Thanks for the pics Doug, I can just barely remember the electrified buses in downtown Atlanta sparking along the street carrying shoppers to Rich's and Davidson's department stores. Very cool. Thanks for the memories.
DMF, that's interesting that they have electric buses in Vancouver. I have to ask, though, do they ever make an incorrect turn and get disconnected from the overhead wires? I assume if they did, they'd lose power and become inoperative. I'm guessing the drivers have to make very certain they don't do that.
The buses have limited battery power that can propel them around outages or accidents through detours, but I can't say I've ever seen one take a wrong turn. There is enough movement in the trolleys that the buses can generally go one lane in either direction and stay connected.... if you look at the photo of the 3 buses side by side you'll notice they are connected to the same overhead wires. Makes it tough to pass, but they can maneover around in traffic. They do come off the lines though, particularly when there are junctions in the overhead lines or when there is ice on the wires, however the bus driver just jumps out and reconnects the trolleys by working the tension cables at the rear. If you search "Vancouver trolley buses" on youtube, there are several clips of the buses in action.
Here are a couple of videos to whet the appetite! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PrGWEuL6dvY&feature=related http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-yvfGwl4_OQ&feature=related Enjoy!
Dude! I used to have a toy one of these when I was a kid. It even had working passenger doors. It disappeared one day.
Item 9419 zoom Description Drafted servicemen for World War II board a bus on Main Street in Norway as onlookers say their good-byes.
