Car Life

[Fred W. Schneider III]

There are those within PAT who have admitted to me that 1) PAT was not
properly maintaining the cars, and 2) PAT did not order parts with a
long enough lead time to keep them in the parts room, and finally 3)
that car after car after car was sidelined when one might have been
cannibalized to keep two or three or four others running until they
could order and obtain parts.  There are also some who have suggested
that the incumbent executive director at that time trusted his staff to
an unrealistic degree.  Of course it is always easy to blame the
manufacturer.  Maybe we never heard of similar problems from San Diego,
Sacramento, Calgary and Edmonton because they refused to let the issues
develop! 

John Swindler wrote:
> 
> >Derrick J Brashear commented
> >
> >On Wed, 27 Dec 2000, Jim Holland wrote:
> >
> > > Greetings!
> > >
> > > Kenneth Josephson wrote:
> > >
> > > > To get back on topic, what was/is the reason PAT had so much trouble
> >with the mono-motor trucks under the light rail cars? Was the design not up
> >to Pittsburgh's topography or was/is it improper maintenance? Someone ask
> >Scott Davis.
> > >
> > >     Think that was covered in *Trolley Fare* where it was mentioned that
> >all 4-wheels on each truck *need* to be nearly identical in size - one with
> >more wear than the others caused problems.  Seems to be a design problem -
> >believe that Siemens-Deuwag was forced into paying - don't accurately
> >remember the details.
> >
> >ISTR they had to supply extra gearbox parts as part of a settlement
> >related to this.
> >
> >-D
> >
> >
> 
> Things I've never heard discussed/won't find in the newspapers concerning
> the alleged gearbox problem in Pittsburgh:
> 
> - What gearbox problems were encountered in other cities Duewag cars with
> the same monomoter truck, such as Sacramento, Calgary, Edmonton, San Diego
> and Frankfurt?  And more recently, Denver and Salt Lake City?  Or were
> different gearboxes supplied to these other cities?
> 
> -  If the same gearbox was supplied for monomoter trucks in these other
> cities, what was their solution?  And what about settlement with Siemens?
> Or was PAT the only outfit able to encounter problems that resulted in
> service reductions?
> 
> Isn't there a wheel truing machine at South Hills Village Car Shop on north
> side of building?  It was pointed out to several of us from PennDOT during a
> visit in early 80s.
> 
> John
> _________________________________________________________________
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