National Bus Trader August 2024 Digital Edition by Bus Tours Magazine

The Magazine of Bus Equipment for the United States and Canada

New Corporate Transparency Laws (by Matthew W Daus, Esq.) .

this new federal law is aimed at reducing money laundering and tax evasion, but it is a big burden to business Here is some background and answers to many questions readers have asked.

The Bleiwise Bus at the Museum (by Dave Millhouser) .

one of the newest buses added to the historical bus collection in Hershey, Pennsylvania is a 2000 Gillig that commemorates Jack Bleiwise who was 106 years of age when he retired from the bus business.

AI and the Power Grid (by Larry Plachno) .

While there is a move to rush towards electric vehicles, many are not aware that our electric grid is already struggling and the move to ai centers is not helping Moving to more electric vehicles may actually cause more pollution rather than less

Bus Fads (by Dave Millhouser)

Different things and movement in the bus industry come and go – and some come back a second time. Here are some thoughts on things that were popular in the bus industry at one time but were left by the side of the road

Equipment News

Anchor Transpor tation Gets MCI Motorcoaches

Anchor Transportation, the premier transportation service provider in Nashville, Tennessee, has announced the addition of ﬁve new 2025 model year MCI J4500 coaches to its ﬂeet These new coaches underscore Anchor Transpor tation’s unwavering commitment to delivering the highest levels of c o m f o r t , l u x u r y a n d r e l i a b i l i t y t o i t s c u stomers, fur thering its mission to be the best transpor tation provider in the region

The newly acquired MCI J4500 coaches are designed to offer passengers an unparalleled travel experience With spacious seating, enhanced legroom and state-of-the-art a m e n i t i e s s u c h a s U S B c h a r g i n g p o r t s , Wi-Fi connectivity and high-deﬁnition entertainment systems, these coaches ensure a ﬁ r s t - c l a s s t r a v e

design prioritizes passenger comfort and luxury, making every journey with Anchor Transportation enjoyable and relaxing

Anchor Transportation continues to uphold its commitment to safety and reliability by modernizing its fleet with the latest 2025 models The new coaches have advanced safety features, including electronic stability control, collision mitigation technology and driver assistance systems These state-of-the-art vehicles proudly reflect Anchor Transportation’s dedication to maintaining one of the region’s safest and most dependable fleets

“At Anchor Transpor tation, we are dedicated to exceeding our passengers’ expectations by investing in the latest technology and innovations,” said Jared Stancil, CEO of Anchor Transpor tation “The addition of t h e s e n e w c o a c h e s n o t o n l y p ro v i d e s o u r customers with what they want most but also reafﬁr ms our commitment to the safety, reliability and luxury we have come to be known for Our par tnership with MCI enables us to provide our customers with a premier travel experience through these beautiful, comfor table, cutting-edge vehicles ”

Last year, Anchor Transpor tation began a strategic partnership with MCI to enhance its ﬂeet over three years, focusing on improving customer satisfaction and service quality This initiative has already seen the deliver y of two new coaches in September 2023, one in March 2024 and four in June 2024

Looking ahead, Anchor Transpor tation has committed to adding eight new coaches in 2025, with deliveries scheduled for Februar y and August Another eight coaches

Anchor Transportation recently took delivery of five new MCI J4500 coaches The coaches are equipped with enhanced legroom and USB charging ports, Wi-Fi connectivity and high definition entertainment systems Based in Nashville, Anchor has been updating its fleet with two new coaches in September of 2023, one in March of 2024 and four in June of 2024

are also set for deliver y in 2026, following the same timeline These ongoing upgrades are par t of Anchor Transpor tation’s mission t o c o n t i n u a

por tation technology and the comfor t and safety of its passengers

Kyle Petty Charity Ride

With a Prevost

Ever y year, for mer NASCAR driver and racing analyst Kyle Petty hits the open road for one week to lead the Kyle Petty Charity

Ride Across America, one of the most popular charity rides in the countr y The ride is k n o w n a s t h e

ence and has raised more than $21 million to support Victory Junction, a camp created i n h o n o r o f A d

P e t t y t h a

s l i f

changing experiences for children with serious and chronic medical conditions

This year the charity ride featured a special partner: a Prevost coach and driver, aiding the Petty family throughout their journey

Each year Kyle Petty has an annual Charity Ride Across America to support Victory Junction, a camp created for children with serious and chronic medical conditions This year the charity ride featured a Prevost coach and driver to aid the Petty family throughout their journey The coach included a kitchen and ample storage and helped the Petty family to focus on their journey

• National Bus Trader / August, 2024

Equipment News

The Prevost coach served as a comfor ta b l e h o m e - a w a y - f ro m - h o m e d u r i n g t h e i r 2,100-mile trek, providing the perfect “camping” spot for Overton and Cotten, two of the Petty family’s young children

“ We c a l l i t c a m p i n g o u t T h e y l o v e t h e bunks Cotten is on the bottom, Over ton is i n t h e m i d d l e , a n d I g o t t h e t o p b u n k We chatted all night long It’s like a pajama party with your kids,” Petty shared

Outﬁtted with modern amenities, including a kitchen and ample storage, the coach o f f e r e d m o r e t h a n j u s t c o n v e n i e n c e I t allowed the Petty family to focus on the journey, creating lifelong memories and continuing Adam Petty’s legacy

Gillig Hosts APTA Ofﬁcials for Facility Tour

Gillig, a leading U S transit bus manuf a c t u r e r, w e l c o m e d l e a d e r s h i p f r o m t h e American Public Transportation Association (APTA) for a facility tour and roundtable discussion at its headquar ters and manufact u r i n g p l a n t i n L i v e r m o re , C a l i f o r n i a T h e event, held on July 12, highlighted the pivotal role Gillig and the broader public transportat i o n i n d u s t r y p l a y i n A m e r i c a ’s e c o n o m i c and environmental future

A m o n g t h e d i s t i n g u i s h e d g u e s t s w e re Paul Skoutelas, APTA president and CEO; Michele Wong Krause, APTA chair; Dorval Carter, chair of the Bus Manufacturing Task Force and president of the Chicago Transit

Authority (CTA); David Carol, APTA COO; and Ward McCarragher, APTA vice president of Gover nment Affairs and Advocacy Their visit underscored the strong relations

c transit solutions that drive economic growth and sustainability

During the visit, the APTA ofﬁcials as well a s E d w i n S e v

Services, on behalf of Senator Laphonza Butler; Madison Watkins, Constituent Service representative, on behalf of Congressman Eric Swalwell and City of Livermore Mayor John Marchand had a walking tour of Gillig’s stateof-the-art manufacturing facility, which highlighted the company’s commitment to producing American-built, high-quality and reliable transit buses for the U S transit market

The tour was followed by a roundtable d i s c u s s

ﬁ c i a l s , Gillig executives and key suppliers engaged in a robust dialogue about the signiﬁcance of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the current state of the American public transit market and Gillig’s leadership in zero-emissions transit solutions

c transpor tation to moder nize infrastructure, support domestic manufacturing and upskill t h e w o

o m i c beneﬁts of investing in public transit, which

sustains hundreds of thousands of jobs and f o s t e r

s nationwide, Skoutelas commented, “Investments in public transpor tation have been shown to yield substantial returns with every dollar generating approximately $5 in economic beneﬁts ”

I n c l o s i n g r e m a r k s , D e r e k M a u n u s , Gillig’s president and CEO, stated: “This visit from APTA is a testament ot our shared dedication to advancing the public transpor tation industr y and addressing head-on the c h a l l e n g e s a n d o p p o r t u n i t i e s t h e c u r re n t industry dynamic presents At Gillig, we are committed to manufacturing high-quality, reliable and sustainable transit buses that serve communities nationwide and to ensuring our industr y is healthy, sustainable and able to meet the needs of customers around the countr y ”

“APTA thanks Gillig for hosting our delegation and providing an infor mative tour of t h e i r f a c i l i t i e s T h e y a r e a n o u t s t a n d i n g industr y par tner, especially during this critical moment as the industr y moves forward on clean bus technology and transit agencies nationwide modernize their ﬂeets,” con-

cantly affects the economy, supporting jobs and driving growth in numerous sectors We must preserve, protect and nurture the U S

advance our nation’s public transpor tation infrastructure ”

On July 12, Gillig hosted leadership from the American Public Transportation Association (APTA) for a facility tour Activities centered around the Gillig headquarters and manufacturing plant in Livermore, California In addition to a look at the manufacturing facilities, the APTA leadership participated in a roundtable discussion on the new Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and other topics

Cornell University’s New MCI Coach

C o r n e l l U n i v e r s i t y w e l c o m e d t w o

b r a n d - n e w M C I J 4 5 0 0 c o a c h e s , c u s t o m -

c r a f t e d b y C r e a t i v e M o b i l e I n t e r i o r s f o r

t h e i r c a m p u s - t o - c a m p u s ro u t e s c o n n e c t -

i n g I t h a c a a n d N e w Yo r k C i t y T h e s e M C I

c o a c h e s a r e d e s i g n e d f o r u l t i m a t e passenger comfor t and feature 2+1 luxur y

s e a t i n g , h i g h - e n d u p g r a d e s a n d a k i t c h e n e t t e

Put MCI coach on your team With MCI J - S e r i e s u n i v e r s i t y c o a c h , y o u c a

e d u l i n g , improve campus transportation while raising your brand’s visibility with a custom decal, wrap, school colors or motto

CVSA

Releases 2024 Human Trafﬁcking Awareness Results

Earlier this year, commercial motor vehicle law enforcement personnel and industry and association professionals from Canada, M e x i c o a n d t h e U S p a r t i c i p a t e d i n t

year’s Human Trafﬁcking Awareness Initiative (HTAI)

The Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance ( C V S A ) i n v i t e d i t s l a w e n f o r c e m e n t a n d industry association members to participate i n a n a n n u a l fi v e - d a y h u m a n t r a f fi c k i n g awareness and outreach campaign Participating enforcement and industry members took that opportunity to raise awareness and train individuals on the crime of human trafficking, indicators to look for and what to do when a victim of human trafficking has been identified

Participating members submitted reports to CVSA about their activities leading up to and during the initiative Fifty-one jurisdictions took par t in this year’s HTAI

Examples of law enforcement’s activities include:

