National Bus Trader The Magazine of Bus Equipment for the United States and Canada Volume XLVI,No. 4

N a t i o n a l B u s T r a d e r

The Magazine of Bus

Equipment

for the United States and Canada

UMA Motorcoach Expo 2023 in Orlando (by Larry Plachno)

Here is a report on the recent United Motorcoach Association’s Motorcoach Expo in Orlando showing the introduction of the All New Prevost H3-45 as well as other coaches on the show floor

The State of the Industry 2023 (by Larry Plachno) . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Following up on requests from readers, our editor provides an overview on how the bus industry is coming back from the pandemic as well as the problems we are facing in the future.

The Trend to Free Transit (by Larry Plachno) . . . . . . . . . . .

Interest has been increasing to provide free transit service since in many cases it costs more to collect fares than the income collected However, as ridership declines the cost per passenger keeps going up.

Regulations and Smaller Operators (by Dave Millhouser) .

While it may be easier for larger bus operations to comply with regulations and requirements, we need the smaller companies too to expand the industry and get people out of their cars.

Equipment News

Vice President Kamala Harris Visits

New Flyer’s St. Cloud Facility

NFI Group Inc (NFI), a leading independ e n t b u s a n d c o a c h m a n u f a c t u re r a n d a leader in electric mass mobility solutions, subsidiary New Flyer of America (New Flyer) on February 9 welcomed United States Vice President Kamala Harris to its St Cloud, Minnesota, manufacturing facility

D u r i n g t h e v i s i t , Vi c e P re s i d e n t H a r r i s participated in a tour that included New Flyer Xcelsior CHARGE NG™ electric buses – the most advanced electric bus available in the U n i t e d S t a t e s – a n d s a w t h e a s s e m b l y o f American-made batteries packages used in New Flyer electric buses She also delivered an address to NFI team members and special guests

“ B u s e s a r e o u r n a t i o n ’s m o s t p o p u l a r form of public transportation Every day, millions of Americans ride the bus to go to work, to church, to the grocer y store, to wherever t h e y n e e d t o g o B u s e s a re e s s e n t i a l a n d they are in desperate need of upgrade The electric buses being built in this factor y are a model of American innovation and key to the future of public transportation,” said Vice President Harris “In 2009, then Vice President Joe Biden stood in this plant, when at t h e t i m e y o u w e re b u i l d i n g c u t t i n g - e d g e

February 9 was an exciting day at the New Flyer facility in St Cloud, Minnesota when Vice President Kamala Harris came to visit She participated in a tour that included New Flyer ’s Xcelsior CHARGE NG electric buses as well as the assembly of American-made battery packages used in New Flyer electric buses In 2009, then Vice President Joe Biden had also visited the plant and said, “NFI is an example of the future ”

hybrid electric buses, and said, ‘NFI is an example of the future ’ A lot has changed in the last 14 years, but one thing has not; you are still an example of America’s future ”

While visiting the New Flyer plant at St Cloud, Minnesota, Vice President Kamala Harris took the time to slide into the driver ’s seat of a New Flyer electric bus She also delivered an address to New Flyer team members and special guests New Flyer supports more than 35,000 heavy-duty transit buses of which more than 8,600 are powered by electric motors

Paul Soubr y, president and chief execu t i v e o f fi c e r, N F I s a i d , “ I t w a s f a n t a s t i c t o host Vice President Harris at our New Flyer facility in Minnesota, providing us with an o p p o r t u n i t y t o s h o w c a s e o u r i n c r e d i b l e team, our facility and our industr y-leading solutions The benefits of the Biden Harris administration’s record investments in public transportation were on display as we walked our production floor and sat on buses dest i n e d f o r c i t i e s a c ro s s A m e r i c a We w e re a l s o a b l e t o d i s c u s s o p p o r t u n i t i e s f o r t h e administration to assist our manufacturing industr y as we recover from the effects of g l o b a l s u p p l y d i s r u p t i o n a n d p r o l o n g e d inflation ”

N e w F l y e r o f f e r s t h e m o s t a d v a n c e d p r o d u c t l i n e i n t h e m a r k e t t o d a y, a n d , through NFI Infrastructure Solutions™ provides transit agencies with safe, sustainable a n d re l i a b l e c h a r g i n g i n f r a s t r u c t u re a n d comprehensive mobility solutions

NFI also operates the Vehicle Innovation C e n t e r ( V I C ) , t h e fi r s t a n d o n l y i n n o v a t i o n l a b o f i t s k i n d i n t h e U n i t e d S t a t e s d e d ic a t e d t o a d v a n c i n g b u s a n d c o a c h z e roemission technology and workforce develo p m e n t S i n c e o p e n i n g i n l a t e 2 0 1 7 , t h e V I C h a s h o s t e d m o re t h a n 3 5 0 i n t e r a c t i v e e v e n t s , w e l c o m i n g 7 , 0 0 0 i n d u s t r y p ro f e ss i o n a l s f o r z e r o - e m i s s i o n b u s a n d i n f r as t r u c t u re t r a i n i n g

Leveraging 450 years of combined experience, NFI is leading the electrification of mass mobility around the world With zeroemission buses and coaches, infrastructure a n d t e c h n o l o g y, N F I m e e t s t o d a y ’s u r b a n demands for scalable smar t mobility solutions Together, NFI is enabling more livable c i t i e s t h ro u g h c o n n e c t e d , c l e a n a n d s u stainable transpor tation

With 7,500 team members in nine countries, NFI is a leading global bus manufacture or mass mobility solutions under the brands New Flyer® (heavy-duty transit buses), MCI® (motorcoaches), Alexander Dennis Limited ( s i n g l e - a n d d o u b l e - d e c k b u s e s ) , P l a x t o n (motorcoaches), ARBOC® (low-floor cutaway and medium-duty buses) and NFI Par ts™ NFI currently offers the widest range of sustainable drive systems available, including zero-emission electric (trolley, batter y and f u e l c e l l ) , n a t u r a l g a s , e l e c t r i c h y b r i d a n d clean diesel In total, NFI supports its installed b a s e o f m o r e t h a n 1 0 5 , 0 0 0 b u s e s a n d coaches around the world

New Flyer is North America’s heavy-duty t r a n s i t b u s l e a d e r a n d o f f e r s t h e m o s t advanced product line under the Xcelsior® and Xcelsior CHARGE® brands It also offers i n f r a s t r u c t u r e d e v e l o p m e n t t h r o u g h N F I Infrastructure Solutions™, a service dedicated to providing safe, sustainable and reliable charging and mobility solutions New F l y e r a c t i v e l y s u p p o r t s m o re t h a n 3 5 , 0 0 0 heavy-duty transit buses (New Flyer, NABI a n d O r i o n ) c u r re n t l y i n s e r v i c e , o f w h i c h 8,600 are powered by electric motors and b a t t e r y p r o p u l s i o n a n d 1 , 9 0 0 a r e z e r o -

emission Further information is available at www newflyer com

MCI at UMA Expo 2023

Motor Coach Industries (MCI), a subsidiary of NFI Group Inc (NFI), and North America’s motorcoach leader backed by reliable in-field technical expertise, 24/7 roadside assistance and par ts suppor t, recently announced its 90th anniversary of leading the motorcoach industry in North America and providing a reliability-driven service to its customers At the U n i t e d M o t o rc o a c h A s s o c i a t i o n ’s ( U M A ) Motorcoach Expo 2023, MCI today demonstrated the latest innovations in luxury motorcoach amenities and announced the expansion of its service center network

On Januar y 13, MCI celebrated its 90th anniversar y with a reception at UMA Expo 2023 Numerous attendees visited the MCI b o o t h t o m e e t M C I ’s s a l e s , t e c h n i c a l a n d parts support teams while hearing first-hand insight on what is ahead for MCI as it cont i n u e s i t s j o u r n e y t o i t s 1 0 0 t h a n n i v e r s a r y around the cor ner

D u r i n g t h e U M A E x p o 2 0 2 3 , M C I d i splayed its newest clean-diesel J4500, the industry’s best-selling motorcoach With toptier amenities for passengers and the latest s a f e g u a rd s f o r c o a c h o p e r a t o r s a n d t h e environment, the J4500 features:

• Best-in-class legroom for up to 60 passengers and patented spiral entr yway;

• Ambient and RGB lighting throughout the interior;

• Customizable entrance door welcome light;

• A l a r g e r e a r t r a n s o m w i n d o w f o r enhanced interior spaciousness;

• Sleek Amaya Alpha passenger seats with ergonomic funtionality;

• Advanced driver assistance and safety technologies from Bendix Fusion collision mitigation with lane depar ture war ning and a 360-degree camera for a birds-eye view around the coach; and

• C u m m i n s X 1 2 1 1 8 L , 4 1 0 H P c l e a nd i e s e l e n g i n e , A l l i s o n B 5 0 0 t r a n s m i s s i o n a n d 3 5 4 r e a r a x l e r a t i o t o p r o v i d e e v e n greater optimal fuel economy

“MCI is proud to sponsor the UMA Expo 2023 and display our newest J4500 with a design and reliability that make it the industry’s best-selling coach,” said Brent Maitland, vice president, private sector sales and marketing, MCI “We are excited to join the UMA Expo 2023 with our MCI team, providing reliability-driven service and support to our customers It is our customers’ trust that allowed us to reach this 90-year milestone, and we truly appreciate our many long-standing partnerships with motorcoach operators ”

MCI enters 2023 eager to reach lofty new milestones after finishing 2022 on a high note by delivering its 10,000th J4500 coach, powered by clean-diesel technology, and its first batter y-electric J4500 CHARGE™ “MCI is a proven leader in clean diesel technology, b u t w e a l w a y s h a v e a n e y e o n t h e f u t u re , anticipating what’s next,” said Chris Stoddart, president, North American Bus and Coach, NFI “While we understand that our private sector customers will make the transition to zero-emission vehicles at different rates, we suppor t them by offering our model range in 100 percent battery-electric including the J4500 CHARGE, D45 CRT LE CHARGE with low-entry, and our newly launched high-floor D45 CRT CHARGE, along with our infrastructure solutions we will help guide them as they transition ”

T h i s f o r w a r d - t h i n k i n g s t r a t e g y a l s o a p p l i e s t o t h e M C I s e r v i c e n e t w o r k A f t e r opening its San Francisco Bay Area service center in 2017, MCI sees the need for further expansion on the West Coast As a result, MCI’s southern California location is moving into its new, more convenient location in Los Angeles, which plans to be open in March Also underway are plans for a service center facility in Seattle, Washington, expected to open later in 2023

NFI Par ts™, Nor th America’s most comp re h e n s i v e o r g a n i z a t i o n p ro v i d i n g p a r t s , technical publications, training and support for buses and motorcoaches, continues to b r i n g v a l u e t o t h e p r i v a t e c o a c h m a r k e t M a n y re c e n t l y i n t ro d u c e d n e w p ro d u c t s , alternate parts programs and growing competitive cross reference catalogs focus on r e d u c i n g o p e r a t o r c o s t s a n d i n c r e a s i n g

National Bus Trader / March, 2023 • 5

Motor Coach Industries (MCI) celebrated its 90th anniversary with a reception in its booth at the United Motorcoach Association’s Expo in Orlando MCI displayed its popular J4500 model at the event Shown here are several of the sales staff along with the J4500 coach on display

c o a c h u p t i m e I n 2 0 2 2 , N F I P a r t s w o r k e d hard to increase inventor y availability and updated the popular MCI Critical Parts Lists by coach model “Operators tell us they like this program for its ability to manage costs and control inventory,” said Brian Dewsnup, president, NFI Par ts

Originally launched in 2012, the Critical Parts Lists identify key parts deemed essent i a l t o c o a c h u p t i m e a n d f o r c u s t o m e r s t o consider stocking in their own shop The list, c o m p i l e d w i t h t h e i n p u t o f M C I o p e r a t o r s and in-house technical experts, includes all t h e h i g h - w e a r p a r t s b y p a r t n u m b e r a n d quantity per coach for quick reference and maintenance suppor t

I n a d d i t i o n , N F I P a r t s h a s r e c e n t l y announced the expansion of its parts warehouse space in Fresno, California, doubling the square footage to provide better availability and reduce delivery lead-time for the West Coast customers The NFI Parts Fresno warehouse is now stocked with a majority of high-demand MCI coach maintenance p a r t s a n d w i l l c o n t i n u e a d d i n g i n v e n t o r y over time to meet customer demand

Relationship-driven suppor t functions, including MCI’s in-field Technical Solutions Managers, technical call center, 24/7 roadside assistance and award-winning technic i a n t r a i n i n g t h ro u g h M C I A c a d e m y, a l s o h e l p k e e p t h e m o r e t h a n 2 0 , 0 0 0 M C I c o a c h e s c u r re n t l y i n s e r v i c e a n d r u n n i n g ever y day

M C I A c a d e m y, t h e o n l y m o t o r c o a c h industry training institution to earn the Automotive Service Excellence (ASE) accreditation, provides no-cost training programs for all levels of technicals through hundreds of online courses In 2022, MCI Academy re-opened in-person classes at its National Training Center in Louisville, Kentucky, and

announced its ASE five-year recertification To lear n more, visit mciacademy com

MCI is North America’s public and private market motorcoach leader Products include the luxur y J Series (an industr y best-seller f o r m o r e t h a n a d e c a d e ) , t h e w o r k h o r s e D-Series and the brand new zero-emission luxury and commuter coaches: the batterye l e c t r i c J 4 5 0 0 C H A R G E ™ , D 4 5 C R T CHARGE™ and D45 CRT LE CHARGE™

Temsa Announces In-House Financial Ser vices

Temsa recently announced Temsa Financ i a l S e r v i c e s , a n e w a n d m o re a ff o rd a b l e way to acquire its highly innovative and comfor table motorcoaches

Temsa Financial Service is the result of a collaboration between Temsa, the comp a n y t h a t s e t s t h e s t a n d a rd i n i n n o v a t i v e and sustainable mobility and Auxilior Capital Par tners, Nor th America’s fastest growing s a l e s c a t a l y s t , fi n a n c e c o m p a n y Te m s a Financial Services offers customers affordable acquisition methods for its full line of motorcoaches with fast, frictionless service

Fatih Kozan, Temsa’s managing director, commented, “A branded finance offering is part of the total solution Temsa North America now offers its clients and aligns with our goal t o b e a m o n g t h e w o r l d ’s m o s t c u s t o m e rcentered businesses We chose the Auxilior team, because of their long and successful histor y in rolling out finance programs and enabling sales and market share growth for their partners In addition, our value of innovation is aligned, so we knew that providing our clients with a seamless finance experience enabled by world-class technologies and focus on service was guaranteed ”

Kozan continued, “One of the criteria of paramount impor tance was to par tner with

an organization that we believed would be good stewards of our growing and prestigious brand The choice was clear based on the marquee brands with which the Auxilior leadership team has been associated ”

Don Campbell, Auxilior’s chief risk officer, a n d Te m s a F i n a n c i a l S e r v i c e s e x e c u t i v e leader, said, “We’re so pleased to par tner with Temsa Our organizations have synergies and common corporate cultures and beliefs, which will result in the best financial solutions being offered to Temsa’s clients ”

Te m s a F i n a n c i a l S e r v i c e s e n a b l e s c l i e n t s t o b e a p p ro v e d f o r u p t o $ 3 5 0 , 0 0 0 w i t h a p p l i c a t i o n o n l y L o w e r t o t a l c o s t o f ownership takes on new meaning with cust o m i z e d fi n a n c e s t r u c t u re t o m e e t c l i e n t s ’ business and balance sheet needs Temsa F i n a n c i a l S e r v i c e s ’ fi n a n c e e x e c u t i v e a re e x p e r i e n c e d d e a l e n g i n e e r s w h o u n d e rstand how to structure transactions to help c l i e n t s g e t m o r e o f w h a t t h e y n e e d –w h e t h e r i t i s a d d i t i o n a l m o t o rc o a c h e s f o r t h e i r e x i s t i n g fl e e t o r m o re f u l l y f e a t u re d , i n n o v a t i v e Te m s a m o d e l s

R o n n i e D e M a r c o , Te m s a F i n a n c i a l Services VP of sales, said, “Our organizations are connected at every level from execu t i v e s p o n s o r s h i p t h ro u g h t h e s a l e s a n d closing processes This connection ensures maximum focus and attention on Temsa’s c l i e n t s , a n d I b e l i e v e t h a t t o g e t h e r, w e ’ re o ff e r i n g a b e s t - i n - c l a s s p ro d u c t w i t h t h e added feature of affordability ”

Temsa Financial Services’ finance execu t i v e s a r e a l i g n e d g e o g r a p h i c a l l y w i t h Te m s a ’ s e a s o n e d t e a m o f re g i o n a l s a l e s managers Temsa clients can count on fast approvals, timely communications regarding t h e i r fi n a n c e t r a n s a c t i o n s a n d s e a m l e s s closings Temsa regional sales executives confidently connect their clients with Temsa

Te m s a r e c e n t l y a n n o u n c e d i t s n e w Te m s a F i n a n c i a l S e r v i c e s t o m a k e i t easer for customers to a c q u i r e i t s l i n e o f coaches. Temsa Financ i a l S e r v i c e s i s t h e result of a collaboration b e t w e e n Te m s a a n d A u x i l i o r C a p i t a l P a r tners Shown here is the Te m s a f a c i l i t y i n Orlando, Florida

F i n a n c i a l S e r v i c e s , w h o t a k e t h e fi n a n c e process from front to back

Equipment News

By continually enhancing its product and service offerings, Temsa expects its Nor th American sales to double and continue its

mission to be the human-centered technolo g y c o m p a n y w h i c h p ro v i d e s s m a r t a n d sustainable mobility solutions to the world for more pleasant jour neys

With more than 15,000 vehicles in 66 countries, Temsa is reinforcing its position in the U S day by day Having entered the U S mark e t i n 2 0 1 0 , Te m s a c o n t i n u e s t o o p e r a t e through the Temsa North America company founded in 2018 Temsa has managed to be one of the most important actors in the industry, by achieving a noteworthy market share where it operates presently, appears to be an “automotive-focused technology company” with more than 1,500 vehicles in the U S The company that considers the North America market as one of its growth accelerators in the future and aims to bring the TS45E electric motorcoach that it has recently developed specifically for the U S market

Panorama Tours Orders MCI J4500

MCI congratulates Panorama Tours Inc , a bus company providing shuttle and transpor tation services across New Jersey, on its latest J4500 clean-diesel coach order Panorama Tours, a long-time MCI customer a n d f a m i l y - r u n m o t o r c o a c h c o m p a n y, s i g n e d t h e c o n t r a c t a t t h e re c e n t U n i t e d M o t o rc o a c h A s s o c i a t i o n ’s ( U M A ) M o t o rcoach Expo 2023 in Orlando, Florida

Panorama Tours Inc signed up for another J4500 coach at the recent UMA Expo in Orlando The family-run motorcoach company is based in New Jersey MCI was celebrating its 90th anniversary of bus building at this same event

As a proud Platinum-level sponsor, MCI d i s p l a y e d i t s l u x u r y J 4 5 0 0 c l e a n - d i e s e l coach at the UMA Expo 2023 The MCI team welcomed conference attendees to its booth to announce MCI’s 90th anniversary of leading the motorcoach industry in North Ameri c a a n d t o c e l e b r a t e m a n y l o n g - s t a n d i n g p a r t n e r s h i p s w i t h m o t o rc o a c h o p e r a t o r s w h o s e t r u s t h a s e n a b l e d M C I t o re a c h i t s 90-year milestone

Revised Date for FMCA in Tucson, Arizona

T h e F a m i l y M o t o r C o a c h A s s o c i a t i o n (FMCA), an international organization for RV owners, will be making a retur n visit to the P i m a C o u n t y F a i r g ro u n d s i n Tu c s o n , A r izona, in 2024 RV owners from across the United States and Canada will gather in The G r a n d C a n y o n S t a t e a s F M C A h o s t s i t s 108th Inter national Convention & RV Expo i n Tu c s o n M a r c h 2 0 t h r o u g h 2 3 , 2 0 2 4 Because of a date conflict that was discovered, these dates have been revised since the original release was sent

FMCA also hosted successful events at the Pima County Fairgrounds in 1985 and 2022

“ We a re t h r i l l e d t o b e h e a d i n g b a c k t o Tucson and the Pima County Fairgrounds for our 108th International Convention & RV Expo,” said FMCA CEO Chris Smith “The RV o w n e r s w h o w e re t h e re i n 2 0 2 2 h a d a great time, and I expect our 2024 event to be even bigger and better The fairgrounds staff was incredible to work with last year, and we anticipate that the planning and exe-

Equipment News

c u t i o n o f t h e e v e n t w i l l b e e v e n s m o o t h e r and more seamless this time around ”

