The fishbowls, weren’t they known formally as “T Liners”?
From the side,they look like the cars of the GM Aerotrain.
LA’s MTA called them “Curbliners”,Long Beach called them “Dreamliners”.
…And going back further thinking of the old Greyhound units…massive, ruggedly built, front engine vehicles with vertical cylinders near the headlights…possibly shock absorbers…roof racks for installing and retaining luggage…and one or 2 spare tires mounted vertical on the back of the body…and 3 or 4 round rods running the length of the windows…guess for protection of some kind…
Anyone know who was the manufacture of these units…They ran in the 30’s.
espeefoamer…Thanks, that identifies it for me…know which one they are talking about now…
Item: Arriving in Pittsburgh to catch the train to Johnstown {about 1957}, we were to catch the Aerotrain and would you know it was the one day it was out of service in the month for service…so we didn’t get to ride it…and that was the last chance to do so…What a disappointment.
I would not lose any sleep over this. Alot of crossover traffic occurs between attractions, especially in relation to families rather than die hard fans.If you take away the hyperbole, they complement one another inasmuch as they are both devoted to transportation history. Alot of cooperative ventures such as marketing, etc occur between museums. Is the glass really half empty or half full?
Not totally ‘big’ bus fan,but that’s how CW & I get around here.
I think Louisville shipped some of those ‘Fishbowl’ buses to
Chicago several years ago.
Ralph Kramden (a.k.a. Jackie Gleason) drove a bus. I was in a bar across from Union Station in Chicago many years ago and they had a sign posted on the wall reading “Bus drivers must have exact change.”
I like busses. They named some of 'em after my dogs.
Think that’s bad, since Delavan, WI was once the home base of many circus units (century before last, I believe), some locals started a clown hall of fame here. Didn’t do too well and relocated to Milwaukee or some place. I think the problem was that they limited the thing to circus clowns. [:o)][:o)][:o)][:o)][:D]
Antonio,
Do you remember the Trailways “Golden Eagle” articulated with the lounge in the back. All reserved seats I believe.
Mitch
Buses in my opinion provide services that RRs do not. [:D]
Allright, amigo.[:D][;)]
Just click on the link that Dunkkirk provided above. Here it is: http://www.busmuseum.org/
Then click to go to the 2nd page. Scroll down to the picture of all of the miniature buses that are on display. Click on the photo to enlarge it. Now, look at the bright yellow and orange bus in the center (what a beauty![:I]). That’s a GMC Fishbowl.
To the good guys here that don’t like buses…O.K! Yes, GM helped wipe out the trolleys with buses, but guys, this same argument can be made that diesel locomotives helped wipe steamers off of mainlines! How many of you like diesel locomotives? Yep, the majority of us.
As a modeler, I plan on having fishbowl buses on my layout which will be set in the late 1960s.
For me, buses bring fond memories because as a kid in New York City, my dad took the car to work. My mom had to do her shopping, our doctor’s appointments, etc. So the subway and bus was the way to get around.
Hi MItch,
Sorry, I don’t recall that unit. Might trigger my rusty memory if I saw a picture. The Eagle that I remember seeing as a kid was the O-1, used by Trailways.
Re: The fishbowls (and the Flxible “New Look”) that object that looks like a spoiler on the rear roof of those buses housed the condenser fan motor. Early fishbowls had them under the buses and were a pain for mechanics due to grime build up.
Cheers!
Antonio
They were made mid-fifties. The sides were gold instead of silver. I believe made in Europe. Ran on express schedules New York to LA via St Louis. All reserved seats. Small lounge and bar in the rear with stewardess. If you google up Golden Eagle you can find a link. They came in non-articulated single units as well.
Mitch
Pay a visit to the Virginia Museum of Transportation (Roanoke) and see buses and trains for one low admission fee. Same is true at the New York Transportation Museum (south of Rochester). The Henry Ford (Museum - Dearborn, Michigan) celebrates cars, buses and trains under one roof.
The Lone Haranguer rides again.
The Georgia State Railroad Museum in Duluth, Georgia (just outside Atlanta) has a section that’s dedicated to busses that ran in Atlanta. Most of the busses were donated by MARTA (Metro Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority) so it didn’t cost the museum anything, just space.
They don’t have any trolleys, though… but they DO have a glorious E7 done in Southern “Crescent” colors.
My wife enjoyed the busses as much as the locomotives and the passenger cars on display, because she spent a great deal of her life riding the busses from home to school and back. More to the point, the busses are open for the public to wander into and sit down in… as compared to the locomotives, which are all closed to the public above ground level.
Erik
Rule modification from Bergie? No religion, politics or BUSES. (Caps denote change). Oh never mind, we can l leave room for here for the rubber on concrete fans. They sure don’t have much room on the streets and highways.
Jay
I have no idea. I never rode one. I just know the last time I was there they were still there too.
Whenever I’m watching a movie or tv show and see one it’s a tip off for where it was filmed. Then if I pay close attention I can usually recognize the exact location. I was head tech for Century cable in Santa Monica from 90’ to 95’.
Hi Eric,
How I WI***hat were an E7, as all but one are extinct.
I think you saw Southern Railway #6901. She’s one of two E8s still in existence that pulled the Southern Crescent until Southern ceased passenger service in 1979. Wonderful restoration job!
I plan on doing an HO scale model of her.
There are some beautiful shots of her in http://www.railpictures.net