• H a n d e d o u t h u m a n t r a f ﬁ c k i n g i n f o rmation to drivers to review during the portion of an inspection when the driver is waiting

• Observed and spoke with passengers i n t r u c k s t o m o n i t o r f o r s i g n s o f h u m a n trafﬁcking

• Distributed ﬂyers and wallet cards and talked to the public at truck stops, city halls, train and bus stations, ports of entry, department of motor vehicle ofﬁces, weight/inspection stations, etc

• Displayed the human trafﬁcking hotline on digital roadway billboards

• Posted messages, videos, infographics, etc , to social media

• I n c l u d e d b r i e f i n f o r m a t i o n a b o u t human trafﬁcking and a hyperlink to more infor mation in new entrant and compliance review emails

• Delivered human trafﬁcking awareness and prevention training to motor carriers

Equipment News

Cornell University recently took delivery of two new MCI J4500 coaches They were equipped with special interiors and will be used on campus-to-campus routes between Ithaca and New York City Special features on the coaches include 2+1 seating, high end upgrades and a kitchenette

• Issued news releases, held news conferences and spoke with repor ters for print and television news segments

• C o m p l e t e d t h e h u m a n t r a f ﬁ c k i n g online lear ning modules

• In the U S , par ticipated in Wear Blue Day on Januar y 11 (#WearBlueDay)

F o r H TA I , C V S A c o l l a b o r a t e d w i t h TAT (for merly known as Truckers Against Trafficking) to offer human trafficking identification and prevention training and reference materials to the motor carrier industr y and law enforcement

T h i s y e a r, 3 8 , 1 5 8 w a l l e t c a rd s , 1 3 , 5 1 0 window decals and 1,603 posters were distributed There were 334 human trafﬁcking o u t r e a c h e v

t i o n s were delivered In addition, 692 media cont a c t s w e r e m a d e , a n d t h e r e w e r e 1 0 7 repor ted social media posts

In addition, CVSA worked with the Paramount/CBS network to create public service announcement (PSA) videos, which feature a human trafﬁcking survivor, truck driver and commercial vehicle enforcement ofﬁcer The PSAs are available for public use and dist r i b u

a n d

extended ﬁve-minute video The PSAs aired during commercial breaks of streaming television shows and movies on Pluto TV, Paramount+ and local streaming service EYEQ L

15,652, 611 impressions

From November 15, 2023, the day this year’s HTAI was announced, to the end of M a rc h ,

HTAI, CVSA’s Web site saw 20,552 views on its Human Trafﬁcking Prevention Program webpages

enforcement and investigations and educational awareness

I f y o

trafﬁcking situation or you are the victim of human trafﬁcking: In the US, phone (888) 373-7888; in Canada, phone (833) 900-1010 or in Mexico, phone (800) 5533-000

To find out what your local jurisdiction is doing to increase human trafficking awareness and prevent human trafficking throughout the year, contact the agency/department r e s p o n s i b l e f o r o v e r s e e i n g c o m m e r c i a l m o t o r v e h i

province or territor y

Keolis Signs an Agreement for the Acquisition of Passenger Transpor t Activities in Canada

n Transpor tation Ltd (PWT),

With this acquisition, Keolis strengthens its presence in North America and becomes a leading operator in the ﬁeld of urban transport, intercity buses and on-demand mobility in Western Canada

Commenting on this acquisition, MarieAnge Debon, chairwoman and group chief executive ofﬁcer of Keolis, said: “This is an important step in our development strategy, particularly in North America It allows us to reinforce our presence in Canada and expand our expertise and services to new promising regions We are excited to welcome the Paciﬁc Western Transportation teams to the Keolis family, and we look forward to continue providing high-performing and quality transport solutions to our customers ”

With 550 buses and coaches in operation, the Transit and Motorcoach entities provide urban transpor t services in 23 munici p a l i t i e s i n t h e p r o v i n c e s o f A l b e r t a a n d British Columbia, as well as intercity transp o r t s e r v i c e s i n t h e s a m e p ro v

n c e s a n d Ontario, under iconic brands such as Red Arrow and Ebus These entities generated a revenue of CAD 115 million (approximately EUR 80 million) in 2023

Present in Canada since 2002, par ticularly in Quebec, Montreal and Ottawa as a bus and coach operator, Keolis doubles its size in this market with these new positions in the west of the countr y It will capitalize on the know-how and expertise of the teams in place at Paciﬁc Wester n Transpor tation, t h e r e b y b e c

Equipment News

urban transport, intercity motorcoaches and on-demand mobility in Wester n Canada

With recognized expertise in sustainable mobility and innovative services for its cus-

Keolis recently signed a contract with Student Transportation of America to acquire the transit and motorcoach divisions of Pacific Western Transportation in Calgary, Alberta Included in the acquisition are 550 buses and services to 23 municipalities in Alberta and British Columbia as well as intercity services in those same provinces and Ontario Brands involved include Red Arrow and Ebus

t o m e r s , K e o l i s w i l l c o n t i n u e t o d e v e l o p efﬁcient transpor t solutions tailored to the needs of Canadian local communities and residents

Beyond Canada, Keolis is a major player in the public transport sector in North America The group has been operating several transport networks in the United States since 2009, notably in the cities of Boston (rail), Washington D C , Austin and Phoenix (bus)

Equipment News

The completion of the transaction is subject to the usual conditions precedent and the required regulatory approvals in Canada

school transportation in North America With more than 22,000 vehicles, STA provides its clients with the highest level of safety and reliability in school transportation, managem e n

throughout the United States and Canada

and an automatic cut-

away performance

Transpor tation (PWT)

ARI-HETRA Highlights the WS-BL44 On Vehicle Disc Brake Lathe

ARI-HETRA is a leading manufacturer in heavy-duty vehicle maintenance equipment

Vehicle Disc Brake Lathe that offers unparalleled precision and efﬁciency for trucks, buses and commercial vehicles Engineered

lathes, the WS-BL44 does away with changing out rotors; rather, it mounts to the hub of t

aligned rotor each time Some of its key feat

adjustments and automatic cutting feeder for walk-away performance This innovative lathe was designed for maximum efﬁciency and reliability, making it indispensable for ever y heavy-duty workshop

One standout feature of the WS-BL44 is that users can resur face rotors directly on the vehicle, allowing them to maintain the alignment and balance of the brake system

This feature not only saves time but also is carried out with a better level of accuracy t

machining of rotors requires their removal

The adjustable spindle RPM feature allows the technician to tailor the lathe’s operation to speciﬁc vehicle requirements, enhancing the versatility and precision of the tool

Adjusting the position is strain-free due to easily adjustable counter-balancing gas

s p

California Teamsters are condemning the California commissioners who approved the expansion of autonomous vehicles One Teamster representative pointed out that Waymo recalled nearly 700 driverless cars following a collision in Arizona The Teamsters have been advocating for common sense autonomous vehicle regulations to protect public safety

mance is possible through the utilization of the automatic cutting feeder, which allows t

rather than standing by the lathe

“The WS-BL44 is groundbreaking in brake servicing with the latest in efﬁciency and precision technologies,” said Bill Gibson, VP Business Development of ARI-HETRA “The lathe does a lot for improving the quality of brake resurfacing while reducing most of the downtime related to brake maintenance It serves as a valuable asset to any heavy-duty vehicle maintenance operation ”

Learn more about the WS-BL44 On Vehicle Disc Brake Lathe from ARI-HETRA online at www ari-hetra com or phone directly to the sales staff at (800) 562-3250

Califor nia Teamsters Condemn CPUC Decision to Greenlight Waymo Expansion

Following reports that the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) approved Waymo’s expansion of autonomous vehicles (AVs) throughout Califor nia, the Teamsters

Union is condemning commissioners who recklessly suppor ted the corporate move while disregarding public safety

“ T h e C P U C d e c i s i o n t o a p p r o v e t h e deployment of robotaxis through Califor nia leads our state down a dangerous and irresponsible path as this technology continues to fail,” said Peter Finn, Teamsters Wester n R e g

“ E v e n a f t e r Wa y m o r e c a l l e d n e a r l y 7 0 0 driverless cars following a collision in Arizona, the CPUC has decided to maintain its loyalty to Big Tech over Califor nia residents and public safety exper ts who continue to express grave concerns about autonomous vehicle technology ”

“Public safety decisions should not be m a d e b y r e g u l a t o r y b o d i e s t h a t c a t e r t o e x e c u t i v e s o f b i l l i o n - d o l l a r t e c h c o r p o r ations,” said Chris Griswold, Teamsters International vice president at-large and presid e n t o f Te a m s t e r s J o i n t C o u n c i l 4 2 “ T h e Teamsters have been advocating for common sense AV regulation to protect public s a f e t y A s s t a t e r e g u l a t o r s c a r e l e s s l y approve the expansion of AVs in other parts of Califor nia, it becomes even more critical for state lawmakers and elected ofﬁcials to start listening to the public and to workers ”

Founded in 1903, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters represents 1 3 million h a rd w o r k i n g p e o p l e i n t h e U S , C a n a d a and Puerto Rico Visit Teamster org for more infor mation

TRC Celebrates Launch of On-Demand Ser vice in Cass County, Michigan

The Routing Company (TRC), a global o n - d e m a n d v e h i c l e ro u t i n g a n d m a n a g ement platform partnering with cities to power the future of public transit, on July 12 celeb r a t e d t h e C i t y o f D o w a g i a c ’s s u c c e s s f u l launch of on-demand transit service – powered by TRC’s RIDE Pingo™ app – in Cass County, Michigan

T h e l a u n c h f o l l o w s t w o o t h e r d e p l o yments by TRC in Michigan this year: the City of Big Rapids and Western Washtenaw Area Value Express

The new service modernizes the phonein requests and scheduling by incorporating T R C ’s P i n g o R u r a l ™ a c r o s s t h e C i t y o f Dowagiac Pingo Rural is a product package t h a t s u p e r c h a r g e s r u r a l t r a n s i t w i t h on-demand and commingled service that is optimized for rural deployments

Dowagiac DART operates within city limits, with additional service area to include Southwester n Michigan College, and coordinates its service with Cass County Public

