SamTrans

SamTrans San Bruno Update

As noted previously SamTrans is making major changes to its schedule to cut costs and create efficiency. They did a review of all existing lines and put forth a proposal based on these findings. It is the first major system-wide change in a decade. Routes 140 and 141 which serve San Bruno faced some major changes. The final proposal has been adopted and surprisingly both routes saw major revisions to the proposed changes.

Route 140
The proposed change was to drop the Allen crossover between College and Longview, dropping the Bayhill, San Bruno Ave, and Huntington sections in favor of a going straight to San Bruno BART (SBB) down Sneath after Rollingwood. That has all been dropped and the route remains as it is now except for a proposed extension to San Francisco International Airport (SFO) AirTrain Station (pending coordination with airport).

Comment: This was a surprise. it seemed certain months ago the proposals would go through. I opposed dropping the Bayhill and San Bruno sections since people who go to Bayhill would be forced to take two buses. Also having it use San Bruno Ave meant it could stop right near the new Caltrain station. What changed? They must have gotten some really strong feedback on this and possibly from the City Council. The extension to SFO AirTrain is in response to those who work at SFO and take SamTrans and BART. BART costs a lot more because of the surcharge placed on your ticket when exiting the station. So probably many who take SamTrans to BART wanted a less costly alternative. Going to SFO AirTrain would make it less expensive for workers. They would only pay the fare for SamTrans and not have to buy a BART ticket.

Route 141
The proposed change was to drop service on most of Jenevein, no longer serve San Mateo Ave (downtown San Bruno), and Third Street. The route would shift over to San Bruno Ave where it would go to Crystal Springs, down Jenevein to Cherry, Cherry to San Bruno and then back to SBB. The revision drops that. Instead the 141 will continue using Jenevein but go down San Mateo Ave to SBB instead of turning at Angus to Third Street. The new Caltrain station will be served by this route as well. School trips will be the only times it crosses over to Third Street.

Comment: Again this was a surprise. Perhaps more people on Jenevein wanted the service than thought. Actually the thought of having this route go directly to SBB via San Mateo Avenue is something others have said before. It made no sense to go over to Third Street and back down San Bruno Ave to turn back on Huntington. The new way makes it more efficient, serves downtown San Bruno, Caltrain, and BART.

ECR (formerly 390/391)
Unfortunately the proposal on this one remains. Currently the 391 pulls into SBB but under the new schedule, the ECR will not serve this station. Instead passengers will embark/disembark at stops near Sneath & El Camino and walk to Tanforan. It is not a long walk but certainly not as convenient as it is right now.  SBB is right behind Tanforan and provides easier access. For those wanting to go to SBB using ECR, they would have to transfer either to the 140 or 141 or walk from El Camino Real. When the new Caltrain station comes on line, they could get off at the San Bruno station and catch either a 140 or 141 to Tanforan.

SamTrans wants to remind that these changes are also subject to revision down the road if things change (less passengers etc). SBB is losing the 391 and 133 leaving only the 140, 141 and shuttles serving it. The good news is that routes 140, 141 changes are not drastic and made better. It is unfortunate that the ECR will not serve SBB but not entirely unexpected either. Most people who take the 391 to SBB usually go to Tanforan or catch another bus (like the 140) rather than BART. For people wanting to head north/south on ECR, they now have to do so near Sneath & El Camino.

As a side note, SBB bus area is not a nice area. It has all the charm of an underpass, is often dirty with spilled food and other items, and some shady people hang about as well. Though San Bruno Police has its headquarters in the plaza, and BART police also is around, you rarely see any foot patrols in the plaza or bus area. How difficult is it for someone to do a walkthrough a couple times a day?

Source: SamTrans Service Plan-Final Adopted Recommendations(May 2013)

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Titanic

Hartley Violin Update

Steven Turner, author of The Band That Played On about Titanic musicians, offers his own Wallace Hartley's Violinviews about the Hartley violin. He is thrilled the violin has been authenticated and adds some details to the story. First, there was a replica violin made in 1912 by a Hartley friend. That violin disappeared for decades but was donated anonymously in 1974 to Youth Orchestra in Colne, Hartley’s old hometown.