FMCA conventions are not just for members The association invites all RV owners to join the festivities Those who are considering the RV lifestyle or are just curious have an oppor tunity to take par t as well During a n F M C A c o n v e n t i o n , RV o w n e r s ro l l i n t o the host facility in their homes on wheels and set up camp, creating a new neighborhood seemingly over night

One key element of the event is the RV Expo Major RV manufacturers and dealers bring the latest models and invite convention a t t e n d e e s a n d m e m b e r s o f t h e p u b l i c t o stop by for a tour RVs in all shapes and sizes w i l l b e o p e n f o r i n s p e c t i o n d u r i n g s h o w hours RV-related accessories, components, services and other products of interest to travelers will be available as well

When they are not shopping, attendees take in seminars, enjoy daytime and evening entertainment and socialize with others who share their love of the RV lifestyle

A s s o c i a t i o n l e a d e r s a n d s t a ff c u r re n t l y are preparing for two inter national convent i o n s s c h e d u l e d f o r 2 0 2 3 F i r s t u p w i l l b e F M C A’s 1 0 6 t h I n t e r n a t i o n a l C o n v e n t i o n & R V E x p o , s e t t o t a k e p l a c e M a r c h 1 5 t h ro u g h 1 8 a t t h e G e o r g i a N a t i o n a l F a i rgrounds and Agricenter in Perry The assoc i a t i o n a l s o w i l l m a k e a re t u r n v i s i t t o t h e Cam-Plex Multi-Event Facilities in Gillette, W y o m i n g , A u g u s t 2 3 t h ro u g h 2 6 , f o r t h e 1 0 7 t h c o n v e n t i o n R e g i s t r a t i o n f o r t h e

Perry, Georgia event is currently underway F o r d e t a i l s o r t o r e g i s t e r, v i s i t w w w f m c a c o m / f m c a - p e r r y - 2 0 2 3 - l e a r nm o r e R e g i s t r a t i o n f o r t h e G i l l e t t e , Wyoming convention will begin at the end o f M a rc h 2 0 2 3

To l e a r n m o re a b o u t F M C A , i n c l u d i n g e v e n t s , v i s i t F M C A c o m o r p h o n e ( 5 1 3 ) 474-3622 or (800) 543-3622

APTA Applauds Infrastructure Improvements

Following President Biden’s second State o f t h e U n i o n A d d r e s s , A m e r i c a n P u b l i c Transportation Association (APTA) President and CEO Paul P Skoutelas released the following statement:

“We applaud the Biden Administration’s continued commitment to investing in infrastructure improvements for passenger conn e c t i v i t y a r o u n d t h e c o u n t r y M i l l i o n s o f Americans in cities, suburbs and rural communities rely on public transit and passenger rail for access to jobs, education, health care and civic activities essential to vibrant communities

“The investment in public transportation under the Infrastructure Investment & Jobs A c t ( I I J A ) r e m a i n s c r i t i c a l f o r A m e r i c a ’s f u t u re s t re n g t h , s u c c e s s a n d p ro s p e r i t y Public transpor tation keeps our cities and towns moving Businesses large and small rely on transit to deliver the customers and workers they need And local communities a n d e c o n o m i e s g ro w a s t h e a v a i l a b i l i t y o f public transpor tation services attract new i n v e s t m e n t s , r e s i d e n t s , e v e n t s a n d re v e n u e

“ T h i s c o m i n g y e a r, A P TA a n d i t s 1 , 5 0 0 public- and private-sector member organizations will continue to work with the Biden Administration, Congress and regional leade r s i n p u t t i n g t h i s i n v e s t m e n t t o w o r k t o s t re n g t h e n o u r n a t i o n ’s p u b l i c t r a n s i t a n d passenger rail infrastructure for the future and achieve the vision that President Biden has laid out ”

UMA Tur ns Out the Lights on the Old Headquar ters Building

After three decades on West Street in Old Town Alexandria, UMA has officially moved out of their old office space Over the years U M A a l s o h o s t e d t h e N a t i o n a l L i m o u s i n e Association (NLA), National School Transp o r t a t i o n A s s o c i a t i o n ( N S TA ) a n d BusRates com

A n e w c h a p t e r o f U M A’s h i s t o r y o p e n s on Eisenhower Avenue, as they settle into t h e i r n e w s p a c e a c r o s s f r o m t h e U S P a t e n t a n d Tr a d e m a r k o f f i c e a t 2 0 3 4 E i s e n h o w e r A v e n u e , S u i t e 2 4 7 , A l e x a nd r i a , VA 2 2 3 1 4

The Family Motor Coach Association is inviting RV and converted coach owners to attend its 108th International Convention and RV Expo in Tucson, Arizona Dates have now been changed to March 20 through 23, 2024 Major manufacturers and dealers will have displays at the event

A l o t o f u n p a c k i n g i s n e c e s s a r y, a l o n g with reconnecting to all the moder n necessities such as phone, fax and Inter net Your patience is appreciated

“While packing, we’ve had the oppor tunity to go through a lot of old memories and revisit the rich histor y of the United Motorc o a c h A s s o c i a t i o n , ” s a i d U M A P re s i d e n t and CEO Scott Michael “We can’t wait to get back to work for you ”

O h i o ’s C O TA O rd e r s 1 4 N e w F l y e r

Long-Range Electric Buses

NFI Group Inc (NFI), a leading independ e n t b u s a n d c o a c h m a n u f a c t u re r a n d a leader in electric mass mobility solutions, on January 17 announced that its subsidiary N e w F l y e r o f A m e r i c a I n c ( N e w F l y e r ) r e c e i v e d a n e w o r d e r f r o m C e n t r a l O h i o Tr a n s i t A u t h o r i t y ( C O TA ) f o r 1 4 z e r oemission, battery-electric Xcelsior CHARGE NG™ 40-foot, heavy-duty transit buses, purc h a s e d o ff t h e Wa s h i n g t o n S t a t e D e p a r tment of Enterprise Services contract

NFI Infrastructure Solutions™ will provide p ro j e c t c o o rd i n a t i o n a n d c o m m i s s i o n i n g , and 20 ABB HVC-C 150kW plug-in chargers and 40 dispensers, supporting reliable and s a f e b a t t e r y - e l e c t r i c b u s d e p l o y m e n t i n

Columbus, Ohio

Suppor ted by Federal Transit Administration funds, this order follows COTA’s prev i o u s p u r c h a s e o f e i g h t b a t t e r y - e l e c t r i c

X c e l s i o r C H A R G E N G t r a n s i t b u s e s , announced in May 2022 These new zeroemission, Buy America-compliant buses will support COTA’s goals of enhancing passenger experience and transitioning to a 100 percent zero-emission bus fleet by 2035 to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2045

COTA is an award-winning regional public transit provider serving the greater Columbus area and central Ohio, delivering nearly 19 million annual passenger trips In 2020, the American Public Transpor tation Association awarded COTA its second Outstanding Public Transpor tation System Achievement Award, recognizing COTA as the best transit organization of its size in North America

“For over 20 years, COTA has relied on NFI’s efficient and safe mobility solutions NFI has delivered over 186 transit buses to COTA since 2001 With this latest order of high-performance electric buses and infrastructure, we continue to enable COTA’s safe and successful transition to a net zero carbon future,” said Chris Stoddar t, president, North American Bus and Coach, NFI “Each Xcelsior CHARGE NG will avoid up to 135 m e t r i c t o n s o f g r e e n h o u s e g a s p e r y e a r compared to a traditional diesel bus, delivering substantial clean air benefits to Colum-

It was the end of an era when the United Motorcoach Association moved out of their old office space on West Street in Old Town Alexandria. Over the past three decades at this location the office also hosted other associations including the National Limousine Association and the National School Transportation Association UMA has moved to a new location on Eisenhower Avenue in Alexandria, Virginia, across from the U S Patent and Trademark office

bus communities Together with COTA, we are building more sustainable communities in Ohio ”

I n t r o d u c e d i n 2 0 2 1 , t h e E x c e l s i o r

CHARGE NG bus incorporates three distinct technology advancements, including highenergy batteries that extend range up to 13 percent, advanced protective battery packa g i n g f o r e a s y i n s t a l l a t i o n a n d s i m p l e r serviceability and a new lightweight electric

traction drive system with up to 90 percent energy recovery For more information, visit newflyer com/ng

New Flyer’s zero-emission deployments are suppor ted by NFI Infrastructure Solutions, providing safe and reliable infrastructure services for smart, sustainable mobility p ro j e c t s w i t h m o re t h a n 3 3 0 E V c h a r g e r s installed to date For more infor mation visit nfigroup com/IS

New Flyer recently received an additional order for 14 electric buses and associated charging infrastructure from COTA The Central Ohio Transit Authority operates nearly 19 million annual passenger trips in Columbus and central Ohio Following up on a previous order for 80 battery-electric buses, this new order includes 14 battery-electric Xcelsior CHARGE NG 40-foot transit buses plus the associated charging infrastructure

NFI is a leader in zero-emission mobility, with electric vehicles operating (or on order) in more than 120 cities in six countries NFI offers the widest range of zero-emission batt e r y a n d f u e l c e l l - e l e c t r i c b u s e s a n d coaches, and its vehicles have completed more than 85 million EV service miles

Today, NFI supports growing North American cities with scalable, clean and sustainable mobility solutions through a four-pillar approach that includes buses and coaches, t e c h n o l o g y, i n f r a s t r u c t u re a n d w o r k f o rc e development NFI also operates the Vehicle Innovation Center (VIC), the first and only i n n o v a t i o n l a b o f i t s k i n d d e d i c a t e d t o advancing bus and coach technology and p ro v i d i n g w o r k f o rc e d e v e l o p m e n t S i n c e o p e n i n g i n l a t e 2 0 1 7 , t h e V I C h a s h o s t e d more than 300 interactive events, welcoming 5,000 industry professionals for EV and infrastructure training

On Your Mark Transpor tation Offers Spanish Videos

O n Yo u r M a r k Tr a n s p o r t a t i o n L L C n o w o ff e r s c u s t o m i z e d v i d e o s i n S p a n i s h a n d Spanish translation of written materials to its p a s s e n g e r g ro u n d t r a n s p o r t a t i o n c l i e n t s This new service can be utilized for employees and passengers alike

“We are continuously looking for ways to help our clients find solutions to issues they f a c e i n t h e i r d a y - t o - d a y o p e r a t i o n s , ” s a i d Mark Szyperski, On Your Mark Transpor tation president and CEO “Having the ability

to communicate directly to an essential sector of the employee and passenger market was a problem we felt we could offer a solution to ”

O n Yo u r M a r k Tr a n s p o r t a t i o n a l r e a d y o ff e r s a v a r i e t y o f t r a i n i n g , m a r k e t i n g a n d social media videos to its clients at a price that would fit most organizations’ budgetary needs Through this work, Szyperski said, the company found there was a need to offer the same videos in Spanish

As with all the company’s video product i o n s , e a c h c a n b e c u s t o m i z e d t o fi t t h e client’s needs “From explaining to the pass e n g e r h o w t o e v a c u a t e t h e v e h i c l e i n a n emergency, to where an employee should go in bad weather conditions, these videos need to be made in Spanish as well, in order to reach all customers and clients,” Szyperski said “We can come to our client’s location or recreate it with pictures or videos supplied by the client ”

The company can also take any written materials and translate them from English to Spanish If you would like your employee manuals or passenger flyers translated to Spanish, On Your Mark Transpor tation will provide that service

O n Yo u r M a r k Tr a n s p o r t a t i o n i s a f u l ls e r v i c e c o n s u l t i n g fi r m f o r c l i e n t s i n t h e transit, school bus, motorcoach and luxur y transpor tation industries

Several bus companies and industry suppliers have expanded their sales efforts to include the Hispanic community To help in this area, On Your Mark Transportation now offers customized videos in Spanish as well as a Spanish translation of written materials Both the videos as well as the written material can be customized for individual customers

“We take pride in finding solutions for the passenger ground transpor tation industr y i n a l l a r e a s o f m a r k e t i n g , m a i n t e n a n c e , s a f e t y, m a n a g e m e n t , g r a n t w r i t i n g a n d more,” Szyperski explained “This is just one more service we have added to our continuously growing reper toire ”

F o r a n e x a m p l e o f o n e o f t h e c o mp a n y ’s v i d e o s i n S p a n i s h , v i s i t https://youtu/be/Fv8 i s6DJI

O n Yo u r M a r k Tr a n s p o r t a t i o n L L C i s a c o n s u l t i n g fi r m b a s e d i n N a s h v i l l e , Te nn e s s e e , o ff e r i n g s e r v i c e s t h ro u g h o u t t h e United States to transit, school bus, motorcoach and luxur y transpor tation fir ms With more than 10 years in business and more than 35 years of experience to pull from, On Yo u r M a r k Tr a n s p o r t a t i o n L L C h a s o n e o f the broadest service offerings to the industry and a per fect five-star Google rating Find letters of testimony, company infor mation and more at onyourmarktransportation com Reach them at Info@OnYourMarkTransportation com or (615) 669-0107

The TECO Line Streetcar Hits All-Time Ridership Record

The TECO Line Streetcar smashed the all-time monthly ridership record in December 2022 with 118,575 trips It was the highest monthly ridership in more than 20 years of TECO Line Streetcar service

The TECO Line Streetcar has broken several ridership records over the past year with t h e p re v i o u s m o n t h l y re c o rd a c h i e v e d i n March 2022 with 107,956 trips reported The Streetcar also ended fiscal year 2022 (October 2021 through September 31, 2022) with all-time annual ridership of more than a million trips taken

The record ridership is attributed to population growth along the Streetcar line, visi t o r s i n t o w n f o r e v e n t s s u c h a s t h e R e l ia Q u e s t B o w l a n d a n o v e r a l l r e t u r n i n Hillsborough County tourism

“When we opened the streetcar system, there were ver y few people living in downtown and Ybor City,” said Michael English, p re s i d e n t , Ta m p a H i s t o r i c S t re e t c a r I n c “ N o w p e o p l e a re r i d i n g i t , n o t j u s t f o r f u n ; now they’re riding it to get to work, to go to s c h o o l I t h a s j u s t b e e n a s t o u n d i n g T h e Streetcar is a viable transportation option in downtown and Ybor City ”

The TECO Line Streetcar is a partnership betwen HART, the City of Tampa and Tampa Historic Streetcar Inc Visit

TECO Line Streetcar

Equipment News

M o t o r C o a c h I n d u s t r i e s ( M C I ) , a s u bs i d i a r y o f N F I G ro u p I n c ( N F I ) a n d N o r t h A m e r i c a ’s m o t o rc o a c h l e a d e r b a c k e d b y re l i a b l e i n - fi e l d t e c h n i c a l e x p e r t i s e , 2 4 / 7 roadside assistance and par ts suppor t, on Januar y 13 announced that Peoria Char ter C o a c h r e c e i v e d t h e U n i t e d M o t o r c o a c h Association’s (UMA) Environmental Leadership Award during the UMA Expo 2023, Januar y 11-14 in Orlando, Florida

T h e U M A E n v i r o n m e n t a l L e a d e r s h i p Award, sponsored by MCI, was introduced in 2008 to honor operators that demonstrate the greatest commitment to environmental sustainability in their business practices

“ P e o r i a C h a r t e r s i s a l e a d i n g i n d u s t r y example of green stewardship,” said Brent M a i t l a n d , v i c e p r e s i d e n t , P r i v a t e S e c t o r Sales and Marketing, MCI “The Peoria Charter team is forward thinkers in their fuel cons e r v a t i o n p o l i c i e s , a n d w e a p p l a u d t h e i r effor ts in promoting the environmental benefits of travel by motorcoaches powered by clean diesel technology ”

P e o r i a C h a r t e r C o a c h , a l e a d i n g M i dw e s t e r n c h a r t e r c o a c h a n d s c h e d u l e d service provider, operates across three locations in Illinois, including its newest site in C h i c a g o , r u n s a fl e e t o f n e w e r m o d e l c o a c h e s a n d u s e s b i o d i e s e l t o p o w e r i t s coaches

Bill Winkler, president of Peoria Charters, a third-generation family member to run the c o m p a n y, a d v o c a t e s t h a t t a k i n g a m o t o rcoach powered by clean diesel is the best environmental transpor tation choice a trave l e r c a n m a k e “ We a re a s c l o s e t o z e roemissions as we can be,” said Winkler “The exhaust on today’s motorcoaches is cleaner than the air coming in Protecting the environment is a value we uphold and consist e n t l y p r o m o t e t o o u r r i d e r s h i p W e a r e delighted to receive this award ”

E a c h o f t h e c o m p a n y ’s 4 0 c o a c h e s p r o u d l y d i s p l a y s a “ P o w e r e d B y C l e a nDiesel Technology” badge at the entr yway for passengers to notice

D i e s e l p o w e r s y s t e m s c o n t i n u e t o achieve dramatic reductions in emissions, and the company’s use of biodiesel reduces emissions even further According to James Wa n g , P e o r i a C h a r t e r s d i re c t o r o f o p e r at i o n s , a d d i t i o n a l f u e l - s a v i n g i n i t i a t i v e s include Peoria’s proprietary software system t h a t l e t s s t a f f m a t c h p a s s e n g e r p i c k - u p points and drop-off destinations This allows routes to be planned more efficiently to minimize trip miles and fuel usage Additionally, a stringent idling policy and driver merit pro-

gram earn drivers star emblems for their unifor ms for excellent safety and fuel-efficient driving

From its very start, sustainability and productivity have been the driving force behind this busy charter operator Peoria Charters’ founder traded in the family car and received a loan from his sister to buy his first bus He began the business by shuttling workers to a nearby engine plant in 1941 at a time when

gas was being rationed during World War II

Today, the company is both a charter and scheduled service company serving private and public universities, spor ts teams and daily routes 365 days a year, along with shuttles to Chicago’s O’Hare Inter national Airport The company transports 500,000 passengers each year

MCI Announces Peoria Char ter Coach as Winner of Leadership Award

The popular TECO streetcar system in Tampa, Florida recently set an all-time ridership record in December of 2022 with 118,575 trips Streetcars connect the convention center with a popular tourism area including boat docks as well as the aquarium and then continue north to Ybor City, a popular tourist area Much of the increased ridership is due to expanding population along the line as well as increased tourism The photo shows one of the replica streetcars at the main stop in Ybor City

MCI presented the Environmental Leadership Award to Peoria Charter Coach during the recent UMA Expo in Orlando Based in Peoria, Illinois, Peoria Charter Coach operates motorcoaches powered by clean diesel technology and biodiesel fuel The award honors operators that demonstrate the greatest commitment to environmental sustainability in their business practices

Peoria Charters lists the six reasons why riding with this charter operator makes every day Ear th Day, noting that a single motorcoach can remove as many as 60 cars from t h e ro a d a t a n y o n e t i m e a n d i s t h e m o s t cost-efficient and efficient means to energy conservation in the transpor tation sector

Wor th noting is that a single person can reduce his carbon footprint by 77 percent for ever y 16 miles traveling by motorcoach rather than by car

Green Bay Metro Teams Up with Equans for Bus Technology and Transpor t Ser vices

Green Bay Metro, Green Bay’s mass transit system in Wisconsin, selected Equans, via its subsidiary Ineo Systrans USA Inc , to e n h a n c e i t s b u s s e r v i c e s v i a N AV I N E O Computer Aided Dispatch and Automatic Ve h i c l e L o c a t i o n ( C A D / AV L ) s y s t e m a n d moder n passenger infor mation Innovative a n d fl e x i b l e , E q u a n s ’ s o l u t i o n s w i l l p ro v e par ticularly handy during Green Bay Packers’ home games, which attract more than 80,000 fans to Lambeau Field

Green Bay Metro provides transportation s e r v i c e s i n G r e e n B a y, A s h w a u b e r n o n , Allouez, De Pere and Bellevue to a ridership of more than 700,000 annually With its fleet of 30 buses, the mass transit system operates 11 full-service bus routes, three limitedservice bus routes, Microtransit and Paratransit services Ten times a year, the city of Green Bay and its 100,000 inhabitants experience a significant influx of visitors at the Packers’ home games Four bus lines are s p e c i fi c a l l y d e s i g n e d t o e n s u re s a f e a n d reliable travel between the airpor t, the train station, the city center and the stadium

Equipment News

T h e E q u a n s C o m p u t e r A i d e d Dispatch/Automatic Vehicle Location feat u re s w i l l p ro v i d e s i g n i fi c a n t o p e r a t i o n a l u p g r a d e s f o r G re e n B a y M e t ro Tr a n s i t a l l year long Real-time dispatch functionalities will enable the mass transit system to add b u s t r i p s o n t h e fl y w h e n t h e P a c k e r s a re p l a y i n g o r c a n c e l a n d m o d i f y t r i p s i n t h e event of detours or roadwork Through a reliable and fully integrated onboard solution, all service changes will automatically update the General Transit Feed Specification realtime (GTFS-RT) feed and passenger information systems