Equipment News

The Routing Company (TRC) celebrated the City of Dowagiac’s successful launch of on-demand transit service on July 12 Dowagiac Dart operates within the city as well as serving Southwestern Michigan College and coordinates with Cass County Public Transit TRC recently started two other operations in Michigan including the City of Big Rapids and Western Washtenaw Area Value Express

Transit which operates a county-wide transit service TRC will enhance this Dial-a-Ride service with on-demand service “ W e a r e t h r i l l e d t o s u p p o r

, responsive and ﬂexible transit where ever y r

demand service, powered by Pingo, delivers

service possible ”

T R C i s s

d e m a n d t r a n s i t n

e o f Pingo products – including the Pingo Journey™ feature TRC’s award-winning Pingo platfor m includes the Drive Pinto and Ride Pingo™ apps and the Pingo Dashboard™ operations management tool, which together provide on-demand, paratransit, ﬁxed, shuttle and ﬂexible transit that enhances ridership of existing transit networks

“ O u r l o n g - t e r m f o c u s h a s a l w a y s b e e n i m p ro v i n g a c c e s s i b l e s e r v i c e s W t i h t h e launch of on-demand service we are mak-

theroutingcompany com To request a demo, e-mail move@theroutingcompany com

Alexander Dennis Gets Stagecoach Order for 41 London Buses

NFI Group Inc (NFI or the company), a leading independent bus and coach manu f a c t u r e r a n d a l e a d e r i n e l e c t r i c m a s s

Dennis Limited (Alexander Dennis) on July 11 announced the ﬁrst order from London Operator Stagecoach for 41 next-generation electric buses Stagecoach will receive 24 E n v

d 1 7 Enviro400EV double-deckers in early 2025 for routes operated on behalf of the British c a p i t

London (TfL)

The next generation of Alexander Dennis meets the latest iterations of TfL’s pioneering Bus Safety Standard Alexander Dennis was the ﬁrst manufacturer to receive a positive result from independent impact testing of t h e b u s e s ’ re v i s e d f ro n t g e o m e t r y, w h i c h protects vulnerable road users and improves direct vision for drivers

Pingo has moved more than one million p

smallest class of single-deckers, providing 21 seats in a vehicle that

navigate

National Bus Trader / August, 2024 • 9

W i t h b e n c h m a r k e n e r g y e f f i c i e n c y o f

0 6 7 k W h / k m o v e r t h e U K B u s C y c l e f o r

t h e E n v i ro 4 0 0 E V a n d 0 5 4 k W h / k m f o r t h e

E n v i r o 1 0 0 E V, p l u s c l a s s - l e a d i n g w a r -

r a n t a b l e e n e r g y t h r o u g

1 6GWh and 1 2GWh respectively, Alexander Dennis’ next-generation electric buses

Equipment News

h e incredible success of our next-generation vehicle platfor m, which we’ve designed inhouse from the ground up to drive value for t

manager, Alexander Dennis “Before the ﬁrst London-speciﬁcation demonstrators have even hit the road, orders are in place from

Stagecoach recently placed its first order with Alexander Dennis for next-generation electric buses Included in the order will be 24 Enviro100EV small buses and 17 Enviro400EV double-deckers They will operate on behalf of the British capital’s transport authority Transport for London (TfL)

Solaris received another order for hydrogen buses, this time from the German city of Gummersbach Included in the order are 15 Urbino 12 hydrogen buses that will be delivered in 2025 The buses will have High Power traction batteries to support the fuel cell power during times of peak demand

• National Bus Trader / August, 2024

next-generation buses’ potential to deliver outstanding total cost of ownership with an electric drive system that could last two full TfL route contract ter ms without a need for batter y replacement ”

“London has the largest zero-emission bus fleet in Western Europe, with more than 1,400 buses, and we look forward to welcoming these 41 new Alexander Dennis electric buses on our routes When the entire fleet is zero-emission, we will have saved around five million tons of carbon,” said Nick Owen, director of Buses at TfL “These new zeroemission buses all comply with our Bus Safety Standards for safer journeys for all road users and will also support vital jobs across the UK in various stages of their production ”

Paul Lynch, managing director of Stagecoach London, said: “We’re looking forward to operating these buses which promise a step forward in range and longevity They add to our rapidly growing electric bus ﬂeet as we play our par t in deliver y TfL and the mayor’s targets for London, as well as our own Stagecoach commitments on carbon reduction ”

NFI is a leader in zero-emission mobility, with electric vehicles operating (or on order) in more than 150 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

coaches, and its vehicles have completed more than 180 million EV service miles

Another Solaris Hydrogen Bus Order From Ger man Gummersbach

totaling

will strengthen the public t

mersbach The hydrogen-powered Urbino 1

T h e G e r m a n c a r r i e r O b

r b e r g i s c h e Ve r k e h r g e s e l l s c h a f t ( O VA G ) h a s o rd e re d 15 Solaris hydrogen buses These vehicles will enhance the public transport ﬂeet in the G e r m a n c i t y o f G u m m e r s b a c h T h i s i s another step towards sustainable and ecof r i e n d l y m o b i l i t y i n t h e G e r m a n

The contract will be executed in 2025

“ T

buses conﬁrms the global changes in urban mobility I am pleased that more and more c

transpor

development, which is one of the few areas genuinely ready to fulﬁll the mission of emission neutrality I am glad that our b

’s

s change,” said Olivier Michard, member of the Management Board of Solaris for Sales and Marketing

The order includes 15 Solaris Urbino 12 hydrogen buses equipped with modern fuel cells with a total power of 70 kW The hydrogen Solaris buses will feature Solaris High Power traction batteries, which suppor t the fuel cell during peak electricity demand The vehicles’ drive unit will be a 160 kW central electric motor The ordered Urbino hydrogen buses will be heated using a heat pump

Solaris Bus & Coach remains a leader in delivering innovative e-mobility solutions, with the widest range of emission-free vehi-

including Ger many – in recent months, the

Cologne and Gross-Gerau

S t a g e c o a c h O r d e r s 2 4 4 E l e c t r i c

Buses in Alexander Dennis’ Largest Zero-Emission Order to Date

A l e x a n d e r D e n n i s , a s u b s i d i a r y o f N F I

Group Inc , one of the world’s leading independent global bus manufacturers on June 25 announced that it has taken a ﬁr m order from transport group Stagecoach for 244 of its next-generation zero-emission buses

Stagecoach suppor ted numerous local a u t h o r i t i e s a c ro s s E n g l a n d i n s u c c e s s f u l bids to the second round of the UK Government’s Zero-Emission Regional Bus Areas scheme (ZEBRA 2) Following the funding a w a r d , t h e g r o u p h a s n o w b e e n a b l e t o place the largest single order of Alexander Dennis’ zero-emission buses to date

O n e h u n d re d e i g h t y n e w E n v i ro 4 0 0 E V

d o u b l e - d e c k e r s w i l l j o i n s i m i l a r v e h i c l e s bought by Stagecoach with earlier ZEBRA

1 f u n d i n g t h a t a r e c u r r e n t l y b e i n g d e l i v e re d a n d c o m m i s s i o n e d f o r s e r v i c e The Enviro400EV combines a benchmark energy efficiency of just 0 67kWh/km over t h e U K B u s C y c l e w i t h 4 7 2 k W h b a t t e r i e s

a n d c l a s s - l e a d i n g w a r r a n t a b l e e n e r g y

t h r o u g h p u t o f u p t o 1 6 G W h t o d e l i v e r

a n a t t r a c t i v e t o t a l c o s t o f o w n e r s h i p p ro p o s i t i o n

I n a d d i t i o n , t h e r e w i l l a l s o b e 5 4

Enviro200EV in lengths of 10 9 meters and 11 7 meters this is the ﬁrst order for Alexand e r D e n n i s ’s n e w i n t e g r a l s i n g l e - d e c k e r, which will launch next year to complement the current range of next-generation electric buses

Ten Enviro100EV small buses complete

S t a g e c o a c h ’s o rd e r A t j u s t 8 5 m e t e r s i n

l e n g t h a n d a w i d t h o f 2 3 5 m e t e r s , t h e

E n v i r o 1 0 0 E V i s a h i g h l y m a n e u v e r a b l e c h o i c e f o r t o w n s e r v i c e s w h i c h o ff e r s t h e same durability and comfort as larger buses

Equipment News

In the largest Alexander Dennis zero-emission order to date, Stagecoach has ordered 244 electric buses Included are 180 Enviro400EV electric double-deckers, 54 Enviro200EV electric buses in lengths of 10 9 and 11 7 meters and 10 Enviro100EV small buses The Enviro200EV is a new model that rounds out the Alexander Dennis range of next-generation electric buses

as well as a substantial operational range from its 354kWh batteries

A l l E n v i r o 4 0 0 E V, E n v i r o 2 0 0 E V a n d Enviro100EV ordered with ZEBRA 2 funding will be delivered to Stagecoach’s operating c o m p a n i e s i n E n g l a n d d u r i n g 2 0 2 5 a n d 2026

A l e x a n d e r D e n n i s P re s i d e n t a n d M a naging Director Paul Davies said: “This landm a r k d e a l w i t h S t a g e c o a c h c o n ﬁ r m s t h e b e n e ﬁ t s o f o u r n e x t - g e n e r a

c t r i c buses, which have been carefully designed to deliver a highly attractive total cost of ownership proposition

“We are particularly delighted that Stagec o a c h w i l l b e n e ﬁ t f r o m

m a x i m i z

s t h e n u m

o f c o m m o n p a r t s and solutions across all three vehicle types to make them easy to drive and maintain Our Enviro100EV ‘big small bus,’ the new Enviro200EV all-rounder and the crowd-shifting Enviro400EV double-decker will be driv i n g v a l u e t o g e t h e r t h r o u g h e f ﬁ c i e n c y, longevity and ﬂexibility ”

Chief Executive Officer for Stagecoach C l a i re M i l e s s a i d : “ We ’ re e x c i t e d t o p l a c e t h e l a r g e s t e l e c t r i c v e h i c l e o rd e r t o d a t e f o r A l e x a n d e r D e n n i s w i t h t h e s e 2 4 4 n e w vehicles, which reflect Stagecoach’s comm i t m e n t t o t r a n s i t i o n t o a z e r o - e m i s s i o n b u s f l e e t We w i l l c o n t i n u e t o b u i l d o n o u r w o r k t o t a c k l e c l i m a t e c h a n g e a n d c o n -

n e c t c o m m u n i t i e s a c ro s s t h e U K s u s t a i na b l y a n d e ff i c i e n t l y ”

