's a deal, and as it turns out, Vince is loaded with information on
what we pass, including a police car that he says has a "cardboard
decoy cop" inside. When we get close to the Canyon, I ask him what kind
of animals we should watch out for. "Scorpions, rattlesnakes and
kingsnakes," says Vince, letting us out near the Rim Trail at Bright
Angel Lodge. "Almost forgot," he adds. "You might also catch a coral
snake or a tarantula."</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Judy and I keep one eye on our shoes as we walk to the edge, and
suddenly there it is: a horizon-swallowing jagged copper bowl that is
too wide to be photographable, too intricate for art. At this second,
every knee-crunching minute of our trip feels worthwhile. You could ride
a year's worth of buses to get here, I think, and drive them all over
the edge so you wouldn't have to go back.</span><br />
<center>
<span style="font-size: x-large;">
***</span></center>
<span style="font-size: x-large;">We're getting near the end of our trip, changing buses in Phoenix at 5
a.m. for the final leg to LA. I doze on and off until around eight
o'clock when we pull into a last-gas McDonald's buffeted by blowing dust
and desert sand. "Blythe, CA," announces the driver, and although it's a
rest stop and Judy gets off for coffee, I don't want any and slump back
to sleep.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Next thing I know, I'm woken up by a revving engine. The bus is
heeling around a curve and roaring toward a highway ramp. Something
feels wrong -- I've got much too much room for one thing -- and then it
hits me. Judy's not on board. "Hey, wait," I yell to the driver. "We're
leaving someone behind!"</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">No response.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: x-large;">"Stop, will you? Can I run back and get my friend. Can I get off?"</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">By now I'm up past the yellow line in front, exaggerating the fact
that Judy is an elderly passenger and hearing only mumblings from the
driver that include the phrase, "got to keep on schedule." Some of the
other passengers are angry, too, since everyone was caught off guard,
and I collect some names and phone numbers for what they're worth.
Someone lends me their cell phone and I dial the number on my Ameripass,
but all Greyhound suggests is that Judy keep her eye out for a bus due
into Blythe later on that afternoon.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: x-large;">It's been five long days. We've been to Tennessee, Texas, Mexico, the
South Rim of the Grand Canyon and dozens of beaten-up, midnight
Greyhound bus stations scattered along the way. I have made it from DC
to LA, where it's 89 degrees, bustling and hazy, and Judy from DC to a
fast food restaurant in a town I do not know how to spell.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Hours later, I meet a dust-coated bus from Blythe and there is Judy,
sunburned and exhausted from pacing around in parking lots and watching
birds. "Greyhound has made it up to you," is the first thing I say,
handing over a certificate entitling her to a free entree and a medium
beverage at the bus terminal cafe.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: x-large;">There is a second when Judy's fingers start to squash this foolish
scrap of paper. But then the ghost of a grin. Judy is yanking me by the
arm, pushing bus baggage out of the way.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">"C'mon," she barks. "Let's have lunch." </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">The End. Woof...I'm Wyatt Olsen...Good Day !</span><br />
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thegreyhoundgrouphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04435648389124754262noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9065412090564528932.post-33511611411617199072016-02-28T15:10:00.000-08:002016-02-28T17:11:21.315-08:00This Week Lifestyle Motorhome's<b><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></b>
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<b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJzPst92Bdz4dM_niko4PYMEvsU3ScFx8E7BGF8pkjgNPuA4Y-5N1v46QglOB5Cclsh1LvctKGwyHz5OMPpgbSzohNS8tFKtPBoUIM9b6Z9vQJXNxkgK2WkAZE8Aoz7MhltFlqp3dSBto/s1600/S3348.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="386" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJzPst92Bdz4dM_niko4PYMEvsU3ScFx8E7BGF8pkjgNPuA4Y-5N1v46QglOB5Cclsh1LvctKGwyHz5OMPpgbSzohNS8tFKtPBoUIM9b6Z9vQJXNxkgK2WkAZE8Aoz7MhltFlqp3dSBto/s640/S3348.PNG" width="640" /></a></b></div>
<b><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></b>
<br />
<h2>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgl5E0EaboJ8tEwQbP_ruAV810q-4UOvAbkVDjYf2YjcJ2DkSjtZX3r_F2HudsokXoyuiyfqujoIBxPlzMiOlzIgBlizdPEIM4YH0V-m-4ySu4tcIEEqHMmO16fsKQMKjbRaMDZQWZCAkc/s1600/S3349.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="401" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgl5E0EaboJ8tEwQbP_ruAV810q-4UOvAbkVDjYf2YjcJ2DkSjtZX3r_F2HudsokXoyuiyfqujoIBxPlzMiOlzIgBlizdPEIM4YH0V-m-4ySu4tcIEEqHMmO16fsKQMKjbRaMDZQWZCAkc/s640/S3349.PNG" width="640" /></a>
<span style="font-size: x-large;">To travelers from more populated areas of the world, Alaska can
seem like another planet. It is otherworldly in its difference, with its
vast wilderness, free-roaming wildlife, and splendid scenery. But the
call of the wild is also a call to our roots—to a rich fabric of nature
that speaks to our primeval past. That other world is also an ancient
home. All it takes to answer the "why" question is a visit to the state.
There is simply no comparable travel destination on Earth.</span></h2>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjao-lPMpTcYSGBQFvwetdwW9ROl5o4eonwi6JGPMDzmkkoGklv5BK0x7HRKpYMB_Wb0dgazRpM38iN9Zw-pb4kYshvOYlAJHrnlXz395YwzyYKALSStIInIvkc7_SJjo_HiBL_VUc0gRY/s1600/S3351.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="385" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjao-lPMpTcYSGBQFvwetdwW9ROl5o4eonwi6JGPMDzmkkoGklv5BK0x7HRKpYMB_Wb0dgazRpM38iN9Zw-pb4kYshvOYlAJHrnlXz395YwzyYKALSStIInIvkc7_SJjo_HiBL_VUc0gRY/s400/S3351.PNG" width="400" /></a></div>
<b><br /></b>
<b><span style="font-size: x-large;">A more important question might be, "What’s the best way to see
Alaska?" Tourists make a mistake when they treat the state as they
might treat Washington, D.C., or Yellowstone. In Alaska, it is less
appropriate to carry a "must-see" destination list and drive from sight
to sight or viewpoint to viewpoint. The state is so richly endowed with
stunning mountains, awesome glaciers, and impressive wildlife that, in a
way, there’s no place to go—you’re already there!</span></b><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidb3QEGHdiCsV5hM7bV5-w9R-U1nXafpeTeDFn7-mhAE5-4gDeWK5tU8WHXufSX6AUwL6YY1-x95dqxUwAmgmNZA1MY8hlLQPEl5wcALls5s7YHCb7n-Y2GJwXjaCNlU-h0EUpPb-NPmA/s1600/S3350.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="396" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidb3QEGHdiCsV5hM7bV5-w9R-U1nXafpeTeDFn7-mhAE5-4gDeWK5tU8WHXufSX6AUwL6YY1-x95dqxUwAmgmNZA1MY8hlLQPEl5wcALls5s7YHCb7n-Y2GJwXjaCNlU-h0EUpPb-NPmA/s640/S3350.PNG" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
<b><br /></b>
<b><span style="font-size: x-large;">If you’re wise, you won’t come to Alaska to collect snapshots
and T-shirts, but to seek experience. Head into the wild country. Feel
the power of a land that is geologically violent, climatologically raw,
and biologically inhuman. Nose your kayak into bergs of a Kenai Fjords
glacier, hoping you’re not a little too close to the calving river of
ice that sloughed them off. Listen to the motor of a floatplane fade
into the distance, the pilot having promised to retrieve you a week
later from a lonely gravel bar, 50 miles away across the Brooks Range.
Leave your tentsite for a sunset hike in the Wrangells, knowing that a
grizzly sow and her cubs might be trundling silently through the alders
just over the next rise. If your Alaska visit is likely to be a
once-in-a-lifetime event, come not as a tourist, but as an explorer.</span></b><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><a href="http://www.alaskajourney.com/">>>>>>>>>>>>>>>Read More.....</a> </span><br />
<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/hA5wige3rZM?feature=player_detailpage" width="640"></iframe>thegreyhoundgrouphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04435648389124754262noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9065412090564528932.post-5794931306348211482015-11-17T22:55:00.000-08:002015-11-16T14:55:42.356-08:00Speed Increase = Road Fatalities and Injuries<div id="first">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjE9K2ZXce2z1BVwO1cPhatxcnEUBFWxeMO3EJM3Hn1qyjauv__mP9Gl89-zwCfo42-QZ0bBU1Gak8iZGIkyR7bUoCERu3szj08nLRs-TySAJnUX8wyiOAYnfWuWTYX0RJnykkgnYhOfe0/s1600/S101360.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="481" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjE9K2ZXce2z1BVwO1cPhatxcnEUBFWxeMO3EJM3Hn1qyjauv__mP9Gl89-zwCfo42-QZ0bBU1Gak8iZGIkyR7bUoCERu3szj08nLRs-TySAJnUX8wyiOAYnfWuWTYX0RJnykkgnYhOfe0/s1600/S101360.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span class="date" style="font-size: large;"></span></div>
<br />
<span class="date" style="font-size: large;">July 18, 2009</span><span style="font-size: large;"> — The repeal of
the federal speed control law in 1995 has resulted in an increase in
road fatalities and injuries, according to researchers at the University
of Illinois at Chicago School of Public Health.</span></div>
<div id="seealso">
<hr />
<div style="margin: -5px 0px 10px;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><b> </b></span></div>
<div class="addthis_toolbox addthis_default_style" style="padding: 1px 0px 0px 5px;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><a class="addthis_button_facebook_like at300b" href="http://www.blogger.com/null">
</a></span>
</div>
</div>
<span style="font-size: large;">The research is published in the September issue of the <i>American Journal of Public Health</i>.
It is the first long-term study to evaluate the impact of repealing the
National Maximum Speed Law on road fatalities and injuries in fatal
crashes between 1995 and 2005.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">The law, which restricted the maximum speed limit to 55 mph on all
interstate roads in the United States, was initiated in 1974 in response
to the oil embargo and had an immediate impact.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">"During the first year there was a drop of almost 17 percent in
fatalities after the speed laws were reduced to 55 miles per hour," said
Lee Friedman, assistant research professor of environmental and
occupational health sciences at UIC and lead author of the study.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">The law was modified in 1987 and allowed states to raise the legal
speed limits to 65 mph on some interstates. In 1995, the federally
mandated 55 mph speed law was revoked, allowing states to set their own
speed laws.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">"The primary finding of our study was that over the 10-year period
following the repeal of National Maximum Speed Law, there were
approximately 12,500 deaths due to the increased speed limits across the
U.S.," said Friedman.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">The researchers used a mixed-regression model to take into account
when the speed limits changed in each state and the different
characteristics within and between each state, such as car volume
density, population density, variations in fleet sizes, the types of
vehicles on the road, vehicle quality (newer vehicles versus older
vehicles), as well as driver characteristics.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">The primary flaw of previous studies has been that they have only
focused on selected states or regions, said Friedman, or they have used a
simple analysis to look at before versus after implementation of the
law during a very short period of time.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL_zWwIwrutoB0pJXcyzWj-6WBjCSQveR3dAZq8NJYWtAW9EqHMRJo0nOM4CX3SgtBGdpCh-6Tqwg8pWjDbkFlWmnjPP8li2na3x7KZ6KMUeBX-uy7LJQVtkCIsGNuTRxOou1rqd5aJlI/s1600/S4380.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL_zWwIwrutoB0pJXcyzWj-6WBjCSQveR3dAZq8NJYWtAW9EqHMRJo0nOM4CX3SgtBGdpCh-6Tqwg8pWjDbkFlWmnjPP8li2na3x7KZ6KMUeBX-uy7LJQVtkCIsGNuTRxOou1rqd5aJlI/s200/S4380.PNG" width="138" /></a><span style="font-size: large;">The researchers suggest that policy makers reevaluate national policy
on speed and road safety and consider reduced speed limits and improved
enforcement with speed camera networks to save lives.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Speed camera programs have been implemented in England, France and
Australia and have shown immediate reductions in motor vehicle crash
fatalities, said Friedman.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">"This is a failed policy because it was, in essence, an experiment
over 10 years. People assumed that increasing the speed limit would not
have an impact," said Friedman. "We've shown that something has happened
and it's quite dramatic."</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Friedman uses the example of the 3,000 people who died in the September 11th terrorist attacks.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">"That tragic event has led to a whole foreign policy," he said. "We
estimate that approximately 12,500 people died as a result of a policy
to deregulate speed enforcement -- four times what happened on September
11th -- and yet changing the policy to reduce speed limits may be very
difficult."</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">With all the bus roll overs and collisions in the news, and with public pressure may force the federal government to consider reducing bus speed to 55 mph.</span>thegreyhoundgrouphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04435648389124754262noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9065412090564528932.post-57383136702958253242015-10-06T15:23:00.000-07:002015-10-05T21:20:45.935-07:00"What Makes A Good Motorcoach Operator"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<h2>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihvksEX7UFjAiQCiVnVe1NzL0mwbIlhAZd8p0JDVcchB2-6w5IUe0a8pjbd_cThKgczHq25OpPb_4mQtBXWB59STgYNMtFeyMdk417KB7RInNpmSX8mu22_Y3YEH20uTlQELLU7vLXRtc/s1600/S1011299.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="369" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihvksEX7UFjAiQCiVnVe1NzL0mwbIlhAZd8p0JDVcchB2-6w5IUe0a8pjbd_cThKgczHq25OpPb_4mQtBXWB59STgYNMtFeyMdk417KB7RInNpmSX8mu22_Y3YEH20uTlQELLU7vLXRtc/s1600/S1011299.JPG" width="640" /></a></span></div>
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</span></h2>
<h2>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size: large;">In all my years involved with
this marvelous industry I have often asked myself the question, what is
it exactly that makes a good bus driver?</span></h2>
<h2>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size: large;">
Is it driving skill, is
it appearance? is it time keeping? is it how much money they bring in
each day? Is it reliability? The list is I suppose endless, and it all
depends on your own personal criteria.</span></h2>
<div class="text_exposed_show">
<h2>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size: large;">
Or is it the X factor, something undefinable, there are certain basics
that need to enter the mix automatically such as regular attendance,
honesty, good relations with all around, and a helpful attitude. The
list of course could go on and I dare say others might add and subtract
accordingly.</span></h2>
<h2>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size: large;">
But if I had to choose one key element that makes an
individual stand out then I think that I would have to say that it is
the ability to make the customer feel valued, and special in a positive
way.</span></h2>
<h2>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size: large;">
I have seen people who in the past who have just been steady
good guys who day in, day out, year after year have come in done a good
job and then after thirty or forty years they have reached the top of
the escalator and then off they go into the horizon.</span></h2>
<h2>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size: large;">
A lifetime
of service to the communities that they support, a key but often
invisible cog in the daily lives that people live, often unheralded just
taken for granted, bit like breathing I suppose, but equally valuable.</span></h2>
<h2>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size: large;">
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhq34LkzOEi72nsJZqpIPWcLSdGV_3ohUaQYFCHlsu3UZbpzPecc7WdNHCo-ZiK31ShZy0qBBvszjkekQdsXLkUzpwcAxB79j0J6gzSgOAfzJuaWrM97z-oFVt2xkpj7HtMxWhyphenhyphenkNVf478/s1600/S7261.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhq34LkzOEi72nsJZqpIPWcLSdGV_3ohUaQYFCHlsu3UZbpzPecc7WdNHCo-ZiK31ShZy0qBBvszjkekQdsXLkUzpwcAxB79j0J6gzSgOAfzJuaWrM97z-oFVt2xkpj7HtMxWhyphenhyphenkNVf478/s1600/S7261.JPG" width="152" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Wesley Victor Rose<br />
fifty plus years of service</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
So, what makes a really special great bus driver? I think it is someone
who makes every single person who they have contact with better for the
experience of having been in contact with them. Very hard to define and
yes it is much more than saying hello and goodbye as the passenger gets
on and of the bus. In fairness it is difficult in the tiny amount of
time that allows for interaction between driver and customer,but it is
possible that people feel better for having had that contact.</span></h2>
<h2>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size: large;">
The
other thing that matters is what I call the feel good factor,
passengers I think notice subconsciously how drivers behave, trust me if
you get a bad or nasty driver the passengers are very aware of the
behaviour of the driver. It is like everyone tunes in to see what is
going to happen next.</span></h2>
<h2>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size: large;">
Conversely if you get a great driver, the
mood on that vehicle becomes infectious ,people feel happier as there is
a good vibration, very hard to define in words but suffice to say it is
that X factor that we all seem to crave.</span></h2>
<h2>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size: large;">
Sadly the truth is that it is rare but it does exist and where it does we should respect it and encourage others to pursue it.</span></h2>
</div>
thegreyhoundgrouphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04435648389124754262noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9065412090564528932.post-17231422835885157402015-08-23T12:02:00.000-07:002015-08-23T01:40:04.752-07:00NAFMP Prevent Fatigue-Related Crashes
<br />
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<div align="center">
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><b>U.S. Department of Transportation</b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Office of Public Affairs</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Washington, DC 20590</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><a href="http://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/redirect.aspx?page=http://www.dot.gov/briefing-room.html" target="_blank">www.dot.gov/briefing-room.html</a></span></div>
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span>
<br />
<hr noshade="noshade" size="2" width="75%" />