He believes the draft letter in Maria Robinson’s diary is authentic. The draft letter thanks Nova Scotia officials for giving her the violin. However there is no record whether it was actually sent or not. However he says the people mentioned in the diary “could all be traced to actual people living at the time.” With the violin authenticated, he thinks the adventures of the violin are not over yet.

Of course there still is one or two small problems that have not been resolved. First, why is there no record of Hartley’s violin being found strapped to his chest? Aldridge claims they did not inspect luggage but how could you miss it if strapped to his chest. Second, if indeed found on or near Hartley’s body, why is their no record anywhere of it being found or inspected?These nagging questions ought to be resolved.

Source: Still More Adventures Ahead For Titanic Violin (5 May 2013, Fox News)

 

Titanic, Titanic Miscellaneous

Titanic Musings

1. The International Ice Patrol recently celebrated its own centenary on 26 April. TitanicIcebergAuction16Dec2012Today it is taken for granted but back in 1912 there was no mechanism to determine if icebergs were a serious threat. Before the wireless, the only warnings would come from ships who passed through areas where icebergs were sighted and notified when they came into port. Sometimes passing ships might signal but you were on your own. Wireless made it possible to send warnings quickly to other ships but, as was learned afterwards, unless you have dedicated wireless staffing and such reports were immediately delivered to the bridge, it can end in a catastrophe.

At first the U.S. Navy did the initial patrolling after Titanic sank but could not provide ships in 1913. So the old Revenue Cutter Service (the predecessor of the U.S. Coast Guard) took on the task. However what was needed was international cooperation which was not always easy to get. Fortunately public opinion helped prod such cooperation along leading to the first International Conference on the Safety of Life at Sea in 1913. The convention was signed on 30 Jan 1914 and provided for derelict destruction, ice observation, and ice patrol service. The ice patrol service would patrol ice regions during the time icebergs were a threat and keep the trans-Atlantic lanes clear of derelicts the remainder of the year. The U.S., already involved in this aspect, was asked to undertake the management of the service and the 13 signatory nations would defray the cost. With the exception of wartime years, the patrol has been maintained by the U.S. Coast Guard.

The countries that contribute to the International Ice Patrol are: Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Japan, Netherlands, Norway, Panama, Poland, Spain, Sweden, United Kingdom, and United States of America. More detailed history can be found at the U.S. Coast Guard site or at Wikipedia .

2. Shades of Titanic? Jay Rockefeller (D-West Virginia) chairs the Senate Commerce Committee and is making an inquiry into Carnival Cruise Lines. Of late they have been unlucky with the Triumph stranding and the Costa Concordia capsizing off the coast of Italy. So Rockefeller is looking into Carnival’s safety record. And he also asked Carnival if they would repay the U.S. government for assisting the Triumph in 2013 and for the 2010 stranding of Carnival Splendor. Carnival declined to reimburse citing that everyone must assist ships in distress and that duty does not require paying for such services. Rockefeller called this response “shameful” yet he knew that Carnival would respond this way. He is threatening hearings and legislation.

So what is going on? Well Carnival and nearly all other cruise lines are foreign flagged meaning they do not fly the U.S. ensign. And they are restricted under federal law (1886 Passenger Services Act) from going directly between two U.S. ports without first having stopped in a foreign port. Despite this restriction, the cruise lines make buckets of money for corporations that are located outside the U.S. which means they do not pay income taxes. They do pay lots of other taxes (like port fees and assorted other taxes). But many like Rockefeller think they ought to pay more for using U.S. ports and U.S. assets to help them in times of distress. The maritime unions are unhappy as well since the ship jobs go to non U.S. citizens. Rockefeller is no William Alden Smith, who presided over the U.S. Titanic hearings wanting to find out what happened and find liability against White Star. Rockefeller is just playing politics by trying to force cruise lines to fork over lots more money. And likely winning high marks for the maritime unions. Those unions ought to look at the laws and regulations that resulted in nearly every passenger liner not being flagged American.