O n t o p o f t r a d i t i o n a l i n t e r i o r n e x t s t o p s i g n s a n d A u t o m a t i c Vo i c e A n n u n c i a t i o n ( AVA ) , G r e e n B a y M e t r o ’s b u s fl e e t w i l l include innovative onboard Infotainment to improve rider experience The AVA and Infot a i n m e n t s y s t e m s w i l l c o m m u n i c a t e re a ltime service changes such as detours and timetable updates to riders at all stages of travel, both in vehicles and via digital displays at the Transit Center Vehicle position, trip updates and service aler ts will also be a u t o m a t i c a l l y u p d a t e d o n G o o g l e M a p s , Transit App and a passenger Web site for trip planning

T h e E q u a n s N AV I N E O h a r d w a r e a n d s o f t w a r e w i l l a s s i s t i n d a t a c a p t u r e a n d p ro v i d e f e e d b a c k t o b e t t e r m a n a g e a n d m o n i t o r G re e n B a y M e t ro Tr a n s i t s y s t e m Automatic Passenger Counting (APC) syst e m i n c l u d i n g A P C s o f t w a re a n a l y t i c s w i l l p ro v i d e h i g h l y p re c i s e d a t a w i t h a p ro v e n a c c u r a c y o f 9 8 p e r c e n t o r m o r e T h e C A D / AV L a n d A P C R e p o r t i n g m o d u l e w i l l p ro v i d e G re e n B a y M e t ro w i t h t h e a b i l i t y t o e a s i l y re t r i e v e , s u m m a r i z e a n d a n a l y z e t r a n s i t p e r f o r m a n c e d a t a f o r i n t e r n a l u s e a n d p l a n n i n g

Green Bay Metro has selected Equans to enhance its bus services Included are computer aided dispatch and automatic vehicle location Green Bay Metro operates 30 buses on 11 routes but expands its services 10 times a year when the Green Bay Packers play at Lambeau Field

Additionally, it will satisfy all requirements for federal repor ting to the National Transit Database (NTD) including vehicle revenue m i l e s , v e h i c l e re v e n u e h o u r s , p a s s e n g e r miles traveled and unlinked passenger trips

“Green Bay Metro carries one vision: to be a par tner in the community by providing transportation that is convenient and access i b l e t o t h e p u b l i c O u r p a r t n e r s h i p w i t h Equans stems from this ambition The precision of the data collected and transmitted in real-time to all parties concerned, and the flexibility of the system, are the spearheads of a mobility ever more dedicated to Green Bay’s dynamism,” said Patty Kiewiz, transit director at Green Bay Metro

“We are ver y proud of this first contract w o n i n t h e s t a t e o f W i s c o n s i n w i t h G re e n Bay Metro The end solution is a comprehensive and innovative system that illustrates all the advantages that digital technology can provide to improve citizens’ lives and suppor t a territor y’s attractiveness,” stated Stephan Goguet, COO of Ineo Systrans US, an Equans company

First Batter y Produced at Proterra Factor y

Proterra Inc , a leading innovator in commercial vehicle electrification technology, on January 12 announced that the company produced the first Proterra-powered EV batter y at its new Powered 1 batter y manufacturing plant located in Greer, South Carolina

B y a c h i e v i n g t h i s e n d - t o - e n d p ro d u ct i o n m i l e s t o n e a t P o w e r e d 1 , P r o t e r r a i s expected to begin deliveries to customers o f P r o t e r r a P o w e r e d ™ b a t t e r y s y s t e m s f r o m t h e n e w b a t t e r y f a c t o r y i n t h e f i r s t q u a r t e r o f 2 0 2 3 I n a d d i t i o n , P o w e r e d 1 h a s s t a r t e d p ro d u c t i o n o f d r i v e t r a i n s a n d o t h e r a n c i l l a r y s y s t e m s i n c o r p o r a t e d i n t o e l e c t r i c m e d i u m - a n d h e a v y - d u t y e l e c t r i c v e h i c l e s a n d e q u i p m e n t , s u c h a s h i g hv o l t a g e j u n c t i o n b o x e s

“

To d a y m a r k s a n i m p o r t a n t s t e p f o rw a r d i n o u r c o m p a n y ’s l o n g j o u r n e y towards shaping an all-electric, emissionsf re e f u t u re A c h i e v i n g t h i s i m p o r t a n t m i l estone at Powered 1 a little over a year after a n n o u n c i n g o u r p l a n s f o r t h e f a c t o r y i s a reflection on the talent, innovation and coll a b o r a t i o n o f o u r i n c re d i b l e t e a m a t P rot e r r a , ” s a i d P ro t e r r a C E O G a re t h J o y c e “ A t f u l l s c a l e , w e b e l i e v e P o w e re d 1 w i l l be the largest batter y manufacturing facili t y i n t h e U n i t e d S t a t e s d e d i c a t e d e x c l usively to electric commercial vehicles and we’re posed to meet the incredible opport u n i t i e s t h a t l i e a h e a d f o r z e r o - e m i s s i o n t r a n s p o r t a t i o n ”

P o w e re d 1 i s P ro t e r r a ’s fi r s t p u r p o s ebuilt, high-volume batter y production plant i n t h e E a s t e r n U n i t e d S t a t e s w i t h m u l t i p l e

Equipment News

g i g a g w a t t h o u r s o f a n n u a l p r o d u c t i o n c a p a c i t y p l a n n e d a t t h e f a c i l i t y P ro t e r r a h a s a l re a d y c re a t e d m o re t h a n 1 0 0 n e w j o b s a t t h e 3 2 7 , 0 0 0 - s q u a r e - f o o t b a t t e r y p l a n t , w i t h r o l e s i n c l u d i n g e n g i n e e r i n g , p r o d u c t i o n , q u a l i t y a n d o t h e r p o s i t i o n s w i t h i n t h e c o m p a n y ’s P ro t e r r a P o w e re d & E n e r g y b u s i n e s s u n i t

By opening the company’s first batter y factory in South Carolina, Proterra is bringing state-of-the-art battery production closer to its Proterra-powered customers on the East Coast, Europe and its own Proterra Transit e l e c t r i c b u s m a n u f a c t u r i n g o p e r a t i o n s i n Greenville, South Carolina

ADL’s Autonomous Enviro 100AEV Bus Powers the CAVFor th2 Project

N F I ’s s u b s i d i a r y A l e x a n d e r D e n n i s announced that it will continue developing autonomous bus technology in the CAVForth2 project, led by Fusion Processing Ltd and supported by the UK Government

T h i s p ro j e c t w i l l s e e S t a g e c o a c h , t h e U K ’s l a r g e s t b u s o p e r a t o r, e x t e n d t h e 1 4m i l e r o u t e o f t h e e x i s t i n g C AV F o r t h autonomous bus service poised to launch t o t h e p u b l i c t h i s s p r i n g a f t e r e x t e n s i v e testing The additional five-mile section of t h e r o u t e w i l l t a k e i n m o r e c o m p l e x a u t o n o m o u s d r i v i n g s c e n a r i o s o n b u s y c a t e g o r y A a n d B ro a d s , m i x i n g w i t h c i t yc e n t e r t r a ff i c

CAVForth2 will utilize an autonomous vers i o n o f t h e n e x t - g e n e r a t i o n E n v i ro 1 0 0 E V

e l e c t r i c b u s f ro m A l e x a n d e r D e n n i s , a l s o equipped with Fusion’s CAVStar® ADS

Irizar ie Trams Operate on Madrid’s First BRT Line

The first Bus Rapid that will start running on the city’s streets in May was presented i n M a d r i d i n F e b r u a r y 7 I t w i l l b e t h e fi r s t h i g h - c a p a c i t y r a p i d e l e c t r i c b u s l i n e i n Madrid The system will connect the neighborhoods of Valdebebas and Sanchinarro with the Ramón y Cajal hospital using a busonly lane and, for the first time, it will have signal pre-emption

The presentation ceremony was held on Avendia de las Fuerzas Ar madas in Valdebebas in a section of the road where work is already underway to implement the BRT, which stands for Bus Rapid Transit The line will have a fleet of 10 Irizar ie tram buses

With the addition of these 10 buses, the EMT of Madrid will have a total of 175 zeroemissions Irizar buses in its fleet

T h e fi r s t r a p i d h i g h - c a p a c i t y l i n e i n M a d r i d w i l l h a v e 1 0 c o m p l e t e l y e l e c t r i c buses, which will be 12-meter-long Irizar ie t r a m v e h i c l e s T h e v e h i c l e s c o m b i n e t h e fl e x i b i l i t y o f a n u r b a n b u s w i t h t h e h i g h capacity and ease of moving around inside a tram With a moder n, minimalist design, chrome edging and large glazed areas on the sides, it can be easily distinguished from the rest of the municipal fleet

Instead of rear view mirrors, the vehicle is equipped with cameras that show images on two screens on both sides of the driver’s seat The layout of the elements inside was planned for high capacity with all the guarantees of comfort and universal accessibility for users The vehicles have entrance and exit doors on the right side and a front door with only one leaf

These zero-emission Irizar vehicles have latest generation batteries with more than 430 kWh of power The drive unit is a 20 kW central motor

The vehicles assigned to this line were specially designed to use bus lanes separate from the rest of traffic and carr y up to 100 passengers The first rapid bus line will have an itinerary with 19 intermediate stops in each direction, plus one end of the line in Valdebebas and the other next to Ramón y Cajal hospital It will use a platfor m that is separated from the other lanes of traffic, and uniquely, priority will be given to the middle of the street whenever possible to avoid conflicting with other vehicles In all 12 intermediate stops have variable message panels

B y g o i n g t h r o u g h t h e c i t y c e n t e r a n d adapting to an itinerary that has traffic signal p re - e m p t i o n , t h e ro u t e w i l l b e f a s t e r a n d smoother and travel times will be dramatically shor ter The line will have a frequency between eight and 12 minutes at peak times It is expected to run at an average commer-

The

was

because it took place a little more than a

after announcing plans for the factory Powered 1 has also started production of drivelines and other systems for heavy-duty electric vehicles

Alexander Dennis recently announced that it would continue developing autonomous bus technology for the CAVForth2 project This is generally known as the most ambitious and complex autonomous bus service to date Stagecoach, the operator of the route, recently announced that they were extending the route another five miles to include busy road and mixing with city traffic

c i a l s p e e d h i g h e r t h a n c o n v e n t i o n a l E M T lines

T h e r o u t e i s 3 1 k i l o m e t e r s l o n g , 1 9 o f which are in a bus-only lane with traffic signal p r i o r i t y I t h a s c o n n e c t i o n s w i t h t h e E n f e r m e r a I s a b e l Z e n d a l h o s p i t a l a n d a f u t u re i n t e rc h a n g e i n Va l d e b e b a s t h a t i s planned to be built next to the Glorieta de Antonio Perpiñá

A c c o rd i n g t o t h e c a l c u l a t i o n s d o n e b y the current city gover nment, the new line, which has been put in place as par t of the M a d r i d 3 6 0 E n v i ro n m e n t a l S u s t a i n a b i l i t y Strategy, will save an accumulated 700,000 kilometers a year of travel nor mally done in p r i v a t e c a r s , i n a d d i t i o n t o a n e m i s s i o n s re d u c t i o n o f a ro u n d 1 2 5 t o n s o f C O 2 a n d nearly 200 tons of NOx

193 New Generation VDL Citeas for EBS

E B S w i l l l a u n c h t h e n e w l y - f o r m e d Z a a n s t r e e k - W a t e r l a n d c o n c e s s i o n i n December 2023 with as many as 193 newgeneration VDL Citeas The vehicles, based e n t i re l y o n a n e l e c t r i c p o w e r t r a i n , w i l l b e delivered star ting in September 2023 For VDL Bus & Coach, this is the largest order it has ever received for electric vehicles

VDL Bus & Coach is to supply 60 newgeneration VDL Citeas of type LE-122 and 1 3 3 V D L C i t e a s o f t y p e L E - 1 3 5 T h e V D L Citeas LE-135 will come in both R-Net and M - N e t v e r s i o n s T h e v e h i c l e s w i l l b e equipped with battery packs with a capacity of 490 kWh (LE-122) and 552 kWh (LE-135), respectively

Equipment News

The first Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) line in Madrid, Spain, will be operated by Irizar ieTram buses With a total length of 31 kilometers, the line will have 19 kilometers with bus-only lanes and traffic signal pre-emption at 68 intersections These 10 new Irizar ieTram buses will increase the Madrid fleet to 175 zero-emission Irizar buses

“We are immensely proud to be able to run public transport in Zaanstreek-Waterland f o r t h e n e x t 1 5 y e a r s O p t i n g f o r e l e c t r i c buses is the logical choice for us This order will see our fleet of electric buses grow to more than 500 We have great confidence i n t h e c o o p e r a t i o n w i t h V D L f o r t h i s Z a a n s t re e k - Wa t e r l a n d c o n c e s s i o n , ” s a i d

Wilko Mol, CEO of EBS

According to the client Transport Region Amsterdam, EBS is stepping into an ambitious and flexible concession EBS will start

VDL recently received its largest order ever for electric buses A total of 193 new-generation Citeas has been ordered for EBS to be used in Zaanstreek-Waterland near Amsterdam Included in the order were 60 LE-122 models (12 2 meters) and 133 LE-135 models (13 5 meters)

with a high transpor t offering and respond quickly to changing circumstances such as growing passenger numbers EBS is also highly committed to technological innovation, such as paying by means other than the public transport chip card, and planning d o o r- t o - d o o r j o u r n e y s I n a d d i t i o n , e v e n more than in the current concession, EBS will focus on inclusivity, so that all different target groups can make optimal use of public transpor t

“We are immensely proud that VDL Bus & C o a c h i s a b l e t o s u p p l y t h e e n t i re n e w fleet for this newly formed concession,” said Rolf-Jan Zweep, who took over the role of C E O a t V D L B u s & C o a c h f r o m P a u l v a n Vuuren on Januar y 1, 2023 “EBS and VDL are acquaintances, as we were previously able to provide EBS with 10 electric ar ticulated vehicles for the Waterland concession and 23 electric low-entry vehicles for use in Haaglanden The newly delivered buses will also cover a lot of kilometers annually The new-generation VDL Citea is ideally suited for this with its efficient energy consumption and optimal driving characteristics The vehic l e s w i l l b e f u r n i s h e d i n a l u x u r i o u s a n d homey style, so passengers will experience the ride as a very pleasant way to get ot their destination ”

Over the past decade, VDL Bus & Coach has become one of the leading players in Europe in the field of e-mobility Since the introduction of the first Citea SLF-120 Electric in Geneva, during the UITP Mobility & City Tr a n s p o r t e x h i b i t i o n i n 2 0 1 3 , V D L B u s & C o a c h h a s f o c u s e d s t r o

l y o n e l e c t r i c m o b i l i t y B a s e d o n t h e V D L v i s i o n , a b u s

n g

concept has been developed that is entirely based on an electric drive train and that is ready for the future, with zero emissions as a m a t t e r o f c o u r s e – b a t t e r i e s i n t h e fl o o r, o n e - p i e c e c o m p o s i t e s i d e w a l l s , c l e v e r energy management, a sophisticated clim a t e c o n t r o l s y s t e m a n d a n e r g o n o m i c driver’s environment With these five major innovations, VDL Bus & Coach introduces t h e n e w - g e n e r a t i o n V D L C i t e a p r o d u c t r a n g e , w h i c h c o n s i s t s o f f o u r i m p r o v e d length variants and five types

T h e n e w - g e n e r a t i o n V D L C i t e a h a s already been sold in several countries and is used in several cities and areas, including t h e N e t h e r l a n d s ( E i n d h o v e n a n d A m s t e rdam), Finland (Kotka and Lahti), Belgium (all of Flanders), Germany (Oberhausen and Braunmschweig) and France (Bordeaux)

E B S i s a n a m b i t i o u s a n d f a s t - g ro w i n g Dutch public transport company, where the p a s s e n g e r a n d q u a l i t y a l w a y s c o m e fi r s t EBS currently operates public bus transport in four concessions:

• S i n c e 2 0 1 1 , i n t h e Wa t e r l a n d re g i o n , commissioned by the Transpor t Region of Amsterdam Waterland is the area nor th of Amsterdam (from Amsterdam to Hoor n in the nor th and from Marker meer in the east to De Rijp and Oostzaan in the west)

• Since 2018, in Voorne-Putten & Rosenburg, on behalf of the Rotterdam-The Hague Metropolitan Area (Metropoolregio Rotterdam – Den Haag (MRDH) This area is just below Rotterdam and the focus of the line network is on fast, direct R-net connections b e t w e e n S p i j k e n i s s e , H e l l e v o e t s l u i s a n d Brielle

• Since 2019, in the Haaglanden region, also commissioned by the MRDH This covers regional transpor t around The Hague, i n c l u d i n g t h e c i t y s e r v i c e s o f D e l f t a n d Zoeter meer

• Since December 2022, in IJssel-Vecht, commissioned by the provinces of Overijss e l , G e l d e r l a n d a n d F l e v o l a n d T h i s c o ncerns regional transport in the Veluwe, Central Overijssel and Flevoland regions

F ro m D e c e m b e r 2 0 2 3 , E B S w i l l b e t h e c a r r i e r i n t h e n e w Z a a n s t re e k - Wa t e r l a n d concession

Ireland’s First All-Electric Town Bus Ser vice Launched in Athlone

A l e x a n d e r D e n n i s ( A l e x a n d e r D e n n i s L i m i t e d , A D L ) a n d B Y D U K j o i n t l y announced on January 23 that their electric v e h i c l e p a r t n e r s h i p h a s s u p p l i e d 1 1 B Y D

A D L E n v i r o 2 0 0 E V e l e c t r i c s i n g l e - d e c k buses for Ireland’s first all-electric town bus service in Athlone, County Westmeath Procured and funded by the National Transport A u t h o r i t y, t h e b u s e s a re o p e r a t e d b y B u s Éireann

Equipment News

T h e n e w f l e e t w i l l re d u c e c a r b o n e m i ssions by 400,000kg annually which means a quieter, cleaner bus service for the town It was launched on Januar y 20, 203 by Ireland’s Minister for Transpor t Eamon Ryan, T D

T h e e l e c t r i fi c a t i o n o f A t h l o n e ’s b u s service is par t of the Depar tment of Transpor t’s Pathfinder Program, a key par t of the implementation of the National Sustainable Mobility Policy that sets out the government’s p l a n t o a c h i e v e a 5 0 p e rc e n t re d u c t i o n i n greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 in the transpor t sector

T h e z e r o - e m i s s i o n b u s e s a r e t h e fi r s t delivery from a framework contract for up to 200 BYD ADL Enviro200EV battery-electric buses that the BYD ADL par tnership, represented by Alexander Dennis as primar y contractor, signed with the National Transpor t Authority in July 2021 Alexander Dennis’s body engineers have tailored the buses to the specific operating needs of the NTA and Bus Éireann The result is an approximately 12-meter-long vehicle with two doorways and a bespoke interior that accommodates up to 73 passengers In addition to 27 fixed seats, six tip-up seats are located within the permanent wheelchair space and the dedicated area for the accommodation of at least one unfolded pram, pushchair or buggy

C o m p l e m e n t i n g t h e b o d y d e s i g n i s BYD’s world-leading expertise in pioneering i r o n - p h o s p h a t e b a t t e r y t e c h n o l o g y a n d advanced electric powertrain systems The innovative “6-in-1” controller integrates the b a t t e r y m o t o r s a n d m o t o r c o n t ro l s , a l o n g

with BYD’s highly efficient ther mal batter y management system, enhancing reliability, safety and range

National Transpor t Authority CEO Anne G r a h a m , s a i d : “ T h e l a u n c h o f t h e s e e l e ct r i c b u s e s t o d a y re p re s e n t s a v e r y s i g n i fi c a n t m i l e s t o n e o n t h e j o u r n e y t o a z e roe m i s s i o n s f l e e t f o r o u r t o w n a n d c i t y b u s s e r v i c e s F r o m t o d a y t h e p e o p l e o f A t h l o n e w i l l b e n e f i t f r o m b u s e s t h a t a r e c l e a n e r, q u i e t e r, m o r e c o m f o r t a b l e a n d m o r e a t t r a c t i v e A t h l o n e w i l l b e t h e f i r s t s e r v i c e i n I re l a n d t o b e d e l i v e re d e n t i re l y b y e l e c t r i c b u s e s , a n d w e s h o u l d n o t u n d e re s t i m a t e t h e s i g n i f i c a n c e o f t h a t f o r t h i s t o w n a n d f o r p u b l i c t r a n s p o r t i n g e ne r a l T h e e x p e r i e n c e w e g a i n h e r e w i t h o u r c o l l e a g u e s i s B u s É i re a n n w i l l d o u b tl e s s s t a n d u s i n g o o d s t e a d a s N TA ro l l s out similar programs in Dublin and in other c i t i e s a n d t o w n s i n t h e m o n t h s a n d y e a r s a h e a d ”