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span> <acronym><span style="color: #7f6000;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">FMCSA </span></span></acronym><span style="color: #7f6000;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><acronym title="Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration"></acronym>44-13</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #7f6000;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">Sunday, August 23, 2015</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #7f6000;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="color: #7f6000;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">Contacts: </span></span><br />
<br />
<br />
<table border="0" style="width: 626px;"><tbody>
<tr><td valign="top" width="198"><span style="font-size: large;">Marissa Padilla</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Director of Communications</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">U.S. Department of Transportation’s </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">202-366-9999
</span></td><td valign="top" width="224"><span style="font-size: large;">Ashley Kelahear</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Press Secretary</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Office of the Honourable Lisa Raitt</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Minister of Transport </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Ottawa</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">613-991-0700
</span></td><td valign="top" width="180"><span style="font-size: large;">Media Relations</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Transport Canada, Ottawa</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">613-993-0055
</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<h3 align="center">
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /><b>
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration Collaborates with
Transport Canada and Others to Launch Interactive Driver Fatigue
Management Tool
</b></span></h3>
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span>
<br />
<h4 align="center">
<span style="color: #38761d;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><i><b>New Resources Geared to Help Bus and Truck Drivers<br /> Prevent Fatigue-Related Crashes</b></i></span></span></h4>
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: x-large;">WASHINGTON
- Anne S. Ferro, Administrator of the U.S. Department of
Transportation’s Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) and
Lisa Raitt, Minister of Transport, today announced the launch of the
North American Fatigue Management Program (NAFMP), a website that
provides training and education on commercial bus and truck driver
fatigue management.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">“We can help save lives and prevent crashes on
our roads by providing drivers and companies with educational tools,
like those contained in the North American Fatigue Management Program
website,” said Administrator Ferro. “This is another supportive resource
truck and bus drivers can utilize in addition to complying with our
hours-of-service rules.”</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">"The launch of the program is very good
news," said Minister Lebel. "The collaborative work that has been done
with partners will assist motor carriers and drivers in managing
fatigue, and promote safety by reducing fatigue-related crashes." </span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">The
NAFMP is a voluntary, interactive web-based educational and training
program developed to provide commercial truck and bus drivers and
carriers with an awareness of the factors contributing to fatigue and
its impact on performance and safety. It provides: </span><br />
<br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-size: x-large;">Information on how to develop a corporate culture that facilitates reduced driver fatigue;</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: x-large;">Fatigue
management education for drivers, drivers’ families, carrier executives
and managers, shippers/receivers and dispatchers;</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: x-large;">Information on sleep disorders, screening and treatment;</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: x-large;">Driver and trip scheduling information; and,</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: x-large;">Information on Fatigue Management Technologies.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: x-large;"> </span></li>
</ul>
<span style="font-size: x-large;">The
program was developed by multiple partners, including the Federal Motor
Carrier Safety Administration, Transport Canada, Alberta Employment and
Immigration, Alberta Transportation, Alberta Worker’s Compensation
Board, Alberta Motor Transport Association, Commission de la santé et de
la sécurité du travail du Québec, Société de l’assurance automobile du
Québec, and the American Transportation Research Institute.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">The
NAFMP fatigue management tool does not replace or override the FMCSA or
TC’s regulations on hours-of-service. FMCSA and TC-regulated commercial
motor carriers and drivers continue to have a duty to know and comply
with the respective FMCSA or TC hours-of-service regulations.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">For more information on the North American Fatigue Management Program, please visit <a href="http://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/redirect.aspx?page=http://www.nafmp.org/">www.nafmp.org</a>. Additional educational tools for commercial drivers are available on FMCSA's website at <a href="http://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/">www.fmcsa.dot.gov</a>.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="rellink" id="Table4"><tbody>
<tr><td><ul>
<li><span style="font-size: x-large;"><a class="rellink" href="http://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/redirect.aspx?page=http://www.nafmp.org/">North American Fatigue Management Program</a></span></li>
</ul>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
thegreyhoundgrouphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04435648389124754262noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9065412090564528932.post-33956714727914299902015-06-12T20:01:00.000-07:002015-06-11T20:53:53.625-07:00Driving Tour Buses to Glamorous Casino's <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJGRHEz_k6RWadYaosioU0YPeKj7bLUMi8yqK8nsBp9nn4CPTnEaroBg8Rhoel4ibhT5ubFP9sgYoA_h7fPGMzz6qjN869sCwxMk47hPJM41WvsfNcz9z_ww7crpenFjfH8OKUmfNW9OE/s1600/S1070.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="450" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJGRHEz_k6RWadYaosioU0YPeKj7bLUMi8yqK8nsBp9nn4CPTnEaroBg8Rhoel4ibhT5ubFP9sgYoA_h7fPGMzz6qjN869sCwxMk47hPJM41WvsfNcz9z_ww7crpenFjfH8OKUmfNW9OE/s640/S1070.PNG" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
<div style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;">
</div>
<br />
<div class="articleHeadline">
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="color: #7f6000;">Driving Buses to Casinos, With Long Hours and Little Rest</span></span></span></div>
<h1 class="articleHeadline">
<span style="color: #fff2cc;"> </span></h1>
<div class="articleSpanImage">
<a href="http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2011/03/17/nyregion/DRIVERS/DRIVERS-articleLarge.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2011/03/17/nyregion/DRIVERS/DRIVERS-articleLarge.jpg" height="185" width="320" /></a><span style="font-size: large;">Simon Lee, whose aunt and uncle died in the Bronx bus
crash, is a driver who makes the same run to the Mohegan Sun casino in
Uncasville, Conn. He used the modest lounge the casino provides for
drivers.</span><br />
<div class="caption">
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
</div>
<div class="articleBody">
<span style="font-size: large;">Far from the plush gambling rooms of the Mohegan Sun casino is a lounge that few gamblers will ever see. </span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">The space is small, drab and windowless, sparsely furnished with snack
machines and worn khaki chairs, a far cry from cocktail waitresses and
gleaming slot machines. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Yet for the dozens of chartered bus drivers who trek daily to the casino
in Uncasville, Conn., the lounge offers rare relief on a tedious,
exhausting journey that can last 12 hours or more. And those assigned
the Mohegan Sun route count themselves lucky — they say that most
casinos offer drivers no place to rest at all. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">The low-cost tour-bus industry, where drivers often work long hours for little pay, has come under renewed scrutiny since <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/13/nyregion/13crash.html" title="A Times article.">a crash in the Bronx on Saturday</a> killed <a href="http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/03/14/death-toll-in-bus-crash-reaches-15/" title="A Ciy Room blog post.">15 passengers</a> on a return trip from Mohegan Sun. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">The trip was typical of many in the industry, a motley collection of small outlets <a href="http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/03/15/morning-buzz-focusing-on-rules-for-tour-bus-drivers/" title="A City Room blog post.">that operate largely out of sight</a>
of government regulators. Drivers, tour operators and watchdog groups
say that many employees receive no benefits, work long hours and are
poorly compensated. Federal rules that restrict drivers’ hours are only
sporadically enforced, and some drivers say they have felt pressure to
take long-haul trips that often stretch beyond the legal limit. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">The cause of the weekend crash still had not been determined as of
Wednesday, but much of the focus has turned to the driver, Ophadell
Williams. State and federal officials are examining his actions in the
minutes and hours before the accident; Gov. <a class="meta-per" href="http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/c/andrew_m_cuomo/index.html?inline=nyt-per" title="More articles about Andrew M. Cuomo.">Andrew M. Cuomo</a>
has ordered an inquiry into how Mr. Williams, who had driving
violations and a criminal record, was allowed to become a commercial bus
driver. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">When other drivers heard about the crash on Saturday, many said they immediately wondered if fatigue had played a role. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">“The first thing that pops into my mind was, ‘How many hours was he
working?’ ” said Brian Bailey, 53, a driver for Brush Hill Tours in
Boston. “A lot of these drivers, we’re driving down the road, we wave to
the other guy. We’re all in the same business. It affects us all the
same way; it makes us more aware.” </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">At <a class="meta-org" href="http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/organizations/f/foxwoods_resort_casino/index.html?inline=nyt-org" title="More articles about Foxwoods Resort Casino.">Foxwoods</a>,
another Connecticut casino, and at some Atlantic City casinos, drivers
are confined to charter bus parking lots, typically several miles from
the casino, and they frequently take naps on buses. The casinos usually
provide drivers with a $15 food voucher and a shuttle bus to the local
food court; hotel rooms are not offered. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Mr. Bailey was sitting in his bus just inside the entrance to Foxwoods
about 9 p.m. on Monday. He said his company encouraged drivers to eat,
sleep and “rest, relax so you’re not stressed out.” Some drivers, he
conceded, take the opportunity to gamble. “We have drivers who will
spend their whole time in there pulling handles,” he said. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">In his downtime, Mr. Bailey said, he often watches videotaped episodes
of “General Hospital” and grabs food. “There’s nothing worse than being
tired while you’re driving,” he said. “People don’t realize, you start
dozing off, it’s not a good thing. Especially when you’ve got
everybody’s life in your hands.” </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Federal guidelines limit passenger-bus drivers to 10 hours behind the
wheel, within a 15-hour work day, and bus carriers face a fine if
violations are discovered. But the hours, recorded in a handwritten
logbook, are easily falsified, and even outstanding violations are often
ignored: World Wide Travel, the operator whose bus crashed in the
Bronx, had been cited several times by regulators for problems with its
logs. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">At Foxwoods on Monday, a driver for World Wide Travel was preparing for a
nap in his bus’s front passenger row. The driver had arranged a blanket
and several small pillows atop a knapsack; later, he opened an overhead
compartment to reveal a stash of blankets. “You see my bed?” he said
with a smile. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">The man, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because his company had
instructed drivers not to talk to the news media, said he planned to
sleep for 90 minutes. He still had five hours until he had to start his
return trip to Flushing, Queens. He had already used a casino-issued
meal coupon to buy a chicken-and-rice dinner. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">“It’s an easy job; it’s not too bad,” the driver said. “Other charters,
you’re going to Washington, D.C., or Boston. This one is easy, only two
and a half hours.” He said he earned $150 a day, payable by check, and
worked about five shifts a week. The company provides gas money.
</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Tour-bus drivers say they come to the job through a variety of channels.
Many drove school buses or worked for public transit agencies, where
they often earned higher salaries. Mr. Bailey said he led tours for
college students, ski trips, Cape Cod tours — even, once, the Boston Red
Sox. Some are retired, with a government pension, and looking for extra
pay. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Federal law is nearly silent on qualifications for the job: for the most
part, anyone with a state-issued commercial driver’s license is
eligible. Carriers are expected to obtain medical certificates from
their drivers and occasionally test for drug and alcohol use; a
spokesman for the <a href="http://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/" title="The agencys Web site.">Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration</a>,
the industry’s regulator, said that the responsibility for
administering those tests fell to the business, not the state, and that
violators could face fines. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Some skeptics wonder if discount bus companies, which are rarely
unionized and have only a few employees, end up with castoffs from more
reputable places. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">“These small companies that want to make a quick buck, they take anyone they can get,” said Larry Hanley, president of <a href="http://www.atu.org/" title="The unions Web site.">Amalgamated Transit Union International</a>, which represents thousands of drivers. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Tour buses, Mr. Hanley said, are “the industry of last resort.” </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Some in the industry complain that the rise of discount buses in the
last decade has forced more established carriers, like Greyhound, to
lower wages. Tight margins mean that drivers end up with salaries often
as low as around $15 an hour. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">At the Mohegan Sun lounge on Tuesday, Simon Lee, 63, a driver on a route
from Flushing, was watching a Chinese-language film on his laptop. He
said he was grateful that the casino provided the space. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">On his bus, Mr. Lee said, “in the wintertime, it’s too cold, and in the summertime, it’s too hot.” </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">“It gets over 100 inside the bus in the summer,” he continued. “You cannot stay up there.” </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Mr. Lee said, with a laugh, that he would not mind if the lounge
installed a StairMaster for exercise. But he turned serious when asked
about the weekend crash. His aunt and uncle, May Lin Wong and Ock Thling
Wong, were among the passengers killed. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">“I basically grew up with them in Hong Kong,” Mr. Lee said. “I keep
telling myself every day now, be more alert, be more careful, because of
my aunt and uncle, what happened to them.” </span>thegreyhoundgrouphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04435648389124754262noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9065412090564528932.post-23048799567210952322015-04-03T13:27:00.004-07:002015-04-03T13:30:31.153-07:00Bus Digest Honors Ronnie Greher<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEha-62DvKy6G4Q89nFm4VxxQXI7APO4i5ujr6FqTH9-RS7N1q4TpVGLz3DEi7ZcGGxvfBBuspXP4F4uaGXOnODDuycSLMxSBwontdzjwSZroJhaBhpbHl3iWBgZiUlqzp1p2USQcm-9GAw/s1600/S1012419.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEha-62DvKy6G4Q89nFm4VxxQXI7APO4i5ujr6FqTH9-RS7N1q4TpVGLz3DEi7ZcGGxvfBBuspXP4F4uaGXOnODDuycSLMxSBwontdzjwSZroJhaBhpbHl3iWBgZiUlqzp1p2USQcm-9GAw/s1600/S1012419.JPG" /></a></div>
<br />thegreyhoundgrouphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04435648389124754262noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9065412090564528932.post-39913792507960328882015-01-09T11:58:00.000-08:002015-01-08T23:08:01.622-08:00Fatigue an Important Cause of Road Crashes<h1 class="title">
<span style="color: #f9cb9c;"> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzc79WUwVNSJ2vH5V2ocf8YJf1dGZj4Wd419BQDT7JnOmtqwfoG2CLARWfYJ6om3Akk3boB5GQLmyFvOoj8Ps-93_GSqw-Lxjk-yli2Pn3BI8OIgv5oGNeEmeuvXyXaL4dz6JYkzccPbg/s1600/00000401.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzc79WUwVNSJ2vH5V2ocf8YJf1dGZj4Wd419BQDT7JnOmtqwfoG2CLARWfYJ6om3Akk3boB5GQLmyFvOoj8Ps-93_GSqw-Lxjk-yli2Pn3BI8OIgv5oGNeEmeuvXyXaL4dz6JYkzccPbg/s640/00000401.PNG" height="326" width="640" /></a></div>
</span></h1>
<h1 class="title">
<span style="color: #f9cb9c;"> </span></h1>
<h1 class="title">
<span style="color: #f9cb9c;">Driver Fatigue is an important cause of road crashes.</span></h1>
<h1 class="title">
<span style="font-size: large;">Driver
fatigue is very dangerous condition created when a person is suffering
symptoms of fatigue while driving, often resulting from the hypnotic
(Inducing sleep; soporific or hypnosis) effect especially during
nighttime (peak levels at night can be 10 times daytime levels) driving
either falling asleep at the wheel or so exhausted they made serious -
and fatal - driving errors. </span></h1>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvHsP79Q9ffRkkeVSyA-rfcJvtH8Z0nAujdIaxz_PkVsNYKEdgV_U1tQlo8SHX1LWcH4qC_HTbislRW8eWDiluB4k3xMnZuMuMFRWO3WI3Jc5KSG1d4dgR11y8n1TdfNtOgFfX_wuYbQw/s1600/S5188.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvHsP79Q9ffRkkeVSyA-rfcJvtH8Z0nAujdIaxz_PkVsNYKEdgV_U1tQlo8SHX1LWcH4qC_HTbislRW8eWDiluB4k3xMnZuMuMFRWO3WI3Jc5KSG1d4dgR11y8n1TdfNtOgFfX_wuYbQw/s640/S5188.PNG" height="408" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
<div style="display: block; margin: 7px;">
<span style="font-size: large;">However the early hours of the morning and the middle of the
afternoon are the peak times for fatigue accidents. Also long journeys
on monotonous roads, such as motorways, are the most likely to result in
a driver falling asleep. Sunlight signals or bodies when to be awake.