Source: Carnival: No Reimbursement To US for Disabled Ship(15 April 2013,AP)

3. A Night To Remember (1958) is my favorite Titanic movie. It has also been released on Blu-ray in 2012. Like the regular DVD version, it has the excellent commentary by Ken Marschall and Don Lynch. It also has something not on previous versions: an interview with Titanic survivor Eva Hart. So if  you have Blu-ray, consider adding this to your movie collection.

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Miscellaneous

Back

Yes, this blog is back up and running. Still some things to fix but mostly everything is here. A few new postings over at the website will be moved over here in a day or so. WordPress blogs have been a hacker target of late. This blog was no exception. Fortunately I had a backup but had to make sure no virus or malware was left behind.

At least one good thing came out of all of this. I learned a lot more about WordPress in the process.

Titanic, Titanic Miscellaneous

Friday Titanic News

1. A ledger page of an insurance policy issued to cover Titanic has been sold at a New York auction for $25,000. The policy was issued by Atlantic Mutual Insurance Company for Oceanic Steam Navigation Company Limited. The auction was held on 23 April at Doyle New York. The buyer is anonymous.

Source:  Original Ledger Page for Titanic Insurance Policy Sold for $25K (3 May 2013, Insurance Journal)

2. A new Wallace Hartley biography is available. Nearer, our God, to Thee: A New Wallace HartleyComprehensive Biography of the TITANIC Bandmaster by Christian Tennyson-Ekeberg has been published reports Pendle Today. The author had access to the Wallace Hartley and Maria Robinson archive. For more information on the book, go to nearerourgodtothee.com. The book is published by Green Mount Press in West Yorkshire, UK.

Source: New Book With Rare Titanic Photos Unveiled In Colne (2 May 2013, Pendle Today)

3. Glee may be popular but high school productions of Titanic are more common these days. And sometimes quite good as Bob Feldheim notes in a recent article. St. Augustine High School in St. Augustine, FL is putting on a large scale Titanic musical. It has an astounding 75 cast members and Feldheim liked what he saw.  “Astonishingly, “Titanic” manages to be grave and entertaining, somber and joyful at the same time. The teamwork that went into this show is amazing. The acting and dancing are terrific, and the soloists’ voices will melt your heart. Unlike the ship, the play is buoyant and vibrant to the very end. If you love big-voiced musicals, and if you enjoy a story about the largeness of dreams and the fate of falling stars, you will love this show.” Glee, forget about it! You have been outclassed by high schoolers in Florida.

Source: Titanic Musical Staged May 2-5 In St. Augustine High School(1 May 2013, StAugustine.com)

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Titanic

Remembering Father Byles

While watching a Titanic documentary, a commentator noted how many lives were cut Father Thomas Bylesshort when it sank. Looking at a list of names one cannot appreciate who they really were. And sometimes it pops up in interesting ways. The Leamington College For Boys (Binswood Hall) in Warwickshire is being transformed into a retirement center so the local newspaper decided to list the notable pupils who graduated from it. And one of them was Rousell Davids Byles, who later became Father Thomas Byles, a Catholic priest,  and was aboard Titanic when it sank.

Byles was the son of a  congregationalist minister who converted to Catholicism while at Oxford and taking the name Thomas. He attended Beda College in Rome and was ordained in 1902. He then was assigned to St Helen’s Parish in Chipping Ongar, Essex in 1905. His brother asked him to officiate his wedding in New York, which led him to be aboard Titanic. While aboard, he said Sunday mass for Second and Third class passengers in their respective lounges. His sermon was on the need of a spiritual lifeboat to protect in times of spiritual shipwreck.