B u s É i r e a n n C h i e f E x e c u t i v e O f f i c e r S t e p h e n K e n t s a i d : “ We a re e x c i t e d t o b e o p e r a t i n g t h e f l e e t , w h i c h w i l l d e l i v e r a m o re m o d e r n , s u s t a i n a b l e a n d c o m f o r ta b l e s e r v i c e a n d p r o v i d e a n e n h a n c e d customer experience for passengers The s m o o t h e r a n d q u i e t e r r i d e i s w e l c o m e , a s i s i m p r o v e d a c c e s s f o r p e r s o n s w i t h reduced mobility The new fleet in Athlone is a par ticularly welcome development for Bus Éireann as we continue on our jour ney t o b e c o m e o n e o f t h e m o s t s u s t a i n a b l e n a t i o n a l t r a n s p o r t c o m p a n i e s i n E u ro p e The operational experience will be invalua b l e a s w e e x p a n d e l e c t r i c v e h i c l e s t o o t h e r u r b a n s e r v i c e s ”

Eleven ADL Enviro200EV electric buses were recently ordered by the National Transport Authority in Ireland for delivery to Bus Éíreann They will be used in Athlone, Ireland’s first all electric town bus service The buses are 12 meters long (39 feet), have two doors, 27 fixed seats, six folding seats in the wheelchair area and can accommodate up to 73 passengers

Alexander Dennis Regional Sales Mana g e r f o r I re l a n d L e e G i b s o n s a i d : “ We a re d e l i g h t e d t o w o r k w i t h t h e N a t i o n a l Tr a n sp o r t A u t h o r i t y a n d B u s É i re a n n i n l e a d i n g t h e t r a n s i t i o n t o z e ro - e m i s s i o n m o b i l i t y i n I r e l a n d w i t h o u r b a t t e r y - e l e c t r i c b u s e s We h a v e b u i l t o n t h e j o i n t e x p e r i e n c e w i t h o u r p l u g - i n h y b r i d d o u b l e - d e c k e r s t o e n s u re A t h l o n e ’s n e w b u s e s a re p e r f e c t l y tailored to the requirements of passengers a n d t h e B u s É i re a n n t e a m t h a t o p e r a t e s t h e m , a n d w e l o o k f o r w a r d t o r o l l i n g o u t t h i s w i n n i n g c o m b i n a t i o n i n o t h e r I r i s h t o w n s a n d c i t i e s ”

Frank Thorpe, managing director, BYD UK, said, “BYD, in collaboration with Alexander Dennis, is proud to support this inspiring program in Athlone which sets an excellent example for other towns and cities to commit to zero-emission mobility Through innovative world-leading technology, BYD is dedicated to empowering batter y-electric public bus services, providing safe and reliable sustainable mobility solutions to reduce air pollution We hope BYD ADL electric buses will encourage more people to use eco-friendly p u b l i c b u s s e r v i c e s i n A t h l o n e a n d o t h e r par ts of Ireland ” q

UMA Motorcoach Expo 2023 in Orlando

by Larry Plachno

anuary 11-14 of 2023 found the United Motorcoach Association and their Motorc o a c h E x p o r e t u r n i n g t o O r l a n d o , a favorite location for the event over the years.

2 0 2 3 m a r k s t h e 5 2 n d b i r t h d a y o f U M A , which was originally founded in 1971 by a d o z e n s m a l l e r b u s c o m p a n i e s t h a t c a m e together to create an association for mutual

support. Over the years the group has continued to sustain the industry including the smaller operators Initially, the group was known as the United Bus Owners of Ameri c a , b u t t h e n a m e w a s c h a n g e d t o U n i t e d M o t o r c o a c h A s s o c i a t i o n T h i s y e a r a l s o marks 39 years since the first Expo was held in Nashville

A c t i v i t i e s w e r e s c h e d u l e d f r o m Wednesday, January 11 through Saturday, J a n u a r y 1 4 T h e re w e re s e v e r a l m e e t i n g s , sessions and events during the show. Trailw a y s p e o p l e h e l d t h e i r c o n f e re n c e o n t w o d a y s p r i o r t o t h e E x p o T h e M i d w e s t B u s & Motorcoach Association held their Board M e e t i n g o n We d n e s d a y T h e re w e re o t h e r

The most important event at Motorcoach Expo 2023 was the unveiling of the All New Prevost H3-45. Here we see the crowd of attendees as the improved model was introduced This photo also shows the substantial number of attendees at this event UMA

m e e t i n g s i n c l u d i n g t h e S t a t e A s s o c i a t i o n Summit, the Tennessee Motor Coach Assoc i a t i o n a n d t h e N a t i o n a l A s s o c i a t i o n o f M o t o r c o a c h O p e r a t o r s A l s o s c h e d u l e d w e r e v a r i o u s e d u c a t i o n a l s e s s i o n s a n d e v e n t s i n c l u d i n g a M a i n t e n a n c e I n t e rchange, a session on Fatigue Management, Who’s Your Banker?, Small Fleets, the Drug & A l c o h o l C l e a r i n g H o u s e , E m e r g e n c y E x i t s , a s w e l l a s a s e s s i o n o n p u b l i c i m a g e a n d a C V S A i n s p e c t i o n .

T h e b i g g e s t r e a s o n f o r a t t e n d i n g t h e event is the wide array of supplier booths t h a t o ff e r p ro d u c t s a n d s e r v i c e s r a n g i n g from 45-foot motorcoaches to the latest computer software. At the risk of giving away my age, I was there for that first event in the b a s e m e n t o f t h e O p r y l a n d H o t e l i n N a s h v i l l e . T h i n g s h a v e c o m e a l o n g w a y since then We were delighted to see the association create this show since NATIONAL BUS TRADER has always highlighted the equip-

m e n t e n d o f t h e b u s i n e s s We n o w h a d a show that covered the same things that we included in our magazine pages.

We would be remiss if we did not mention t h a t t h i s e v e n t i n O r l a n d o m a r k e d a g re a t re c o v e r y f ro m t h e p a n d e m i c p ro b l e m s i n recent years. The UMA staff did a tremendous job in attracting buyers to this event Those who were there mentioned that the number o f b u y e r s w h o a t t e n d e d w a s s u b s t a n t i a l . Some of the exhibitors said that because of booth traffic, they never got a chance to sit down on the first day of the show The word from several attendees was that this was by far the best bus show in a few years.

Supplier booths offered a wide range of products and services. However, since we t r y t o c o n c e n t r a t e o n e q u i p m e n t , w e w i l l report on the coach exhibitors

Prevost

The most talked-about topic at the show was undoubtedly Prevost’s introduction of their All New H3-45 coach model Originally i n t ro d u c e d i n t h e m i d - 1 9 8 0 s a s a 6 0 - f o o t articulated coach It evolved into both a 40foot and 45-foot model in following years I n a d d i t i o n t o b e i n g h i g h l y p r i z e d i n t h e higher class tour and charter market, the H34 5 g re w t o d o m i n a t e t h e c o n v e r s i o n s h e l l market

I n r e t r o s p e c t , t h i s m a j o r r o u n d o f i m p ro v e m e n t s a n d t e c h n o l o g y i s n o t h i n g new The Prevost H3-45 model has always been improving and evolving over the years Moreover, in many areas the H3-45 has not only been state-of-the-art but ahead of the c u r v e N o t e w o r t h y p a s t d e v e l o p m e n t s include a tire monitoring system, the Prime system to improve fuel economy and more recently the electric fan system for cooling

We plan to do a separate article on the All New H3-45 to adequately cover this latest ro u n d o f i m p ro v e m e n t s a n d i n n o v a t i o n s b e c a u s e t h e y a re s o e x t e n s i v e , b u t w e c a n mention a few things quickly Noteworthy is the new aerodynamic shape to increase fuel efficiency Mechanics will love this new model because of a new accesss panel that will let them get at the windshield wipers, air lines and blower motors behind the front dash. There are also several improvements f o r p a s s e n g e r s a n d f o r t h e d r i v e r S e e o u r s e p a r a t e a r t i c l e o n t h e A l l N e w H 3 - 4 5 f o r more details.

MCI

Expectedly, MCI showed their popular J4500 coach in Orlando In 2022, MCI celebrated delivering the 10,000th J4500 coach, the model that has been the best seller for a n u m b e r o f y e a r s T h e o t h e r c e l e b r a t i o n a t MCI is reaching the 90-year mark in bus production in 2023 It has been 90 years since Harry Zoltok got the company into bus production and subsequently built a reputation for reliability and longevity

until February so she could attend

The people from Temsa showed their 35-foot TS35 and their 45-foot TS45 in Orlando. A major announcement at the show was the introduction of Temsa Financial Services to help Temsa operators purchase Temsa buses and additional features Shown here is the Temsa staff posed at their booth area. TEMSA.

One MCI activity at the show was MCI’s presentation of the Environmental Leadership Award. This award was originally introd u c e d i n 2 0 0 8 t o h o n o r o p e r a t o r s t h a t d e m o n s t r a t e t h e g re a t e s t c o m m i t m e n t t o environmental sustainability in their business practice This year the award went to Peoria Charter Coach Company, a leading M i d w e s t e r n c h a r t e r c o a c h a n d s c h e d u l e d service provider operating from three locations in Illinois. Brent Maitland, MCI’s vice president of private sector sales and marketing, said, “Peoria Charters is a leading i n d u s t r y e x a m p l e o f g re e n s t e w a rd s h i p ” The company runs a fleet of newer coaches and uses biodiesel fuel to power them.

Among other news, MCI announced the expansion of its service and parts network. After opening its San Francisco Bay Service Center in 2017, MCI decided to better serve i t s c u s t o m e r s o n t h e We s t C o a s t H e n c e , MCI’s Southern California facility is moving to its new and more convenient location in L o s A n g e l e s , w h i c h s h o u l d b e o p e n i n March In addition, MCI is planning to open a new service center facility in Seattle, Washington later in 2023

N o t e w o r t h y w a s t h e f a c t t h a t M C I r e c e n t l y s o l d i t s f i r s t t w o e l e c t r i c J 4 5 0 0 coaches to a commuter operator in the San Francisco area Industry legend Pat Ziska was on hand at Orlando to greet MCI customers and others (see the November, 2022 issue of NATIONAL BUS TRADER for our tribute article to Pat) Her retirement had been put off until the second week of February

Temsa

The staff from Temsa showed their 35-foot T S 3 5 a n d 4 5 - f o o t T S 4 5 m o d e l a t O r l a n d o

Temsa originally entered the American market in 2008 with their 35-foot coach At that time bus operators were looking for a shorter i n t e g r a l coa ch b e ca u se p re vi ou s on e s h a d b e e n w i t h d r a w n f r o m t h e m a r k e t L a t e r, Temsa added the shorter 30-foot TS30 to its p ro d u c t l i n e a n d w o r k e d w i t h A m e r i c a n operators to develop its 45-foot model for the American market. We were told that the 30foot model has become increasingly popular as has the 45-foot model, with both of these currently outselling the original TS35.

Temsa is now in a solid fourth-place position in the American market and growing I n a d d i t i o n t o c r e a t i n g t h e i r c o m p a n yo w n e d d i s t r i b u t i o n c o m p a n y, t h e y a r e e x p a n d i n g i n s e r v i c e a n d s u p p o r t T h e i r mobile service vehicles have helped support customers at numerous locations. They also expect to offer a fourth model later in 2023: their TS45E electric coach. Prototype models have been exhibited at previous shows, but their electric coach will soon be in production and available for sale.

T h e i r b i g a n n o u n c e m e n t a t t h i s s h o w w a s t h e i n t ro d u c t i o n o f t h e i r n e w “ Te m s a Financial Services ” This offers Temsa cus-

t o m e r s a n e w a n d m o re a ff o rd a b l e w a y t o a c q u i r e t h e i n c r e a s i n g l y p o p u l a r Te m s a b u s e s . T h i s n e w s e r v i c e w i l l p e r m i t c u stomers to be approved by application only, t h u s m a k i n g i t e a s i e r t o e x p a n d f l e e t s o r p u rc h a s e b u s e s w i t h a d d i t i o n a l f e a t u re s . It was mentioned that Temsa Financial Services executives are aligned geographically w i t h Te m s a ’ s s e a s o n e d t e a m o f r e g i o n a l s a l e s m a n a g e r s H e n c e , Te m s a o p e r a t o r s can count on fast approvals and quick comm u n i c a t i o n s f o r f i n a n c e t r a n s a c t i o n s a n d s e a m l e s s c l o s i n g s

Irizar USA

The staff from Irizar showed their i6 model that has become popular on the American m a r k e t I n c o m m o n w i t h s e v e r a l o t h e r exhibitors, the Irizar staff indicated that they were thrilled by the customer interest in their product They had a white Irizar i6 on display and experienced a great deal of attention from the large group of attendees

That the i6 found success on the American market was not unexpected The i6 was developed from past popular Irizar models that

Irizar displayed their increasingly popular i6 model Built in Spain, the i6 is sold by a companyowned distributor named Irizar USA. Irizar offers a wide range of coaches, transit buses and electric buses in Europe IRIZAR

ABC Companies displayed both coaches and a smaller bus in their booth area. They are offering a very diverse product line of different sizes as well as diesel and battery-electric power Shown here is the Van Hool coach used for the bus maintenance competition. UMA.

have been popular with coach operators for years Built in Spain, the i6 has been a popular charter and tour coach in Europe and is operating in numerous countries In addition to its coach line, Irizar also offers an extensive prod-

uct line in Europe including city transit buses, a tram bus and now battery-electric buses

Irizar coaches are sold and supported by a c o m p a n y - o w n e d d i s t r i b u t o r k n o w n a s

Irizar USA and headquartered in Nevada Yo u c a n c o n t a c t t h e I r i z a r s t a f f f o r m o r e information on their i6 coach and various options available

ABC Companies

The UMA Expo gave ABC Companies an opportunity to show off their increasingly diverse product line On display was their 3 5 - f o o t C X 3 5 a n d 4 5 - f o o t C X 4 5 Va n H o o l coaches as well as the 2022 Sunset Van Ford E-Transit high roof model ABC highlighted the number of upgrades and improvements o n t h e C X s e r i e s c o a c h e s i n re c e n t y e a r s

Included are Smart Wheel, Predictive Cruise Control, engine mounted A/C compressor, a relocated holding tank and electric radiator f a n s It wa s n ot e d t h a t t h e CX 3 5 coa ch on d i s p l a y s h o w e d t h e “ b l a c k e d o u t ” t h e m e graphics developed by ABC Graphics

Recently added to ABC’s product line is t h e S u n s e t Va n F o r d E - Tr a n s i t h i g h r o o f model. With battery-electric power, the ETr a n s i t p ro v i d e s c l e a n e l e c t r i c p o w e r f o r operators who want to provide environmentally-friendly transport options. ABC also highlighted the larger Turtle Top Odyssey XL Freightliner for up to 41 passengers It was noted that ABC has been moving ahead with offering more electric vehicles along with its traditional models.

The UMA show also gave ABC an opportunity to introduce its new senior vice president of sales, Andrew (Drew) Sicillano He joins ABC with 15 years of business management and development experience Sicillano’s past experience working closely with commercial fleets mirrors ABC’s interest in providing diverse vehicle options to private motorcoach operators He also has experience in zero-emission transportation which coincides with ABC’s growth in the electric vehicle market

1988 Eagle

How could you have a bus show without a look back at history? One of the most popular vehicles on the Expo floor was a nicely restored 1988 Eagle Model 15. The Museum of Bus Transportation was invited to display an historical bus on the show floor Rather than bring a coach down from the museum in Hershey, Pennsylvania, the museum people found an attractive Eagle in Florida and asked if it could b e d i s p l a y e d a t t h e s h o w i n O r l a n d o T h e museum thanks Pete Brenenstuhl Sr and Pete Jr. for lending their beautifully preserved 1988 Eagle Model 15 and for volunteering their time to meet and greet The coach became one of the highlights of the show and attracted the bus people to come over and take a look

Wait ‘Till Next Year

In 2024, the United Motorcoach Associa t i o n E x p o w i l l r e m a i n i n t h e E a s t e r n states The event is scheduled for February 4-7, 2024 in Raleigh, North Carolina Mark your calendars and plan to join all of this bus activity q

A delightful addition to the bus displays was this restored 1988 Eagle Model 15 When the Museum of Bus Transportation was invited to bring and display an historical bus, they asked Pete Brenenstuhl Sr. and Pete Jr. to bring and show their beautifully preserved Eagle. It was one of the highlights of the show and attracted many visitors DAVE MILLHOUSER

T h e S t a te o f t he In d u st r y 20 2 3

For quite some time the most popular t o p i c a r o u n d t h e i n d u s t r y h a s b e e n h o w b u s o p e r a t i o n s a re re b o u n d i n g and improving towards pre-pandemic days N o w t h a t w e h a v e m o v e d i n t o 2 0 2 3 a n d another trade show season, we are receiving requests from readers to provide informat i o n i n t h i s a re a W h i l e w e d o n o t h a v e a crystal ball, we can share what we know and w h a t i n f o r m a t i o n w e h a v e re c e i v e d f ro m others

A s a g e n e r a l o b s e r v a t i o n w e c a n s a y t h a t t h e b u s i n d u s t r y d i d b e t t e r i n 2 0 2 2 t h a n i t d i d i n 2 0 2 1 H o w e v e r, t h i s v a r i e d by mode as well as geographically We can c o v e r e a c h m o d e i n d i v i d u a l l y ( m o t o rcoach, school bus and transit) and provide w h a t w e k n o w o n e a c h A n i n t e r e s t i n g c o m m e n t i s t h a t e a c h m o d e h a s s e e n p o sitive developments but is also facing some n e g a t i v e d e v e l o p m e n t s .

Overall, ridership and bus sales are up since the pandemic. On the negative side, we are still dealing with the ongoing trends away from fixed route transit that has had a negative impact on city transit operations. In addition, industry suppliers seem to be

adjusting to a “new normal” based on sales and supply chain problems

Supply Chain Problems

Some industry people are saying that we a r e n o w i n P h a s e Tw o o f t h e p a n d e m i c P h a s e O n e i n v o l v e d s h u t d o w n s , m a s k s , restricted operations and a struggle to get at least partially back to normal That is now behind us for the most part Not only have operations been increasing but so have new c o a c h s a l e s T h e n u m b e r s s h o w t h a t 2 0 2 2 w a s b e t t e r t h a n 2 0 2 1 a n d t h a t 2 0 2 3 i s expected to be even better

However, as we enter 2023 the industry is faced with supply chain problems Limi t e d n e w c o a c h o r d e r s i n 2 0 2 0 a n d 2 0 2 1 caused the manufacturers to cut back on production and on ordering parts As a result, p a r t s s u p p l i e r s t u r n e d t h e i r a t t e n t i o n t o other industries who did want to order The result is a lack of some critical parts needed for bus assembly lines. Even if the orders are placed, the manufacturers may not be able to get the parts or components to complete them.

Computer chips seem to head the list, but I am told that there are other components that are also hard to source right now This is not limited to the big buses because automobiles, vans and even small buses seem to have this same problem. There are several stories about autos and buses that have been built but cannot be delivered because they are awaiting computer chips or some other component

A m o n g o t h e r t h i n g s , t h i s b r i n g u p t h e question of whether new coach sales remains a viable measure of industry progress. What happens if manufacturers can only provide a l i m i t e d n u m b e r o f n e w c o a c h e s ? W h e re things stand in early 2023 is that some manu f a c t u re r s h a v e c u t b a c k p ro d u c t i o n t o a “new normal” based on parts availability and past orders. If you order a new Prevost, your delivery date will be a year from now MCI is offering delivery slots several months i n t h e f u t u r e T h e i m p o r t e r s l i k e Te m s a , Irizar and Van Hool are also facing supply chain problems and can only sell what they can get shipped from the factories We will have to watch this carefully to see if orders and supply chain problems improve as we move ahead

In spite of the pandemic, technology has moved on in the bus industry. MCI now offers a battery-electric version of its J4500 as well as its D45 CRT LE models. Battery-electric coaches are now carrying commuters in Silicon Valley and the San Francisco area. MCI

by Larr y Plac hno

F ro m w h a t w e s e e , i t a p p e a r s t h a t b u s t o u r s h a v e m a d e t h e b e s t c o m e b a c k s i n c e the pandemic. There appears to be two reas o n s f o r t h i s O n e i s t h e p e n t - u p d e m a n d w h i l e p e o p l e w e r e s h u t i n b e c a u s e o f g e r m s a n d s o c i a l d i s t a n c i n g . T h e s e c o n d is that many of the bus tour passengers are seniors and students who are impacted the l e a s t b y e c o n o m i c c o n d i t i o n s . T h e b i g g e s t problem that the bus tour industry has had might be called a “buyers standoff ” While

t h e t o u r p l a n n e r s a r e r e a d y t o g o , s o m e i n d u s t r y s u p p l i e r s h a v e b e e n re l u c t a n t t o invest in marketing. This has slowed down re c o v e r y t o s o m e e x t e n t

P r o j e c t i o n s f o r t h e f u t u r e a r e g o o d

A m o n g o t h e r t h i n g s , o u r p o p u l a t i o n i s increasingly tending towards seniors and retired people who like taking bus tours We j u s t n e e d t o g e t t h e i n d u s t r y s u p p l i e r s t o invite them.