But even deprived of any natural light, we will still feel a surge of
fatigue in the middle of the night and to a lesser extent, in the middle
of the afternoon. The latest research also shows the grogginess right
after you wake up can also be dangerous. </span><br />
<br /></div>
<span style="font-size: large;">There's a strong possibility that the driver fall asleep and run off
the road. Tiredness and fatigue can often affect your driving ability
long before you even notice you’re getting tired. Fatigue related
crashes are often more severe than others because driver's reaction
times are delayed or they have failed to make any maneuvers to avoid a
crash. Symptoms of driver fatigue include heavy eyelids, frequent
yawning, a drifting vehicle that wanders over road lines, varying
vehicle speed for no reason, misjudging traffic situations, and seeing
things "jump out" in the road, feeling fidgety or irritable and
daydreaming.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">A study by National Central University in Jhongli, Tatung University,
Taiwan; recently reported at New Scientist magazine that <span style="color: #fce5cd;">"driving for
just 80 minutes without a break can make motorists a danger on the
roads".</span> They found that drivers who do not take frequent rest stops have
slower reactions than those who break up long journeys.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">People run a higher risk of succumbing to driver fatigue between 2am
and 6am and during what is known as the "2pm slump". Studies show the
number of accidents increase according to the time of day and the number
of hours driven. High risk occupations include night-shift workers,
airline crew, students, commercial drivers, medical staff, sales
representatives and journalists.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Enforcement of duty cycle limitations; suppose bus drivers operating
on irregular schedules suffer greater subjective fatigue and
physiological stress than drivers operating on a regular schedule.
Service regulations in Canada reported that after 24 hours of duty,
workers experience a25% decrease in performance.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">A new in-depth on-scene study last year in the Vehicle Safety
Division, at Chalmers University of Technology, in Sweden reveals that
driver fatigue, slippery roads, and inexperience could be just as
important and should be factored into the design of new vehicle safety
features.</span><br />
<br />
<h2>
<span style="font-size: large;">
<span style="color: #f9cb9c;">Stats of Road Crashes as a cause of driver fatigue:</span></span></h2>
<span style="font-size: large;">Recent international research has suggested that driver fatigue is
under- represented in accident statistics, and some estimates show that
it could be a contributing factor in twenty to twenty four percent of
fatal crashes. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">A study conducted by the Adelaide Centre for Sleep Research shown
that drivers who have been awake for 24 hours have an equivalent driving
performance to a person who has a BAC (blood alcohol content) of 0.1
g/100ml, and is seven times more likely to have an accident.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQF9jdOt9qZD_n4aHG7rXQhaHvb2CyhiZwNzSO0B4pJsNjov2hmhFX7x6xlJurz0vxGQV_f09QJb7eKgXM8jLc1tiqY1l3TcsOzqOhkd6dMt2Z_OYMhRIgvj70YbSVU0Ls8ddHcpDWvGc/s1600/S5196.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQF9jdOt9qZD_n4aHG7rXQhaHvb2CyhiZwNzSO0B4pJsNjov2hmhFX7x6xlJurz0vxGQV_f09QJb7eKgXM8jLc1tiqY1l3TcsOzqOhkd6dMt2Z_OYMhRIgvj70YbSVU0Ls8ddHcpDWvGc/s640/S5196.PNG" height="376" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo from the scene where a Greyhound bus from New York City struck a
tractor-trailer early Wednesday on Interstate 80 in central
Pennsylvania, killing a woman, critically injuring four other people and
sending dozens to the hospital. Cause is still under investagation</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
<span style="color: #f9cb9c;"> </span></span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #f9cb9c;">In the USA:</span></span></h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">In the USA a series of studies by the National Transportation Safety
Board (NTSB) have pointed to the significance of sleepiness as a factor
in accidents involving heavy vehicles.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">The NTSB came to the concluded that 52 per cent of 107 single-vehicle
accidents involving heavy trucks were fatigue-related; in nearly 18 per
cent of the cases, the driver admitted to falling asleep. Summarizing
the US Department of Transportation's investigations into fatigue in the
1990s, the extent of fatigue-related fatal accidents is estimated to be
around 30%. Research shows that driver fatigue is a significant factor
in approximately 20% of commercial road transport crashes and over 50%
of long haul drivers have fallen asleep at the wheel.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Recently The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA)
estimate that there are 56,000 sleep related road crashes annually in
the USA, resulting in 40,000 injuries and 1,550 fatalities.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">An analysis of road accidents between 1990 and 1992 in North Carolina
found 5,104 accidents (0.5%) in which the driver was judged to have
fallen asleep. A survey of 205 drivers in another State found that 31%
admitted having dozed off at least once while driving during the
preceding twelve months.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">One study calculated that 17% (about 1 million) of road accidents are
sleep related. A 1995 study suggested that 2.6% of accidents caused by
driver inattention were due to fatigue</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">A study of road accidents on two of America’s busiest roads indicated
that 50% of fatal accidents on those roads were fatigue related.
Another study claims that 30% - 40% of accidents involving heavy trucks
are caused by driver sleepiness. Truck driver fatigue was a particular
problem in single-vehicle fatal crashes. In 2002 alone the Total Cost of
Fatigue-Related Crashes (in 1999 Dollars) exceeded $2.3 billion.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Rubbernecking, driver fatigue (12%) and looking at scenery were some
of the leading causes of distraction-related traffic crashes, according
to a study in 2003 over more than 2,700 crash scenes involving
distracted drivers and nearly 4,500 drivers; conducted by Virginia
Commonwealth University for the Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="color: #f9cb9c;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>In 2010 fatigue was involved in at least 18% of fatal accidents and accounts for about 7% of all accidents.</b></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">The Government’s Road Safety Strategy, “Tomorrow’s Roads: Safer for
Everyone” identifies driver fatigue as one of the main areas of driver
behavior that needs to be addressed if the target for reducing the
number of people killed and seriously injured in road accidents by 40%
by 2012 is to be achieved.</span><br />
<br />
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
<span style="color: #f9cb9c;">In Australia:</span></span></h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">One study based on coronial and police reports found that fatigue
played a part in only 5 per cent of fatal crashes in 1988. A more recent
survey (for 1994) based on coronial and police reports found that
fatigue played a part to about 18 per cent of fatal crashes. It included
not only those crashes in which police identified fatigue as a cause,
but also cases where the crash description suggested 'loss of
concentration' had been a contributing factor. A third review found that
around 30 per cent of rural crashes in Western Australia could be
attributed to fatigue. Fatigue is a major cause of crashes in Victoria
resulting in some 70 deaths and approximately 500 serious injuries each
year. Recently research shows fatigue is a contributing factor in around
20-25 per cent of all fatal car accidents in Victoria.</span><br />
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
<span style="color: #f9cb9c;">In Canada:</span></span></h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">A collaboration study by Moller of the University Health Network and
the University of Toronto Sleep Research Unit found that driver fatigue
is a serious road safety issue that kills 400 Canadians every year.
Also, according to a 2005 study, one in five Canadians - 4 million
people - admitted to nodding off or falling asleep at the wheel at least
once in the previous 12 months.</span><br />
<br />
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
<span style="color: #f9cb9c;">In UK, Ireland, New Zealand, Germany:</span></span></h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">In the UK alone, almost 45,000 people are killed, or seriously
injured in road accidents every year, and road safety experts consider
driver fatigue is a major cause. Driver fatigue is shown to be
responsible for more than 20% of traffic accidents in UK.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">The Road Safety Authority (RSA) of Ireland Chief Executive Noel Brett
said scientific studies prove that driver fatigue is as dangerous as
driving when over the drink drive limit and warned recently that one of
five driver deaths in Ireland were as a result of driver fatigue, when a
motorist begins to nod off behind of the wheel of a car.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">A study in New Zealand of 370 heavy motor vehicle crashes in 1997,
found that driver fatigue was listed as a contributing factor in 7% of
accidents. In 2006 at least 40 people lost their lives while almost 1000
people were injured because they, or the driver of the car they were
in, succumbed to fatigue.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">According to an investigation carried out by insurance companies in
Germany, fatigue is responsible for one in four fatal motorway
accidents. Another study of motorway accidents in Bavaria estimated that
35% of fatal motorway crashes were due to reduce vigilance (driver
inattention and fatigue).</span><br />
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
<span style="color: #f9cb9c;">Key Messages for prevention:</span></span></h3>
<ul>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">Avoiding driver fatigue on long trips. The biggest mistake people
make is not stopping when they are tired, thinking they can make it.
Drivers should give themselves plenty of time to get to their
destinations and schedule in regular breaks.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">For long trips plan in advance so you know where you are going to
take a break. Don’t work a full day and then driving for hours before
leaving a good night's sleep to avoid the cumulative effect of not
getting enough sleep.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">Take a break at least every 2 hours.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">Plan to stay somewhere overnight if you are going on a long journey and avoid heavy foods.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">Share the driving - and make sure to take rest when you are not driving.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">Try not to drive when you would normally be asleep (early mornings and late nights.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">Don’t drink and drive. Not only does alcohol severely impair your
driving ability, but it also acts as a depressant. Just one drink can
induce fatigue. Also, avoid smoking when you drive. Smoke’s nicotine and
carbon monoxide hamper night vision. If there is any doubt, have your
headlights properly aimed. Misaimed headlights blind other drivers and
reduce your ability to see the road. Being seen is as important as
seeing.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">Caffeine (coffee, cola drinks) provides a quick, but short-lived
improvement in alertness. So, to capitalize on its benefits, one should
use it only when a boost is needed. Drink water, eat fruit and healthy
snacks rather than fatty and sugary food.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">If you are taking any medication, check whether it causes drowsiness.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">Use air conditioning to keep you more alert and will help avoid frustration and stress.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">Adjust driving seat to an upright position is to ensure the base of
your wrists can make contact with the top of the steering wheel.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">Additionally recently New Zealand’s Accident Compensation
Corporation (ACC) Programme Manager of road safety advised for busting
fatigue are: "<b>A power nap of only twenty minutes (A brief
power-nap) can boost energy levels as well as improve your driving
skills and alertness</b>". The National Sleep Foundation also recommends taking a nap for 15-45 minutes.</span></li>
</ul>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
<span style="color: #f9cb9c;">You should look out for these signs when you are driving (long and short trips):</span></span></h3>
<ul>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">you keep yawning ,day-dreaming, wandering in lane</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">your reactions unintentionally speeding up or slowing down. Anxiety,
mood states, personality and temperament as factors that may possibly
affect driver fatigue.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">you feel stiff your eyes feel heavy</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">you find you are day dreaming</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">you wander over the center line or</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">on to the edge of the road</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">you don’t remember driving the last few miles or cannot remember the last few minutes or seconds.</span></li>
</ul>
<span style="color: #f9cb9c;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>Need more information?</b></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">The information presented here was generated in cooperation with the
Roads and Traffic Authority. You can get more information from the RTA
Driver Fatigue. The Federal Office of Road Safety also has a great deal
of information as does the NSW Health site. </span>thegreyhoundgrouphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04435648389124754262noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9065412090564528932.post-60199746875706398722015-01-07T20:58:00.001-08:002015-01-07T21:14:46.267-08:00Building Buses with Stainless and Aluminum<br />
<br />
Building Buses with Steel, Stainless Steel and Aluminum
<br />
<header><h1 class="title entry-title">
</h1>
</header><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a class="cboxElement" href="http://www.busmag.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/June14.jpg" rel="lightbox[1178]" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" title="Building Buses with Steel, Stainless Steel and Aluminum"><img alt="" class="alignleft size-medium wp-image-1161" src="http://www.busmag.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/June14-300x236.jpg" height="503" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">For
some reason, we have received several questions lately on the various
metals generally used in bus construction. This was probably expected
since some of these metals have been in the news recently. Prevost has
introduced aluminum luggage bay doors on their X-series coaches. Caio is
putting aluminum siding on its new coaches and Setra is dipping their
frames into a tank to coat them against corrosion.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><span style="font-size: large;">I can go through some of the basic items on different metals without
getting too involved with metallurgy. None of this is rocket science. In
fact, I would bet that many of our tenured readers are already
knowledgeable in this area. While we can provide some basic information,
hard and fast rules are difficult because of differences in both bus
construction and usage.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><span style="font-size: large;">Let me start out by saying that there is no “best” bus for everyone
and every application. One operator may want a local shuttle bus to
operate three hours a day, transport 20 people around town, and have a
useful life of 200,000 miles. Another operator will ask for a bus that
will carry up to 50 people in long distance scheduled service and will
last for 2,000,000 miles. Somewhat obviously, the “best” bus for each of
these applications is not the same bus.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><span style="font-size: large;">Next, let me suggest that a great deal depends on quality of
construction and related longevity. Stainless steel and aluminum do not
necessarily improve the quality of construction. However, they can help
the bus last longer and improve resale value by reducing corrosion as
the bus gets older.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><span style="font-size: large;">A third point I feel compelled to bring up is galvanic corrosion.