S c a n i a To u r i n s t o b e I n t r o d u c e d with Gas Power train

S c a n i a i s re n o w n e d f o r i t s w i d e r a n g e of low-carbon power train options and now c o n t i n u e s a l o n g t h a t p a t h b y a d d i n g a n

L B G / L N G v a r i a n t o f t h e S c a n i a To u r i n g

A b l e t o r u n o n b o t h n a t u r a l g a s a n d b i ogas, or a mix of the two, it allows a smooth t r a n s i t i o n t o b i o g a s , c r e a t i n g a c i r c u l a r a n d e c o n o m i c a l l y

Gas-driven buses and coaches provide a highly interesting option for many transport operators, facilitating sustainable development in a way that also takes into account economic aspects

“The new LBG/LNG variant of the Scania To u

bus- and long-distance operators that want to become more sustainable without a massive investment or negative impact on operations,” says Carl-Johan Lööf, head of Produ c t M a n a

r t Solutions, Scania

The new variant comes with a 13-liter gas engine that provides 140 hp (302kW) and 2000 Nm, and with an efﬁciency that allows users to lower their fuel costs With the standard tank option, it also delivers a driving range of beyond 1,000 km

“ T h i s p ro d u c t g i v e s y o u p o w e r, t o rq u e a n d r a n g e e q u i v a l e n t t o t h a t o f a d i e s e lpowered bus or coach, while actually reducing noise levels and offering lower operating costs If you add the sustainability beneﬁts of using biogas, it is a truly outstanding solution,” Lööf explains

With Scania as a front-runner, biogas has l o n g b e e n u s e d i n c o m p r e s s e d f o r m t o power city and suburban buses In the past few years, technology developments have e n a b l e d t h e g a s t o b e c o o l e d d o w n a n d

t r a n s f o r m e d t o e n e r g y - d e n s e l i q u i d –LBG/LNG – turning it into a more viable solution for heavy commercial vehicles operating long-distance tours

“ B i o g a s c a n p l a y a k e y r o l e i n d

bonizing heavy-duty transpor t, par ticularly in long-distance applications The infrastruct u re f o r f u e l p ro d

s continues to expand, with huge investment

t a k i n g p

J o n a s S t r ö m b e r g , S u s t a

business manager, Scania

Biogas is a fossil-free and renewable fuel that offers CO2 emission reductions of up to 90 percent compared to diesel from a wellto-wheel perspective, and it also provides other beneﬁts for sustainable development

T h ro u g h l o c a l f u e l p ro d u c t i o n , c i t i e s a n d m u n i c i p a l i t i e s c a n c re a t e l o c a l j o b s a n d

s o l v e l o c a l w a s t e p r o b l e m s , w h i l e a l s o increasing energy security and bringing carbon and nutrients back to the soil

“These solutions are truly circular and I would say that our 13-liter gas power train is the most sustainable and viable option on

Equipment News

Enviro400EV electric double-deckers and 29 low-emission buses with 21 Enviro400 double-deckers for long distance routes and eight Enviro200 single-deckers The 24 electric buses are the first electric buses for Reading

the market for long-distance operators It is better for the environment, quiet, smart and perhaps most important, available here-andn o w, a l l o w i n g l o n g - d i s t a n c e o p e r a t o r s t o take a huge step towards sustainable transpor t,” concludes Strömberg

Scania has developed gas engines since the early 1900s With the possibility of running on both natural gas and biogas, they are the perfect tool in the transition to the more sustainable biogas Adding to the ﬂexibility, the

Scania will now be offering their Touring model coach with LBG/LNG gas power In addition to expanding the Scania product line, the Touring gas model offers a more sustainable coach without the need for a massive investment in infrastructure Powered by a 13-liter gas engine, the Touring gas model has a range of more than 1,000 kilometers (620 miles)

engines can also run on both liqueﬁed gas a n d c o m p r e s s e d g a s S i n c e t h e y d o n o t require additives, Scania’s gas engines are not dependent on the availability of additives

Scania Touring adds to Scania’s current gas p o r t f o l i o f o r t h e l o n g - d i s t a n c e s e g m e n t , w h i c h i n c l u d e

with external bodybuilder partners, such as the Scania Beulas DD LBG/LNG as well as the Scania Irizar i6S Efﬁcient LBG/LNG that was presented at Busworld last year

Reading Buses Orders 53

Alexander Dennis Buses

A l e x a n d e r D e n n i s , a s u b s i d i a r y o f N F I Group Inc , one of the world’s leading independent global bus manufacturers, on June 1 1 a n n o u n c e d t h a t E n g l i s h b u s o p e r a t o r Reading Buses has conﬁrmed new orders for 24 zero-emission and 29 low-emission buses

The 24 next-generation Alexander Dennis Enviro400EV double-deckers will be the operator’s ﬁrst batch of electric buses They are the result of a successful bid with Readi n g B o ro u g h C

second round of the UK Government’s ZeroE

(ZEBRA 2)

Fitted with the heavy duty-variant of the Vo i t h E

ing up to 472kWh of energy, the Alexander D

through efficiency, longevity and flexibility I

Bus Trader / August, 2024 • 13

e l e c t r i c d o u b l e - d e c k e r t e s t e d t o Z e m o

Partnership standards in the UK Bus Cycle a n d o f f e r s m a r k e t - l e a d i n g w a r r a n t a b l e

e n e r g y t h ro u g h p u t o f 1 6 G W h o v e r e i g h t y e a r s

The new buses will remove local exhaust emissions from Reading Buses’ busy route 17 and 21 when the zero-emission vehicles e n t e r s e r v i c e i n 2 0 2 5 T h e y w i l l b e e a s i l y able to run for a full day on these services, with charging taking place at the Reading Buses depot, which will be upgraded with 13 fast chargers that can each charge two vehicles at once

Reading Buses Chief Executive Ofﬁcer

Robert Williams said: “We have been undertaking extensive testing of demonstrators from a number of suppliers The two things of paramount impor tance were the experience for the customers and experience for our drivers, before we considered the technical side of things Of all the demonstrators, the new Alexander Dennis Enviro400EV has the best layout for customers on board, and t h e d r i v e r s w h o t e s t e d i t w e r e v e r y impressed ”

The new zero-emission buses will allow R o u t e 1 7 ’s c u r re n t ﬂ e e t o f E n v i ro 4 0 0 C B G

b i o g a s b u s e s t o b e re d e p l o y e d o n o t h e r ro u t e s t o re p l a c e s o m e o f t h e c o m p a n y ’s oldest diesel buses

R e a d i n g B u s e s i s f u r t h e r i n v e s t i n g i n

2 9 n e w A l e x a n d e r D e n n i s l o w - e m i s s i o n buses This will include 21 new Enviro400 d o u b l e - d e c k e r s f o r l o n g e r - d i s t a n c e routes, which follow 19 identical Alexander

D e n n i s b u s e s t h a t t h e c o m p a n y i n t r o -

d u c e d o v e r t h e l a s t 1 8 m o n t h s T h e o t h e r eight buses will be Enviro200 single-decke r s t h a t w i l l c o m p l e t e l y r e n e w t h e l o c a l N e w b u r y & D i s t r i c t f l e e t A l l a re d u e t o b e delivered later this year and will utilize the manufacturer’s Smar tPack efficiency technology to bring down exhaust and carbon e m i s s i o n s

Regional Sales Manager for Alexander Dennis Mark Taylor said: “We are delighted t o w e l c o m e R e a d i n g B u s e s a s o n e o f t h e ﬁrst customers for our next-generation electric buses Our next-generation Enviro400EV w i l l g i v e R e a d i n g B u s e s a g re a t s t a r t i n t o zero-emission technology, its class-leading energy efﬁciency and warrantable energy throughput ensuring that these clean buses will cost less to operate and keep going for longer

“We’re also thrilled to continue our par tn e r s h i p w i t h f u r t h e r l o w - e m i s s i o n b u s e s , building on similar investment in recent years and demonstrating our unrivaled ability to offer complete solutions for all ﬂeet requirements ”

Equipment News

Łódź, Poland, located southwest of Warsaw, recently ordered 53 mild hybrid buses from Solaris Included are 15 Urbino 12 12-meter buses and 48 Urbino 18 18-meter articulated buses. The mild hybrid buses provide regenerative braking to capture electrical power while braking

Łódź Orders 63 Solaris Buses in Mild Hybrid Version

R e p r e s e n t a t i v e s o f S o l a r i s a n d M P K

Łódź signed a contract for the lease of 63 buses with mild hybrid drive The contract includes servicing and maintenance of the vehicles for a period of 10 years Deliveries of the 12- and 18-meter low-emissions buses are scheduled for the last quar ter of 2024

As part of the tender announced by MPH Łódź, Solaris will deliver 15 Urbino 12 buses and 48 Urbino 18 buses All models will be equipped with mild hybrid drive The new b u s e s w i l l b e

d b

e n t w o depots in Łódź – the Limanowskiego Depot and the Nowe Sady Depot One of the 12meter buses will be specially equipped and adapted for the MPK Łódź Driver Training Center for driving lessons

The mild hybrid drive to be used in the buses for MPK Łódź is a natural developm e n t o f t h e r e c u p

c h n o l o g y i n buses – a technology using energy generated during braking Thanks to mild hybrid solution, vehicles are more environmental friendly and going far beyond the EURO 6 s t r i c t e m i s s i o n s

d i e s e l engines The system is based on three cruc i a l e l e m e n t s : a n e l e c t r

i n e , a n energy storage system and a driver for the structure monitoring the operation of the system When braking, the electric machine of t h e b u s w o r k s a s

recharges the energy storage with the maxi

unit is partially or fully recharged, during the acceleration process, the electric machine a c

operation of the diesel engine

The Urbino mild hybrid is a response to t h

mental impact while also reducing fuel consumption A few months ago, Solaris won another signiﬁcant tender for buses with this drive: 110 mild hybrid buses for the ATAC carrier in Rome