Scheduled service has returned to a substantial extent, but it varies by type of route a n d g e o g r a p h y. S h o r t e r r o u t e s a r e m o r e likely to be impacted by the trend away from f i x e d r o u t e t r a n s i t . M o s t l o n g e r r o u t e s , including intercity service, are back in opera t i o n F l i x b u s h a s t a k e n o v e r G re y h o u n d from First Group which may eventually see operational changes In addition, there have b e e n s e v e r a l n e w i n t e rc i t y ro u t e s c re a t e d s i n c e t h e p a n d e m i c . I n c l u d e d a re a i r l i n econtrolled bus routes connecting airline hubs with nearby cities It is also noteworthy that there is increasing interest in higher quality and executive operations

Dep en din g on wh om y ou t alk t o, ch arters, other than bus tours, appear to be the slowest operation to come back. There may be multiple reasons including a continuing i n t e r e s t i n s o c i a l d i s t a n c i n g , a d e s i r e t o a v o i d t r a v e l i n g o r s m a l l e r g ro u p s t h a t d o n o t re q u i re a b u s I t s h o u l d a l s o b e n o t e d that following a travel disruption, personal t r a v e l c o m e s b a c k q u i c k e r t h a n b u s i n e s s t r a v e l T h i s s a m e t h i n g h a p p e n e d a f t e r 911 . H o w e v e r, t h e e x c e p t i o n t o t h i s i s c o nt r a c t c h a r t e r s f o r e m p l o y e e s T h i s c o n t i nu e s t o b e s t r o n g I n f a c t t h e c o n t r a c t e m p l o y e e s h u t t l e s e r v i c e s i n t h e S i l i c o n Valley are among the first to purchase batt e r y - e l e c t r i c c o a c h e s a n d p u t t h e m i n t o re g u l a r o p e r a t i o n

From the standpoint of sales, 2022 new c o a c h s a l e s e x c e e d e d t h e 2 0 2 1 n u m b e r Expectations are that 2023 will do even better However, as noted earlier, supply chain problems have become a concern

School Buses

On the positive side, school bus operations have come back well While a few companies have been hurt by the pandemic, othe r s h a v e s t e p p e d i n P e rh a p s t h e b i g g e s t trend on the equipment side is the push to battery-electric school buses at the federal level This may not be all bad since the typical school bus route is an ideal application f o r b a t t e r y - e l e c t r i c p o w e r. M o r n i n g a n d a f t e r n o o n ru n s o f a n h o u r o r t w o p ro v i d e plenty of time for battery charging at night and during the day. It will be interesting to see how fast the industry moves to electric power.

On the negative side, long-term prospects may be questionable. The Demographic Cris i s c a u s e d b y p e o p l e m o v i n g a w a y f r o m marriage, family and children is reducing b i r t h r a t e s i n d e v e l o p e d c o u n t r i e s . T h e United States and Canada has not been left out. We are already seeing reduced classes a n d s c h o o l c l o s u r e s T h e r e a r e p l a c e s i n E u ro p e w h e re e n t i re s c h o o l s h a v e c l o s e d down. We are also seeing an exodus of fami l i e s f ro m s t a t e s w i t h h i g h t a x e s l i k e N e w York, California and Illinois For those interested,

an article in NATIONAL BUS TRADER

this topic You will find a National Bus Trader / March, 2023

there was

covering

Much of the tour and scheduled service end of coach operations have returned. Right now, our biggest problem is manufacturer supply chains. Production may be limited until suppliers can provide more computer chips and other components to increase the number of coaches being built NBT.

Much of scheduled route service has returned. Longer routes are less likely to be impacted by the movement away from fixed route transit In fact, several new routes, airport connections and even executive bus services have been started since the pandemic ended. MCI.

PDF version in our Archived Articles section a t h t t p s : / / b u s m a g c o m / w p - c o n t e n t / uploads/2022/06/Demography7-22.pdf.

Transit

Transit bus sales have been doing fairly well. Bolstered by government support for new equipment, many operations are ordering new buses Industry leaders suggest that some of the biggest buyers will be placing orders in the near future that will keep order books high Interest in hybrid and diesel is

declining while more battery-electric buses are being ordered We also see more interest in hydrogen fuel cell buses that might be a better choice for some applications

B y f a r t h e b i g g e s t p r o b l e m f a c e d b y f i x e d ro u t e t r a n s i t o p e r a t i o n s i s d e c l i n i n g r i d e r s h i p . T h i s i s re a l l y n o t h i n g n e w a n d a c t u a l l y d a t e s b a c k m o r e t h a n 1 0 0 y e a r s w h e n r i d e r s b e g a n l e a v i n g f i x e d r o u t e t r a n s i t a n d b e g a n d r i v i n g t h e i r o w n c a r s i n o r d e r t o h a v e a o n e - s e a t r i d e M o r e re c e n t l y, t h i s m o v e m e n t h a s g o n e b e y o n d

p r i v a t e a u t o m o b i l e s a n d n o w i n c l u d e s m o v i n g t o U b e r, Ly f t a n d e v e n t a x i s

F i x e d r o u t e t r a n s i t r i d e r s h i p b e g a n a s h a r p d e c l i n e a b o u t t w o y e a r s b e f o re t h e pandemic arrived It became worse during the pandemic, and fixed route ridership is not coming back well. There may be numerous reasons for this including early retirements during the pandemic, people working from home, commuters changing mode to a u t o m o b i l e s , U b e r a n d Ly f t a n d e v e n a reduced number of workers because of the Demographic Crisis It might also be noted that the Demographic Crisis has been a factor in the reduced number of bus and truck drivers available

It is significant that this problem is not u n i q u e t o A m e r i c a T h e U n i t e d K i n g d o m suffered a similar ridership decline on their f i x e d r o u t e b u s e s d u r i n g t h e p a n d e m i c What the government did was to subsidize and keep the routes running for the remaining passengers However, as the subsidies come off, many of the routes are being elim-

i n a t e d b e c a u s e o f a l a c k o f r i d e r s h i p . O n e source claims that nearly 10 percent of the bus routes are being eliminated due to a lack of passengers

T h e n e w e s t t r e n d h e r e i n t h e U n i t e d S t a t e s i s t o e l i m i n a t e f a r e c o l l e c t i o n b e c a u s e i t c o s t s m o r e t h a n t h e r e v e n u e b r o u g h t i n . K a n s a s C i t y w e n t f r e e f a r e some time back and plans to stay that way T h e D i s t r i c t o f C o l u m b i a i s t a l k i n g a b o u t going with free fares in July of 2023 However, it is interesting that some of the leaders have mentioned the possibility of purc h a s i n g c a r s f o r t h o s e p e o p l e w h o s e t r a v e l s d o n o t m a t c h f i x e d ro u t e s e r v i c e O n e o f t h e p r o b l e m s f a c i n g f i x e d r o u t e t r a n s i t i s t h a t d e c l i n i n g r i d e r s h i p a n d increasing costs mean higher subsidies per r i d e r a s t i m e g o e s o n

A n o t e w o r t h y s i d e n o t e t o a l l o f t h i s i s increased interest in van pools Some cities have been actively encouraging van pools to reduce the number of automobiles on the road In addition to providing more of a oneseat ride for the passengers, it also eliminates vehicles and hence pollution from the roads. The local transit agency or another government agency provides funding for the vans and monitors operations

Looking Ahead

While we do not have a crystal ball, we c a n s h a r e w h a t w e k n o w o r h a v e h e a r d about the future In regard to supply chain p r o b l e m s , t h e o p t i m i s t s s a y t h i n g s w i l l return to normal in 2024 while the pessimists say 2025 Both maintain that things will continue to improve as we move back closer to pre-pandemic numbers in orders and production Bus sales are expected to increase from year to year as the supply chain problems ease

While there may have been some changes, most of school bus operations have returned. The biggest change is pressure to move towards battery-electric buses. Shown here is a Thomas battery-electric bus THOMAS

The destination sign says it all – more passengers would be welcome. Much of fixed route transit service is struggling with declining passengers and some cities are limiting fare collection because it costs more than it brings in Unfortunately, as patronage decreases and cost increases, the subsidy per passenger increases. NBT.

There are immediate concerns about ridership and subsidies Can transit agencies find ways to get people out of their cars (or Ubers and Lyfts) and back on the buses? Results so far have not been promising. How long can

w e c o n t i n u e t o a s k f o r s u b s i d i e s i f c o s t s increase and passengers decline? Long-term concerns over passengers and drivers seem to be tied to the Demographic Crisis Some countries are trying to encourage larger fam-

ilies and more babies who can join the work force This would help provide more bus and truck drivers as well as more passengers. At l e a s t s a l e s a re i m p ro v i n g i n 2 0 2 3 a n d a re expected to do even better in 2024. q

The Trend to Free Transit

by Larry Plachno

For more than a century, transit use has been declining as people move to their private automobiles and other ways to obtain a more conv e n i e n t o n e - s e a t r i d e . S o m e t r a n s i t s y s t e m s have reached a point to where it costs more to c o l l e c t f a r e s t h a n t h e r e v e n u e t h e y b r i n g i n .

More and more transit operations are looking to move to free fares as a result of this VOLVO

In early December of 2022 the District of Columbia Council voted unanimously 13-0 to subsidize bus rides within the city limits starting July 1, 2023 At the same time they voted to expand bus service round-theclock on several of the D.C. System’s busiest ro u t e s t o h e l p l a t e - n i g h t s e r v i c e w o r k e r s w h o o f t e n r e l y o n U b e r o r Ly f t a f t e r Metrobus and Metrorail have stopped for the night While the measure required a second vote and approval by the mayor, it has generated a great deal of interest in transit circles since the District of Columbia would become the largest transit operation without fares Those cities that have already gone to f re e t r a n s i t s e r v i c e f e e l v i n d i c a t e d w h i l e those cities thinking of doing so are seeing this as the start of a trend

What is interesting is that this will not be the first time that passengers rode for free in the District of Columbia. When the pandemic hit, Metrobus fares were set aside from March of 2020 to January of 2021 to both protect drivers and keep the service going. In order to do this and and limit contact with passengers, access to the front of the coach including the farebox and driver ’s area was restricted Passengers boarded and left through the back door. Ridership was substantially down from pre-pandemic levels, but at least public transit service continued One source suggests that there were more short-distance riders who took advantage of the free fares However,

when the pandemic eased and fare collection resumed, ridership fell off

Pros and Cons

E x p e c t e d l y, t h e r e h a v e b e e n p r o s a n d c o n s o n f re e t r a n s i t b o t h i n t h e D i s t r i c t o f Columbia as well as elsewhere

Proponents suggest that eliminating fares w i l l i n c re a s e r i d e r s h i p a n d re v i t a l i z e t h e downtown area. However, opponents to the plan indicate that there already is a problem w i t h t h e h o m e l e s s a n d o t h e r s u s i n g t h e buses as shelters. This tends to make the service less attractive to regular riders and in some cases makes the service undesirable

Some passengers like the idea of free transit because they see other passengers finding ways to avoid paying Letting everyone on w i t h o u t p a y i n g t re a t s e v e r y o n e e q u a l l y I might mention that much of Western Europe uses an “honor system” where passengers purchase their ticket from a machine prior to boarding and then validate it by inserting it into a machine after getting on the bus or streetcar. Checkers periodically ride to ask passengers to show valid tickets, and there is a fine for not being able to do so

Some people suggest that free fares bring more people on board and hence reduce pollution. However, opponents suggest that as r i d e r s h i p d e c l i n e s a n d b u s e s a r e a l m o s t

empty, the reduction of pollution starts to decline Moreover, it is difficult to argue with t h e p e o p l e w h o s a y t h a t f r e e f a r e s h e l p s speed up service since the drivers no longer have to deal with fares or transfers

P e o p l e h a v e a l s o p o i n t e d t o v a r i o u s n e g a t i v e a s p e c t s o f f r e e f a r e s Tw o h a v e come out in regard to the District of Columbia vote that are typical in this regard One a s k s w h e t h e r t h i s m o n e y c o u l d b e b e t t e r u s e d e l s e w h e r e r a t h e r t h a n o n a s m a l l g ro u p o f p e o p l e T h e o t h e r l o o k s a t s t a t i stics and asks whether fixed route transit is re a l l y t h e s o l u t i o n

T h e f i r s t c o m e s f r o m D C C o u n c i l M e m b e r K e n y a n M c D u f f i e w h o a s k s w h e t h e r f re e t r a n s i t i s t h e b e s t u s e o f t h i s m o n e y s i n c e t h e D i s t r i c t o f C o l u m b i a h a s other pressing needs One source says that p ro v i d i n g f re e t r a n s i t i n D . C . w o u l d c o s t $ 4 2 m i l l i o n a n n u a l l y B e a r i n m i n d t h a t a s ridership declines, it becomes more costly per passenger to subsidize transit services. Eventually the government and transit offic i a l s , a s w e l l a s t h e t a x p a y e r s , h a v e t o a s k whether we are spending too much money o n t o o f e w p e o p l e

The second objects to claims that transit is a service similar to police and fire protect i o n . W h i l e p o l i c e a n d f i re p ro t e c t i o n c a n help everyone, fixed route transit does not

coincide with everyone’s travel needs Peter Van Doren with the Cato Institute in Washington, D.C. mentioned that the free transit plan risks high costs and mixed results He s u g g e s t e d t h a t t h e m o n e y c o u l d b e b e t t e r used to help low-income residents buy cars s i n c e t r i p s b y m a n y p e o p l e d o n o t m a t c h transit’s fixed routes. Not everyone can use f i x e d ro u t e t r a n s i t a n d m o s t p e o p l e h a v e already moved away from it This brings up the logical question regarding declining participation in fixed route transit

Trends and Trends

Those in favor of free transit often suggest that it is a new and growing trend. However, the researchers and historians know that the t r e n d a w a y f r o m f i x e d r o u t e t r a n s i t i s already more than a century old.

When Frank Sprague developed a worka b l e s t re e t c a r s y s t e m i n 1 8 8 8 , i t c a u s e d a m a j o r m o v e m e n t f ro m h o r s e c a r s a n d l e s s interest in cable cars. By 1900, about 80 percent of all city transit was handled by streetc a r s T h e F o rd M o d e l T a u t o m o b i l e w e n t into mass production in late 1908. This, plus the development of better roads and highways, promoted a mass exodus away from fixed route transit and to a one-seat ride Initially, this was accomplished with private a u t o m o b i l e s b u t i n m o r e r e c e n t t i m e s i t includes Uber and Lyft

This movement away from fixed route transit and to a one-seat ride has been going o n f o r m o re t h a n a c e n t u r y I n i t i a l l y, l o c a l transit was provided by private companies Many failed during the depression years of the 1930s. Most of the electric interurban railw a y s h a d a l s o d i s a p p e a r e d b y t h i s t i m e R a t i o n i n g d u r i n g Wo r l d Wa r I I i n c re a s e d ridership but also curtailed the availability o f n e w v e h i c l e s H o w e v e r, t h e p o s t - w a r m o v e m e n t o f f a m i l i e s t o t h e s u b u r b s a n d i n c r e a s e d a u t o u s a g e f o l l o w i n g t h e w a r r e d u c e d p a t r o n a g e a n d i n c o m e f o r m o s t transit systems.

W h i l e s o m e c i t i e s , l i k e D e t ro i t , w e n t t o m u n i c i p a l t r a n s i t o w n e r s h i p a t e a r l i e r d a t e s , o t h e r c i t i e s s t e p p e d i n t o t a k e o v e r m o n e y - l o s i n g t r a n s i t s y s t e m s i n t h e l a t e 1940s and 1950s. In spite of increased capi t a l a n d o p e r a t i n g g o v e r n m e n t f u n d i n g , the trend has continued with more people leaving fixed route transit and going to private automobiles or other types of one-seat ride. Statistics showed this decline increasing two years before the pandemic hit and it got worse after the pandemic Metrobus b u s r i d e r s h i p i n D . C . w a s d o w n t o 7 4 p e rc e n t o f p r e - p a n d e m i c n u m b e r s w h i l e M e t ro r a i l c a r r i e d o n l y 4 0 p e rc e n t o f p rep a n d e m i c p a s s e n g e r s

The trend behind the free transit movement is that less and less of operating costs have come from the farebox while more and m o r e h a s c o m e f r o m f e d e r a l a n d l o c a l money One source suggests that the leader

in fare box revenue is New York City with 35 percent of operating costs coming from the farebox Many transit systems now earn less than 10 percent of their operating costs from the farebox. D.C. was down to seven p e rc e n t S o m e t r a n s i t a g e n c i e s s a y t h a t i t costs more money to collect fares than what the fares bring in

Reduced ridership on fixed route transit and disproportionate funding have become

obvious in the United States In 2014, public agencies reported 10.7 billion unlinked passenger trips, but that number dropped to 9 9 billion in 2019 After the pandemic hit, the National Transit Database figure for 2020 of unlinked passenger trips had plummeted to only 4 7 billion One source suggests that public transit provides service for only 2 5 percent of person trips (now probably less) while accounting for one-third of combined federal highway and transit funding Hence,

From its inception, municipal transit was run by private enterprise. Most of these private companies were able to remain in operation through the crowded years of world War II but were replaced by public operations when people began buying automobiles after the war Shown here is a GM “Old Look” transit bus that operated for Rochester City Lines. STAN HOLTER.

The movement to free fares in Washington D C is noteworthy because it would become the largest metropolitan area in the United States offering free bus fares. Several cities provided free fares during the pandemic but they went back to charging fares as the situation improved Kansas City was a leader in going to free fares and plans to continue doing so JAMES DEMERSFRO

people are asking why funding is so disproportinate to use

Kansas City was a leader in the area of offering free fares. At this time the officials o f t h e K a n s a s C i t y A r e a Tr a n s p o r t a t i o n Authority plan to continue their zero-fare program indefinitely. Los Angeles offered free fares for a while but went back to charging riders Denver, Boston and the State of Connecticut are looking at moving to free fares However, the question that keeps coming up is whether passengers will continue t o l e a v e f i x e d ro u t e t r a n s i t a n d m o v e t o a one-seat ride

Beyond Buses and the United States

This ongoing movement away from fixed route transit is not limited to buses nor to the United States It is found in numerous places and each seems to bring out the same questions regarding whether subsidy money is well spent or whether other alternatives might make more sense.

A good example is the current situation with rail travel in the United Kingdom since the circumstances and alternatives are fairly obvious As with other European nations, the railroads in the UK were nationalized many years ago Because of the high cost of s a l a r i e s a n d p e n s i o n s , t h e g o v e r n m e n t d e c i d e d t o re t a i n o w n e r s h i p o f t h e i n f r astructure but contract with private companies to operate various routes or regions.

The current situation is the UK is facing high inflation caused at least in part by the impact of the war in Ukraine on utility costs Meanwhile, rail travel is down and the railroads have run at a huge loss of 31 billion B r i t i s h p o u n d s s i n c e t h e s t a r t o f t h e p a n -

demic The railroad operating companies are looking for ways to increase ridership and reduce operating costs The rail unions a re g o i n g o u t o n s t r i k e a s k i n g f o r h i g h e r wages and job security. The strikes drive passengers away while higher wages and job s e c u r i t y d o n o t h i n g t o r e d u c e o p e r a t i n g costs

Recently, an increase in railroad fares of up to 5 9 percent was announced This is less than half of the recent increase in inflation

Expectedly, the railroad passengers are complaining that the increase is too high, a blow t o t r a v e l e r s a n d t h a t t h e r a i l ro a d s a re n o t delivering value for the fares

Some people are asking: where do you draw the line with using tax money to subsidize services for fewer and fewer passengers? At what point does an operating subsidy become welfare because of the limited n u m b e r o f p e o p l e i t h e l p s ? T h e r e a r e groups suggesting that this money might b e b e t t e r s p e n t o n i m p ro v i n g t h e m o t o rw a y s s i n c e m o s t p e o p l e h a v e a l r e a d y moved to a one-seat ride using their own automobiles In fact, one group has already suggested that improved motorways with autonomous vehicles will make travel better for everyone

There’s No Such Thing as a Free Lunch

This is the title of a popular book by economist Milton Freedman Some people say that the concept dates back to taverns that provided a “free lunch” to those ordering drinks. However, the lunch was really not free since it was covered by the cost of the drinks Today, the losses from fixed route transit are being covered by the taxpayers. While the circumstances are different, the concept is the same

Statistics show that people have moved a w a y f ro m f i x e d ro u t e t r a n s i t i n m a s s i v e numbers during the past century Since this is getting to be more and more obvious as farebox revenues cover less and less of operating costs, taxpayers and government officials are increasingly asking those same two questions.