Using different metals in the same bus can cause problems where they
join. I remember hearing more on this years ago. It appears that in
recent times this concern is more under control.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><span style="font-size: large;">A good place to start is to review some of the basic differences
between the European and American bus markets and typical construction.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br />
European coaches typically are expected to run fewer miles than on this
side of the Atlantic. Bear in mind that it is less than 1,000 air miles
from London to Rome so you do not put a lot of miles on a coach unless
you run a tour beyond typical Western Continental Europe. Moreover,
since tours are a major part of European coach operations, there is more
pressure for newer coaches. Hence, it is not unusual for a European
coach to be built from mild or carbon steel and have a useful life of
about 1,000,000 miles. Since there are no major long distance scheduled
service operations in Western Continental Europe and most of the tours
are short by American standards, there is no strong demand for coaches
with high longevity.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><span style="font-size: large;">However, to be fair, I should mention that any of the European-built
coaches that survive on the American market tend to be at least a cut
above the standard European coach. In some cases, the export model going
to America may have more features than coaches built for local use.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><span style="font-size: large;">While coaches in Western Europe have primarily evolved around
tourism, the bus industry in America started out primarily as scheduled
service. Greyhound started out running between Hibbing and Alice,
Minnesota and virtually all of the earlier larger bus companies were
heavily involved with scheduled service.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><span style="font-size: large;">Add to this the fact that the distance from New York to San Francisco
is three times the distance from London to Rome. Hence, early bus
design in the United States and Canada centered around longevity and
durability. For the most part, I have no problem with suggesting that
our domestic coaches (now primarily built in Canada) are easily the most
durable in the world. They not only have a high stainless steel content
but typically have a useful life of 2,000,000 miles or more.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><span style="font-size: large;">When does it pay to use aluminum or stainless steel in addition to or
instead of mild or carbon steel? This is a fairly typical question but,
again, a great deal depends on the operator’s needs and the type of
operation. The more years you plan to keep the bus, the more that
stainless steel or aluminum would be a positive factor. Buses that are
built to operate more than 1,000,000 miles are also good candidates for
these metals. In addition, stainless steel or aluminum could be more
important if residual value is a high priority to you.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><span style="font-size: large;">Carbon or mild steel is the usual metal used in most buses that do
not have a high longevity. The industry tends to define it as having no
more than two percent carbon and no other appreciable alloying element.
It is the most popular type of steel, is less expensive than other
specialized types of steel and is generally easy to work with. Its
biggest negative feature from our standpoint is corrosion. Iron in the
steel mixes with oxygen in the air to form ferric oxide, forms of which
are more commonly known as iron oxide or rust.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><span style="font-size: large;">In earlier decades, many of the buses built in the United States used
carbon or mild steel. It worked well for some makes and models and not
so well with others. For example, Eagles were notorious for rust. There
were people who unkindly suggested that if you stood close to an Eagle
you could actually hear it rust. After looking at going to stainless
steel, Eagle converted to CorTen (or “weathering”) steel. This tended to
reduce the rust problem but is not as good as stainless steel in this
area.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><span style="font-size: large;">Carbon steel is almost always used for cutaways and other
body-on-chassis buses in the United States and Canada. Since
body-on-chassis buses rarely run for more than 500,000 miles, the use of
stainless steel would be considered a waste of money by most people.
However, I have seen cutaways that use some stainless steel in areas
most prone to corrosion, such as doors and stepwells.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><span style="font-size: large;">Temsa’s coaches coming to America have high stainless steel content.
However, I have been told that Temsa will build some models using mild
or carbon steel on customer request. This does reduce the price of the
coach but it is more prone to corrosion. Setras are built with carbon
steel but since their acquisition by Daimler, the frames are very
carefully rust proofed in a cathodic dip tank at the Mercedes facility
in Mannheim, Germany. Holes in the tubular steel allow the treatment to
go both inside and outside of the frame members. The use of an
electrical charge on the frame makes this process similar to plating and
provides a very thorough coating.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><span style="font-size: large;">Aluminum has been used in bus and coach production for a long time.
There are different kinds of aluminum alloys with some less likely to
suffer corrosion and some actually stronger than some steel alloys. The
primary advantage of aluminum is its ability to withstand corrosion.
Aluminum does react with oxygen in the air to produce Aluminum Oxide.
This then typically coats the aluminum and tends to prevent any further
corrosion.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><span style="font-size: large;">A second advantage of aluminum is low weight. This can be
increasingly important today when weight and ecology are important
considerations. However, there are at least two disadvantages when using
aluminum. One is the potential for galvanic corrosion when in contact
with steel. The second is that most aluminum is not as strong as steel
and hence is less appropriate for use as structural members that have to
bear a lot of weight.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><span style="font-size: large;">General Motors made good use of aluminum on many of their buses and
coaches. The use of aluminum for siding was typical. What the industry
called “silversiding” was actually aluminum. I note that many of the
Scenicruisers ran more than three million miles before leaving the
Greyhound fleet, suggesting that GM knew how to make steel and aluminum
work well together.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><span style="font-size: large;">Today we are seeing a reemergence of aluminum in buses and coaches.
Its light weight and reduced corrosion are factors making it popular. I
note that Prevost is now offering aluminum baggage bay doors on its X
series coaches. In addition, I find it interesting that CAIO is putting
aluminum siding on its coaches. I suspect that we will see more aluminum
on coaches in the years ahead.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><span style="font-size: large;">Of course, the “top of the line” as far as buses and coaches go is
stainless steel. Also known as inox steel (from the French inoxydable),
stainless steel is usually defined as a steel alloy with a minimum of
10.5 to 11 percent chromium content by mass.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><span style="font-size: large;">The single biggest advantage of stainless steel is its reduced
corrosion. Unprotected carbon steel tends to form iron oxide or rust
when exposed to air and moisture. The rust is active and helps form more
iron oxide. Since the iron oxide molecules are larger than iron
molecules, the rust tends to flake and fall off. Hence, over time the
carbon steel is reduced in size and in strength.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><span style="font-size: large;">Stainless steel is stain-less, not stain-proof. The chromium in
stainless steel mixes with oxygen in the air and forms a coating of
chromium oxide that protects the metal from further corrosion. On the
negative side, stainless steel is more expensive than carbon or mild
steel. In addition, some people say that some types of stainless steel
can be more brittle than mild steel and hence more difficult to work
with.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><span style="font-size: large;">Credit for introducing stainless steel into American coaches in a big
way goes to Harry Zoltok, the founder of MCI. Challenged with building
buses for Canadian Greyhound that could survive Canadian winters and
pre-War Canadian roads, Zoltok developed a combination of platform
integral construction and stainless steel that undoubtedly qualifies as
the most durable type of bus ever built in any quantity. This goes a
long way towards explaining why MCI has had an enviable reputation for
durability and continues to enjoy a substantial market share.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><span style="font-size: large;">However, I do give credit to other manufacturers for learning that
stainless steel enhances the longevity of an already high-quality coach.
Today, Prevost, Van Hool and Temsa coaches sold in the United States
all have a high degree of stainless steel content.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><span style="font-size: large;">I should at least briefly mention that we are seeing more and more
plastics and similar materials being used in bus and coach construction.
Bob Lee and his crew at Neoplan once developed a lightweight carbon
fiber bus. Today’s modern buses typically use various types of plastics
or fiberglass for front and rear caps, walls and sidings and even
flooring. Their main advantage is light weight and a lack of corrosion.
Although in most cases, these materials are not strong enough to be used
for structural members.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><span style="font-size: large;">Finally, for those people who have asked, the most durable American
buses in the past were built with platform integral construction. This
includes the popular GM coaches as well as the MCI coaches through the D
model. The newer models built with tubular web frame construction have
not yet met the three-million mile record of the Scenicruisers. However,
it can easily be suggested that in todays operations, heavy in charters
and tours rather than heavy scheduled service, coaches simply do not
run as many miles as they used to.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><span style="font-size: large;">Whether or not the top mileage makes any difference, tubular web
frame integral construction appears to be replacing platform integral
construction. The major reason for this is that platform integral
construction tends to limit design possibilities in an era when design
is increasingly important in a charter and tour market. In spite of
this, I suggest that stainless steel will remain important in coach
construction for a long time and we most likely will see more aluminum
in the years ahead.</span>thegreyhoundgrouphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04435648389124754262noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9065412090564528932.post-40142757999104354652014-11-22T19:42:00.000-08:002014-11-21T19:27:32.700-08:00Ruminations of a Road Rambler Milestone<h3 class="post_title">
<span style="font-size: large;">Ruminations of a Road Rambler: One Year Anniversary</span></h3>
<div class="post_info">
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
<span class="date"> </span>
</span></h3>
</div>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://whereisben.blogs.com/photos/uncategorized/2007/03/30/benonbus.jpg"><img alt="Benonbus" border="0" class="image-full" src="http://whereisben.blogs.com/photos/uncategorized/2007/03/30/benonbus.jpg" title="Benonbus" /></a></span>
</h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
As of today, I’ve been living on a bus for exactly one year and two
weeks. Many folks have been curious about my life as a nomad, so I
thought I’d take a moment to share my experiences after this 12 month
milestone. Click the link below for all the details.</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://whereisben.blogs.com/photos/uncategorized/2007/03/30/buss.jpg"><img alt="Buss" border="0" class="image-full" src="http://whereisben.blogs.com/photos/uncategorized/2007/03/30/buss.jpg" title="Buss" /></a></span>
</h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>First some stats on my rolling home:</b> My home is a 1997 <a href="http://www.prevostcar.com/">Prevost</a> bus</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
which was manufactured in Canada as an standard bus and converted into</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
a motor home the same year by <a href="http://www.libertycoach.com/">Liberty Coach</a> in North Chicago, IL. The</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
bus has 340 square feet of interior space (40′ length x 102" wide)</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
along with a "basement" for storage (where your luggage would be stored</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
on a Greyhound bus). I get between 6 and 8 MPG depending on how fast</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
I’m driving and what type of terrain I’m covering. I also tow a Jeep</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
Liberty, which I can easily connect or disconnect in less than two</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
minutes. In order to afford this lifestyle, I sold my house in the</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
mountains west of Boulder, CO and have a few things in storage (which</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
takes up less space than a one car garage). This allows me to have no</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
debt of any kind (no mortgage, car payments, or credit card debt).</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
You can take a video tour of the bus on <a href="https://phobos.apple.com/WebObjects/MZFinance.woa/wa/subscribePodcast?id=203423898">Inside Digital Photo’s video podcast</a> in iTunes.</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://whereisben.blogs.com/photos/uncategorized/2007/03/28/livingroom.jpg"><img alt="Livingroom" border="0" class="image-full" src="http://whereisben.blogs.com/photos/uncategorized/2007/03/28/livingroom.jpg" title="Livingroom" /></a></span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;"><b><br />
Modifications I’ve Made:</b> The bus came with two sofas in the living</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
room. I’ve removed one of the sofas and replaced it with a lounge chair</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
and ottoman. I’ve made the dining room table my office by replacing one</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
chair with an Aeron office chair and the other with a table that holds</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
about a dozen hard drives and a color laser printer. I plan to add an</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
ink jet printer to the mix over the next six months (now that they’ve</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
gotten smaller).</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>
</b></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><b><a href="http://whereisben.blogs.com/photos/uncategorized/2007/03/28/map.jpg"><img alt="Map" border="0" class="image-full" src="http://whereisben.blogs.com/photos/uncategorized/2007/03/28/map.jpg" title="Map" /></a>
</b></span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>
</b></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><b><br />
Where I’ve Been During the Year:</b> I’ve traveled through 22 states over</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
the last 12 months and visited more state and national parks than I can</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
keep track of. I’ve also visited many friends and made new ones along</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
the way. I’ve put exactly 15,871 miles on the bus since I bought it</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
last year. I started and ended my first year at Liberty Coach’s sales</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
location in Stuart, FL. My favorite place so far would have to be Utah.</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
Specifically the Utah, Arizona border near Page, AZ. There is simply so</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
much to see and photograph around that area that I can’t wait to return.</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://whereisben.blogs.com/photos/uncategorized/2007/03/30/busstop.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Busstop" border="0" class="image-full" src="http://whereisben.blogs.com/photos/uncategorized/2007/03/30/busstop.jpg" height="233" title="Busstop" width="640" /></a></span>
</h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;"><b><br />
Unusual Parking Spots:</b> You and I have a much different perspective on</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
parking. When I say "parking," what I really mean is "living." Whether</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
I’m in them for one night or several weeks, my parking/living spaces</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
have run the gamut from marvelous to mundane. I’ve parked everywhere</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
from the beach on the edge of Lake Powell to a spot marked "Bus</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
Parking" next to the Four Seasons hotel in Beverly Hills (thanks to Jeff at POG for the parking suggestion). Some of the</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
most wonderfully unexpected parking places have come from people who</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
read this blog. For instance Marci found me a nice place to park near</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
Ocala, FL that had a view of a lake (I even got a haircut outside near</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
the edge of the lake). Kathey found me a free parking spot on Key West</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
in Florida and arranged kayaking and other outings with the locals of</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
Key West. Scott Sheppard from <a href="http://www.osxfaq.com/radio/">Inside Mac Radio</a> even helped me find a</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
free parking spot within a few blocks of the Golden Gate Bridge. I want</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
to thank everyone who has taken the time to cheer me on through lending</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
a hand finding parking spots or suggesting little known places to</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
visit… you’ve made the journey much more interesting and rewarding. I</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
look for these unusual parking places because I rarely pay to park</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
since the bus has storage tanks and batteries that allow me to boondock</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
for over a week before I have to dump or fill my tanks. I’d also rather</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
be parked in an interesting location instead of looking out the window</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
at dozens of other RVs at a campground.</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://whereisben.blogs.com/photos/uncategorized/2007/03/30/germans.jpg"><img alt="Germans" border="0" class="image-full" src="http://whereisben.blogs.com/photos/uncategorized/2007/03/30/germans.jpg" title="Germans" /></a></span>
</h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
Before moving onto the bus, I had visited a Wal-Mart maybe twice. Now</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
it’s one of my most common places to go grocery shopping. That’s</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
because most Wal-Marts will allow you to park overnight in their lot</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
for free. I’ve met all sorts of interesting people in Wal-Mart parking</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
lots including a group of Germans who were returning from an RV</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
vacation that took them across the county and a guy who lives on a 1958</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
Crown bus.</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>
</b></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><b><a href="http://whereisben.blogs.com/photos/uncategorized/2007/03/30/spam.jpg"><img alt="Spam" border="0" class="image-full" src="http://whereisben.blogs.com/photos/uncategorized/2007/03/30/spam.jpg" title="Spam" /></a>
</b></span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
<b>
</b><b> </b></span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>What I love about my mobile lifestyle:</b> I get to explore new places</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
almost every week… places I’d usually only get a chance to explore if</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
I were to take time off for vacation. I can stay at a National Park for</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
weeks on end. During that time, I usually wake up before sunrise and go</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
out shooting, come back to the bus and work a full day (nicely broken</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
up by a a mid-day hike) and then shoot again during the golden hour</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
before sunrise. While doing that, I can sleep in my own familiar bed</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
and have all my belongings with me. This is also my first winter where</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
I’m avoiding the cold weather (I’ve only lived in MN and CO before).</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
Life is much more interesting when you have something new to experience</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
every week.</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
I’m amazed at how many people I meet and friends I run into (unplanned</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
meetings). For instance, when I was exploring near Fort Bragg in</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
California, I hiked up a sand door while scouting for shooting</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
locations and noticed 15-20 people standing at the top of the dune. As</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
I got closer, I noticed cameras dangling from their necks and then</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
realized that Greg Gorman and Jeff Schewe were teaching a photography</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
class right in front of me. Had I waited five minutes more before</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
hiking up the dune, then I would have never seen them since they would</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
have been out of site in a more remote. I hung out with them for a day</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
and had a really good time.</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://whereisben.blogs.com/photos/uncategorized/2007/03/30/thegang.jpg"><img alt="Thegang" border="0" class="image-full" src="http://whereisben.blogs.com/photos/uncategorized/2007/03/30/thegang.jpg" title="Thegang" /></a></span>
</h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
I’ve even had friends like Jeff Limbok come knocking on the door when I</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
was parked in a remote location in Utah. He was sailing by doing 70MPH</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
when he caught a glimpse of the bus on side road and stopped to visit</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
(we had no idea we were in the same area of the country). We explored</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
Lower Antelope Canyon and got together for dinner with hyper realistic</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
artist <a href="http://www.bertmonroy.com/">Bert Monroy</a> who was also in the area. In fact, I see more</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
friends (and make more new ones) than I ever did when living at a fixed</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
location. </span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
Other friends have invited me into their homes on holidays. Like when I</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
spent Thanksgiving with <a href="http://www.marvinmiller.com/">Marv Miller</a> and his family in Novato, CA. I’ve</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
also bumped into relatives that I haven’t seen in years, including my</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
cousins Jimmy and Sara. </span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
I’ve also e-mailed people that I don’t know to ask if they’d like to</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
get together for dinner and, so far, have never been turned down. This</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
has included some of the people who have inspired me over the years</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
like famous darkroom photo compositor <a href="http://www.uelsmann.net/">Jerry Uelsemann</a> and his wife and</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
digital artist <a href="http://www.maggietaylor.com/">Maggie Taylor</a>, who had me as their guest for a day. The</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
shear number of people I’ve run into over the last year is staggering.</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://whereisben.blogs.com/photos/uncategorized/2007/03/30/party.jpg"><img alt="Party" border="0" class="image-full" src="http://whereisben.blogs.com/photos/uncategorized/2007/03/30/party.jpg" title="Party" /></a></span>
</h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
The bus is a very popular place during conferences and trade shows.
