Random Pick: CTS #898

Here’s an old Calgary Transit “Fishbowl” bus in retirement. For decades it roamed the streets of Cowtown, but today languishes away in the back lot of a small town fire department. We’re looking at CTS #898, built in 1977 and one in an order of thirty five. Transit systems all over North America loved these buses with CTS owning hundreds over the years. They bought their first in the early sixties and their last some twenty years later. The design had a lengthy production run and was made in both the US (1959-1977) and Canada (1961-1986) by General Motors. With tens of thousands produced, many lasted well into this century.

This one was in service into 2010. We wonder how many clicks it travelled in that time and how many people it carried. It’d be big numbers both, we suspect. Other CTS Fishbowls (called “New Look” by the manufacturer) were still at work well into the 2010s. Calgary was the major transit system to operate them. In years past, we used to staked out the bus barns to watch them leave for work. Day in and day out, rain, sun and snow, they were on the job.

At some point post retirement the bus was brought into the Kneehill Regional Emergency Training Centre on the grounds of the Trochu Fire Department. Using Google Earth, that didn’t appear to happen until sometime after 2018. Where it was in the interim is not known nor if it’s mechanically or interior wise complete. It’s been used for rescue training which must explain all the missing or broken windows. We imagine when they’re done, it will be scrapped, the fate of most retired city buses.

Chances are your author rode #898 at some point long ago.

Owned by the friend…
The Big Red Bus – nicely restored.

Fishbowls still in service…
They Live! Calgary Transit GMC Fishbowls in 2013 – near the end.

Short Subjects: reports that for any number of reasons are brief in nature. They might be updates to older articles, previews of posts planned or not yet published, brief snippets of things that don’t fit in anywhere else or subjects that are so obscure that information on them can’t be found. Or sometimes we just ramble on about Lord knows what.

We’d be happy to hear from you! Go here: contact us!

Date of adventure: June, 2019.
Location: Trochu, AB.

Retired in 2010, it’s CTS “Fishbowl” #898.