Transdev Blazeﬁeld Unveils NextGeneration Alexander Dennis Enviro400EV

Group Inc , one of the world’s leading independent global bus manufacturers, on June 21 announced that bus operator Transdev Blazefield has officially launched the first of 19 zero-emission Enviro400EV double-deckers for The Harrogate Bus Company

The bus was shown to local stakeholders, invited guests and the public during a celebration at The Yorkshire Hotel in Harrogate

Transdev Blazeﬁeld is the second customer to take delivery of next-generation Alexander Dennis electric buses, and the ﬁrst to employ them on a service with long stretches of interurban running at higher speeds

To facilitate all-day operation with departures up to ever y 10 minutes on the 27-mile route between Leeds, Harrogate and Ripon, the Enviro400EV are ﬁtted with roof-mounted charging rails to allow their 472kWh batteries b e t o p p e d u p b y p a n t o g r a p h d u r i n g l a yo v e r s a t H a r ro g a t e b u s s t a t i o n T h

n e e d for additional energy will never theless be k e p t t o a m i n i m u m t h a n k s t o t h e Enviro400EV’s highly efﬁcient driveline powered by the heavy-duty Voith Electrical Drive System

The new electric buses will build on Route 36’s long tradition of pioneering innovation for an amazing customer experience by adding a smooth and quiet ride to the high-standard vehicle interiors that Transdev Blazeﬁeld prides itself on offering to its customers

T h e s e i n c l u d e b e s p o k e ﬂ o o r i n g , U S B and wireless mobile device charging and latest audio-visual passenger infor mation systems including displays facing the two

w h e e l c h a i r b a y s C o m f o r t a b l e s e a t s a re arranged in a spacious 2+1 patter n on the u p p e r d e c k , w i t h r e c l i n i n g s i n g l e s e a t s angled inwards alongside expanded window ledges and ar mrests

Transdev Blazefield Managing Director Henri Rohard said: “We are delighted to be working with Alexander Dennis on the next generation of the 36 This service has a special place in Transdev Blazefield network I believe that the configuration considered in this bus is the best available and integrates all the latest innovation that we could think o f T h e d e s i g n h a s b e e n c o n s i d e r e d t o improve our passenger comfort, safety and accessibility We will continue to integrate after the launch, additional features to further boost the quality of our passenger and driver on board infor mation

“ We a re l o o k i n g f o r w a rd t o w e l c o m i n g t h e s e b u s e s i n t o o u r ﬂ e e t i n t h e c o m i n g months ”

A l e x a n d e r D e n n i s P re s i d e n t a n d M a n -

a g i n g D i re c t o r P a u l D a v i e s s a i d : “ We a re extremely honored that Transdev Blazeﬁeld h a s c h o s e n o u r n e x t - g e n e r a t i o n Enviro400EV for its investment in a stunning new generation of buses for The Harrogate Bus Company’s iconic Route 36

Equipment News

“Our Enviro400EV is excellently suited to the interurban nature of this service, with our heavy-duty driveline per fectly matched to the requirements of Route 36, delivering the power required whilst offering the efﬁciency n e e d e d t o c o m f o r t a b l y c o v e r h i g h d a i l y mileages We’re combining this with classleading warrantable energy throughput to ensure these buses will go further for longer, driving value for Transdev through their efﬁciency and longevity ”

Through its partner North Yorkshire Counc i l , Tr a n s d e v B l a z e ﬁ e l d re c e i v e d f u n d i n g towards the purchase of its new Alexander

Transdev Blazefield recently launched the first of 19 zero-emission Enviro400EV electric doubledeckers for The Harrowgate Bus Company The new buses were introduced at the Yorkshire Hotel in Harrowgate The buses will be used on a 27-mile route between Leeds, Harrowgate and Ripon and come with roof-mounted charging rails to allow charging at the Harrowgate bus station Cooperativa de

Dennis Enviro400EV from the ﬁrst round of t h e U K G o v e

’s Z

Regional Areas scheme (ZEBRA 1)

Marcopolo Expor ts 19 Paradiso G8 1800 DD Buses to Ecuador C

Ecuador, recently purchased 19 buses from

are 14

meters long and

Equipment News

‘The Ecuadorian market has grown and moder nized in recent years This sale of 19 u n i t s o f t h e d o u b l e - d e c k e r m o d e l i s v e r y important and will further raise the standard of quality, comfort and safety in the country’s intercity transport,” explains José Luis Goes, director of sales and international operations at Marcopolo

T h e 1 9 P a r a d i s o G 8 1 8 0 0 D D b u s e s

h a v e a t o t a l l e n g t h o f 1 4 , 4 0 0 m m a n d

c a p a c i t y f o r 4 3 p a s s e n g e r s i n s l e e p e r seats, with USB sockets, cup holders, cell p h o n e h o l d e r a n d t h re e - p o i n t s e a t b e l t s

The units are equipped with Arco A590DD

a i r c o n d i t i o n i n g s y s t e m , M u l i p l e x L o h r, audio and video systems, with Orbe DVD, h e a t e r f o r L i q u i d s a n d Va l e o e l e c t r o n i c

d e s t i n a t i o n s i g n

The Marcopolo Paradiso G8 1800 dou-

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

r e q u e s t e d m o d e l b y i n t e r c i t y t r a n s p o r t

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t h e s e a t s “ T h e P a r a d i s o G 8 1 8 0 0 D D i s

t h e m o s t s o p h i s t i c a t e d i n t e rc i t y b u s p ro -

d u c e d b y M a rc o p o l o , w h i c h i s v e r y s u ccessful and widely accepted in Brazil and a b ro a d , ” h e s a i d

With a striking visual and design awarded b y I F D e s i g n 2 0 2 2 , t h e m o d e l h a s M a rcopolo’s DNA, with fluid lines, low aerodynamic coefficient, of only 0 384 and meets the strictest inter national safety standards, such as ECE R66 02 cer tification, granted by the British Vehicle Cer tification Agency (VCA) for rollovers q

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Bus Equipment People

ARI-HETRA

ARI-HETRA, a leading provider of heavyduty vehicle lifting and suppor t equipment, h a s a n n o u n c e d t h e a p p o i n t m e n t o f Jean DellAmore a s v i c e p re s i d e n t DellAmore , for merly with Ster til-Koni, brings more than 2 0 y e a r s o f i n d u s t r y e x p e r i e n c e a n d a proven track record of driving growth and innovation

“We are thrilled to welcome Jean to the ARI-HETRA family,” said Chris Jones, presi d e n t a n d C O O o f

A R I - H E T R A “ H i s

d e e p i n d u s t r y

k n o w l e d g e a n d leadership will be

i n v a l u a b l e a s w e

c o n t i n u e t o

s t r e n g t h e n o u r

m a r k e t p o s i t i o n

a n d d r i v e o u r

g r o w t h s t r a t e g y ”

D u r i n g h i s t e n u re at Stertil-Koni, Dell

A m o r e s e r v e d a s the company’s ﬁrst p re s i d e n t s i n c e i t s

U S launch in 1997

He was instrumental in establishing Ster tilKoni as a leader in the heavy-duty vehicle lift sector

In his new role at ARI-HETRA, DellAmore will oversee strategic initiatives and spearhead the development of innovative solut i o n s t o m e e t t h e e v o l v i n g n e e d s o f t h e industry His appointment underscores ARIHETRA’s commitment to quality, innovation and customer satisfaction

“I am excited to join ARI-HETRA and cont r i b u t e t o i t s l e g a c y o f e x c e l l e n c e , ” s a i d DellAmore “The company’s commitment to providing top-notch products and services aligns per fectly with my own values, and I look forward to working with the talented team here to achieve new heights of success

ARI-HETRA continues to lead the way in providing innovative and reliable heavy-duty vehicle lifting and suppor t solutions With DellAmore on board, the company is poised for even greater achievements and is well p o s i t i o n e d t o m e e t t h e c h a l l e n g e s a n d oppor tunities of the future

Flix Nor th America

Flix Nor th America Inc , the entity overseeing operations for both FlixBus and Greyh o u n d a c r o s s N o r t h A m e r i c a , o n J u l y 8 announced the recent appointment of Karina

Frayter as head of public relations and corporate communications In this role Frayter will guide all aspects of the communications strategy in North America, overseeing external and inter nal communications and reputation management for the company and its two brands She will report to Kadir “Kai” Boysan, chief executive ofﬁcer of Flix North

leadership team

“ Karina i s a s e a s o n e d c o r p o r a t

o mmunicator, and we are excited to have her exper tise at this pivotal time of growth for Flix in Nor th America, overseeing exter nal and internal communications and reputation management for the company and its two

executive ofﬁcer of Flix North America, a n d s e

e a s p a r t of the senior leadership team

d positioning, media

and reputation mana

r e c e n t

e w a s vice president of public relations at XPO, a leading freight transportation provider, where she guided the company through a spinoff, leadership transition and brand positioning post-spin

Prior to that, Frayter was senior director of corporate and ﬁnancial communications

for Macy’s Inc , as well as senior managing d

advising For tune 500 companies, star tups and non-proﬁts globally Earlier in her career, Frayter was a television producer for more than a decade, covering business and ﬁnancial news for CNN and CNBS

America, and I am thrilled to join the company at such a decisive moment of growth a

team to effectively engage all stakeholders

travel accessible, affordable and sustain-

Frayter holds a master’s degree in international affairs from Columbia University’s

and a bachelor’s degree in political science

the board of trustees

Karina Frayter

Jean DellAmore

Th e c o r p o r a t e Tr a n s p a r e n c y A c t ( c TA ) , e n a c t e d i n 2 0 2 1 a n d i m p l e -

m e n t e d o n J a n u a r y 1 , 2 0 2 4 , h a s s e n t

r i p p l e s t h r o u g h t h e A m e r i c a n b u s i n e s s landscape – and transportation businesses

a re n o e x c e p t i o n T h i s f e d e r a l l a w, a i m e d

a t c o m b a t i n g ﬁ n a n c i a l c r i m e s l i k e m o n e y laundering and tax evasion, requires many previously anonymous entities to disclose their true owners to the government New Yo r k S t a t e h a s f o l l o w e d t h e f e d e r a l g o vernment by enacting the New York Limited L i a b i l i t y c o m p a n y Tr a n s p a r e n c y A c t ( N Y LTA ) , w h i c h h a s s o m e s i m i l a r i t i e s t o the cTA and some notable key differences d i s c u s s e d i n t h i s a r t i c l e . F o r n o w, N e w York is the only state to pass its own addit i o n a l c TA - l i k e l a w ; h o w e v e r, i t i s l i k e l y that other states, likely california, will seek t o d o s o i n t h e f u t u re