I’ve had quite a few parties on the bus. Having a dozen friends on the
bus makes for a comfortable gathering… but when over 30 people show up
it gets to be a little crowded.</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>
</b></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><b><a href="http://whereisben.blogs.com/photos/uncategorized/2007/03/30/pog.jpg"><img alt="Pog" border="0" class="image-full" src="http://whereisben.blogs.com/photos/uncategorized/2007/03/30/pog.jpg" title="Pog" /></a>
</b></span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
<b>
</b><b> </b></span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Unexpected Places to Meet New Friends:</b> The <a href="http://www.prevostownersgroup.com/">Prevost Owners Group</a> is a</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
great bunch of people who created an on-line community of bus owners</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
right around the time I bought my bus. They have a yearly rally where</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
everyone gets together to swap stories and share maintenance tips (the</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
next one will have over 60 buses together in one place). I attending</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
their first rally right after purchasing the bus and met a great group</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
of people who have become good friends. I regularly visit these guys as</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
I travel through their home states and they help me anytime I have a</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
question about one of the systems on my bus or where I should explore.</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
Jeff, Jerry, Mango, Jon, Lew and the others are great on-line buddies and</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
even better in person.</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;"><b><br />
What I don’t like about this lifestyle:</b> Having to find a new doctor,</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
dentist, hairstylist, etc, whenever you need them. It’s not that big of</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
a deal, but it’s one thing that takes time to adjust to. Also, having</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
to always think about where you’ll end up parking. I’m quite used to</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
finding places to park and it doesn’t take much energy to do so, but it</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
is something I have to think of on a daily basis. I’d like to</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
eventually find a companion who can share in my adventure, but it’s not</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
easy to start a relationship when you’re always on the move (not that
it’s all that different of a situation than when I lived in a remote
area in the mountains of Colorado). Don’t get</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
me wrong, I have zero desire to live in a fixed location and absolutely</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
love my lifestyle.</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>
</b></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><b><a href="http://whereisben.blogs.com/photos/uncategorized/2007/03/30/tow.jpg"><img alt="Tow" border="0" class="image-full" src="http://whereisben.blogs.com/photos/uncategorized/2007/03/30/tow.jpg" height="341" title="Tow" width="640" /></a>
</b></span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
<b>
</b><b> </b></span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Problems I’ve Encountered Along the Way: </b>The first month I owned the</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
bus, I had to replace a $700 tire. That happened because my mirrors</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
weren’t adjusted properly, which caused a large blind spot. I’ve also</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
gotten stuck in sand (twice!). Verizon cut off my wireless internet</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
access claiming that I violated my contract (but were unable to show me</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
exactly which clause I violated). I went through a big sand storm,</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
which blew sand into every crevice of my jeep, which caused sand to be</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
expelled into the interior every time I turned on the air conditioning.</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
Many more things have happened, but none of them have forced me to stop</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
moving on. With one exception that is… my Jeep was broken into when I</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
was parked across the street from my publisher’s office in Berkeley, CA</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
and one of the things that was stolen was the clips that I need to</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
connect the Jeep to the back of the bus. It took a full day to find</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
replacements and then I was on the road once again.</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>
</b></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><b><a href="http://whereisben.blogs.com/photos/uncategorized/2007/03/30/bed.jpg"><img alt="Bed" border="0" class="image-full" src="http://whereisben.blogs.com/photos/uncategorized/2007/03/30/bed.jpg" title="Bed" /></a>
</b></span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
<b>
</b><b> </b></span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>What Most People Don’t Understand About My Lifestyle:</b> <b>1)</b> I have a</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
"normal" bed and shower, so there’s no need to offer me to take a "real</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
shower" when I stop by to visit. In fact, my shower is nicer than 99%</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
of the ones I see in most homes. I’ve only set the temperature on my</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
shower once and just have to turn it on and count to five before</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
entering the shower. Because it’s thermostatically controlled, it will</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
return to the exact temperature I last had it set to the next time I</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
want to shower. The one thing I really appreciate is when I’m offered</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
to use someone’s laundry facilities since the bus only has a tiny</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
combination washer/dryer, which isn’t sufficient for normal loads of</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
laundry. <b>2)</b> I feel just as secure in the bus as I did in any house I’ve</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
ever lived in. People are always asking if I’m scared about this or</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
that. I’m not. The bus locks up tight and you’d have to use a ladder</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
and have something pretty huge to throw through a window to get into</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
the bus. <b>3)</b> Yes, diesel prices are high, but I charge clients for</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
flight and hotel when I show up to speak even though I drove and that</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
helps make the cost of fuel more bearable. Also, most expenses go</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
through my company, which makes them pre-tax expenses. <b>4)</b> Driving a big</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
bus grows on you. It takes about a month, after which time you might</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
actually prefer to drive the bus over a car. The drive is smooth, the</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
driver’s seat has its own air suspension and you can see over</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
everything except for semi-trucks. When you signal and start to move</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
into another lane, people move out of your way. 5) I have no plan for</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
exactly how long I want to live this way, so please stop asking me</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
about that. To me, it’s like asking you how long you plan to live in</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
your current home. I find that most people don’t have an answer to that</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
question. Same here. I’ll keep living this way until I find something</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
that is more compelling and I don’t see that happening anytime soon.</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
There is so much to see in this country that I could easily see me</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
living this way for the next ten years.</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>
</b></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><b><a href="http://whereisben.blogs.com/photos/uncategorized/2007/03/30/buswithben.jpg"><img alt="Buswithben" border="0" class="image-full" src="http://whereisben.blogs.com/photos/uncategorized/2007/03/30/buswithben.jpg" title="Buswithben" /></a>
</b></span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
<b>
</b><b> </b></span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>How Has It Changed My Life: 1)</b> I no longer watch any television because</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
I have enough going on in my life that I don’t need to be entertained</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
by looking into a box for hours on end. I also don’t care which movies</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
are in theaters for the same reason. I’m currently trying to cut back</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
on the amount of time I spend on-line to make more time to exploring</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
the country. <b>2)</b> I no longer buy crap that I don’t really need. When you</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
only have 340 square feet to live in, you automatically get rid of</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
anything that is not essential for daily life and stop having any</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
desire to buy something you don’t already have an active need for. <b>3)</b></span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
Retirement has always been a vague concept that would happen someday</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
decades into the future. I now have daily motivation to get to</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
retirement as soon as possible because I want to spend more time</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
exploring and less time having to be in any pre-determined location</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
that is dictated by work. <b>4)</b> The way I approach life has shifted from</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
working like crazy in the hope that some day in the future I’ll be able</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
to have the freedom to do what I’d enjoy each day, to actively enjoying</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
every day and feeling much more fulfilled in the process.</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>
</b></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><b><a href="http://whereisben.blogs.com/photos/uncategorized/2007/03/30/2004xliibusshel5_1l.jpg"><img alt="2004xliibusshel5_1l" border="0" class="image-full" src="http://whereisben.blogs.com/photos/uncategorized/2007/03/30/2004xliibusshel5_1l.jpg" title="2004xliibusshel5_1l" /></a>
</b></span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
<b>
</b><b> </b></span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Future Plans:</b> I plan to keep the bus in Florida until I get back from</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
my trip to Russia on April 19th. I’m thinking about driving up the East</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
coast all the way to Canada, but the beauty of this lifestyle is that I</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
can be very flexible, so I might end up with a different plan as the</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">
year progresses.</span></h3>
thegreyhoundgrouphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04435648389124754262noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9065412090564528932.post-30391242736807955382014-09-26T11:53:00.000-07:002014-09-26T12:08:15.319-07:00Logistics Launches Luxury Intercity Service<br />
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<img align="right" alt="top_151110_1.jpg" border="0" src="http://www.travelbizmonitor.com/NewsImages/top_151110_1.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></div>
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<tr><td><h1>
Blue Hill Logistics launches luxury intercity bus service between Bengaluru and Chennai </h1>
</td></tr>
<tr><td><br /></td></tr>
<tr><td><span class="byline">By TBM Staff | Mumbai </span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</td></tr>
<tr><td height="8px"><br /></td></tr>
<tr><td align="justify" width="100%"><div align="justify">
<span style="font-size: large;">Blue
Hill Logistics (BHL), a subsidiary of Blue Hill Investment Pvt. Ltd.,
has launched super-luxury intercity bus service titled ‘Luxuria’ between
Bengaluru and Chennai. The Volvo buses have been designed by ace
automobile designer Dilip Chhabria. With an initial investment of Rs 30
crore for 12 buses and infrastructure it is likely to be scaled upto Rs
450 crore in the next seven years with acquisition of 250 buses. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">The
Luxuria bus service has been flagged off today with two buses departing
at 5 am and 7 am and another two buses will begin operations in the
night at 10 pm and 11 pm from Whitefield going via the Luxuria lounge at
HSR Layout Bengaluru. The first three services will culminate at Hotel
Sabari Classic on OMR Road at Sholinganallur in Chennai and the last
service departing from Bengaluru will culminate at Hotel Radha Regent,
Koyambedu Chennai. At all the above mentioned times of 5am, 7 am , 10pm
and 11pm the bus service will be running from Chennai too. The ticket
for a one way journey is priced at Rs 1,800. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Prabhu
Ramachandran, Director, Blue Hill Group said, “Luxuria is a novel
concept for travel in India. We believe that we have the first mover
advantage in this category and in the next three years we plan to expand
our services to other major cities in the country.”</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">He further
added that, “Nilgiris Supermarket Chain was the first self-service
supermarket in India and pioneered the concept of retail shopping
experience in India. Luxuria we believe will be a true trend setter in
travel in India. The designs of the buses are a true embodiment of style
by Dilip Chhabria and will become a benchmark in travel.”</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">“These
ultra luxury buses are targeted to air travellers. The buses are
designed to give Business Class and First Class luxury and comforts at
far lower prices,” said Pankaj Rampal, COO, Blue Hill Logistics.</span></div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
thegreyhoundgrouphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04435648389124754262noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9065412090564528932.post-61906872250267414662014-09-08T22:22:00.000-07:002014-09-26T12:08:33.754-07:00Notice for Bus Digest Fans (Update)<h2>
<span style="font-size: large;">Bus Digest will not be available on The Greyhound Group page, but by subscription only. Your free subscription is available here. All your transportation and special interest and feature stories will be seen only in Bus Digest. The Greyhound Group will remain as a discussion group and photograph's etc. Please submit below. </span></h2>
<h2>
<span style="font-size: large;">
Published by Wyatt Olsen</span></h2>
<h2>
</h2>
<h2>
<span style="font-size: large;">
Update : Please take this opportunity to sign up </span> </h2>
<br />thegreyhoundgrouphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04435648389124754262noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9065412090564528932.post-6467077664524483132014-06-03T20:27:00.000-07:002014-06-02T21:09:54.566-07:00This Week Lifestyle In Luxury Motorhome's<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<header class="entry-header"><h1 class="entry-title">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGucizORvMu-7QE35j1eRb_Bnc_CqRnvQpUVn_w4OjuvNx_bjrGAU42__Feiaf42Lo64knk-MxcresW718b0JfIPSJ9vuYcEbl0MNDsC6ZjgoRpU2IqzMQs3xacF0iVTi7g7l28xA1rLs/s1600/S4744.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGucizORvMu-7QE35j1eRb_Bnc_CqRnvQpUVn_w4OjuvNx_bjrGAU42__Feiaf42Lo64knk-MxcresW718b0JfIPSJ9vuYcEbl0MNDsC6ZjgoRpU2IqzMQs3xacF0iVTi7g7l28xA1rLs/s640/S4744.PNG" height="362" width="640" /></a></div>
</h1>
<h1 class="entry-title">
</h1>
<h1 class="entry-title">
Bella Terra of Gulf Shores RV Resort: Luxury RVing on the Alabama Coast</h1>
</header>
<br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://skymedblog.azurewebsites.net/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/22469_214843159838_957127_n.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Bella Terra RV Resort" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-5811" src="http://skymedblog.azurewebsites.net/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/22469_214843159838_957127_n.jpg" height="453" width="604" /></a></div>
Home <span style="font-size: large;"> </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">To brilliant sunsets and unforgettable good times, Gulf Shores, Alabama
is also the site of Bella Terra of Gulf Shores, a resort that brings
luxury RVing to life in a tropical oasis. The 40-acre resort is ideally
located just 6.5 miles north of the Gulf of Mexico, allowing quick
access to the beautiful beaches of the Emerald Coast.</span><br />
<br /></div>
<a href="http://skymedblog.azurewebsites.net/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/255597_10150218548764839_7310355_n.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Bella Terra RV Resort" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-5751" src="http://skymedblog.azurewebsites.net/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/255597_10150218548764839_7310355_n.jpg" height="372" width="707" /></a><span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Surrounded by lush farmland, Bella Terra is the perfect respite from
outside distractions, but still just minutes from shopping, dining and
entertainment. And there’s more good news in that direction: the Blue
Collar Comedy Entertainment company recently closed on a property two
miles north of the resort, initiating a $175-million dollar
entertainment complex that’s scheduled to open in 2015.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://skymedblog.azurewebsites.net/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/266267_10150255521924839_3536824_o.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="266267_10150255521924839_3536824_o" class="aligncenter wp-image-5761" src="http://skymedblog.azurewebsites.net/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/266267_10150255521924839_3536824_o.jpg" height="492" width="737" /></a></div>
<span style="font-size: large;"></span></div>
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">This winning combination of beautiful natural surroundings and nearby
attractions with top-notch facilities has not gone unnoticed in the
luxury RVing community, with buyers coming in both from the U.S. and
Canada. “Our motor coach-exclusive facility that has grown steadily
since opening in 2008,” said Activities and Operations Manager, Courtney
Fox. “Since then, Bella Terra has gained national recognition for its
remarkable facilities, outstanding customer service and spacious lots.”</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://skymedblog.azurewebsites.net/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/22469_214848424838_7832316_n.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="22469_214848424838_7832316_n" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-5741" src="http://skymedblog.azurewebsites.net/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/22469_214848424838_7832316_n.jpg" height="292" width="604" /></a></div>
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Upscale amenities include a 6,000-square-foot clubhouse, available to
guests 24-hours-a-day with a fully equipped fitness center, a private
movie theater, a massage room and a bar. The infinity-edge pool is open
year round—a favorite of the snowbird guests. “We’re also pet friendly!”
