Sydney Buses SURPRISE!

The SURPRISE being that 100 buses are operating. Never feels like it each time I stand at the 400 bus stop waiting for buses that never show!

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From the Daily Terrorgraph.
http://www.news.com.au/dailytelegraph/story/0,22049,23087489-5001021,00.html

A hundred Sydney Buses are operating with gas fuel tanks that have passed their 15-year replacement date, amid calls for the NSW Government to immediately pull them off the road to ensure passenger safety.

Transport unions will today seek assurances that the underfloor tanks in compressed natural gas (CNG) buses - Sydney's oldest gas buses - do not pose a "lethal threat" to drivers and the travelling public.

The 102 Scania CNG buses are housed at State Transit's (STA) Kingsgrove depot in Sydney's southwest, clocking up a combined 7.5 million km per year.

Their high-pressure gas cylinders were produced in 1993 and scheduled to be replaced no later than January 2008.

The Victorian-based manufacturer contacted STA in December last year to warn of delays in the supply of the replacement tanks.

The first batch of replacement tanks are due to begin arriving next month but that has not quelled the fears of worried drivers.

Rail Tram and Bus Union secretary Nick Lewocki said the State Government should ground the CNG buses until the new tanks are fitted.

"We've got serious concerns that these could pose a lethal threat to our members and the public if they are operated past their expiry dates," he said.

"Considering recent problems, you have to wonder about the maintenance regime and schedules at STA. The Government must intervene on behalf of passengers."

Already under fire for the recent steering rod replacement fiasco, STA last night pledged to begin visual inspections on CNG tanks from today.

Acting chief executive Peter Rowley conceded that the tanks were due to be replaced but said that WorkCover had agreed to allow the buses to operate.

So far just eight new tanks have been fitted.

STA believes that the 15-year use-by date should begin from when the tanks were first filled with gas rather than when they were made.

Mr Rowley said the staggered delivery of buses from 1994 meant that, in some cases, the 15-year period would end in December 2010.

"WorkCover agreed to this extension with the condition that the tanks be visually inspected by an authorised gas cylinder test station on or before its expiry date," Mr Rowley said last night.

Advanced Fuels Technology chief executive Sean Blythe said the main danger posed to tanks was from wear and tear due to heavy usage.

"The danger is some fatigue wear isn't picked up," he said.