Many if not most transit operators have been moving to alternative fuels to reduce pollution. These have included battery-electric buses and now even hydrogen fuel cell buses Shown here is a bus with hybrid power built by Volvo. VOLVO.

The movement away from fixed route transit is not limited to buses nor to the United States British Rail has had their share of problems lately as ridership has declined following the pandemic. This has created problems for the railroad staff who are seeking an increase in wages while the trains are carrying fewer passengers 4E69656C73764 AT PIXABAY

Could this money be better spent elsewhere to help more people? The money being used to subsidize fixed route transit in the United States is many times the percentage of people actually using fixed route transit. It is way out of proportion to those who have decided on a one-seat ride As the number of passengers decline, the cost for transporting each passenger increases Some people are already asking w h e re t o s a y “ e n o u g h ” w h e n t h i s e a t s a n increasing percentage of taxpayer money that could be better spent elsewhere

Is there a better solution? More and more people are realizing that fixed route transit is far from being a universal solution. Too many transit and government officials have the incorrect opinion that fixed route transit s e r v e s a l l t a x p a y e r s , b u t t h e s t a t i s t i c s s a y otherwise Many people are unable to use fixed route transit because their travel path does not coincide with the transit routes Yet, their only alternative is a personal car, Uber or Lyft. Several people point out that if fixed route transit was so great, the bus drivers w o u l d r i d e t h e b u s t o w o r k A t m o s t b u s operations, the drivers as well as the management drive to work

Several people have made the suggestion that the eventual answer to our transit problems may be the coming autonomous cars

will have to ask: Will there still be a need for public transportation? q

Some transit operators have been using smaller buses on certain routes. In addition to being more economical for fewer riders, they can also be used on more personalized routes to better serve passengers. This example of a Vicinity bus operates for MARTA in Atlanta. VICINITY

The movement away from fixed route transit and to a one-seat ride was originally made possible by the purchase and use of private automobiles. In more recent times, people have turned to taxis, Uber and Lyft to get a one-seat ride to their destination This photo shows a proliferation of taxis in New York City LEEROY AGENCY

Regulations and Smaller Operators

by Dave Millhouser

Apig and a chicken were strolling down a c o u n t r y l a n e w h e n t h e y s a w a homeless family camping in a field The pig said, “We should try and do something nice for those unfortunate folks.”

“ G r e a t i d e a , ” s a i d t h e c h i c k e n , “ H o w about we treat them to a ham and egg breakfast?” Stunned silent for a moment, the pig pointed out, “Hey, for you that is a sacrifice; for me, it is total commitment ”

I t i s a l w a y s e a s y ( a n d s a f e ) t o c o m m i t someone else to a worthy cause

Nobody would fault the goals of the current abundance of regulations and enforcem e n t r a i n i n g o n t h e m o t o rc o a c h i n d u s t r y. G o l l y, i t i s a b o u t s a f e t y, e n v i ro n m e n t a n d service levels All good The problem is the u n i n t e n d e d c o n s e q u e n c e s . C o m p l y i n g c o s t s a l o t o f m o n e y, a n d s m a l l c o m p a n i e s do not enjoy the economies of scale that the b i g g u y s d o

H o w d o y o u s p re a d t h e c o s t o f a s a f e t y d i r e c t o r, a d m i n i s t r a t o r f o r A D A t r a i n i n g a n d p a p e r w o r k , a s w e l l h u m a n re s o u rc e s and environmental gurus over the revenue f r o m f i v e t o 1 0 c o a c h e s ? T h e n e t e f f e c t o f this avalanche of regulation will be to gradu a l l y e l i m i n a t e s m a l l a n d m i d - s i z e d o p e ra t o r s I t w i l l b e c o m e i n c re a s i n g l y d i ff i c u l t t o s u r v i v e w i t h o u t b e i n g l a rg e , a n d a b l e t o m u l t i t a s k ( l i k e c o m b i n i n g c o m m u t e r ru n s w i t h l o c a l c h a r t e r s a n d t r a n s f e r s )

W h a t h a p p e n s n e x t i s t h a t , w i t h f e w e r coaches available, the public is driven (pun intended) back into cars which are far more d a n g e r o u s a n d p o l l u t i n g t h a n e v e n t h e w o r s t b u s . I n e ff e c t , t h e i n d u s t r y i s b e c o mi n g d e - f a c t o , r e g u l a t e d I f y o u a r e o n e o f t h e l a r g e c a r r i e r s , t h i s m a y s e e m t o b e a good thing. The cost of compliance is a pain f o r y o u , b u t f a t a l t o s m a l l e r c o m p e t i t o r s T h e re a re t w o p ro b l e m s w i t h t h a t s c e n a r i o ( p ro b a b l y m o re , I a m n o t t h a t s m a r t ) .

First, have we forgotten the fate of the private transit properties, virtually all now swallowed up by government agencies? This is not an identical situation, but there are plenty of parallels

S e c o n d , y o u m a y n o t l o v e c o m p e t i t o r s , b u t t h e y d r i v e y o u t o d o a b e t t e r j o b , a n d b r i n g c re a t i v i t y t o a n i n d u s t r y t h a t s o re l y needs it We need the agile new entrants and small companies to attract people to coach travel

Does anyone think, for a minute, that the legacy carriers would be doing the innovative

things they are right now, if the dread “rogue c u r b s i d e c a r r i e r s ” h a d n o t d e v e l o p e d a n e n t i r e l y n e w m a r k e t ? I n t h e r e g u l a t o r y w o r l d –" Q u i s c u s t o d i e t i p s o s c u s t o d e s ? " ( W h o w i l l w a t c h t h e w a t c h m e n ? ) Yo u thought I did not know Latin.

We have the specter of several companies being shut down immediately after getting “satisfactory” ratings, with politicians and bureaucrats suggesting draconian solutions to problems that are either smaller, or very d i f f e r e n t t h a n w h a t t h e y c l a i m

http://www.openmarket.org/2013/05/09/

For the most part, it is easier for a larger bus company to comply with regulations than a smaller bus company The larger bus company has more staff to keep track of regulations and more money to deal with them. However, we always need to encourage small companies because some of them grow into large companies and hence replace those we lose due to retirement or attrition MCI

governments-chinatown-bus-shutdownsbased-on-statistical-malpractice/

T h e re i s n o t , a s y e t , a c l e a r c o n n e c t i o n between what FMCSA measures and safety. Companies find it necessary to work the system, rather than concentrate on safe practices, like students who learn the answers to a test, rather than understanding the material The real connection seems to between

the 24-hour news cycle and politicians’ need to appear relevant

Some of the problems are self-inflicted

A unified face is not being presented to either the government or the public The bus industry has failed to convince folks that its service is really valuable (so it can afford to deal with all those mandates) It is not quite as safe asit used to be

I, personally, am for safety, a clean environment and equal opportunity for the disabled. I travel on the same roads as buses, breathe air and have high hopes of getting o l d a n d i n f i r m . T h e p ro b l e m i s t h a t , i n a n e ff o r t t o m a k e t h i n g s p e r f e c t , p e o p l e w h o have no “hands on” experience and no stake in the coach industry are burying us in rules that are marginally effective at reaching their worthy goals

They will have moved on before the cons e q u e n c e s a r e m a n i f e s t , l e a v i n g a m u c h smaller industry (with more people killed in automobile accidents, more pollution and less access to intercity transportation for the disabled)

Ty ro n e w a s a p e r f e c t i o n i s t , a n d e v e r y coach that came out of the garage he mana g e d w a s p e r f e c t T h e p r o b l e m w a s t h a t t h e y s o l d u s e d b u s e s , a n d j u s t c o u l d n o t afford to make them “perfect” (that is why used coaches cost less than new). When he c o u l d n o t b r e a k t h e h a b i t o f p e r f e c t i o n , m a n a g e m e n t f i n a l l y h a d t o l e t Ty ro n e g o

Voltaire said, “The perfect is the enemy of the good ” He said it in French, but I am pretty sure his point is that if you try too hard for perfection, either nothing gets done – or you slide backwards. It is particularly ugly if those demanding excellence have no skin in the game, or even any idea how the game is played. q

T h e r e a r e t w o p r o blems if we are unable t o g e t p e o p l e o u t o f t h e i r c a r s a n d i n t o buses The first is that t h e a d d i t i o n a l p a ssengers, charters and t o u r s w o u l d h e l p t h e bottom line of the bus company The second is that it gets more cars off the road to give us a c l e a n e r e n v i r o nment. SETRA/DAIMLER.

Regardless of the size of the bus company, all need to find ways to get more people on board buses. Over the years we could have done a better job of selling the merits of riding on buses to the general public In the wake of the pandemic, this has become even more important MCI

Sur vival and Pr osperity

by Ned Einstein

The Motorcoach Industry: The Lowest Priority, Once Again

Most NATIONAL BUS TRADER readers can recite the majority of the ugly milestones that have hampered the motorcoach industry, big and small: Deregulation 9-1-1 AMTRAK COVID-19 The commercial airline industry (see https://transalt.com/article/expanding-the-mode-split-dividing-line-part-1-exponential-airline-industry-corruption/) Antii d l i n g r e g u l a t i o n s D i s c r i m i n a t o r y l a w enforcement. Lack of parking facilities. Bridge, tunnel and freeway tolls Traffic congestion Seat belt requirements Transportation Network Companies (TNCs) like Uber and Lyft (see https://transalt.com/article/transportation-network-companies-even-worse-thanexpected/) One might add the weakness of the motorcoach industry’s dual lobbying organizations – forced to face-off against exponentially larger lobbying organizations with endless resources Of course, there is corruption, particularly in the TNC arena A particularly ugly form of discrimination against motorcoaches has always occurred in New York C i

t episode

Living and working in New York City for 23 years (until the combination of COVID, the collapse of the city’s taxi industry and a few other things drove me into the nearby countryside three years ago), I have vivid memories of so many of these things:

• As a pedestrian in Lower Manhattan, I must have helped scores of motorcoach drivers (and hundreds of truck drivers) back up when they could not manage to turn right on that borough’s narrow streets – to avoid them having to drive up on sidewalks (see https //turningaccidents com)

• I remember when, in the early 2000s, scores of coaches could park beneath FDR D r i v e ( n e a r t h e S o u t h S t re e t S e a p o r t a n d other places) and noticed the hardships when these parking places were shut down, and coaches had to deadhead to the upper w e s t s i d e t o p a r k ( s e e h t t p s : / / transalt com/article/making-public-transportation-work-part-2-park-and-ride-lots/)

• I re m e m b e r w h e n t h e f o r m e r m a y o r began flooding the city with unneeded Ubers a n d Ly f t s ( s e e h t t p s : / / t r a n s a l t c o m / article/bad-regulations-and-worse-responsespart-1-introduction/; https://transalt com/ article/bad-regulations-and-worse-responsespart-2-the-rise-fall-and-transformation-ofs u p e r s h u t t l e / ; h t t p s : / / t r a n s a l t c o m /

article/bad-regulations-and-worse-responsesp a r t - 3 - i n v a s i o n - o f - t h e - t n c s / ; https://transalt com/article/bad-regulationsand-worse-responses-part-4-judicial-heroism/; https://transalt.com/article/bad-regulations-and-worse-responses-part-5-executiv e - b r a n c h - re s p o n s e s / ; h t t p s : / / transalt com/article/bad-regulations-andworse-responses-part-6-industry-and-association-responses/, and https://transalt com/ article/bad-regulations-and-worse-responsesp a r t - 7 - c o n c l u s i o n s / ) , w h i c h n o t o n l y destroyed his city’s own taxi system, but drew riders away from the transit system (which d e p l o y e d 1 , 5 0 0 m o t o rc o a c h e s ) a n d o t h e r modes

• I obviously remember when the explos i o n o f C O V I D ( N Y C e x p e r i e n c e d n e a r l y 45,000 deaths and 3 2 million cases) practically eliminated motorcoach ridership (even w h i l e A M T R A K p r o fi t s s o a r e d – s e e h t t p s : / / t r a n s a l t c o m / a r t i c l e / c o v i d - 1 9shenanigans-and-liability-part-2-makingmoney-by-compromising-health/)

• I have written extensively about the corruption in the commercial airline industry and how the motorcoach sector failed to respond to the extraordinary opportunities those practices provided (see https://transalt.com/article/survival-and-prosperity-part-1-magicc o r r i d o r s / ; h t t p s : / / t r a n s a l t c o m / article/survival-and-prosperity-part-2-them a g i c - c o a c h / ; h t t p s : / / t r a n s a l t . c o m / article/survival-and-prosperity-part-3-thegains-of-winning-the-cost-of-failure/, and https://transalt com/article/survival-andprosperity-part-4-service-concepts/).

The latest episode of New York City’s corruption in favor of Uber and Lyft – that comp l e t e l y i g n o re d t h e c o n s e q u e n c e s o f i t f o r the taxi, limousine, transit and motorcoach industries – is too important to ignore

Electrification and Electrocution

A s e x p o s é s a b o u t g l o b a l m e l t i n g a n d b u r n i n g ( a / k / a c l i m a t e c h a n g e ) e x p l o d e almost daily in the news, many Americans increasingly recognize how fast our planet is being destroyed The most recent article I n o t i c e d w a s a N e w Yo r k Ti m e s p i e c e a b o u t the drying up of the Colorado River (among a n a t i o n f u l l o f r i v e r s a n d l a k e s ) – s e e https://www nytimes com/2023/01/27/cli

m a t e / c o l o r a d o - r i v e r - b i d e n - c u t s h t m l

Frankly, the pros and cons of electric vehicles have become moot. We have no alternatives but to electrify practically everything we can that consumes fuel or energy of any other

type. In fact, in many places full of vehicles, no reachable volume of wind turbines and solar panels can likely provide enough electrons for all the charging stations needed The closures of nuclear plants (like the decision to close one in California this past January, 2023) are a looming disaster (combined with California’s mandate that every vehicle shall be an electric one by 2035).

A string of similar disasters has been our f a i l u re t o d e c re a s e t h e n u m b e r o f v e h i c l e miles of travel by failing to shoehorn travelers into larger vehicles Our transit systems have irreversibly failed by creating too few p a r k a n d r i d e l o t s ( s e e h t t p s : / / transalt.com/article/making-public-transportation-work-part-2-park-and-ride-lots/), t o o f e w f e e d e r s y s t e m s ( s e e https://transalt com/article/making-public-transportation-work-part-3-feeder-serv i c e / ) , t h e u s e o f f e w a l t e r n a t i v e w o r k schedules (see https://transalt com/artic l e / m a k i n g - p u b l i c - t r a n s p o r t a t i o n - w o r kp a r t - 1 - a l t e r n a t i v e - w o r k - s c h e d u l e s / ) a n d our pitiful failures to design public transp o r t a t i o n s y s t e m s o f a n y k i n d ( s e e https://transalt com/article/making-publ i c - t r a n s p o r t a t i o n - w o r k - p a r t - 4 - s y s t e md e s i g n - a n d - n e t w o r k s / ) – a s w e f o c u s e d instead on directing the robots that increasingly began designing routes and schedules and selecting stops more than 30 years ago.

All these failures have, individually and collectively, effected a mode split from larger v e h i c l e s t o s m a l l e r o n e s – i n t h e p ro c e s s , increasing the number of vehicle miles every m o t o r i s t o r p a s s e n g e r m u s t t r a v e l , a n d bringing traffic on many freeways, and in p a r t s o f m a n y o r m o s t m a j o r c i t i e s , t o a crawl While fixed route transit has suffered the most from these failures, the motorcoach industry has suffered as well

M a n y m o t o r c o a c h c o m p a n i e s h a d t o b e c o m e l o w - p ro fi t - m a k i n g c o n t r a c t o r s t o t r a n s i t a g e n c i e s i n o rd e r t o s u r v i v e I w a s

recently involved, as an expert witness, in a case where reputable and otherwise successful motorcoach operator was forced (largely b y t h e l o s s o f b u s i n e s s f ro m C O V I D ) i n t o becoming a contractor to a county in New Jersey – operating a route which carried less then one passenger per hour Otherwise, as noted, the motorcoach industry failed to take advantage of the opportunities for greatly expanding medium distance, intercity trips to compensate for the collapse of commercial airline service

W h i l e n o t n e c e s s a r i l y t h e l a rg e s t c o nstraint faced by the motorcoach industry, a recent transgression by New York City “rubs it in.” This transgression, which reeks of corr u p t i o n , i s t h e re c e n t d e c i s i o n b y n e w l yelected Mayor Eric Adams to mandate that every Uber and Lyft vehicle be an electric v e h i c l e b y t h e y e a r 2 0 3 0 . T h i s m a n d a t e applied to no other vehicle – including the city’s own taxi fleet

Corruption Disguised and Unfettered

A reader unfamiliar with Uber and Lyft’s genuine profit-making structure (as I am) might be scratching his or her head Most TNC passengers and non-passengers alike are under the impression that Uber and Lyft d r i v e r s a re o p e r a t i n g o n l y t h e i r o w n p e rsonal cars If so, how could these individuals – New York City finally “capped” the number of Ubers in the City at 60,000 – possibly afford electric vehicles?

Pr osperity

TNC, that TNC would pay the car rental fee – in full

N o w t h i n k a b o u t t h i s f o r a m o m e n t Focus on the fact that many TNC runs (as well as those of taxis and limousines) involve airport runs – long runs which often involve a long deadhead back from the airport to the city. (Unlike taxis, which must then deadhead to the end of a queue to “move up” in order to pick up an outbound passenger, an Uber or Lyft driver simply needs to be the closest to a potential passenger who “summons” the next Uber or Lyft through his or h e r a p p , a n d t h e c l o s e s t v e h i c l e t o t h a t would-be passenger [summoned as a result] then picks up that passenger.) At the airport, of course, this can mean bumper-to-bumper congestion in the roadways in front of the airport terminal Rather than await or accept t h i s t r i p , m a n y o f t h e s e v e h i c l e s s i m p l y deadhead back to the city With or without a rental car, this trip to the airport and deadhead back to the city can easily consume two hours. Yet:

1 M o s t U b e r a n d Ly f t d r i v e r s c a n n o t a ff o rd e l e c t r i c v e h i c l e s n o w, a n d w i l l n o t likely afford them when operating them in Manhattan becomes a mandate in 2030.

2 Many of most of these drivers will be renting cars – just like many do in California (and likely in other states)

3. There are only 168 hours in a week.

4 One must provide 150 trips in order for the TNC involved in the lawsuit noted to pay the car rental fee (at least in 2022)

5 . E v e r y d r i v e r m u s t s p e n d s o m e o f these 168 hours sleeping

6 Those individuals who get much less than eight hours’ sleep a night (think about F M V S S h o u r s - o f - s e r v i c e re g u l a t i o n s ) a re l i k e l y t o b e f a t i g u e d N o s l e e p t r a n s l a t e s i m m e d i a t e l y i n t o d r i v e r a n d m o t o r i s t fatigue

As an expert witness who has worked on a number of TNC cases, for example, I am t h o ro u g h l y f a m i l i a r w i t h t h e re a l i t y t h a t underlies this puzzle Believe it or not, many TNC drivers do not operate their own vehicles Instead, they operate rental cars, often f ro m a s u b s e t o f t h e re n t a l c a r c o m p a n y ’ s fleet “set aside” specifically for TNC drivers

In one case, after a TNC driver totaled two rental company’s cars in his first five months of driving, he was forced to rent the next one from another car rental company – a comp a n y p r e s u m a b l y a w a r e o f h i s d r i v i n g record with the first one

Now here is the first rub where things get nasty, and where this arrangement translates into mayhem The car rental arrangement with which I am familiar could have cost the driver $200/week However, if he (or any other car rental customer driving for a TNC) provided 150 or more trips per week for that

Now, place these figures in perspective:

1 Yo u a re d r i v i n g a re n t a l c a r c o s t i n g $ 2 0 0 ( A n e l e c t r i c v e h i c l e w i l l a l m o s t c e rtainly rent for far more in 2030.)

2 A f t e r 1 6 6 h o u r s , y o u m a n a g e d –incredibly – to pick up only 148 passengers

3 Your eyelids are so heavy that keeping them open would snap the average wooden toothpick in half

4 If you fail to pick up two more passengers in the next two hours, this failure will c o s t y o u m u c h m o r e t h a n $ 2 0 0 ( i n fl a t e d , again, by the cost of renting an electric vehicle in New York City, in 2030)

What choice would most Uber and Lyft drivers naturally make if they engage in the business practice noted above – much less in New York City, where the traffic is as stifling as the cost-of-living?