said Courtney. “Our fenced-in dog park is an ideal feature for families
traveling with their furry friends.”</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://skymedblog.azurewebsites.net/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/52636_468797999838_1157724_o.jpg"><img alt="Bella Terra RV Resort" class="aligncenter wp-image-5731" src="http://skymedblog.azurewebsites.net/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/52636_468797999838_1157724_o.jpg" height="461" width="614" /></a></span></div>
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">The final phase of this award-winning resort opened this spring,
adding 65 more deeded lots to the inventory. In addition to full
ownership, they also offer RV lot rentals. All lots include professional
landscaping for privacy, concrete pads, built-in patios, utility
hook-ups and optional upgrades including gazebos, outdoor entertainment
centers, and storage units.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Their over-sized Class A RV lots – some as large as 5,000 square feet – are designed to satisfy Class A RV motor coach needs.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">For more details on this truly top-notch luxury RV resort or to book online, visit <a href="http://www.bellaterrarvresort.com/">www.bellaterrarvresort.com</a>.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><a href="http://www.greyhoundcanadagroup.com/#!__lifestyles">lifestyles In Luxury Motorhome's</a></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
thegreyhoundgrouphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04435648389124754262noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9065412090564528932.post-30366836550127940152014-05-23T10:46:00.000-07:002014-05-22T20:13:14.904-07:00Interview Only the Best Drivers "Star" System<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDtCmJiHL0duLi_WbZlMBG2mDdg7wmw3LJzRx7OIvnCbBFdIuUgZXmRsnquUPfplQg-nbQP1jlOAoIAE5NLJp8TIyOTlR49S2X5WIIBg3EwAP4nBUAAF3fOh32hZ6HQVgUczPW9yLSu5A/s1600/S5009.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDtCmJiHL0duLi_WbZlMBG2mDdg7wmw3LJzRx7OIvnCbBFdIuUgZXmRsnquUPfplQg-nbQP1jlOAoIAE5NLJp8TIyOTlR49S2X5WIIBg3EwAP4nBUAAF3fOh32hZ6HQVgUczPW9yLSu5A/s640/S5009.PNG" height="457" width="640" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<br />
<h1 class="singlePageTitle">
<span style="color: #fce5cd;">Interview only the best drivers</span></h1>
<span style="color: #fce5cd;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>Scheig Associates’ solutions ensure that only superior applicants make it to the interview phase.</b></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Scheig Associates, Gig Harbor, WA, was founded in 1980 by Dr. Richard
F. Scheig. Scheig has developed over 80 job-specific hiring systems for
companies in North America, the United Kingdom and Australia, serving
the transportation, education, distribution, construction, healthcare,
insurance, childcare, call center, banking and sales industries.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Scheig Associates began developing and marketing pre-employment
systems in 1991, and that has since become the core of the company’s
business.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">According to Scheig, the company’s assessments identify an applicant’s future performance at an 88 percent accuracy rate.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Recently, the United Motorcoach Association (UMA) announced a
partnership with Scheig Associates to provide discounted pre-employment
performance testing to its members. UMA members will save 10 percent on
Scheig Associates’ Motor Coach Works© Hiring & Performance System™
designed specifically for the motorcoach industry to identify, select
and hire better, safer drivers.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Scheig’s the Motor Coach Works Hiring & Performance System is a
three-phase system consisting of an online pre-employment assessment,
behaviorally based interview questions and a performance evaluation.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">UMA says it partnered with Scheig upon hearing from several
association members of their satisfaction and success with Scheig’s
hiring and employee performance solutions.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">“The Scheig performance testing program has been a tremendous tool in
helping Escot find the right employees,” said Brian Scott of Escot Bus
Lines, Largo, FL, in a release. “I know it will help other operators be
more successful in their hiring processes and I think it’s a great
addition to UMA’s member programs.”</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">“We’re really excited to be able to offer a discount on our hiring
and performance system to UMA members,” said Leslie Williams, national
accounts manager with Scheig Associates, in the same release. “Through
our extensive experience and proven track record with the motorcoach
industry, we know we will become a valuable tool and asset for all UMA
operators.”</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Dr. Scheig says his assessments begin with a thorough job analysis of
“superior performers.” These are employees (in this case, superior
motorcoach drivers) whom companies have identified as the best of the
best. Scheig says this ensures that new applicants are measured against
the best employees currently doing the job. This ensures that only the
best applicants make it to the job interview phase.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Reaching out to transit</b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Scheig’s next project in the transportation industry involves creating a
test for superior transit drivers. For this, he needs ten superior
drivers selected from the nation’s transit agencies. These drivers,
coupled with a modest down-payment, will spend a weekend helping Scheig
Associates develop an assessment for the transit industry. The companies
they represent will make their money back by receiving the product at a
reduced price.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Dr. Scheig says his company is recognized for the accuracy and
predictability of its assessments, stemming from the unique methodology
that focuses on specific job behaviors which account for variances in
productivity outcomes. With an unprecedented degree of accuracy,
Scheig’s hiring and performance systems assist companies to hire, retain
and develop the best possible employees.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Using innovative software-as a-service (SaaS) technologies, Scheig’s offered solutions include:</span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="color: #999999;"><span style="font-size: large;">Job-specific behaviorally based hiring and performance systems</span></span></li>
<span style="color: #999999;">
</span>
<li><span style="color: #999999;"><span style="font-size: large;">Human resource consulting</span></span></li>
<span style="color: #999999;">
</span>
<li><span style="color: #999999;"><span style="font-size: large;">Behavioral job analysis</span></span></li>
<span style="color: #999999;">
</span>
<li><span style="color: #999999;"><span style="font-size: large;">Selection process design</span></span></li>
<span style="color: #999999;">
</span>
<li><span style="color: #999999;"><span style="font-size: large;">Entry and professional level assessments & hiring systems</span></span></li>
</ul>
<span style="font-size: large;">Scheig’s employees are Ph.D. level social scientists, business and
management consultants, software designers and service professionals
collaborating to serve the business needs of the company’s clients.
Scheig says they always strive to reflect the highest ethical standards
with clients, forging long-term relationships built on appreciation,
mutual respect and trust.</span>thegreyhoundgrouphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04435648389124754262noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9065412090564528932.post-10911913261403597292014-05-12T11:42:00.000-07:002014-05-12T11:28:57.003-07:00WELCOME ABOARD Greyhound's - 7725!<h2>
<span style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">1960 General Motors PD-4104-4503 - Greyhound Lines</span></h2>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlh3a00CcBjR7AfdEYv3G3TFCInRXn6Eyw2_PmgtiPeXX521EAoTJRK9OMLLRpdYUMm3Sz-WgrOTb_wPR2K92FpqtL8fv6merP_T4IbZpctOyYTOOdJeVhxOpiQehiAaafsr48sfT9hU0/s1600/S1079.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlh3a00CcBjR7AfdEYv3G3TFCInRXn6Eyw2_PmgtiPeXX521EAoTJRK9OMLLRpdYUMm3Sz-WgrOTb_wPR2K92FpqtL8fv6merP_T4IbZpctOyYTOOdJeVhxOpiQehiAaafsr48sfT9hU0/s640/S1079.PNG" height="388" width="640" /></a></span></div>
<h2>
<span style="font-size: large;">
<span style="color: #cccccc;"> </span></span></h2>
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">WELCOME ABOARD THE 7725!</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">This General Motors PD-4104-4503 was built in 1960 for Greyhound Lines.
She was given the fleet number -7725- at that time. These buses were
commonly referred to as highway travelers.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">* the 7725 is 35 feet long, 8 feet wide, 10 feet tall and weighs 10 tons.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">* fuel capacity is 140 gallons of #2 diesel. Transmission: 4 speed manual.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">* power is an in line Detroit Diesel six cylnder.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">* 187 cubic feet of luggage space.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">* air conditioned by a 4 cylinder Perkins diesel engine.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">* restroom equipped.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">* air ride suspension.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">* 7725 is the 4,503 coach of its type Built by GM between 1953 and 1960.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">* a total of 5,065 were manufactured.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">7725 has been restored in this green and white livery to better
compliment her interior colors. The 7725 is owned & operated by Mike
Jones of Alpine, California. Our other restored coach is a 1975 GMC
T8H-5307a, fleet number 804, retired from San Diego Transit in 1990.
Both coaches are part of an extensive collection of streetcar &
motorcoach memorabilia displayed at the Jones' residence in Alpine,
California. Thank you for visiting this classic American motorcoach!
Please! NO food, drinks or smoking aboard!</span>thegreyhoundgrouphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04435648389124754262noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9065412090564528932.post-62488213812650212342014-01-16T13:58:00.000-08:002014-01-16T12:16:20.664-08:00Prince George the Central Gateway of B.C.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsTCbIFsIzk_pcEUhbuioevkCe1usiqL0Odc_PDnpx1Ho8zvzJ6bESeeDnuZwrPi7B5TqxvKCfHvoBUUZ1no7pGM8Bm_9rTNlzDVzGkepyPPGtqKh8cmcxWwKMDAYzf_NqlDMJs1OkCYY/s1600/S3803.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsTCbIFsIzk_pcEUhbuioevkCe1usiqL0Odc_PDnpx1Ho8zvzJ6bESeeDnuZwrPi7B5TqxvKCfHvoBUUZ1no7pGM8Bm_9rTNlzDVzGkepyPPGtqKh8cmcxWwKMDAYzf_NqlDMJs1OkCYY/s640/S3803.PNG" height="328" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Prince George is located along two major highway routes.</span><br />
<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Highway 97 (the Hart Highway) leads to northern communities such as Dawson Creek, Whitehorse and Alaska, USA and to northeast BC and
south to Cache Creek, connecting to southern BC communities including
Kamloops, Kelowna and Vancouver.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Highway 16 leads northwest to Smithers, Terrace and Prince Rupert and eastern communities Mcbride, Jasper National Park and Edmonton, Alberta. As
many of communities activities are located just outside of town, car
travel is recommended. Rental options are available in town, and winter
tires are a must in season.</span><br />
<h4>
<span style="font-size: large;">
Air Travel</span></h4>
<span style="font-size: large;">Flights to Prince George are available via Vancouver, Edmonton,
Calgary and Fort St. John. The two largest passenger airlines servicing
Prince George are <a href="http://www.hellobc.com/transportationlisting/4573464/westjet-westjet-vacations.aspx">WestJet</a>
and Air Canada, with smaller carriers Central Mountain Air and Northern
Thunderbird Air. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Visitors requiring transportation into town or to the
airport from Prince George can take a taxi or catch a ride with the
airport shuttle. Greyhound also provides bus transportation from the
airport terminal to the Greyhound terminal in Prince George.</span><br />
<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhv6B-SHh07e4Orivu1CA5P1munavkXTTn9TUf7zDGemYVUGnWbU9qpLOcb_AHS7qccfR-XK4DbGjp8ZuAB1ZTr-ysPNmK5_xxx5daNn5mB6ptZPfBTSm9FCYtVymYIzJ8eznkvhjIR5SI/s1600/S2960.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhv6B-SHh07e4Orivu1CA5P1munavkXTTn9TUf7zDGemYVUGnWbU9qpLOcb_AHS7qccfR-XK4DbGjp8ZuAB1ZTr-ysPNmK5_xxx5daNn5mB6ptZPfBTSm9FCYtVymYIzJ8eznkvhjIR5SI/s640/S2960.PNG" height="384" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
<div id="introMore">
<h4>
<span style="font-size: large;">
Bus Travel</span></h4>
<span style="font-size: large;">Greyhound provides bus service to and from Prince George along
Highway 97 and Highway 16. The Prince George Transit System also runs a
number of buses around town.</span><br />
<h4>
<span style="font-size: large;">
Rail Travel</span></h4>
<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://www.hellobc.com/activitylisting/100178/via-rail.aspx">VIA Rail</a>
offers service from Prince George through Jasper, Alberta to Vancouver,
and through Smithers and Terrace to Prince Rupert. Wildlife such as
deer, moose and bears can sometimes be viewed from the train.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" id="showLessLink">Read Less</a></span></div>
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</span><br />
<table class="listing_table"><thead>
<tr>
<th class="category"><h4>
<span style="font-size: large;">
Transportation Service Providers</span></h4>
</th>
<th class="business"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></th>
</tr>
</thead><tbody>
<tr class="odd">
<td class="category"><a href="http://www.hellobc.com/prince-george/transportation-maps/air-airports.aspx">Air / Airports</a>
</td>
<td><a href="http://www.hellobc.com/prince-george/transportation-maps/air-airports.aspx" rel="503">1 Listings</a>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td class="category"><a href="http://www.hellobc.com/prince-george/transportation-maps/bus-coach-shuttle.aspx">Bus / Coach / Shuttle</a>
</td>
<td><a href="http://www.hellobc.com/prince-george/transportation-maps/bus-coach-shuttle.aspx" rel="504">1 Listings</a>
</td>
</tr>
<tr class="odd">
<td class="category"><a href="http://www.hellobc.com/prince-george/transportation-maps/limo-taxi-water-taxi.aspx">Limo / Taxi / Water taxi</a>
</td>
<td><a href="http://www.hellobc.com/prince-george/transportation-maps/limo-taxi-water-taxi.aspx" rel="568">1 Listings</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
thegreyhoundgrouphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04435648389124754262noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9065412090564528932.post-90129158346272917872014-01-10T22:11:00.000-08:002014-01-09T19:03:19.101-08:00Greyhound Station Art Deco Architecture<div class="stat-media-wrapper">
<a href="http://www.agilitynut.com/bus/ms.html" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Entrance, Greyhound Bus Station, Jackson, Mississippifrom Roadside Architecture: Greyhound Bus Stations
Entrance of Jackson&#8217;s old bus station &#8212; now an architecture firm&#8217;s office. This architect is my HERO! Meanwhile this bus station was part of Civil Rights history.
