New Orleans Public Service Incorporated (NOPSI) New Orleans Regional Transit Authority (NORTA) Express Bus Lines www.streetcarmike.com Created March 20, 2001 and updated January 1, 2007. ©2001-2007 Michael Strauch. NEW ORLEANS PUBLIC SERVICE EXPRESS LINES: Public Service's first nonstop routes were Express 70-Carrollton via Earhart on June 16, 1958 and Express 71-Nashville via Earhart on September 8, 1958. Earhart Blvd. was opened in the mid-1950s along a former railroad right-of-way, which could still be seen in the early eighties. 70 and 71 ran nonstop after Union Passenger Terminal until they reached Carrollton and Nashville, respectively. This photograph was copied by Aaron Handy III from the 1958 NOPSI annual report and shows TDH-5105s delivered March 1957 posed for service on the routes. No idea how or why they came up with such "route numbers," for NOPSI never numbered bus or streetcar lines. There is a Bridge 60 on the 1958 map, a Mississippi River Bridge route begun after April 21 to connect the CBD with Westside Transit routes at Victory Drive (later Gen. DeGaulle). This line disappeared May 12, 1963 after Westside began direct downtown service. Here's AM General 450 on O'Keefe at Poydras while operating on Express 71 under the RTA logo (1984, after being repainted in advanced design bus colors). Express 91-Pontchartrain Beach via Elysian Fields and Express 92-Leon C. Simon via Franklin covered the Gentilly area. They started operation December 5, 1960 using TDH-5301s. The express zone is from Gentilly Blvd. to the French Quarter. There used to be short-turn buses (Elysian Fields-Gentilly and Franklin-Gentilly Road) that gave local service in the express zones, but both were gone by 1974. 91 has always used N. Peters and Decatur to reach Canal. 92 was taken off Royal and Bourbon by 1974, rerouted to loop the French Quarter via N. Peters, Decatur, Canal, and N. Rampart. The next expresses are Express 80-Lake Vista via Canal Blvd. and Express 81-Lakeshore via Pontchartrain Blvd. They opened May 31, 1964, just one day after buses took over the Canal streetcar line. 80 and 81 were peak-hour supplements to the Cemeteries, Lake Vista, and Lakeshore branches of the Canal family. No stops were made between N. Claiborne Avenue and City Park Avenue/N. Anthony Street. New express lines opened in the 1970s to serve the expanding former swamps of New Orleans East. Express 93-Morrison (pictured on Elk Place circa 1983) replaced a local bus on August 27, 1973, while Express 94-Chef Hwy. augmented Broad bus service on the same day. On September 2, 1980, Express 95-Lake Forest Blvd. opened to serve the Lake Forest Plaza, probably the area's largest shopping center next to Lakeside back in the days (the Plaza went down in the 1990s). All three used I-10 between Downman Road and the CBD. Buses used Basin St., Elk Place, Tulane Avenue, and returned via the interstate. 94 was peak hour, while 93 and 95 were all-day weekdays. There may have been an Express 96 to Aurora. There was an Express 99 to the Ninth Ward of New Orleans. I believe both were instituted by RTA REGIONAL TRANSIT AUTHORITY EXPRESS LINES: With the 1989 geographic enumeration of the system, RTA eliminated these special numbers. The new designations: 19-Nashville Express, 34-Carrollton Express, 40-Canal/Lakeshore Express, 44-Canal/Lake Vista Express, 56-Elysian Fields Express, 58-Franklin Express, 62-Morrison Express, 64-Lake Forest Express, 65-Plaza Express (opened by RTA, later renamed Six Flags Express) 66-Chef Hwy. Express, 72-Paris Road Express (opened under RTA), 86-Lower 9th Ward Express (opened by RTA, discontinued), 104-Algiers Park-and-Ride (opened by RTA and discontinued May 27, 2005), and 106-Aurora Express (opened by RTA). On April 18, 2004 the new Canal Streetcar on routes 42 (Cemeteries) and 45 (Beauregard Circle) opened. The old Cemeteries bus was directly replaced. Routes 41-Canal Lakeshore and 43-Canal Lake Vista were cut back to Canal and City Park Avenue and renamed 41-West End and 43-Canal Blvd. Routes 40-West End Express and 44-Canal Blvd. Express were retained with through service to the foot of Canal Street in peak hours. After Kenner joined RTA, two Park-and-Ride routes were introduced. 202 was the north Kenner line and 203 was the south Kenner line. The latter was discontinued, but 202 was still operated until Hurricane Katrina. During the late 1980s, Greyhound buses were used under contract. Later, RTA used its own coaches. NORTA RAPID BUS LINES: A new concept in New Orleans express service began August 23, 2004. RTA introduced the current trendy "rapid bus" service with the 96-Broad Rapid. This new route made only eleven stops from Broad & Washington to Chef Menteur & Michoud. RTA charged express fare for this service, which operated from six to six weekdays. Two new rapid bus lines were introduced on May 29, 2005. The 38-Tulane Rapid and 87-St. Claude Rapid made limited stops along those thoroughfares on a 15 minute headway during weekdays. Route 38 ran to Claiborne and Carrollton. Route 87 ran to North Claiborne at the parish line. Local services on the 39, 88, and 89 were unchanged. Along with this new rapid service, RTA modified the Canal Street express lines so they provided limited stops along Canal (at Carrollton, Broad, and Galvez) at 10-15 minute headways with no change in streetcar service. Since I don't have photographs of NORTA rapid buses, I present three California rapid bus operations: Santa Clara VTA's route 522 (Palo Alto to Eastridge via El Camino Real), AC Transit's route 72R (Oakland to Richmond via San Pablo Avenue), Los Angeles Metro's route 750 (Warner Center Transit Hub to North Hollywood Station via Ventura Blvd.). AFTER HURRICANE KATRINA: Only two express lines reopened after Katrina. 106-Aurora Express closed again during 2006, but the 64-Lake Forest Express continues in service to New Orleans East. EXPRESS LAMPS: Public Service ordered the majority of its 1954-57 GMC TDH-5105s with flashing amber lamps flanking the front destination sign. Their first use was on the limited stop South Claiborne-Carrollton via Poydras line, and the next use would be Express 70 and 71 in 1958. The policy of ordering express lamps was continued on all GMC New Looks, Flxible New Looks, and AM General buses. During the 1970s the lamps were changed from flashing to steady glowing. The 1979 GMC RTS buses did not have the lamps, but the 1981 Grummans did. These were the last coaches so ordered. When the RTA took over on July 1, 1983, they continued using express lamps on existing buses. New fleet acquisitions did not have them. Memphis, TN was another city that ordered and used express lamps. Selected New York and Boston buses have these lamps, but they are used for emergencies ("Need Help--Call Police"). South Coast Area Transit (Ventura County, CA) ordered Grumman Flxible model 35096-6 buses, fleet numbers 4528-4542, that were delivered May 1982 and had the lamps. However, I don't know if SCAT ever lit them up. ("Light up, and be happy." -- Styx) The New Look demonstrator coach that General Motors sent to San Francisco, and which later operated as AC Transit 625, had express lamps. www.streetcarmike.com -- Strauchy Goodness in Every Byte!