1. Pull to the side of the road and take a nap (keep in mind, that driver already provided 148 trips that week)

2 S o m e h o w m a n a g e t o p r o v i d e t w o more trips – whereby the TNC will pay your car rental fee?

Exhaustion and Extortion

I t i s o b v i o u s w h a t c h o i c e m o s t d r i v e r s would make given this scenario In the one lawsuit in which the driver faced this choice – I have no idea how close to the magic 150 trips he was at the time – on his way home 90 minutes away from his last drop-off, after roughly a 12-hour shift, he ran through a red l i g h t a n d m o w e d d o w n a p e d e s t r i a n i n a crosswalk. The average, even-sophisticated trade magazine reader cannot imagine the settlement value of this set of facts Would a TNC actually go to trial (much less against someone like myself as the expert) in a case where the expert would expose this business practice on “the public record?”

As the expert witness in that case, I would n e v e r r e v e a l t h e s e t t l e m e n t , t h e p a r t i e s ( i n c l u d i n g t h e s p e c i fi c T N C o r c a r re n t a l companies involved), the attorneys or even t h e v e n u e ( o t h e r t h a n t h i s o n e h a v i n g occurred in California, whose population of more than 39 million makes any identification of any party practically impossible) –o r a n y t h i n g e l s e . T h e v a l u e o f a c a s e w i t h such facts would be awesome if the plaintiff ’s attorney paid attention and was willing to do some work

The reality is that all these cases settle –and thus, no public record is ever made of an actual case where these factors caused a specific individual’s death or injury Regrett a b l y, m o s t s e t t l e f o r f a r l e s s t h a n a s a v v y plaintiff ’s attorney would make them settle for Frankly, such defendants cannot afford to go to trial on cases with such facts – and would most likely settle for a small fortune – especially, again, as neither the plaintiff ’s attorney nor his or her expert can reveal any specific facts about the case, as noted As a consequence, these companies continue to engage in such business practices, virtually unimpeded Would an elected official know this? I doubt it More interestingly, would the typical elected official care – even if he or she knew? I will let the readers speculate about this point It is almost certain that, in w h a t e v e r d e a l w a s m a d e w i t h U b e r a n d Lyft, Mayor Adams gave little thought to its i m p a c t o n t h e s u r v i v a l a n d p ro s p e r i t y o f other modes – like his City’s own transit and

Many TNC drivers do not o p e r a t e t h e i r o w n vehicles

The reality is that all these cases settle

Survival and Prosperity

taxi systems, much less motorcoach and limousine services

Promotion and Exclusion

The reader has to wonder what benefit M a y o r A d a m s a c h i e v e d f ro m t h i s d e a l I myself wondered – way back in 2015 – what f o r m e r M a y o r D e B l a s i o g o t w h e n h e allowed 15,000 Ubers to operate in the city by the end of 2015 (there are 60,000 operating in the city now) Had they paid the going r a t e f o r a t a x i m e d a l l i o n , t h e n v a l u e d a t roughly $1.1 million, these first 15,000 Ubers would have produced roughly $16 5 billion in revenue to the city Of course, since there were only 13,000 taxis operating in the city a t t h a t t i m e , a n d t h e c o s t o f a m e d a l l i o n helped to balance “supply and demand,” few of these additional Uber drivers would l i k e l y h a v e p a i d a l m o s t a n y t h i n g f o r a medallion. The magnitude of funds calculated as actually lost by the city in exempting these drivers from paying for taxi medallions is highly exaggerated Some level of funds was surely lost.

This tomfoolery is a somewhat sophisticated ruse As a Manhattan resident at that time, who traveled largely by a combination o f s u b w a y t r a i n s a n d t a x i s , I h a d m a n y, m a n y d i s c u s s i o n s w i t h “ c a b b i e s ” F o r a w h i l e , s o m e o f t h e m p l a c e d b e t s o n w h a t m o n t h t h e m a y o r w o u l d “ s w i m w i t h d a fishes ” When his last swim never materialized, some began to wager on where his hidden bank account was (the most common bets were placed on Zurich, Luxembourg and the Grand Cayman Islands – as I recall from a series of chit-chats with various drivers ) One can only imagine what the bets a r e a b o u t n o w, a f t e r n e w M a y o r A d a m s a n o i n t e d Ly f t a n d U b e r t o f u t u re c l i m a t e change heroes in a city full of liberals just yearning to breathe free (or at least yearning to breath cleaner air).

Far afield from the motorcoach industry, the local press – particularly The New Yorker –has not been kind to Mayor Adams. A few months ago, its weekly restaurant review completely (and inaccurately and unfairly) panned the restaurant in which he spends c o n s i d e r a b l e t i m e , o w n e d b y s o m e o f h i s seemingly many ex-convict friends The January 30, 2023 issue of The New Yorker contained a seven-page exposé about him titled, “Friend of the Mayor” – about another of his friends with a sketchy history One can only wonder about the decision to elevate Uber and Lyft to climate change heroes – much less when not imposing the same requirements on his own city’s taxi drivers (or their vehicles’ owners)

That most of the city’s remaining taxi driv e r s ( 11 , 0 0 0 o f t h e m w e r e d i s p a t c h e d t o deliver food in the heart of COVID – instead

o f m o d e - s p l i t t i n g p a s s e n g e r s w h o w e r e forced to ride, often elbow-to-elbow, during certain times of the day, on certain subways a n d b u s l i n e s ) w e re e ff e c t i v e l y fl e e c e d o f most of the value of the hundreds of thousands of dollars they (and their extended families) paid for their medallions is an afterthought – although it was given severe and warranted treatment by the New York Times ( s e e h t t p s : / / w w w n y t i m e s c o m / 2019/05/19/ nyregion/nyc-taxis-medallions-suicides html)

Completing the Circle

Apart from the safety implications of the Uber and Lyft anointment, and the corruption this anointment suggests may exist, it only added to the already declining prosperity of the city’s transit and motorcoach fl e e t s , a n d t h o u s a n d s o f p r i v a t e - s e c t o rowned motorcoaches serving the city from a re a s t h ro u g h o u t t h e A t l a n t i c S e a b o a rd , New England and the Midwest

A s I h a v e p re d i c t e d i n p a s t N AT I O N A L B US T rADEr articles, I suspect that many, many cities – particularly in the South – will b e g i n t o a b a n d o n t r a n s i t i n t h e n e x t f e w years There will be no Lyndon Johnson to rescue them a second time, as he did in 1964 and 1967 – especially as the farebox recover ratios cited above include the facts that Federal funds from those first two rescue efforts already cover much of transit’s operating costs in even the most efficient cities, and cover 80 percent of the costs of all their vehicles and other capital expenses

The motorcoach industry is hanging by a t h r e a d I n o n e l a w s u i t i n w h i c h I w a s engaged, noted above, an otherwise profi t a b l e , m e d i u m - s i z e d , f a m i l y - o w n e d m o t o r c o a c h c o m p a n y w a s s e r v i n g a s a c o n t r a c t o r t o a s u b u r b a n N e w J e r s e y C o u n t y – o p e r a t i n g a f i x e d ro u t e b u s l i n e that provided less than one passenger trip per hour This coming July 1, 2023, the District of Columbia – which has the nation’s second-highest percentage of its operating costs covered by farebox revenue – is going t o e l i m i n a t e f a re s a l t o g e t h e r H o w m u c h longer can one expect American taxpayers t o a c c e p t s u c h re a l i t i e s ? I n l i g h t o f t h e s e f a c t s , w h y w o u l d a n y o n e n o t u n d e r s t a n d w h y s o m a n y A m e r i c a n s a re f i s c a l l y c o ns e r v a t i v e ?

Perhaps New York City has some exotic right to wallow in corruption and waste in transportation After all, New York City poss e s s e s t h e n a t i o n ’ s h i g h e s t p e rc e n t a g e o f operating costs covered by farebox revenue – 35 percent (This figure is nine percent in Los Angeles and 13 percent in San Francisco – w h e re , i n b o t h c a s e s , t h e l o w e r- d e n s i t y c i t i e s s u r r o u n d i n g t h e m a r e s e r v e d b y smaller municipal transit agencies In other words, L A and San Francisco are hemorrhaging billions of dollars a year even while t h e y o p e r a t e i n t h e i r re s p e c t i v e c o u n t i e s ’ highest-density areas )

As more and more taxpayers and their repre s e n t a t i v e s w i l l s a y t o t r a n s i t , “ H a s t a l a Vista,” I say about all of this, “Aye, Caramba ” (So too might Bart Simpson if a few writers cover this part of our nation’s collapse ) The fact that such dynamics will also drag down the motorcoach industry with them is a particular tragedy more important to the readers of NATIONAL BUS TrADEr

The opinions expressed in this article are that of the author and do not necessarily represent the opinions of National Bus Trader, Inc or its staff and management q

Ned Einstein is the president of Transportation Alternatives (www.transalt.com [1]), a p u b l i c t r a n s p o r t a t i o n w i t n e s s fi r m Einstein (einstein@transit.com) specializes in catastrophic motorcoach accidents

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H o w m u c h l o n g e r c a n one expect American taxp a y e r s t o a c c e p t s u c h realities?

I s u s p e c t t h a t m a n y , many cities – particularly in the South – will begin to a b a n d o n t r a n s i t i n t h e next few years.

Newport Aquarium, Newport, Kentucky –

Photo by Newport Aquarium

Cincinnati Museum Center at Union Terminal, Cincinnati, Ohio – Photo by Robert Webber

The Beast Roller Coaster at Kings Island, Mason, Ohio – Photo by Kings Island

National Underground Railroad Freedom Center, Cincinnati, Ohio – Photo by Mark BealerNorthern Kentucky Skyline with Roebling Suspension Bridge – Photo by Liz Dufour

Ark Encounter, Williamstown, Kentucky – Photo by Ark Encounter

T h e U n i t e d M o t o r c o a c h A s s o c i a t i o n p r o v i d e d s o m e p h o t o s t a k e n a t t h e recent Motorcoach Expo in Orlando that did not make it into the UMA article.

A t l e f t : A s u s u a l , s e v e r a l p e o p l e w e r e entered into the annual driver ’s competition. Here is a photo of a driver using a Prevost coach to go through part of the difficult course

Below: We did not receive information

o n t h e D a i m l e r e x h i b i t a t t h e E x p o . H o w e v e r, h e r e i s a p h o t o o f t h e i r Tourrider on the show floor along with several attendees who were interested. We noted the lift at the rear.

Number 291 of a Series

“ T h e C u r i o u s C o a c h o w n e r ” i s a q u e s t i o n a n d a n s w e r c o l u m n t h a t p ro v i d e s s i m p l e a n s w e r s t o s i m p l e q u e s t i o n s t h a t a re t o o shor t to warrant a full ar ticle or inclusion in one of our regular columns We will accept re a s o n a b l y s i m p l e t e c h n i c a l o r h i s t o r i c a l questions on coaches, buses or even conver ted coach shells by letter, fax, e-mail or phone If our staff is unable to answer them, w e w i l l c a l l u p o n o u r p a n e l o f e x p e r t s Names and addresses should be submitted w i t h y o u r q u e s t i o n s , b u t w e w i l l w i t h h o l d n a m e s f r o m p u b l i c a t i o n o n r e q u e s t W e reserve the right to modify questions to make them more useful to our readers

Q I was told that in the early depression days there was a Greyhound bus robbery on Old Route 66 in Oklahoma, just east of the Texas line Do you know anything about this?

–– Reader in Texas

A This one took a little bit of time to track d o w n S o m e w h e r e a r o u n d 1 9 2 7 , t h e o l d P i c k w i c k S t a g e s r o u t e t o E l P a s o w a s extended east to Oklahoma City and then t o S t L o u i s t o c o n n e c t w i t h P u r p l e S w a n Safety Coach, then owned by Motor Transit C o r p , t h e c o m p a n y t h a t w o u l d b e c o m e Greyhound In 1928, an agreement between Greyhound and Pickwick brought the Pickwick and Purple Swan routes under the Pickwick-Greyhound name

T h e i n c i d e n t i n q u e s t i o n a p p a re n t l y t o o k place early in the mor ning of June 7, 1931 O n t h e n i g h t o f J u n e 6 , P i c k w i c k - G r e yh o u n d d r i v e r W E Tr a m m e l l e f t Tu l s a w i t h a Yellow Coach on a run to El Paso followi n g R o u t e 6 6

Apparently the run was uneventful until the stop at Erick, Oklahoma, about nine miles e a s t o f t h e Te x a s s t a t e l i n e , a t a b o u t 2 : 3 0 a m Two men boarded with tickets for Shamrock, Texas Leaving Erick, Trammel noted that there was a vehicle both in front of and b e h i n d t h e b u s H e s o o n f o u n d o u t w h y when a few minutes later he felt a poke in the back by a pistol and was told to stop the bus

The two cars pulled over and five other men boarded the bus Trammel was ordered to hand over his money This being the Depression, he had nothing to hand over The robbers then called him names and turned their

The Curious Coachowner

a t t e n t i o n t o t h e p a s s e n g e r s A f e w o f t h e p a s s e n g e r s e i t h e r h a d n o m o n e y o r h a d managed to hide it One woman lost nearly $ 5 0 0 a n d a d i a m o n d r i n g w h i l e a n o t h e r woman passenger had only a single dollar and an inexpensive watch

It is estimated that the robbers were able to t a k e n e a r l y $ 6 7 0 i n c a s h a n d a b o u t $ 2 7 0 dollars in jewelry, which would be significant i f t r a n s l a t e d i n t o t o d a y ’s d o l l a r s R e p o r t s said that the robbers were kind enough to let passengers keep enough money to wire home for help or buy a meal Before leaving they disabled the bus by cutting the fuel line, ripping out the ignition wiring and breaking two spark plugs

After the robbers had left, Trammel and two male passengers walked about four miles w e s t t o Te x o l a , O k l a h o m a , t h e l a s t t o w n before the Texas state line, to get help The robber y was repor ted to the bus company as well as to law enforcement officials

Greyhound sent a mechanic to help and it w a s r e p o r t e d t h a t t h e b u s e v e n t u a l l y reached Shamrock,Texas about sunrise At that time that police cars did not have radios The robbers were apparently long gone and w e re n e v e r a p p re h e n d e d Tw o m e n w e re arrested in Erik but no one identified them The case remains unsolved

Q When can NaTIONal Bus TRaDeR again offer a print edition?

–– several Readers

A The simple answer to this is that the print edition will probably return when readers go back to buying buses again

T h e p r i n t e d i t i o n w a s n o t p a i d f o r b y s u bs c r i p t i o n s , i t w a s p a i d f o r b y a d v e r t i s i n g W h e n t h e p a n d e m i c h i t , t h e b u s i n d u s t r y and our readers substantially reduced the number of buses they were buying This, in turn, caused the advertisers to reduce their adver tising until sales come back again

Inquiries at that time disclosed that the people who buy the buses preferred a digital e d i t i o n a n d t h e a d v e r t i s e r s a l s o l i k e d t h e digital edition because it offered hyperlinks for immediate response Hence, the decision was made to go digital

Yo u r e d i t o r d o e s s y m p a t h i z e t o a l a r g e extent My own experience with typesetting and print goes back to the hot metal days

But the reality is that the world around us is t u r n i n g d i g i t a l O n e s o u rc e s u g g e s t s t h a t 71 8 percent of U S Media ad spend in 2022 w a s i n d i g i t a l a d v e r t i s i n g T h i s n u m b e r i s increasing from year to year as the cost of printing and postage increases

I m i g h t m e n t i o n t h a t y o u c a n d o w n l o a d a PDF file of each National Bus Trader issue a n d e i t h e r p r i n t p a g e s o n y o u r o w n c o mp u t e r p r i n t e r o r t a k e t h e fi l e t o S t a p l e s o r Office Max for printing

We c a n l o o k t o g o b a c k t o a p r i n t e d i t i o n when the industry and our readers go back t o b u y i n g m o r e n e w c o a c h e s T h i s w i l l prompt the advertisers to increase their mark e t i n g b u d g e t s t o s u p p o r t a p r i n t e d i t i o n again

If all of our readers go out and buy four new motorcoaches today, that will go a long way t o w a r d s m a k i n g a p r i n t e d i t i o n p o s s i b l e again

Q. Thank you for your generosity on supp o r t i n g t h e P a c i fi c B u s M u s e u m i n NaTIONal Bus TRaDeR.

–– alan Fong, California

A You are welcome We do tr y to suppor t non-profit groups that help and assist the bus industr y in various ways We often feel that the bus museums are wor thy of more support than they are currently getting They are tr ying to preserve the histor y of the bus industr y for future generations

Q. Why do buses no longer have yellow fog lights? I remember seeing them on buses when I was a kid

–– Northeast Bus Operator

A I am not sure we have an answer for this I too remember seeing some Silversides with both regular and yellow fog headlights

Our brief research showed that yellow fog lights are still recommended for fog because the light hits your retina in a way that lets you focus on the road We also discovered that there were several companies selling regular and even halogen fog lights so they are still readily available

If the bus manufacturers do not offer them, you can cer tainly install them yourself

A n s w e r s n o t c r e d i t e d t o o t h e r i n d i v i d u a l s are provided by Larry Plachno q

BACK ISSUES

EVERY ISSUE IS NEW UNTIL YOU HAVE READ IT!

NATIONAL BUS TRADER continues to receive requests on the availability of back issues so that readers can either locate desired information or obtain missing issues

While they last, the following back issues are available Issues beginning with June, 1979 thru c u r r e n t a r e $ 3 – U S , $ 4 5 0 – C a n a d a a n d $ 5 –International (US) each postpaid

Several issues are already “out of print,” hence we suggest that you indicate second choices We r e s e r v e t h e r i g h t t o r e f u n d m o n e y i f i s s u e s requested are no longer available

q Vol II, No 7 June, 1979

q Vol II, No 10 September, 1979

q Vol III, No 4 March, 1980

q Vol III, No 5 April, 1980

q Vol III, No 6 May, 1980

q Vol. III, No. 9 August, 1980

q Vol III, No 10 September, 1980

q Vol. III, No. 12 November, 1980

q Vol IV, No 5 April, 1981

q Vol. IV, No. 6 May, 1981

q Vol IV, No 7 June, 1981

q Vol. IV, No. 9 August, 1981

q Vol IV, No 10 September, 1981

q Vol. IV, No. 11 October, 1981

q Vol V, No 2 January, 1982

q Vol. V, No. 3 February, 1982

q Vol V, No 6 May, 1982

q Vol V, No 11 October, 1982

q Vol V, No 12 November, 1982

q Vol VI, No 2 January, 1983

q Vol VI, No 5 April, 1983

q Vol VI, No 7 June, 1983

q Vol. VI, No. 9 August, 1983

q Vol VI, No 10 September, 1983

q Vol. VI, No. 11 October, 1983

q Vol VI, No 12 November, 1983

q Vol. VII, No. 5 April, 1984

q Vol VII, No 9 August, 1984

q Vol. VII, No. 10 September, 1984

q Vol VII, No 11 October, 1984

q Vol. VII, No. 12 November, 1984

q Vol VIII, No 2 January, 1985

q Vol. VIII, No. 4 March, 1985

q Vol VIII, No 6 May, 1985

q Vol VIII, No 7 June, 1985

q Vol VIII, No 8 July, 1985

q Vol VIII, No 10 September, 1985

q Vol VIII, No 12 November, 1985

q Vol IX, No 5 April, 1986

q Vol. IX, No. 6 May, 1986

q Vol IX, No 8 July, 1986

q Vol. IX, No. 9 August, 1986

q Vol IX, No 10 September, 1986

q Vol. IX, No. 12 November, 1986

q Vol X, No 2 January, 1987

q Vol. X, No. 4 March, 1987

q Vol X, No 5 April, 1987

q Vol. X, No. 6 May, 1987

q Vol X, No 9 August, 1987

q Vol X, No 10 September, 1987

q Vol X, No 11 October, 1987

q Vol X, No 12 November, 1987

q Vol XI, No 2 January, 1988

q Vol XI, No 3 February, 1988

q Vol. XI, No. 4 March, 1988

q Vol XI, No 5 April, 1988

q Vol. XI, No. 6 May, 1988

q Vol XI, No 11 October, 1988

q Vol. XI, No. 12 November, 1988

q Vol XII, No 2 January, 1989

q Vol. XII, No. 3 February, 1989

q Vol XII, No 4 March, 1989

q Vol. XII, No. 5 April, 1989

q Vol XII, No 6 May, 1989

q Vol. XII, No. 7 June, 1989

q Vol XII, No 10 September, 1989

q Vol XII, No 11 October, 1989

q Vol XIII, No 2 January, 1990

q Vol XIII, No 4 March, 1990

q Vol XIII, No 6 May, 1990

q Vol XIII, No 5 April, 1990

q Vol. XIII, No. 7 June, 1990

q Vol XIII, No 8 July, 1990

q Vol. XIII, No. 10 September, 1990

q Vol XIV, No 2 January, 1991

q Vol XIV, No 4 March, 1991

q Vol XIV, No 7 June, 1991

q Vol XIV, No 10 September, 1991

q Vol. XIV, No. 11 October, 1991

q Vol XIV, No 12 November, 1991

q Vol. XV, No. 2 January, 1992

q Vol XV, No 3 February, 1992

q Vol. XV, No. 4 March, 1992

q Vol XV, No 6 May, 1992

q Vol. XV, No. 7 June, 1992

q Vol XV, No 8 July, 1992

q Vol. XV, No. 9 August, 1992

q Vol XV, No 10 September, 1992

q Vol. XVI, No. 7 June, 1993

q Vol XVI, No 11 October, 1993

q Vol XVI, No 12 November, 1993

q Vol XVII, No 2 January, 1994

q Vol XVII, No 3 February, 1994

q Vol XVII, No 4 March, 1994

q Vol XVII, No 6 May, 1994

q Vol. XVII, No. 7 June, 1994

q Vol XVII, No 10 September, 1994

q Vol. XVII, No. 11 October, 1994

q Vol XVII, No 12 November, 1994

q Vol. XVIII, No. 2 January, 1995

q Vol XVIII, No 3 February, 1995

q Vol. XVIII, No. 4 March, 1995

q Vol XVIII, No 6 May, 1995

q Vol. XVIII, No. 7 June, 1995

q Vol XVIII, No 8 July, 1995

q Vol. XIX,

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q Vol XXVI, No 11 October, 2003