From the site:
The Jackson station was built from 1937-1938. This is the only station that Arrasmith designed with a structural glass faced exterior. Originally, the interior had a coffee shop with a horseshoe-shaped counter. The men&#8217;s room had a shower, while the women&#8217;s room had a bath tub. It was condemned when architect Robert Parker Adams bought the building in 1988. He restored it as office space for his architectural firm. This station is also part of desegregation history. Freedom Riders were arrested here for using white restrooms and waiting rooms.
" src="http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lgheq2ZiZC1qe7vo3o1_500.jpg" height="424" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.agilitynut.com/bus/1.html">Stations</a><br />
<br />
<section><b>Entrance, Greyhound Bus Station, Jackson, Mississippi</b><br /><span style="font-size: x-large;">from <a href="http://www.agilitynut.com/bus/1.html">Roadside Architecture: Greyhound Bus Stations</a><br />
Entrance of Jackson’s old bus station — now an architecture firm’s
office. This architect is my HERO! Meanwhile this bus station was part
of Civil Rights history.<br />
From the site:<br />
</span><blockquote>
<span style="font-size: x-large;">The Jackson station was built from 1937-1938. This is the only
station that Arrasmith designed with a structural glass faced exterior.
Originally, the interior had a coffee shop with a horseshoe-shaped
counter. The men’s room had a shower, while the women’s room had a
bath tub. It was condemned when architect Robert Parker Adams bought
the building in 1988. He restored it as office space for his
architectural firm. This station is also part of desegregation
history. <a href="http://www.ibiblio.org/sncc/rides.html" target="_"blank"">Freedom Riders</a> were arrested here for using white restrooms and waiting rooms.</span></blockquote>
<span style="font-size: x-large;">
</span></section><span style="font-size: x-large;">
Interior, Former Greyhound Bus Station, Jackson, Mississippifrom
Roadside Architecture: Greyhound Bus Stations Interior shot of Jackson’s
old bus station — now an architecture firm’s office. This architect is
my HERO! From the site: The Jackson station was built from 1937-1938.
This is the only station that Arrasmith designed with a structural glass
faced exterior. Originally, the interior had a coffee shop with a
horseshoe-shaped counter. The men’s room had a shower, while the women’s
room had a bath tub. It was condemned when architect Robert Parker
Adams bought the building in 1988. He restored it as office space for
his architectural firm. This station is also part of desegregation
history. Freedom Riders were arrested here for using white restrooms and
waiting rooms.
Interior, Former Greyhound Bus Station, Jackson, Mississippi
from Roadside Architecture: Greyhound Bus Stations
Interior shot of Jackson’s old bus station — now an architecture firm’s
office. This architect is my HERO!
From the site:
The Jackson station was built from 1937-1938. This is the only
station that Arrasmith designed with a structural glass faced exterior.
Originally, the interior had a coffee shop with a horseshoe-shaped
counter. The men’s room had a shower, while the women’s room had a bath
tub. It was condemned when architect Robert Parker Adams bought the
building in 1988. He restored it as office space for his architectural
firm. This station is also part of desegregation history. Freedom Riders
were arrested here for using white restrooms and waiting rooms.</span><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span>
<br />
<div class="stat-media-wrapper">
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><a href="http://www.agilitynut.com/bus/ms.html"><img alt="Interior, Former Greyhound Bus Station, Jackson, Mississippifrom Roadside Architecture: Greyhound Bus Stations
Interior shot of Jackson&#8217;s old bus station &#8212; now an architecture firm&#8217;s office. This architect is my HERO!
From the site:
The Jackson station was built from 1937-1938. This is the only station that Arrasmith designed with a structural glass faced exterior. Originally, the interior had a coffee shop with a horseshoe-shaped counter. The men&#8217;s room had a shower, while the women&#8217;s room had a bath tub. It was condemned when architect Robert Parker Adams bought the building in 1988. He restored it as office space for his architectural firm. This station is also part of desegregation history. Freedom Riders were arrested here for using white restrooms and waiting rooms.
" src="http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lghesmPWm71qe7vo3o1_500.jpg" /></a></span></div>
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span>
<br />
<section><span style="font-size: x-large;"><b>Interior, Former Greyhound Bus Station, Jackson, Mississippi</b><br />from <a href="http://www.agilitynut.com/bus/1.html">Roadside Architecture: Greyhound Bus Stations</a><br />
Interior shot of Jackson’s old bus station — now an architecture firm’s office. This architect is my HERO!</span></section><section><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span>
</section><section><div class="stat-media-wrapper">
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><a href="http://www.agilitynut.com/bus/ms.html"><img alt="Detail, Greyhound Bus Station, Jackson, Mississippifrom Roadside Architecture: Greyhound Bus Stations
Detail of Jackson&#8217;s old bus station &#8212; now an architecture firm&#8217;s office.
From the site:
The Jackson station was built from 1937-1938. This is the only station that Arrasmith designed with a structural glass faced exterior. Originally, the interior had a coffee shop with a horseshoe-shaped counter. The men&#8217;s room had a shower, while the women&#8217;s room had a bath tub. It was condemned when architect Robert Parker Adams bought the building in 1988. He restored it as office space for his architectural firm. This station is also part of desegregation history. Freedom Riders were arrested here for using white restrooms and waiting rooms.
" src="http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lghenobFrp1qe7vo3o1_500.jpg" /></a></span></div>
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><b>Detail, Greyhound Bus Station, Jackson, Mississippi</b><br />from <a href="http://www.agilitynut.com/bus/1.html">Roadside Architecture: Greyhound Bus Stations</a><br />
Detail of Jackson’s old bus station — now an architecture firm’s office.</span></section><section><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span>
</section><br />
<div class="stat-media-wrapper">
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><a href="http://www.agilitynut.com/bus/ms.html"><img alt="Greyhound Bus Station, Jackson, Mississippifrom Roadside Architecture: Greyhound Bus Stations
Jackson&#8217;s old bus station is now an architecture firm&#8217;s office. This architect is my HERO! Meanwhile this bus station was part of Civil Rights history.
(First of several pics of this lovely bit of historic preservation&#8230;)
From the site:
The Jackson station was built from 1937-1938. This is the only station that Arrasmith designed with a structural glass faced exterior. Originally, the interior had a coffee shop with a horseshoe-shaped counter. The men&#8217;s room had a shower, while the women&#8217;s room had a bath tub. It was condemned when architect Robert Parker Adams bought the building in 1988. He restored it as office space for his architectural firm. This station is also part of desegregation history. Freedom Riders were arrested here for using white restrooms and waiting rooms.
" src="http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lghee3xGSe1qe7vo3o1_500.jpg" /></a></span></div>
<span style="font-size: x-large;">
<b>Greyhound Bus Station, Jackson, Mississippi</b><br />from <a href="http://www.agilitynut.com/bus/1.html">Roadside Architecture: Greyhound Bus </a></span>thegreyhoundgrouphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04435648389124754262noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9065412090564528932.post-9293554897353331522014-01-03T10:48:00.000-08:002014-03-15T23:04:39.678-07:00Bus Driver's - " Most Stressful Gig in Town "<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjK95f6Tww0TcDYgEWUl2ui3Hjb5IfVkVZ5OGF-DvCi756jVIG8lYwBjVzDC3Q60D9dmpxqzOqpam_WWsXcNvLvu2aIxjZ7j_NP_0awbzla4C5-1GD3hVeqRPgnhFmFzovqW4ZamONZdR4/s1600/S1415.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjK95f6Tww0TcDYgEWUl2ui3Hjb5IfVkVZ5OGF-DvCi756jVIG8lYwBjVzDC3Q60D9dmpxqzOqpam_WWsXcNvLvu2aIxjZ7j_NP_0awbzla4C5-1GD3hVeqRPgnhFmFzovqW4ZamONZdR4/s640/S1415.PNG" height="320" width="690" /></a></div>
<h4>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #7f6000;"> Bus drivers have the most stressful gig in town, according to WorkSafeBC figures.</span></span></h4>
<br />
<span style="color: #7f6000;"><span style="font-size: large;">Since July 1</span></span><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #7f6000;"> </span>199 transportation workers mostly bus drivers but
also including cabbies have submitted claims for work-related mental
disorders, including those caused by significant stressors on the job
such as bullying and harassment.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">A fairly common type of case we are seeing are bus drivers being
submitted to insults from passengers, said senior program manager Joe
Pinto.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">In one case, it escalated to include threatening behaviours. [The
employee] had to stop working because it turned into a disorder.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<br />
<h4>
<span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;">Mental Health Claims :</span></h4>
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">There were more mental health claims submitted from the health care
and social services sector, with 463, but health care employs
substantially more workers than transportation.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">The hospitality industry came in third with 141 claims; 134 from retail, and 105 from education.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Don McLeod, head of the Canadian Auto Workers Local 111 which represents Metro Vancouver bus drivers, said there are about150 reported assaults on bus drivers every year.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">As front-line
employees, bus drivers often bear the brunt of passenger frustration and
anger and are vulnerable to verbal abuse, getting spit on, or more
violent forms of physical abuse.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">“I have no doubt there are mental
health issues in all workplaces, but the type of job we do has the
potential to push somebody to the brink a lot quicker,” said McLeod.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"> WorkSafeBC is expecting the number of mental health claims to more than double after new legislation came into effect July 1.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">It
estimates it will receive 2,500 claims over the one-year period since
the bill was passed. It used to receive only 1,100 claims annually.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Under
the new law, workers who develop mental health issues because of
significant workplace stress, including bullying or harassment, are now
eligible for compensation.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">The cases have to be a recognized
mental disorder diagnosed by a psychologist or psychiatrist; they cannot
be disorders from stress caused by employer decisions, such as working
conditions or workload.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Under previous legislation, workers were
only eligible if their mental disorder stems from an unexpected, acute
work-related traumatic events, such as firefighters or paramedics who
witness horrific accidents, for example, or retail workers or bank
tellers traumatized by a holdup.</span><br />
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thegreyhoundgrouphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04435648389124754262noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9065412090564528932.post-41746130885246363802013-10-06T08:38:00.001-07:002013-10-06T09:19:51.325-07:00The Closure of Owen Sound’s Bus Terminal <br />
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<img border="0" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoOClzswlr9Ge0rle4l74QWP2z-pI-ZOEavjYBocUqvGiDo3ZRfgAqjp640yoy7OC-VZLq-JFQth6E4rREE8Z2svg8vXq9zSC0OCLLdJ1FRDVx0x9nlMJcVCE4GZo3LPVtOgNucRT0SGc/s640/S5093.PNG" width="640" /></div>
<br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="color: #fce5cd;"><span style="font-size: large;">The closure of Owen Sound’s bus terminal and Greyhound’s decision to
cut its routes to the city has put a spotlight on transportation issues
in our area.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Specifically, it has highlighted the importance of intercity bus service to rural communities.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Students attending school in Toronto, London, Barrie and elsewhere,
for example, rely on the bus to get to and from their rural Ontario
homes.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">People use the bus to get to hospitals in major Ontario cities, to
visit family in southern Ontario and to access services not found
locally. Some people just want to hop aboard a bus to spend time in
Toronto.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Despite the need for bus transportation, options for people in rural Ontario, including Grey-Bruce, continue to decline.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<img alt="The Owen Sound transit terminal" src="http://storage.canoe.ca/v1/dynamic_resize/sws_path/suns-prod-images/1297470923230_ORIGINAL.jpg?quality=80&size=650x&stmp=1380038323201" /><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Greyhound now only makes one trip daily into and out of Owen Sound.
The bus takes people to Toronto via Collingwood and Barrie. Aboutown
Northlink only makes a trip between Owen Sound and London three times a
week.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">People wanting to get to Orangeville, KitchenerWaterloo, Guelph,
Hamilton or other cities must transfer to another bus in Toronto or
London. It can be a long trip.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">The provincial government should step up and do something about this
transportation shortage. More should be done to encourage bus companies
to make the trek to and from Owen Sound.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Part of the problem, it seems, is Ontario’s current regulatory framework for intercity bus transportation.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Companies must apply to the Ontario Highway Transport Board to receive a permit before it can operate a new route.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">John Emberson, president of Coach Canada, said the process is time
consuming and expensive. The applicant must provide a business plan,
among other things, to the board.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Other companies can object to the permit request, he said, and the
board will often side with the firm that currently offers the same or a
similar route.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">The process limits competition, he said, and can allow some companies to hold a monopoly on certain routes.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Coach Canada, which owns more than 200 buses, is among the companies lobbying the province to deregulate the system.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Alberta and Manitoba have done it. Alberta implemented a new
modernized framework in 2011. Companies there now have the option of
running a smaller bus for certain routes or creating a flexible schedule
without, as happened in the past, having their application objected to
by existing carriers, which would have triggered a full-blown hearing.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">It’s time for Ontario to take a serious look at doing the same.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">There are also calls from outside of the industry for the province to
make changes to improve Ontario’s regional transportation network.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Owen Sound Mayor Deb Haswell, for one, has called on the province to
explore ways to encourage more buses to run routes to the city.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">The Southwest Economic Alliance (SWEA), meanwhile, is calling on both
the provincial and federal governments “to work together to plan and
adequately fund a regional transportation network.”</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">A summit, with politicians, transportation companies and advocacy groups, is scheduled for Nov. 14.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">“The objective is to generate cooperation, planning and policy
development which will lead to more transportation in southwestern
Ontario,” SWEA says.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">It is our hope that SWEA will have luck with its campaign.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">However, it’s important that Owen Sound also benefit from any improved regional transportation system.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Without changes, the city could become even more isolated from the rest of southern Ontario.</span>thegreyhoundgrouphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04435648389124754262noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9065412090564528932.post-14829674559276941842013-09-30T22:37:00.003-07:002013-09-30T23:06:39.481-07:00Archie Fleming Receives "Good Driver Award"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheIsv2MYtaI3zLlyhKY0XUVcj8GdEKpIj2DitiaUnPlBFGXvYukm3DSNHRhfcfCSZkT0Ckw3P9Cc5oR0c_keaQlV0FmWEvWqbq_cO1Q9otz-usp3r-vjSZenlfFjdJHS7zpHEI4ghTqiA/s1600/S4986.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="940" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheIsv2MYtaI3zLlyhKY0XUVcj8GdEKpIj2DitiaUnPlBFGXvYukm3DSNHRhfcfCSZkT0Ckw3P9Cc5oR0c_keaQlV0FmWEvWqbq_cO1Q9otz-usp3r-vjSZenlfFjdJHS7zpHEI4ghTqiA/s640/S4986.PNG" width="620" /></a></div>
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<br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">A
new electronic log rule could be proposed by September, said Federal
Motor Carrier Safety Administration head Anne Ferro Thursday, March 14,
at a congressional hearing, testifying to a House subcommittee.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">The Highways and Transit Subcommittee — part of the House Committee
on Transportation and Infrastructure — questioned Department of
Transportation administration heads for two and a half hours wanting
updates on progress made to rules and initiatives in the MAP-21 highway
funding law from last summer.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">The law requires that an electronic onboard recorder (electronic log) rule be made by the time the law expires in mid-2014.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Ferro was questioned by the subcommittee’s chairman Rep. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Thomas Petri
(R-Ore.) about potential issues of trying to squeeze every driver’s
schedule into what he called a “one size fits all” rule, including
scenarios of drivers being close to home or close to a destination and
running out of hours.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Ferro said uniformity has been a big issue for FMCSA in making the
rule, but that uniformity is a must to “ensure a level playing field.”