Words that would soon be put to a more real test. When Titanic was sinking, he was in steerage trying to provide comfort, hearing confessions, giving blessings. According to Titanic survivor Agnes McCoy:

“When the Titanic went to the bottom Father Thomas B. Byles stood on the deck with Catholics, Protestants and Jews kneeling around him. Father Byles was saying the rosary and praying for the repose of the souls of those about to perish. To many he administered the last rites of the Church. In the early stage of the disaster he heard a few confessions.”

He also declined to be put aboard a lifeboat allowing others to go in his place. Father Byles is one of those little-known heroes of Titanic. Well regarded back home in his parish of St. Helen’s, his death was met with great sadness. There is a memorial to him at that church. A door in his memory was installed by his brothers, along with a photograph and a stained glass window to commemorate Father Byles.

Sources:
1. Priest Who Saved Souls On Titanic (28 April 2013, Leamington Courier)

2. Titanic 100: The Essex priest who refused to leave passengers(14 April 2012, BBC)

3. Father Thomas Byles of Titanic (official memorial website)

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Titanic

Memorial Plaque For Titanic Recovery

Perhaps forgotten in the Titanic story are those that went out to recover Titanic’s dead.

Peter Parsons/Herald News
Peter Parsons/Herald News

Two cable ships out of Halifax–Mackay-Bennett and Minia–brought back most of the bodies. Four bodies were recovered in May 1912 by Montmagny, a government tender from Quebec. The last body was found by the cargo ship Algerine out of St. John’s Newfoundland. On Friday, a plaque remembering those from Halifax (called Halligonians) who went out to collect the bodies was unveiled at Maritime Museum of the Atlantic.

Retrieving the bodies was important and also haunting, reports The Chronicle Herald. Pat Teasdale’s grandfather Francis Dyke was second electrician on Minia and wrote to his mother about it. “I honestly hope I shall never have to come on another expedition like this. … The Dr. and I are sleeping in the middle of 14 coffins.”  Yet he was glad they could retrieve the bodies and not leave them in the water. 150 victims are buried in Halifax in Fairview Lawn, Baron de Hirsch, and Mount Olivet Cemeteries.

The plaque has no permanent home yet but for now you can view it at Maritime Museum of the Atlantic in Nova Scotia, Canada.

Source: Plaque Honours Titanic Recovery Efforts(26 April 2013, TheChronicleHerald.ca)

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Titanic

Rubber Tablets From Titanic?

There is a minor mystery afoot concerning four rubber tablets found on Newquay beaches. Each tablet contains the word Tjipetir on them. According to This is Cornwall, that is an Indonesian rubber plantation from the early 20th century. The particular natural rubber, gutta-percha, was cargo aboard Titanic. While some speculate the rubber could be from Titanic, others are not sure.

Jenny Wittamore, assistant curator at the National Maritime Museum in Falmouth,points out there have been many ships that carried this cargo. And a shipwreck in the 1920’s, according to an investigator, could be the source of these rubber tablets.

There is no way to determine precisely what shipwreck the tablets came from. So the mystery continues.

Sources:

1. Are Rubber Tablets Beached On Newquay Beaches From Titanic?(24 April 2013, This is Cornwall)

2. Why ARE 100-year-old rubber blocks washing up on shores all over Britain and northern Europe? (24 April 2013, Daily Mail)

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Titanic, Titanic Exhibitions

Titanic News For 24 April 2013

(1) Titanic Belfast exceeded all expectations for 2012 reports BBC News. More than 800,000 people from 128 countries visited Titanic Belfast in its first year. Some doubted it would succeed and would need 290,000 visitors to break even.

Source: Titanic Belfast Had 800000 Visitors In Year(23 April 2013,BBC News)

(2) Titanic:The Artifact Exhibition is coming to Great Lakes Science Center in Cleveland in June. Advance tickets are now on sale through the web site. The exhibition runs from 1 June 2013 through 5 Jan 2014.