T h e h i s t o r y o f t h i s l e g i s l a t i o n i n v o l v e d years of negotiation and redrafting in congress, and was spurred by the need to provide law enforcement with beneﬁcial owne r s h i p i n f o r m a t i o n f o r t h e p u r p o s e o f d e t e c t i n g , p re v e n t i n g a n d p u n i s h i n g t e r-

ro r i s m , m o n e y l a u n d e r i n g a n d o t h e r m i sc o n d u c t t h r o u g h b u s i n e s s e n t i t i e s T h e c TA – a n d N Y LTA – w e r e n o t e n a c t e d speciﬁcally to address any institutional or w i d e l y re p o r t e d i s s u e s o r p ro b l e m s i n t h e mobility industry While the ground transp o r t a t i o n i n d u s t r y m a y n o t b e t h e d i re c t

t a rg e t o f t h i s l e g i s l a t i o n , t h e c o m p o s i t i o n o f t h e i n d u s t r y i n c l u d e s s o m a n y s m a l l businesses that most companies will need t o c o m p l y o r s e e k a n e x e m p t i o n c o m p l i -

a n c e i s i n v o l v e d n o t o n l y w h e n n e w c o mp a n i e s a re f o r m e d , b u t a l s o re t ro a c t i v e l y

f o r c o r p o r a t e e n t i t i e s – e v e n i f t h e y w e re

f o r m e d m a n y y e a r s a g o

W h i l e t h e re i s n o t m u c h t o b e a l a r m e d

a b o u t i n t e r m s o f t h e re q u i re d p a p e r w o r k and content of the reporting, there are real

c o n c e r n s a b o u t N o T re p o r t i n g a n d f i l i n g

p a p e r w o r k o n t i m e , w h i c h c o u l d l e a d t o

m a s s i v e f i n e s i n e x c e s s o f t e n s o f t h o usands of dollars, and even criminal penal-

t i e s a n d e x p o s u r e i n c e r t a i n l i m i t e d c i r -

c u m s t a n c e s P e n a l t i e s f o r c TA non-compliance can include civil penalties o f u p t o $ 5 0 0 p e r d a y, p e r c o m p a n y, a n d c r i m i n a l c h a rg e s t h a t c a n re s u l t i n a m a ximum of two (2) years imprisonment, plus a $ 1 0 , 0 0 0 f i n e , p e r c o m p a n y

While some may ﬁnd the intent of the legislation to be noble, it is leaving many small transportation companies wondering how t h e s e n e w r e p o r t i n g r e q u i r e m e n t s w i l l impact their day-to-day operations and compliance costs. Understanding the intricacies of the cTA (and the NYLTA for NY operators), and its potential beneﬁts and drawbacks, is crucial for mobility businesses to n a v i g a t e t h e c h a n g i n g t e r r a i n a n d e n s u re t h e i r s m o o t h o p e r a t i o n i n t h i s n e w e r a o f corporate transparency.

New Corporate Transparency Laws Transportation Companies Must Comply to

Avoid Hefty Fines

by Matthew W. Daus, Esq.

You may have to search long and hard to find anyone in the private bus industry happy about the new Corporate Transparency Act. With both bus companies and bus industry suppliers still struggling with the aftermath of the pandemic, the last thing we needed was more paperwork and government supervision. Matthew Daus walks us through what is involved with this new law. mci

What do these laws mean, and what do

o w t o g o a b o u t complying it is highly recommended that YoU NoT do ThiS YoUrSeLF. Any mistakes o r m i s h a p s c o u l d l e a d t o d i r e c o n s e

w y e r

i m m e d i a t e l y i c a n b e re a c h e d a n y t i m e a t m d a u s @ w i n d e l s m a r x . c o m o r ( 2 1 2 ) 2 3 71106, with our team of trained professionals at the corporate and transportation law practices at the law firm of Windels marx, w h e re w e c a n a d v i s e y o u o n h o w t o c o mp l y, w h a t

Who Must File and What tType of Information Must Be Disclosed?

formed/registered in the U S through certain state ﬁlings, must ﬁle reports with the

department of the Treasury, disclosing information about:

(a) “Beneﬁcial Owners:” This includes any individual who, directly or indirectly, (i) owns at least 25 percent of the company’s equity, or (ii) has “substantial control” over the company; and

( b ) “ C o m p a n y A p p l i c a n t s : ” t h i s includes the individual who ﬁled the formation documents, and one other individual who primarily directed their ﬁling

the requirement to report for “Company applicants” is effective only for companies formed in 2024 or later. required information includes the legal name, date of birth, residential address and a copy of government issued identiﬁcation (e.g., driver ’s license or passport) if an individual registers with finCeN, then the company can instead disclose the i n d i v i d u a l ’ s f i n C e N i d n u m b e r t h i s i d number can be used for future formations and ﬁlings without having to provide personally identifying information in each instance

While the Cta aims to shine a light on beneﬁcial ownership for most businesses, it does not cast a blanket net recognizing the potential burden on diverse entities, the Cta offers a surprising 23 exemptions from publ i c l y - t r a d e d g i a n t s t o n o n - p r o ﬁ t s , t h e s e exemptions create a complex map for navigating reporting requirements understandi n g w h i c h

“large operating companies” (i.e., companies with more than 20 u s full-time employees [excluding independent operators and partt i m e w o r k e r s ] , m o r e t h a n $ 5 m i l l i o n i n annual u s gross receipts, etc ), certain inactive entities, certain regulated entities (e g , banks, public utilities, etc ), tax exempt organizations and certain subsidiaries of exempt companies. in addition to the exceptions,

the finCeN database is not accessible to the general public, and is only available to government agencies

How Much Are Late Filing Fines and Criminal Penalties?

penalties for Cta non-compliance can include civil penalties of up to $500 per day, per company, and criminal charges that can

result in a maximum of two (2) years imprisonment plus a $10,000 ﬁne, per company. o n t h e c

multi-level group of companies consisting of four separate entities could be subject to $ 2 , 0 0 0 p

charges the non-compliance must be done knowingly with an intent to commit fraud o r p ro v

which is a high standard for the government

The experts recommend that we not try to do the paperwork ourselves but to have an attorney do the work for us. There are high penalties for non-compliance. These can include both fines and criminal charges gadoaguilar from pixabay

to prove, and remains untested because the C Ta i s s o n e w, m a k i n g i t s e n f o r c e m e n t u n p re d i c t a b l e . H o w e v e r, w e c a u t i o n t h a t a n y i n c o n s i s t e n c i e s b e t w e e n y o u r C Ta reporting and state-level ﬁlings may lead to an inquiry, which can cause stress and comp l i a n c e c o s t s G e t t i n g t h i s d o n e r i g h t a n d having your corporate affairs in order at this time is critical

New York LLC Transparency Act CTA Comparison

December 21, 2024 marks the arrival of nylTa, a game changer for limited liabili t y c o m p a n i e s ( l l C s ) o p e r a t i n g i n t h e empire State This new legislation follows o n t h e h e e l s o f t h e f e d e r a l C Ta , b u t a d d s a n e w yo r k f l a i r b y re q u i r i n g a d d i t i o n a l disclosures specifically for beneficial owners of llCs While aimed at curbing financial crimes and boosting transparency, the n y lTa r a i s e s i m p o r t a n t q u e s t i o n s f o r s m a l l b u s i n e s s e s :

• Who needs to comply?

• W h a t i n f o r m a t i o n n e e d s t o b e revealed?

• are there exemptions?

understanding these details is crucial for navigating the new regulations and ensuring your new york llC stays on the right side of the law let us delve into the nylTa and unpack its potential impact on your business Similar to the CTa, nylTa requires disclosure of beneficial ownership information for llCs formed or registered in new york, uses the same definitions of "beneficial owner " and “substantial control” as the CTa,

and uses the same 23 categories of exemptions as the CTa

Key differences with NYLTA include:

•

date);

• applies only to llCs, not other entities like corporations;

• requires llCs to ﬁle an "exempt company statement" if claiming an exemption;

• reports require business address, not residential address, of beneﬁcial owners;

• must disclose the unique number from an iD document, but not a copy of such iD document;

• n o f i n C e n i D n u m b e r c

n c e p t offered in new york;

• no disclosures required for " company applicants;"

• u p d

articles of organization, not all information changes (an anticipated amendment may change this to an annual update requirement);

• lower penalties for non-compliance (i e , no criminal ﬁnes or imprisonment); and

pated amendment may change this to government access only)

CTA and NYLTA Compliance Issues –A Sampling of Potential ProblemsS Non-Cooperation of Business Partners

both the CTa and nylTa require transportation companies to disclose their bene

This includes individuals with 25 percent

Recommendations are that you start to compile the information needed to file. Included will be government-issued identification for those people you need to include. You should also check to make sure that your company is up-to-date at the state reporting level kellylauzon0 from pixabay

• National Bus Trader / August, 2024

one common scenario expected will be where companies with multiple beneﬁcial owners cannot timely coordinate the submission of information from all individuals. for example, a company that is required to report may be having a difﬁcult time obtain-

and the company is potentially facing the associated penalty of $500 per day for nonc

notices and demands to the non-complying owner while insulating the complying owners from any liability

caused by their inaction adjustments can b

mechanism and penalties (including attorn e y s ’ f e e s ) a g a i n s t re c a l c i t r a n t b e n e f i c i a l o w n e r s

Cross-Jurisdiction Compliance and Data Security Issues

C o n c e r n s r e g a r d i n g p r i v a c y, c o m p l ia n c e c o s t s a n d d a t a s e c u r i t y s h o u l d b e a d d re s s e d a s w e l l i n C Ta ( n y lTa ) c o mp l i a n c e n a v i g a t i n g t h e i n t r i c a c i e s o f t h e l a w s , p a r t i c u l a r l y f o r c ro s s - b o rd e r o p e r at i o n s , m a y re q u i re p ro f e s s i o n a l g u i d a n c e involving any international investors for example, beneficial owners who are living abroad and are only invested in the foreign p a r e n t c o m p a n y t h a t w h o l l y o w n s a domestic reporting company may – for the first time – be subject to american scrutiny a n d m a y b e r e l u c t a n t t o s h a r e p e r s o n a l

i d e n t i f y i n g i n f o r m a t i o n .