She also said that most companies who switch find electronic logs to be
“effective and profitable,” and that most drivers “over time” prefer
EOBRs to paper logs.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">She was also pressed by Rep. Peter DeFazio (D-Ore.) about the
problems presented by detention time to hours of service rules and what
the agency plans to do about it.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">A study is underway, Ferro said, and the agency is expecting results by 2015.</span>thegreyhoundgrouphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04435648389124754262noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9065412090564528932.post-81492616249810083502013-09-14T16:21:00.000-07:002013-09-14T11:15:17.297-07:00Greyhound Express — Non-Stop Service<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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</div>
<span style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;"> </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Greyhound
Express — the company’s premium non-stop service between major cities —
will expand to eight new markets on Oct. 31, connecting the Southeast
to Southwest and the Midwest to the Northeast. New markets include
Montgomery, Ala.; Mobile, Ala.; New Orleans; Baton Rouge, La.; Beaumont,
Texas; Erie, Pa.; Buffalo, N.Y. and Oklahoma City, Okla. Greyhound
Express, which launched less than two years ago, is available in nearly
80 markets and features the largest network of nearly 800 potential
direct-service intercity pairs. Tickets are now on sale at
www.mygreyhoundexpress.com, with everyday fares starting at $1.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">The new routes include:</span><br />
<span style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">• Atlanta – Montgomery – Birmingham – Mobile – New Orleans – Baton Rouge – Beaumont – Houston</span><br />
<span style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">• Cleveland – Erie – Buffalo</span><br />
<span style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">• Dallas – Oklahoma City</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Four daily round trips will be available on the Atlanta to Houston
route, Cleveland to Buffalo will offer three daily roundtrips and one
round trip will be available between Dallas and Oklahoma City.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">“Greyhound has been able to rapidly grow its Express service since
its inception due to our customers’ positive response to the higher
level of service that nobody else can match in the business. With an
average growth rate of more than 20 percent in the markets where we’ve
introduced Express, it speaks volumes to how we have successfully
upgraded the intercity bus travel experience,” said Dave Leach,
president and CEO, Greyhound. “As travelers plan for the holiday season,
they know that Greyhound Express allows them to visit friends and
family at an affordable price while enjoying a fast, safe and
comfortable ride.”</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Greyhound Express operates modern, environmentally friendly buses
equipped with features such as free Wi-Fi, power outlets, leather seats,
reserved seating and extra legroom. Customers can buy their Express
ticket online to take advantage of discount pricing, print their ticket
at home, or pick it up at a self-service ticketing kiosk, and know a
guaranteed seat is waiting for them. Additionally, Express customers can
relax in private waiting areas, protected from the elements in a secure
environment, with a dedicated guest services specialist to provide an
extra level of customer assistance. All tickets are nonrefundable.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Greyhound Express provides non-stop service between major cities,
originating from Greyhound service hubs including New York, Washington
D.C., Chicago, Atlanta, Dallas and Calgary, Alberta. For those who need
long-distance connections, stations along Greyhound Express routes allow
travelers to easily connect to an established network of more than
3,800 Greyhound destinations throughout North America.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">For fare and schedule information and to purchase tickets, visit www.mygreyhoundexpress.com.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">About Greyhound</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Greyhound is the largest North American provider of intercity bus
transportation, serving more than 3,800 destinations across the
continent. The company also provides Greyhound Package Express (GPX) and
charter services. For fare and schedule information and to buy tickets
call 1-800-231-2222 or visit the website at www.greyhound.com. For the
latest news and travel deals, follow GreyhoundBus on Twitter at
www.twitter.com/GreyhoundBus, Like us on Facebook at
www.facebook/GreyhoundBus, or follow our new blog, The Hound, at
www.bloggreyhound.com.</span>thegreyhoundgrouphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04435648389124754262noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9065412090564528932.post-63219685886586935162013-09-08T19:55:00.004-07:002013-09-08T20:16:14.061-07:00Greyhound Passengers Complain Sick Rider <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />
<h1 class="entry-title">
Greyhound Passengers Complain Sick Rider Allowed To Stay On Bus</h1>
<br />
<b><span style="font-size: large;">DALLAS (CBSDFW.COM) – Some Greyhound bus passengers
are questioning whether they were exposed to an illness after they say
they were forced to share a bus with a sick passenger.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="font-size: large;">“We both noticed how sick he was and then he started coughing and hacking up blood,” says Erin Dent.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="font-size: large;">Dent and fellow passenger Doreen Krueger are now concerned that they
may have been exposed to Tuberculosis – after riding alongside the sick
passenger for nearly two days. Krueger says he boarded the bus in Los
Angeles, California on Saturday. She says as the bus continued east,
his illness appeared to worsen.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="font-size: large;">“He was coughing and hacking,” Krueger explains.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="font-size: large;">She says riders grew restless and demanded that the bus driver remove
the sick passenger. Greyhound confirms the driver pulled over in west
Texas and called paramedics.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="font-size: large;">“They stopped in Van Horn and called an ambulance,” recalls Kreuger.
“The ambulance said we couldn’t test him for TB because it would take 2
days.”</span></b><br />
<b><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="font-size: large;">The ill passenger was allowed to continue on the trip if he agreed to
wear a mask. But riders say the man was deaf and there was a
communication break down.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="font-size: large;">“Both different drivers said ‘Put hands over your mouth or hold this over your mouth,’ he would not do it,” says Krueger.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="font-size: large;">Krueger said she and dozens of others wanted to get off the bus but paramedics convinced them to stay on.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="font-size: large;">“I’d already been with him a day and a half,” she says. “The
ambulance said it wouldn’t make any difference if (I had) already been
exposed.”</span></b><br />
<b><span style="font-size: large;">Dent also says new passengers were allowed to board.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="font-size: large;">Once the bus reached Dallas, passengers were given complaint forms to
voice their concerns, but Dent and Krueger say they need more than a
pen and paper to address their worries</span></b><br />
<b><span style="font-size: large;">“If we’ve been exposed then everybody we come in contact with from
now on can be exposed, so we’re real concerned about our families,” says
Dent.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="font-size: large;">Greyhound says it has no record of where the passenger is at this
time or if he went to the hospital. Company executives told CBS 11′s
Sharrie Williams that the bus driver followed correct protocol and that
the sick passenger did wear the mask as he was instructed to.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="font-size: large;">CBS 11 contacted Dallas County Health and Human Services about this
story, which is offering free TB tests to anyone who was a passenger on
the bus.</span></b><br />
<br />
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thegreyhoundgrouphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04435648389124754262noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9065412090564528932.post-49799762031135671912013-08-20T22:30:00.000-07:002013-08-19T23:02:56.519-07:00Software Allows Insurers to Track Driving <div class="head_titles">
<h1 class="entry-title" title="Insurance companies testing data pilot program to determine premiums">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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</h1>
<h1 class="entry-title" title="Insurance companies testing data pilot program to determine premiums">
</h1>
<h1 class="entry-title" title="Insurance companies testing data pilot program to determine premiums">
New software allows insurers to track driving habits and personalize premiums
</h1>
<div class="entry-meta">
<div class="byline author vcard">
OMAR EL AKKAD
</div>
<div class="creditline source-org vcard">
The Globe and Mail</div>
<div class="dateline">
Published
<time datetime="2013-00-19T10:08:00Z" pubdate="">Monday, Aug. 19 2013, 6:00 AM EDT</time>
<br />
<br />
<time class="updated" datetime="2013-48-19T15:08:03Z" pubdate=""></time>
</div>
</div>
</div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">Paul-André Savoie is changing the car-insurance industry by helping insurers monitor every move you make.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Customer
data provided by Mr. Savoie’s tech company, based in Laval, Que., turns
a car-insurance bill from a static monthly figure into something
variable – the more unsafe a customer’s driving habits, the higher the
cost.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span>
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<a href="http://www.theglobeandmail.com/globe-drive/car-life/drive-video/conventional-wisdom-says-big-cars-are-safer-but-thats-not-always-true/article13713829/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" title="Video: Conventional wisdom says big cars are safer, but that's not always true">
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watch</span></h4>
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><a href="http://www.theglobeandmail.com/globe-drive/car-life/drive-video/conventional-wisdom-says-big-cars-are-safer-but-thats-not-always-true/article13713829/" title="Video: Conventional wisdom says big cars are safer, but that's not always true">Video: Conventional wisdom says big cars are safer, but that's not always true</a></span></div>
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<a href="http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/video/video-earnings-promise-silver-lining-for-fretting-china-investors/article13680703/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" title="Video: Earnings promise silver lining for fretting China investors">
<img alt=" " data-enlarge="http://www.theglobeandmail.com/incoming/article13680733.ece/BINARY/original/Video%3A+Earnings+promise+silver+lining+for+fretting+China+investors" height="222" src="http://beta.images.theglobeandmail.com/87a/incoming/article13680733.ece/ALTERNATES/w140/Video%3A+Earnings+promise+silver+lining+for+fretting+China+investors" title=" " width="400" />
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<span style="font-size: x-large;"><a href="http://www.theglobeandmail.com/globe-drive/video-half-of-small-cars-score-badly-on-tougher-us-crash-tests/article13670370/" title="Video: Half of small cars score badly on tougher U.S. crash tests">Video: Half of small cars score badly on tougher U.S. crash tests</a></span><br />
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</aside><span style="font-size: x-large;">
“It creates a huge financial incentive on a monthly basis to drive
safe,” said Mr. Savoie, president and CEO of Baseline Telematics. “We
are attracting safer drivers and rehabilitating other drivers.”A
handful of Canadian insurers have started testing the software in pilot
programs. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Those programs are overwhelmingly aimed at drivers 25 and
younger. In some cases, it is the drivers’ parents signing them up to
keep close tabs on their driving habits.</span><span style="font-size: x-large;">Since the inception of
the modern car-insurance industry, premiums in Canada and much of the
world have been determined by broad criteria, including age and car
model. </span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">However, the ubiquity of movement sensors available in many
modern vehicles – as well as the ability to analyze the massive amounts
of data produced by those sensors – has created a new brand of
insurance.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">By measuring exactly how each of their customers drives
in real time, insurers are starting to charge individual premiums based
on monitored driving habits.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">For 17 years, Mr. Savoie’s company
has been building software and hardware for the insurance industry. Over
the past year or so, a couple of Canadian insurers have started
deploying Baseline’s namesake technology, “telematics.”</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">The
product collects information from the vehicles of individual drivers and
allows insurers to bill their customers according to these data. The
software uses sensors to monitor speed, acceleration, braking and other
metrics.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">That information is then analyzed for signs of unsafe
driving, such as hard braking or speed-limit violations (the software
monitors a vehicle’s location to determine whether drivers are keeping
within limits).</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">While deployment of the technology is still in the
testing stages among a handful of insurance companies, its usage
reflects the widespread adoption of tools that allow companies to track
customer habits.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">The ability to monitor and adapt to the behaviour
of individual customers, for example, was part of the rationale for
last month’s announcement by Loblaw Cos. Ltd. that it will acquire
Shoppers Drug Mart Corp. for $12.4-billion. Shoppers’ Optimum loyalty
program will give Loblaw purchasing information on some 10 million
customers.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">The interactive and social-media-friendly nature of Mr.
Savoie’s software is meant to quell potential resistance from younger
customers. Customers get weekly and monthly updates on their driving
habits, are shown how they compare to others in their age group, and
have the option to publish that information on Facebook.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">“By
people getting regular feedback and seeing in graphical illustration how
they’re driving compared to their peers, it has an impact on how they
drive,” said Don Thompson, vice-president of product management at
Saskatchewan Government Insurance, which is testing the first telematics
program for motorcycle insurance.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">The telematics system itself is
largely reliant on “big data” analytics – a fast-growing industry
focused on automatically sifting through huge amounts of information to
find previously undiscovered trends.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">To do that with the data
collected by the telematics systems, Baseline sought the assistance of
SAP, an analytics company whose customers include F1 racing teams and
life-insurance providers – the racing teams use SAP technology to
collect and analyze data from cars in real time during races, and the
insurers use it to look for patterns consistent with fraudulent claims.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Baseline
charges its customers an activation fee up front and a monthly
subscription fee afterward. The exact cost of the system differs from
insurer to insurer.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">By sifting through the data collected by the
telematics program, Baseline and its customers are starting to see the
patterns that help to flag high-risk driving. For example, frequent hard
braking is a strong indicator of unsafe driving in cars, and the
strongest indicator with respect to motorcyclists is cornering. As a
result, Baseline’s telematics hardware for motorbikes includes a 3-D
accelerometer designed to measure the way a rider takes a corner.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">In
time, insurers say the new system will allow them to pinpoint every
customer’s risk level, and charge them accordingly, instead of relying
on broad metrics.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">“When somebody is a very bad driver, we see that
after few months they’re not with us any more – they discover they’re
not good and they go with a traditional insurer,” says Suzanne Michaud,
vice-president of client experience at Mobiliz, which is running a
telematics insurance program in Quebec.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">“With telematics we don’t charge you an average premium, we charge you your premium.”</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">The
telematics-based systems still constitute a tiny fraction of overall
insurance programs in Canada, and face growing pains. For example, the
motorbike version of the technology is so new that very little data on
the metrics associated with safe motorbike driving exist. That prompted
Saskatchewan Government Insurance to ask skilled riders to come out to a
local track to demonstrate proper riding techniques on motorbikes
fitted with monitoring equipment, which provided some baseline data.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">However,
there are many privacy issues related to the frequent collection of
data from drivers, including their location and speed. Protocols are
being developed on a company-by-company basis on how data is stored and
secured, as well as what to do if the data show extreme violations, such
as speeds so far above posted limits that a driver could be criminally
charged. In such cases, some insurers have opted to slap the customer
with an immediate extra charge on that month’s bill, hoping a hit to the
wallet will help change behaviour.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">But despite the privacy
issues, Mr. Savoie is adamant that telematics-based policies will soon
become the norm in Canada and throughout much of the world. In the early
days of the service, Baseline had to install special hardware in
vehicles to collect data. Now, the company is working on a smartphone
app, which uses the sensors on those devices to collect the same
information.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Soon, the company won’t even have to do that, Mr.
Savoie said, because most car companies are already building those
sensors into the cars.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">“I think in the next two or three years,
you will not be able to buy a car that doesn’t have a telematics
connection back to the manufacturers. I think cars are basically going
to be smartphones.”</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">But perhaps the most significant impact of
telematics-based insurance is its applicability to myriad other
industries. Richard Daukant, national vice-president of strategic
engagements at SAP, notes that there has been an explosion in so-called
body metrics hardware over the past few years – wearable monitors that
collect information such as heart rate, physical activity and calories
burned.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Now, he says, health insurance companies are starting to
take a long look at that technology, hoping to harness it for a new type
of customized insurance policy, whose premiums are determined by each
customer’s lifestyle.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">“It’s almost pay as you live, not pay as you drive.”</span>thegreyhoundgrouphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04435648389124754262noreply@blogger.com0