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Group that salvages food seeks new truck
By adamg on Mon, 05/02/2016 - 7:43am
Fair Foods, which recovers food and building supplies that might otherwise be thrown out and redistributes them, says its delivery truck, Old Betty, has reached the end of the road, and is seeking funds for a replacement:
Old Betty is a 1988 truck with 720,000 miles on her. She has leaks everywhere, holes in the floor, vice grips on handles, no window on one side, and needs a quart of oil added every day. We can't even maintain her anymore because we can't find parts - not even in the junk yards.
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Comments
Fair Foods' $2 bag is an
Fair Foods' $2 bag is an incredible bargain for those who need veggies but don't have much money to buy them. No long form to complete and no question asked. This campaign is one of the best place to donate $50 or $100 in Boston.
One way Washington Street
Perhaps GE can buy them several trucks seeing they don't have to pay property taxes.
4 new donations to their site
4 new donations to their site in the past 2 hours.
Thanks so much for posting this Adam!
I'm connected to one of their indoor sites and give their info to many of my clients. I myself get a bag every couple of weeks or so. The amount of food that is wasted is mind boggling.
Gee....
Sounds like a tailor made situation for billionaire "philanthropist" Ernie Boch, Jr.
Ha!
In all seriousness, it'd be great if these folks could get some funds but maybe also the donation of an actual truck? A decent second-hand one? Anyone who gets 720,000 miles out of a truck (can that be for real??) deserves it.
and what
and help poor people? Nah Ernie doesn't care about poor people...
Thank You
I made a small donation, and I hope others do if they can afford it. Thank you for sharing this info.
720K miles? Wow
Man, that's the ultimate in resourcefulness. Good luck to them finding another truck!
Right??
Can't we find them a truck with you know...only 300k miles?
It's a charity and everything
And they sound like they do valuable work, but seriously, how is this even on the roads? You can see the road through the rusted out floor and it's belching out smoke (hint, that's where the quart of oil a day is ending up). Both are automatic failures on a MA inspection (even on an old vehicle that doesn't get a real emissions test).
I know it sounds grinchy, but it looks like this probably should have been retired 10 years ago and some sympathetic inspector is letting them skate. It's not as if this truck doesn't pollute or put others on the road in danger because it's operated by a charity.
Well Then
Perhaps you should donate or better yet volunteer your service to give them better advice. You're as cuddly as a cactus...as charming as an eel..
being concerned
That he is sharing the road with a truck that sounds like a safety hazard isn't exactly "well maybe you should fix it yourself" territory. Its a valid remark.
But complaining is so much
But complaining is so much easier.
MBTA
Why? We ride in Subway cars, and sometimes buses that are older than 1988.
With proper maintenance and repair, some things can last a very long time. Just ask the T....
Rules for Inspection
First off, this is a 1988 and is, therefore, not subject to emissions inspection.
It would pass safety inspection as long as everything that is being inspected actually works (lights, brakes, etc.)
More here than you probably want to know.
this vehicle
as it stands today, would 100% fail an honest inspection. theres no getting grandfathered in when you can see the road beneath your truck because of the massive hole in the floor pan.
Yes, I am well-acquainted with the regs
I'm fully aware of the 15+ year exemption from emissions. It only exempts one from the basic OBD2 test - visible smoke still fails.
Visible smoke is mentioned here explicitly for a vehicle of any age, as well as in the FAQ from the RMV:
http://www.massvehiclecheck.state.ma.us/motorist_basicinfo.html
http://www.massrmv.com/rmv/faq/inspection.htm
Still don't believe me? Pull out your last inspection report. "Visible Smoke Check" is in the safety section. There is no age exemption for a safety inspection. Rust perforation, which this vehicle has a great deal of, is specifically mentioned in the law below (12c). I have even seen friends fail for perforation through a fender. (The duct tape-mounted mirrors would fail for part 9(b) as well).
http://www.massvehiclecheck.com/documents/540_CMR_4.00.pdf
Really, they sound like nice people doing something of real value. I like what they're doing (aside from operating an unsafe vehicle on the roads), and I'm really not trying to dump on a charity for no reason. But this vehicle is not safe, and if this vehicle got an honest pass 10-11 months ago, things have deteriorated very, very quickly. It should not be on public roads.
a truck engine using a quart
a truck engine using a quart of oil a day would have "visible smoke" from the exhaust only if it had engine damage such as broken rings. Worn rings or other normal wear won't cause "visible smoke" so this truck could have a clear exhaust once it's warmed up and running.
Advertising serendipity
The ad that was displaying while I read this story was for "Quality Used Transmissions"
BTW: I donated to the new truck today and you should too!
Fair Foods Truck
Fair Foods is amazing! I hope this story is picked up and they are provided with a fleet of trucks and donations. They have been providing produce to low-income Boston neighborhoods for over 20 years. They also help to provide diabetic shoes to those in needs. Nancy, the owner, is 100% in it for the people in need. She is amazing, and her work is so needed and I hope this will help people appreciate it. I volunteered briefly for Fair Foods in 2012.... and was just so blown away by what they offered and still offer to this day. Please watch this video..
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ppMfOoek860&list=UUSFSZk4C5adpg2_fdvMyxFA
and check out their website...
http://www.fairfoods.org/
Just made a small donation. You should too.
At least a small one....
https://www.gofundme.com/FairFoods
Hadn't heard of them before
But I donated. Hope they get a great replacement.