That other Friday
This must mean it's PAYDAY! Splurge on yourself!

This Monday, May 25th
May 25th is Memorial Day, a holiday. No transit service, and our offices will be closed.

Update on office repainting
Our offices are still being painted/carpeted/tiled, and this work has been extended through at least Wednesday of next week.


Some highlights of week #2 include --
84 applies a first coat to the poles. Unfortunately, this simple act guaranteed rain this day, lots of it.

Our intrepid 83 supplies us with tunes during lunch. Very nice!

Another surprise visit!

First it was 63 popping to say hello. Then good ol' 68 came rolling in on his bike and found us all having our lunch. He filled us in on his latest adventures. Thanks for stopping by!

Hard worker 87 took on the task of repairing a broken desk, and did a great job!

All I can say is, they waste no opportunity ... (and he's going to be a CDL driver)

Nabbed!

Time for another caption, I think. Add a caption to this photo in the comments.

Bygone days

Ponderosa sunrise

A day

Mayberry fun!

A visit by 62, 80 and family. You know which one 80 is.

Pole prep
Expertly accomplished by 87. Had we really done any painting, it would have rained.

Surprise visit
63 paid us a surprise visit. Here she enjoys a joke with 50. Probably at my expense lol. I miss you 63!

Hit and run
Overnight, bus 12 garaged east of town was hit up. Apparently there were eleven other locations hit before this job.

Stunning
One must always be careful what one asks for. Or for what one tells someone to wear. 78 is supposed to have grubby clothes on for crawling under a bus to learn undercarriage bus systems. This is what we got.

We DID crawl under the bus to examine parts of the suspension system, but ...

... apparently I don't know what I'm talking about lol.

Unfortunately, it gets worse . . . This guy's trying for his Commercial Driver's License!

A minute

While 87 and 83 might look bored, we were actually counting down a portion of the 7-step air brake procedure, which requires a minute and a minuet.

Painting Day

PAINT DAY!

If everyone out there in the real world is wondering why things in the bus barn are so quiet lately, here is the reason:With the advent of the Paint Department (above), everything had to be cleared out of the office and driver lounge. This included phones, faxes and computers. Silence is golden hehe.Here, 87 and 80 appear to be just another fixture among a bus-load of office furniture, there in a bus stall where a bus would normally be parked. In the meantime, 91 (below) begins the task of our own paint projects by prepping pieces of paper and cardboard.

Welcome
Mountain Campus Transit welcomes new driver Daniel to our bus barn. Good luck and drive safely!

Over the last hill

For Monday

PAINTING OF THE OFFICE

Hopefully, on Monday morning the paint crew from Capital Assets will come in and begin painting the lounge and office. The remaining furniture will have to be removed before that. Conducting business during this time will be difficult at best, please be patient. After the first coat of paint is finished, tile will be laid, then a final touch-up of paint will be completed. When after all that dries (usually in a day) we will begin putting everything back.

OUR PAINT CREW
For those who will be on one of our paint groups, we will begin collecting supplies and will probably start our first job painting the yellow poles on Monday or Tuesday. Dress appropriately: Your clothes and shoes will act like a paint magnet!

BUS LANE SOON!
Soon we will have a dedicated, Bus Rapid Transit bus lane, our first for the campus at large.

At an unspecified date in the not-too-distant future, Pine Knoll drive going westbound between the Forestry driveway and almost up to McConnell drive will be re-striped in order to set aside a bus lane for MCT.

Late last April, Grounds installed signage that will inform vehicle operators of the prohibition of operating in the lane on the north side of the street. This north-side lane will permit occupation only by buses and bicycles; all other traffic (including MCT vans and office cars) will travel westbound in the center lane. The exception will be for vehicles traveling west along Pine Knoll that will be making an immediate right turn into Huffer lane where Mountain Line bus barn is located. It will be important for our drivers operating in the bus lane there to watch carefully for vehicles turning right into Huffer, as well as bicycles using the bus lane.

When the bus-lane project is completed, it will help MCT buses avoid the heavy traffic that occurs during class changes there and will cut three or more minutes from our running times.

CDL TRAINING
CDL training will continue this week, including pre-trip, engine, and undercarriage. If you will be learning the undercarriage systems, please wear grubby clothes and inform the trainer if you would like a hair cover and/or eye goggles (recommended).
VAN TRAINING
Van training is also to continue once we get 123 back from the shop. If you haven't done the Extreme Skillz for Van training yet, we'll set something up soon. Relax. It's easy.
OUR FIRST BBQ
Thanks to everyone for a very nice outdoor bbq last Friday. If you have any ideas for future bbqs on Fridays, let us know.

A POINT OF OUR POLICY
Just to remind all our MCT drivers, regardless of university vehicle, that talking or texting on a cellphone is prohibited. Boston's WCVB-TV 5 reports that a trolley operator who was texting his girlfriend last week did not see another trolley stopped in front of him and crashed, injuring 46 people. Let's not make that horrible mistake.

NEW ENTRANCE
A new entrance is being constructed on Knoles not more than 20 feet north of the University Union bus stop. It will allow vehicles earlier access into the parking lot between Cline Library and the Field House. Once it is open, Route 1 drivers will need to exercise caution for vehicles slowing to turn right into the lot. The driveway into the lot will be one-way eastbound only. This should ease up a significant amount of traffic snarling that normally occurs during class changes at the Library stop sign, and help improve the timeliness of our service a bit.

THANKS
... to everyone for doing such a great job the first week of summer! And don't hesitate to make use of the links on this page, or to submit your own ideas for this Slack Adjuster blog.

Ummm

What on earth?! Who on earth?! Caption me ...

What a relief!

The busiest and most hectic week is over, not just for students who have to deal with finals and papers, but for staff of MCT as well.

Graduation in the spring represents two days of frenzy accompanied by hours of baking in the sun. Nevertheless, it went generally well. This is saying something, considering that we transport several thousand people to and fro for each of the four ceremonies.

Now, the hard workers of that weekend (and I apologize if anyone is left out, it is unintentional) --

It's over

Graduation continued ...

Flying the coop

Two long-standing full-time drivers have decided that they must now be moving forward with their academic pursuits, and have resigned their positions.

Andrea 64 (left) has driven with us since 2002, probably longer than any prior student employee (this is my guess). She served as a very able night-shift leader in the latter half of her tenure with us. Her plans now are to finish her last year of undergraduate education.

Amber 65 (right, above) drove with us awhile back, took a bit of time off, then returned as a full-timer. She too has decided to place a greater emphasis in terms of time on her studies.

Word is that one or both of them may continue to drive for us on a part-time, student basis.

Dakoda 67 held a party after graduation ceremonies were over in honor of Andrea and Amber at the American Legion hall. Hamburgers, hotdogs, brats, potato salad and cake were enjoyed by a dozen or so friends, and karaoke went well into the night. (Thanks Dakoda!)

We wish Amber and Andrea the very best as they drive off into the sunset (so to speak)!

Fresh

Summer's begun, we're rested (sort of, anyway), the routes are running, and this blog is the new Slack Adjuster.

The Slack Adjuster blog will be an expansion of the email version you've all been receiving, although notifications of posts will still be emailed.

Replies and comments will be easier and visible to others.

Photos will be easier to upload.

So, welcome!