Source: New Titanic Exhibit Coming To Cleveland’s Great Lakes Science Center(23 April 2013, NewsNet5.com)

(3) Alan Aldridge of Henry Aldridge & Son was interviewed recently by CBS News about the Hartley violin. Aldridge says that micro-analysis found evidence of salt water corrosion in the wood and metal screws on the silver plate. He also says he has no idea how much it will be worth when auctioned off.

Source: Reputed “Titanic Violin” To Be Put Up For Auction(23 April 2013, CBSNews)

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Titanic, TV reviews

Review: Titanic(2012)

There were high expectations for this Titanic miniseries. Julian Fellowes, well known Titanic(2012)actor, novelist, and film director was writing the script. It promised a fresh look at Titanic and was co-produced by Canada, Hungary, and UK production companies. Released in time for the 100th anniversary of Titanic’s sinking, it was seen by a world-wide audience on various broadcast networks. The miniseries has an astonishing 89 main characters, unheard of in most serials of this kind. Despite the wealth of source material to draw upon, the serial is part Upstairs, Downstairs tossed in with bits and pieces of action adventure. Oh and a strange love connection that makes no sense anywhere except in a television serial.

What this reminded me of was Winds of War, the ABC miniseries drawn from Herman Wouk’s book of the same name. Wouk’s book was historical fiction using real history as a backdrop. The fictional Henry family moved through the history at different levels (high and low). Real historical figures were mixed in with fictional ones. The result was a blending that one might forget is fictional. And Fellowes follows that formula by blending real historical characters with fictional ones. One character I thought that played well was Captain Edward J. Smith. Smith was known as a tough captain and did not tolerate officers or crew disobeying his orders.

Smith’s depiction in A Night To Remember was of a captain barking out orders after the iceberg hit. This serial gets it right (and also a little wrong too). The serial implies he had to be summoned when in fact he came out right away. He summoned Thomas Andrews and they both went below to access the damage. That was when, as depicted correctly, he realized the impact of what was to happen. Nearly over 1500 people were going to be thrown to the sea as the lifeboats, if filled to capacity, would hold 1,178. That realization is perhaps why Smith went into shock later and never barked out orders. He had to be asked to lower lifeboats and other things.

Other things seem out of place, such as Murdoch having reservations about increasing speed due to icebergs. Or the justification for sending out lifeboats half-full to prevent them from splitting (they were fully tested by Harland & Wolff). Ismay getting into a lifeboat as it is going down (which did not happen). We also have Catholic vs Protestants, Irish home rule, social revolutionaries like Lord Manton’s daughter Georgianna agitating for women’s rights, or violent revolutionaries like Peter Pubov (based upon the real figure Peter the Painter). More nauseating are some characters who just are rude, unpleasant, and would make you long to grab a lifeboat and row away (Muriel Batley, Lord Manton’s wife Louisa, Grace Rushton).

More confusing was how the serial was presented. It jumped back and forth in time in each episode. Instead of showing the whole thing in one continuous stream, we switch back and forth to learn more about various characters or historical situations. I found this odd for a historical drama. Italians were probably incensed at how they were treated on Titanic. One scene has the waiters for the Italian restaurant locked up and left to die because they did not want them running around on deck (fiction). There are genuinely sad moments as well, like when Jim Maloney finds his daughter Theresa below but they are trapped by a locked gate. Or when Annie Desmond finds Paolo in the rescue lifeboat dead.

In the end, Titanic was not the worst serial ever done but just not that good. Fellowes tried too hard to convey the social, political and other issues of that time. Nor was it all historically accurate in many places either (like the fictional debate over lifeboats). People who know Titanic history will shake their heads at the many historical inaccuracies conveyed. If you are going to do historical fiction, at least make the real historical characters do and say what they actually did.

Final score: **1/2
What to watch for: Good acting, decent sets.

Titanic(2012) is available on dvd and streaming (Netflix).


Titanic, historic ship, and general history news.