q Vol. XXVI, No. 12 November, 2003

q Vol. XXVII, No. 2 January, 2004

q Vol XXVII, No 3 February, 2004

q Vol XXVII, No 4 March, 2004

q Vol XXVII, No 5 April, 2004

q Vol XXVII, No 8 July, 2004

q Vol. XXVII, No. 9 August, 2004

q Vol. XXVII, No. 10 September, 2004

q Vol XXVII, No 11 October, 2004

q Vol XXVII, No 12 November, 2004

q Vol XXVIII, No 2 January, 2005

q Vol XXVIII, No 3 February, 2005

q Vol. XXVIII, No. 4 March, 2005

q Vol. XXVIII, No. 5 April, 2005

q Vol. XXVIII, No. 6 May, 2005

q Vol XXVIII, No 7 June, 2005

q Vol XXVIII, No 9 August, 2005

q Vol XXVIII, No 10 September, 2005

q Vol XXVIII, No 11 October, 2005

q Vol. XXVIII, No. 12 November, 2005

q Vol. XXVIV, No. 2 January, 2006

q Vol XXVIV, No 3 February, 2006

q Vol XXVIV, No 4 March, 2006

q Vol XXVIV, No 5 April, 2006

q Vol XXVIV, No 6 May, 2006

q Vol. XXVIV, No. 7 June, 2006

q Vol. XXVIV, No. 8 July, 2006

q Vol XXVIV, No 9 August, 2006

q Vol XXVIV, No 10 September, 2006

q Vol XXVIV, No 11 October, 2006

q Vol XXVIV, No 12 November, 2006

q Vol. XXX, No. 1 December, 2006

q Vol. XXX, No. 2 January, 2007

q Vol XXX, No 3 February, 2007

q Vol XXX, No 4 March, 2007

q Vol XXX, No 5 April, 2007

q Vol XXX, No 6 May, 2007

q Vol. XXX, No. 7 June, 2007

q Vol. XXX, No. 8 July, 2007

q Vol XXX, No 9 August, 2007

q Vol XXX, No 10 September, 2007

q Vol XXX No 11 October, 2007

q Vol XXX, No 12 November, 2007

q Vol. XXXI, No. 1 December, 2007

q Vol. XXXI, No. 2 January, 2008

q Vol. XXXI, No. 3 February, 2008

q Vol XXXI, No 4 March, 2008

q Vol XXXI, No 5 April, 2008

q Vol XXXI, No 6 May, 2008

q Vol XXXI, No 7 June, 2008

q Vol. XXXI, No. 8 July, 2008

q Vol. XXXI, No. 9 August, 2008

q Vol XXXI, No 10 September, 2008

q Vol XXXI, No 11 October, 2008

q Vol XXXI, No 12 November, 2008

q Vol XXXII, No 1 December, 2008

q Vol. XXXII, No. 2 January, 2009

q Vol. XXXII, No. 3 February, 2009

q Vol XXXII, No 4 March, 2009

q Vol XXXII, No 5 April, 2009

q Vol XXXII, No 6 May, 2009

q Vol XXXII, No 7 June, 2009

q Vol. XXXII, No. 8 July, 2009

q Vol. XXXII, No. 9 August, 2009

q Vol XXXII, No 10 September, 2009

q Vol XXXII, No 11 October, 2009

q Vol XXXII, No 12 November, 2009

q Vol XXXIII, No 1 December, 2009

q Vol. XXXIII, No. 2 January, 2010

q Vol. XXXIII, No. 3 February, 2010

q Vol XXXIII, No 4 March, 2010

q Vol XXXIII, No 5 April, 2010

q Vol XXXIII, No 6 May, 2010

q Vol XXXIII, No 7 June, 2010

q Vol XXXIII, No 8 July, 2010

q Vol. XXXIII, No. 9 August, 2010

q Vol XXXIII, No 10 September, 2010

q Vol. XXXIII, No. 11 October, 2010

q Vol XXXIII, No 12 November, 2010

q Vol. XXXIV, No. 1 December, 2010

q Vol XXXIV, No 2 January, 2011

q Vol. XXXIV, No. 3 February, 2011

q Vol XXXIV, No 4 March, 2011

q Vol. XXXIV, No. 5 April, 2011

q Vol XXXIV, No 6 May, 2011

q Vol. XXXIV, No. 7 June, 2011

q Vol XXXIV, No 8 July, 2011

q Vol XXXIV, No 9 August, 2011

q Vol XXXIV, No 10 September, 2011

q Vol XXXIV, No 11 October, 2011

q Vol XXXIV, No 12 November, 2011

q Vol XXXV, No 1 December, 2011

q Vol. XXXV, No. 2 January, 2012

q Vol XXXV, No 3 February, 2012

q Vol. XXXV, No. 4 March, 2012

q Vol XXXV, No 5 April, 2012

q Vol. XXXV, No. 6 May, 2012

q Vol XXXV, No 7 June, 2012

q Vol. XXXV, No. 8 July, 2012

q Vol XXXV, No 9 August, 2012

q Vol XXXV, No 10 September, 2012

q Vol XXXV, No 11 October, 2012

q Vol XXXV, No 12 November, 2012

q Vol XXXVI, No 1 December, 2012

q Vol. XXXVI, No. 2 January, 2013

q Vol XXXVI, No 3 February, 2013

q Vol. XXXVI, No. 4 March, 2013

q Vol XXXVI, No 5 April, 2013

q Vol. XXXVI, No. 6 May, 2013

q Vol XXXVI, No 7 June, 2013

q Vol. XXXVI, No. 8 July, 2013

q Vol XXXVI, No 9 August, 2013

q Vol. XXXVI, No. 10 September, 2013

q Vol XXXVI, No 11 October, 2013

q Vol. XXXVI, No. 12 November, 2013

q Vol XXXVII, No 1 December, 2013

q Vol XXXVII, No 2 January, 2014

q Vol XXXVII, No 3 February, 2014

q Vol XXXVII, No 4 March, 2014

q Vol XXXVII, No 5 April, 2014

q Vol XXXVII, No 6 May, 2014

q Vol. XXXVII, No. 7 June, 2014

q Vol XXXVII, No 8 July, 2014

q Vol. XXXVII, No. 9 August, 2014

q Vol XXXVII, No 10 September, 2014

q Vol. XXXVII, No. 11 October, 2014

q Vol XXXVII, No 12 November, 2014

q Vol. XXXVIII, No. 1 December, 2014

q Vol XXXVIII, No 2 January, 2015

q Vol. XXXVIII, No. 3 February, 2015

q Vol XXXVIII, No 4 March, 2015

q Vol. XXXVIII, No. 5 April, 2015

q Vol XXXVIII, No 6 May, 2015

q Vol XXXVIII, No 7 June, 2015

q Vol XXXVIII, No 8 July, 2015

q Vol XXXVIII, No 9 August, 2015

q Vol XXXVIII, No 10 September, 2015

q Vol XXXVIII, No 11 October, 2015

q Vol. XXXVIII, No. 12 November, 2015

q Vol XXXIX, No 1 December, 2015

q Vol. XXXIX, No. 2 January, 2016

q Vol XXXIX, No 3 February, 2016

q Vol. XXXIX, No. 4 March, 2016

q Vol XXXIX, No 5 April, 2016

q Vol. XXXIX, No. 6 May, 2016

q Vol XXXIX, No 7 June, 2016

q Vol. XXXIX, No. 8 July, 2016

q Vol XXXIX, No 9 August, 2016

q Vol XXXIX, No 10 September, 2016

q Vol XXXIX, No 11 October, 2016

q Vol XXXIX, No 12 November, 2016

q Vol XL, No 1 December, 2016

q Vol XL, No 2 January, 2017

q Vol XL, No 3 February, 2017

q Vol XL, No 4 March, 2017

q Vol. XXXX, No. 5 April, 2017

q Vol XXXX, No 6 May, 2017

• UMA Motorcoach Expo in St Louis

• The Prize-Winning Aerocoach at the Museum of Bus Transportation

• Rochester City Lines Still Making, Preserving and Celebrating History

q Vol XXXX, No 7 June, 2017

• Industry History From UMA Shows – Installment I

• Extended Service Protection on Your Bus Fleet

• Bus History on a Wall

q Vol XXXX, No 8 July, 2017

• Vicinity – A Mid-Size Bus Success Story

• Prevost Conversion Shells for All Types of Coaches

• The Bus Accident in Red Lion, Delaware

q Vol. XXXX, No. 9 August, 2017

• “J” is for Jackpot with the 2018 J4500

• Industry History from UMA Shows – Installment II

• Book Review

q Vol. XXXX, No. 10 September, 2017

• Propane Continues to be Clean and Economical

• H&L Charter – The Best Comes in Small Packages

• Industry History from UMA Shows – Installment III

q Vol XXXX, No 11 October, 2017

• ABC & Van Hool Celebrate 30 Years

• Taking a Venture in Norfolk

•The Five “No’s” You Must Overcome to Sell Your Bus Business

q Vol XXXX, No 12 November, 2017

• MCI Reliability Rally 2017

• BusCon 2017 in Indianapolis

• Exit Planning Becoming More Complicated for Family-Owned Bus Businesses

q Vol. XXXXI, No. 1 December, 2017

• Complete Coach Works and the Carson Heritage

• The Busboys Vintage Bus Rally in Evansville, Indiana

• Virginia’s Commonwealth Coach and Trolley Museum Ravaged by Fire

• Re-Energizing the North American Diecast Model Bus Scene

q Vol XXXXI, No 2 January, 2018

• Prevost Again Moves Ahead in Support, Service and Parts

• New 2018 J4500 Highlights Busy Season for MCI

• Common Rail Technology and the GHG17 Volvo Engine

q Vol. XXXXI, No. 3 February, 2018

• Walking the Irizar Assembly Line in Ormaiztegi

• Busworld 2017 in Belgium

q Vol XXXXI, No 4 March, 2018

• UMA Motorcoach Expo 2018i

• Van Hool to Build Buses in Eastern Tennessee

• The New MCI D45 CRT LE

q Vol XXXXI, No 5 April, 2018

• Charging Ahead with Electric Buses

• Holiday Tours Puts Customers First

• How Chicago’s “Party Bus” Ordinance is Affecting Bus Tourism

q Vol XXXXI, No 6 May, 2018

• The CHTC HT45 amd HT35 Coaches

• The Pacific Bus Museum – From Hobby to Formal Museum

• Twenty Tips on Hiring Bus Drivers

• Van Hool Builds Bus Factoryin Morristown, Tennessee

q Vol. XXXXI, No. 7 June, 2018

• MCI Academy Wins Fans Across Industry

• Where are the Buses Built? #1

• The Campaign Bus for the President of the Philippines

• The Penn Highway Transit Company

q Vol. XXXXI, No. 8 July, 2018

• Farber Continues Custom Coach Traditions

• Prevost’s New Flat Floor Slide-Outs

• Liberty Coach Busch Bus

q Vol XXXXI, No 9 August, 2018

• ZF Components for Electric Buses

• Museum of Bus Transportation Spring Fling Open House Success

• “Friends” of the NJ Heritage Center Takes Eight Vintage Coaches to the 2018 MOBT Spring Fling

q Vol XXXXI, No 10 September, 2018

• Van Hool’s CX35 – Small in Size, Big in Quality

• Diecast Model Buses Impress in a Big Way

• Master ’s Transportation – Where to go to increase your fleet quickly or temporarily

q Vol. XXXXI, No. 11 October, 2018

• ZF Technology Day in Friedrichshafen

• MCI’s 2018 Reliability Rally

• How Will Autonomous Cars Impact the Bus Industry?

q Vol XXXXI, No 12 November, 2018

• Peter Pan Celebrates 85 Years on the Road

• Clean Up Your Fleet with a Bitimec Wash-Bot

q Vol XXXXII, No 1 December, 2018

• Prevost Unveils New Features and New Possibility on the Volvo 9700 at UMA Expo

• MCI’s New J3500 – Small in Size, Big in Features

• The e GO Mover – Filling a Gap in Transportation with ZF Technology

• Giving Buses a Second Life at Complete Coach Works

q Vol. XXXXII, No. 2 January, 2019

• BusCon 2018 in Indianapolis

• Panorama Tours Keeps Things in the Family

• How Will Demand or Congestion Toll Pricing Impact Bus Operations?

q Vol XXXXII, No 3 February, 2019

• Test Driving the New Electric MCI J4500e CHARGE

• Stagecoach Group Sells Coach USA and Coach Canada

• The Story of the Australian Scenicruiser

q Vol XXXXII, No 4 March, 2019

• UMA 2019 Motorcoach Expo in Fort Lauderdale

• Angel Tours Celebrates 20 Years

• The Saga of #5496, a 1937 Yellow Coach Model 733

q Vol XXXXII, No 5 April, 2019

• Buses at the 2019 ABA Marketplace in Louisville

• Are Pre-Owned Coach Sales Declining?

• The Six Levels of Autonomous Vehicles

q Vol XXXXII, No 6 May, 2019

• Temsa North America Inc – Temsa’s Increased Support for the American Market

• MCI Launches Motorcoach Technician Apprenticeship Program

• 2019 Spring Fling Announced

q Vol XXXXII, No 7 June, 2019

• Looking Beyond the Driver Shortage to Demography and the Global Economy

• Are the Reasons for Coach Seat Belts Changing?

• The Passengers Left Behind – Take the Accessible Information Test

q Vol. XXXXII, No. 8 July, 2019

• Prevost Motorhome Expo

• Featherlite Luxury Coaches

• Emerald Luxury Coaches Unveils First H3-45 Conversions

• Ten Things to Consider When Choosing a Luxury RV

q Vol XXXXII, No 9 August, 2019

• NFI Group Acquires Alexander Dennis

• Getting the Glow – Take a look inside the “New Look” of Liberty

• Book Review – Chicago Motor Coach

q Vol. XXXXII, No. 10 September, 2019

• The 2019 Spring Fling in Hershey

• Congestion Pricing May Affect Bus Operators

• In the Beginning – The Bus Industry Prior to Regulation in 1935

q Vol XXXXII, No 11 October, 2019

• Proterra Launches Proterra Powered™ Vehicle Electrification Solutions for Commercial Fleets

• Bendix Tech Tips: Avoiding the “Gotchas”

• The “Shorty” Flxibles of Pikes Peak

q Vol XXXXII, No 12 November, 2019

• 30 Years of Foxy Travel & FTI Coach

• Fleet Graphics is an Art at ABC Companies

• MCI debuts 2020 model line-up with a SNEAK PREVIEW of the battery-electric D45 CRTe LE CHARGE at Bay Area Reliability Symposium on October 1

q Vol XXXXIII, No 1 December, 2019

• Temsa’s Redesigned TS 30

• BusCon 2019 in Indianapolis

• Hammond Transportation

q Vol XXXXIII, No 2 January, 2020

• Anchor Transportation – 30 Years and Counting in a Growing Nashville

• David Thomas Tours and Their Short Temsa Coaches

• Museum of Bus Transportation to Merge with Antique Automobile Club of America Museum

q Vol XXXXIII, No 3 February, 2020

• Busworld 2019 in Brussels, Part I

• Heroes’ Honeymoon

• Philadelphia to New York Every Half Hour

q Vol XXXXIII, No 4 March, 2020

• Busworld 2019 in Brussels, Part II

• The Changing Bus Industry

q Vol XXXXIII, No 5 April, 2020

• ABA Marketplace 2020 in Omaha

• Procedure and Liability After a Collision with an Automated Vehicle

• Impaired Drivers

q Vol. XXXXIII, No. 6 May, 2020

• Bringing Back the Bus Industry

• Bus Industry Suggestions from Shriver Insurance

• What Can Bus Companies Do To Reduce Insurance Costs During COVID-19?

• UMA Motorcoach Expo 2020 in Nashville

• Bus Preservation After the Merger

q Vol XXXXIII, No 7 June, 2020

• Grants, Loans and Programs to Help Transportation Companies Survive COVID-19 Business Disruption

• Time to Think Tours

• Motorcoaches Rolling for Awareness

q Vol XXXXIII, No 8 July, 2020

• What the IATR and Transportation Regulators are Doing to Respond to the COVID-19 Pandemic

• A Tribute to Kirwan Elmers and Custom Coach Corporation

• RiverLandings Motorcoach Resort, Where True Luxury Reaches New Heights

q Vol. XXXXIII, No. 9 August, 2020

• The Evolving MCI Product Line

• The Impact of COVID-19 on the Transportation Ecosystem

• Marijuana and Drivers

q Vol XXXXIII, No 10 September, 2020

• New Coach Review

• Seven Simple Steps to Show Your Customers You Are Open for Business

• Can Bus Operators Change to Survive?

q Vol XXXXIII, No 11 October, 2020

• Getting People Back on the Buses

• 10 Easy Ways to Update Your Web Site During COVID-19

• Didn’t See That Coming

• The Eucharistic Congress in Chicago

q Vol XXXXIII, No 12 November, 2020

• How Temsa Developed Their Programmable Electric Bus

• Can Bus Companies Get to and Survive in the “New Normal?”

• Talk’s Cheap – Let’s Play

q Vol XXXXIV, No 1 December, 2020

• Keolis Moves People

• Are Mergers the Answer?

• A Lesson from the Sea – Time to Choose a Strategy

• Now is Not the Time to Skip on Bus Maintenance

• The Small Business Reorganization Act – A New Option in Bankruptcy

Classified ad rate is $30 per issue for first 25 words, 25 cents for each additional word. Rate includes Internet access. Name, address, zip and phone number are not included in word count The total number of words in a classified ad can not exceed 70 Rates apply on each ad individually – the rate for multiple insertions is the total of each ad figured individually. Free classified ads are acceptable ONLY when submitted on or with your free classified ad certificate. Display advertising rates on request.

1 – BUSES WANTED seeking 102d3 converted by Custom Coach Prefer motor home interior with side aisle or semi-side aisle Please provide details by e-mail to safety@busmag com or phone larry at (815) 946-2341

6 – MOTOR HOMES FOR SALE

MCi MC5a ’67 (shell) 8V-71, 4-speed For sale to highest bidder Call (928) 358-6415 or (505) 713-9242 in aZ I

1991 Hawkins motorcoach 3208t Cat, 35 ft with all awnings alcoa wheels, landing/docking lights, heated m i r r o r s , d u c t e d h e a t , l e v e l e r s , t w o a i r c o n d i t i o n e r s , propane generator, exhaust brake always stored indoors asking $15,000 Contact dallas in Mi at (269) 591-2564 I

1956 Flxible coach – old conversion Phone (802) 9482886 in Vt for details I

10 – PARTS AND EQUIPMENT

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Down The Road

Coming events of interest to readers of NATIONAL BUS TRADER Submissions for the department should be directed to the editor. Unless otherwise indicated, events are not open to the general public

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August 23-26, 2023 FMCA's 107th I n t e r n a t i o n a l C o n v e n t i o n a n d RV Expo. Cam-Plex Multi-Event Facilities, G i l l e t t e , Wy o m i n g . Vi s i t w w w. f m c a . c o m / f m c a - p e r r y - 2 0 2 3 - l e a r n - m o re t o register or for more information

F e b r u a r y 4 - 7 , 2 0 2 4 U M A M o t o rcoach Expo 2024. Raleigh, North Carolina. For more information view motorcoachexpo com

RV Expo. Pima County Fairgrounds, Tucson, Arizona Visit FMCA com or phone (513) 474-3622 for more information

The next. The future. It’s here, now. The All-New H3-45.

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