T h a t p e r s o n a l i d e n t i f y i n g i n f o r m a t i o n may be transmitted electronically through y o u r c o m p a n y ’ s e - m a i l s e r v e r, m a k i n g i t

s u b j e c t t o u n k n o w n d a t a p ro t e c t i o n a n d s e c u r i t y l a w s o f f o re i g n ( a n d m o re s t r i n -

g e n t ) j u r i s d i c t i o n s l i k e t h e e u r o p e a n

u n i o n , o r e v e n C a l i f o r n i a i f t h e o w n e r i s a C a l i f o r n i a re s i d e n t C a l i f o r n i a c o m p l ia n c e w i l l b e k e y b e c a u s e i t i s l i k e l y t o f o l -

l o w s u i t a n d e n a c t i t s o w n t r a n s p a re n c y

l a w i n t h e f u t u re

yo u r l a w y e r s c a n h e l p e v a l u a t e d a t a

p r i v a c y a n d p ro t e c t i o n r i s k s a n d a d v i s e on the best

What Should You Do Next to Start Complying?

As you read this, you too may be asking how the CTA and/or NYLTA apply to your business If you have any questions about these new laws, we are happy to assist with your inquiries. Because the CTA and NYLTA w i l l h a v e s w e e p i n g a n d b r o a d r e a c h i n g implications for business entities that have never been subject to reporting and disclosure, and will be under the lens of FinCEN and/or the New York Department of State, it is important for each reporting company to take the time to do a refresher to ensure compliance with all corporate requirements, a n d t h a t a l l o f t h e n e c e s s a r y g o v e r n a n c e items are up-to-date and executed To that end, we can guide you on best practices for corporate formations and governance, and if you follow this initial checklist on the key corporate items necessary for compliance you will be on the right track, or if any items are missing, we can assist you:

• D e t e r m i n e t h e n u m b e r o f f u l l - t i m e U.S. based employees in each company at the time of reporting;

• Calculate the annual gross receipts for each company for the ﬁscal year of reporting

• Conﬁrm the stockholders and members of each company For those individuals you will need, copies of government issued identiﬁcation, full legal name, date of birth and residential address

• Create an organizational chart;

• C e r t i f y t h a t g o v e r n a n c e d o c u m e n t s are complete, executed and accurately reflect the current beneficial owners as of the filing d a t e A n y c h a n g e s s h o u l d b e d o n e b e f o re

reporting if the deadline to report has not lapsed;

• Check your state’s Secretary of State’s Web site to see that your company is up to date on its state level reporting, ﬁlings and statements;

• If any of the above changes (i e reduct i o n o r i n c r e a s e i n e m

s o r g r o s s receipts), then you should revaluate whether your company is obligated to report;

• C o n t a c t c o u n s e l t o d e t e r m i n e y o u r reporting obligations

With this basic checklist in mind you will be on the path to complying with the CTA and NYLTA, as well as keeping your company in good order

While the intent of the CTA and NYLTA re p re s e n t t o l e g i s l a

p towards more transparent and accountable corporate governance and recordkeeping to combat illegal practices, some in the business world view this as an overreach that creates m

government While small businesses may view the applicability of the law to them as heavy-handed and misguided, it is unlikely to be repealed anytime soon and many states are likely to create their own additional laws like New York just did As these laws take effect, transportation companies and many o

this new landscape of ownership disclosure

If you would like to join our mailing list and keep up-to-date on developments in this a

ishun@windelsmarx com to be added to our industry legal update daily feed, and/or to schedule an appointment with Matt Daus

The Bleiwise Bus at the Museum

The newest addition to the collection at the bus museum in Hershey, Pennsylvania is a 2000 Gillig dedicated to bus industry veteran Jack Bleiwise. Bleiwise began driving trucks in 1918 and founded and worked for the south Orange Bus company until it was sold to Coach USA in 1999 Dedicated to Bleiwise, the bus was purchased and reconditioned by his son Harry. It was donated to the museum by Jack McVicker.

Article and photos courtesy of Dave Millhouser

It was 1918 and the “Great War” was over Following military service in Europe as a n a i rc r a f t m e c h a n i c , 2 6 - y e a r- o l d J a c k Bleiwise returned home to New Jersey, and began driving a truck for his uncle’s hospital furniture business

W h i l e m a k i n g

ern New Jersey, Bleiwise noticed that there w a s n o r e l i a b

between uptown and downtown Newark. B

furniture, so he founded a bus company to

Apparently it was a good idea because the South Orange Bus Company (also later k n o w n a s S u p e r i o r B u s C o m p a n y ) e n d e d up serving the community with that line service for 74 years

Fast forward to 1954 and Jack’s son Harry Bleiwise returned from serving in the Korean War and began working in his dad’s comp a n y O

D C I n t h e e a r l y 1 9 7 0 s H a r r y e a s e d

k from full-time involvement in the bus busi-

ness and started an insurance company that became very successful, enabling him to create and support a large number of charitable causes.

Eventually the South Orange Bus Company grew to 35 buses operating charters as w e l

Coach USA in 1999 If you do the math, Jack Bleiwise was 106 when he retired from the bus business – perhaps a record.

He passed away at 107 in 2000, after a lifetime that included seeing Teddy Roosevelt’s victory parade following the Spanish Ameri c a n Wa r,

y a n d

invention of the automobile, through watching the road and highway system grow from

The interior of the Gillig has been nicely restored and brought back to a like-new condition. Note that the bus comes ready to roll with a farebox and a fire extinguisher

wood bodies mounted on truck chassis to sleek modern coaches

Gillig transit bus at auction from the transit authority in Palm Beach, Florida In honor o

interior, rebuilt the drivetrain and painted it in the green and cream colors of the GM buses that the family operated in the 1940s The beautifully-restored bus was a popular attraction at several of the Museum’s Spring Flings Recently Harry made the decision to sell the bus to Jack McVicker who hoped to convert it into a motor home.

McVicker quickly came to the conclusion that the bus and the Bleiwise family story h a d

might cause that history to be lost. He made t

Museum, and we are very grateful not only for this beautifully-restored coach, but for the story it brings with it

The Bleiwise family’s contribution to the bus industry and society is both unique, and at the same time representative of the many family-owned bus operators who offer so much q

Behind the driver, the passenger area has also been refurbished to a likenew condition. It even has the overhead car cards to give passengers something to read

Anew and increasing concern is that the expansion of AI (artificial intelligence) centers has become an overwhelming burden on our national power grid. There have been numerous warnings that our country’s headlong race to electric vehicles (EVs) is already taxing our existing power grid. New electrical production is not c o m i n g o n l i n e f a s t e n o u g h t o o f f s e t t h e increasing use of electricity Among other p r o b l e m s , t h e r e a r e g r o u p s o p p o s e d t o many types of increased production of electricity including nuclear, coal, wind fams, fossil fuels and even solar power What has been a concern in recent years is now getting worse. The consumption of electricity by AI i s d r i v i n g a n e x p a n s i o n o f f o s s i l f u e l u s e

While we may be moving to EVs, our elect r i c g e n e r a t i o n c o u l d b e e x p a n d i n g w i t h less-than-clean power sources

The administration’s push to sell more EVs had some preliminary success, presumably because businesses and public agencies d e c i d e d t o g e t o n t h e g re e n b a n d w a g o n However, once that initial rush was over, sales of EVs have declined because the average American is not interested Although, the sale of hybrid cars, where you can refuel instead of recharge, has continued

In the bus industry there still is a strong m o v e m e n t f ro m d i e s e l t o b a t t e r y - e l e c t r i c buses However, we are already seeing the start of a trend in another direction. People h a v e n o t e d t h e p ro b l e m s i n l o c a t i n g t h e materials needed for batteries and the pollution caused by their manufacture Lithium ion battery fires keep making the news and re f l e c t n e g a t i v e l y o n E V s . T h e N e w Yo r k City Fire Department has stated that lithium ion batteries are now the most likely cause of fires, replacing cigarettes. There are some bus operations that have moved away from b a t t e r y - e l e c t r i c b e c a u s e o f c o n c e r n s w i t h lithium ion battery fires

E u ro p e h a s a l re a d y s e e n t h e s t a r t o f a movement to hydrogen fuel cell power for buses Among other things, hydrogen fuel cell technology provides a greater range for coaches that can make it more practical than battery-electric power Hydrogen fuel cell p o w e r i s a l r e a d y m a k i n g i n r o a d s i n t h e United States in buses

There have been warnings that our movem e n t t o e l e c t r i c v e h i c l e s i s t a x i n g t h e national power grid. Those involved suggest t h a t w e n e e d t o i m p ro v e o u r p o w e r g r i d infrastructure and increase our production of clean electricity before moving ahead at full speed to EVs While there are numerous projects seeking new sources of electricity, t h e y a re n o t b e a r i n g f ru i t f a s t e n o u g h I n similar fashion, there are projects and plans to increase traditional sources of electricity, b u t t h e y a re f a i l i n g t o c o m e o n l i n e f a s t e r than the demand is increasing The recent rush to develop AI data centers is only making the situation worse

AI a nd the Power Grid

There are increasing concerns that we have failed to build up our power grid infrastructure and clean energy before moving headlong into electric vehicles and AI centers. In many areas, power generation companies are continuing coal fired plants and bulding natural gas plants instead of clean energy to keep up with electrical usage. The result is that moving to electric vehicles could cause more pollution rather than less. GREY85PIXABAY

The tech giants are racing each other to develop AI data centers They already have w a r e h o u

r s packed with racks of servers that power the Internet As the tech giants fight in a global AI building race, a frenzy of building data centers is taking over the country and the g

computers that are more complicated, faster and require substantially more electricity

A large data center in the Midwest uses as m

million laptops running eight hours a day

by Larr y Plac hno

nearly 10 times the amount of electricity as a conventional search on Google Some computing campuses are eating up as much elect r i c a l p o w e r a s a m o d e s t - s i z e c i t y O n e

s o u rc e s u g g e s t s t h a t t h e

a re m o re t h a n 2,700 data centers around the United States and much of this is requiring a return to fossil fuel power.

Bear in mind that AI is extremely competitive so the tech giants are racing each other to develop data centers and stay ahead of the other guys As a result, the use of electric power and avoiding pollution may be s e c o n d a r y c o n s i d e r a t i o n s S o m e o f t h e s e centers claim they are “going green” because t hey have cont ract ed for clean nuclear or hydroelectric power

W h a t t h

b e c a u s e t h e y h

part of the power available, the local electric companies have little choice but to increase electric production for their other customers by less-clean alteratives including retaining coal-fired and natural gas power plants To a large extent, the ability of the AI centers to find electric power today will determine the winners and losers in the AI developm e n t r a c e A s a r e s u l t , w e a r e l

t w i t h numerous places where there are significant delays in retiring fossil fuel electrical generating plants

In addition, some of these tech giants are claiming that they are developing alternative power sources that will help generate electrical power in the future Microsoft is w o r k i n g w i t h p a r t n e r H e l i o n t o d e v e l o p fusion power plants. Bill Gates has his own nuclear power company called TerraPower

nuclear plants adjacent to the AI centers. So far, most of this has been just talk The Gates solution has been held back because they c a n n o t g e t t h

they need

S o m e A I c o m p a n i e s s u g g e s t t h

advancing AI could prove more beneficial to the environment than reducing the consumption of electricity Others say that AI

nearly 10 times the

opens the door for the arrival of new technologies Google wrote that it is speeding u p c l i m a t e a c t i

u s i n g A I H o w

v e r, w h a t i s l e f t u n s a i d a n d u n m e n t i o n e d i s the necessity of continuing fossil fuel electrical generating plants that have become n e c e s s a r y t o a s s u re t h e s u p p l y o f e n o u g h e l e c t r i c i t y

N o t e w o r t h y i s t h a t j u s t o u t s i d e o f S a l t L a k e C i t y, M e t a i s b u i l d i n g a $ 1 5 b i l l i o n d a t a c a m p u s t h a t w i l l re p o r t e d l y u s e a s m u c h e l e c t r i c a l p o w e r a s w h a t i s g e n e ra t e d b y a l a r g e n u c l e a r r e a c t o r M e a n -

w h i l e , G o o g l e i s p l a n n i n g t o b u i l d o n 3 0 0 acres located nearby As a result the retirem e n t o f a l a rg e c o a l g e n e r a t i n g p l a n t h

Recent increases in tech energy requirements in Georgia have caused the expansion of fossil fuel use that includes continuing a

plants while expanding gas power facilities. G

delay the closing of a coal generating plant from 2022 to at least 2026.

An interesting side note is that there have been several people with negative opinions on AI Does it really make sense to replace humans with computers, paticularly since the mid-year 2024 report showed that unemp l o y m e n t w a s i n c r e a s i n g ? S o m e o f t h e groups and people watching the development of AI have strong concerns

National Bus Trader / August, 2024 • 27

The mad rush to AI data centers by the tech giants may be consuming more clean energy than we can provide. One source says that there are more than 2,700 data centers in buildings and bunkers that can require as much electrical power as a small city This demand for electricity is causing a return to fossil fuel power DIGITAL ARTIST AT PIXABAY

Research suggests that

ChatbotGPT search consumes

amount

electricity as a conventional search on Google. The result is a power requirement that has become a problem for the electrical grid that is not prepared to supply clean electricity Additional power usage is causing a movement back to fossil fuels. YEIFERR AT PIXABAY.

Recently, MRC Free Speech America had its researchers ask Google’s Gemini AI questions about America. The AI chatbot refused to say that Americans should celebrate the Independence Day holiday. It accused the American National Anthem of being offensive In addition, it said it was difficult to identify who were the good guys in World War II When asked whether the Communist Manifesto is more important than the Dec-

laration of Independence, the chatbot said it depended on one’s perspective There are legitimate concerns over whether electric power should be used to develop AI if this is where it is going.

A recent study by Goldman Sachs may be cause for concern. It shows that by 2030, data centers will require eight percent of all

While new solar and wind farms can meet about 40 percent of this, much of the remaind

power from natural gas This expansion of natural gas use will create emissions equivalent to adding 15 7 million more gas-powered cars to our roads

even if we convert to battery-electric buses and cars that are zero-polluting when opera t

with pollution equivalent to putting gasoline-powered cars back on the road How can this be classed as “going green?”

The only way to solve this problem is to improve our power grid infrastructure and increase power generation from non-polluting sources before we move ahead with AI data centers and EVs q

Bus Fads

by Dave Millhouser

"Sh o u l d e r s " O ' B r i e n , c o - h e r o o f t h e

1 9 7 6 c l a s s i c d i s a s t e r s p o o f T h e B i g Bus is one of my childhood heroes. Well – maybe it was a cult film, and maybe I was 30 when it first turned up “Shoulders” seemed larger-than-life, my idol because we w e r e s o m e w h a t s i m i l a r H i s n i c k n a m e referred not to his physique, but to a tendency to drive on the shoulder. We are simpatico.

T h e B i g B u s , d u b b e d C y c l o p s , w a s a n atomic-powered, articulated behemoth that sported all the latest technology and amenities, including a swimming pool and bowling alley. “Shoulders” is co-driver to “Dan Torrance” who was “Once a promising driver Torrance was disgraced after he crashed his bus atop Mount Diablo, and was accused of saving his

own life by eating all of his passengers. (Torrance blamed his co-driver for cannibalism, insisting that he himself survived by eating the seats and the luggage, and only ate part of a passenger ' s foot by accident ) ” *

Nuclear power, bowling alleys and swimm i n g p o o l s m a y s e e m o v e r t h e t o p f o r t h

coach industry, but we have had a few ideas t h

come back . . .).

What could go wrong?

Wi t h o u t p a

good ideas fall short commercially because of timing or luck), there is a number of tech-

nologies and features that have had their five minutes of fame in the coach business F

y H o

y Grail was the million mile engine, and two major operators tried gas turbines. You could n

speed, and they guzzled fuel, so the experiment ended. In the early 1990s modern fourstroke engines were approaching the million mile mark, until the EPA strangled them.

Sleeper coaches were popular in the 30s, but have largely fallen victim to airlines. With a few notable exceptions, we rarely see attendants or snack service, and galleys are rare All are victims of cost cutting, and the desire to maximize capacity

While the 35-foot coach length was the industry standard for many years, it effectively disappeared by 2001 because of a lack of sales as the industry moved up to 40- and 45-foot coaches. However, interest among bus operators for a shorter coach prompted Temsa to introduce their 35-foot TS35 coach in 2008 Since then the 35-foot coach length has proven to be a least somewhat popular on the American market TEMSA

In the 1960s 35-foot coaches began fading in favor of 40-foot By the late ’70s they were nearly extinct until their recent remarkable return

I n t h e l a t e 1 9 6 0 s t w o m a n u f a c t u r e r s decided that wider buses were the future, and they were (but not for another 15 years

o r s o ) A n u m b e r o f 1 0 2 - i n c h w i d e b u s e s were built when the law allowed only 96i n c h o n m o s t r o a d s . T h e “ G r e a t B i g B u s Lines” assumed they could force their acceptance on regulators Wrong – and the widebodies were banished to a few legal roads, w i t h mi l l i o n s o f do l l a r s b l o w n I t w a s n o t until the 1980s that the rules changed.

Those same two stalwarts decided that three axles, on a 40-foot bus, were too many. Extra axles were expensive to buy and opera t e , s o w h y n o t l e a v e o n e o ff ? I n f a c t , o n e Eagle operator simply unbolted his bogies, plated over the gap and ran what we called a P s e u d o - S u b u r b a n . We l l g o l l y, w i t h o u t three axles, 40-foot coaches could not meet most highway's weight restrictions, and they were banished to a few legal roads.

In the ’80s CB antennas were a popular option, and some operators installed galleys a n d e v e n v e n d i n g m a c h i n e s W h e n t u rbochargers became troublesome, a product that offered better lubrication came on the market For a couple of years built-in vacuums were offered (about the time that carp e t e d f l o o r s w e re p o p u l a r ) N o t l o n g a g o there was a campaign to fill tires with pure nitrogen (as opposed to the 80 percent mix t h a t c o m p r i s e s c o m p re s s e d a i r ) N o n e o f these are “bad” things, but you just do not see much of them any more

It is important, when buying equipment, to carefully consider what is a real long-term benefit, versus a fad There are at least two major considerations

safety, reduced cost or improved sales? Do n

taining some equipment, and the fact that i

Which brings us to – timing You do not

buses) Banished buses are expensive mistakes Sometimes regulators create conun-

Could EV Highway coaches be a current (just can not help these puns) example of the technology timing conundrum?

At the peak of my career (when I was a bus sweeper) we had a gigundous drive-up vacuum cleaner that fit over the entrance door and sucked the coach clean I stood in the cabin and flicked stuff like Harry Potter with a compressed air wand, and it jetted down the aisle and out the door. Coke cans often bounced back in like shrapnel I have not seen one since, presumably because of that pesky shrapnel thing, but that is one fad I wish had survived. It almost made cleaning buses fun * L o o k i t u p Vi e w Wi k i p e d

/ en wikipedia org/wiki/The Big Bus q

In the late 1960s, both MCI and Eagle offered 102-inch wide coaches even though they were

roads. Shown here was

production because the 102-inch width did

Interest in sleeper buses has been up and down over the years Shown here, Brian Souter from Stagecoach shows off their scheduled sleeper buses that ran between London and Scotland but were eventually withdrawn. Historically, it appears that sleeper bus charters have more staying power than sleeper bus scheduled service STAGECOACH

Sur vival and Pr osperity

by Ned Einstein

Electric Buses, Part 1: The Good, The Bad and The Challenge of Both: School Buses

I w a s b a p t i z e d a b o u t e l e c t r i c v e h i c l e s earlier than most My late father designed and developed – and holds the patents on – 11 zinc-bromine batteries developed for Exxon Corporation (Google “patents, Harry Einstein”) – effectively the precursor to the

f u e l c e l l , a p r o m i s i n g t e c h n o l o g y w e l ldeveloped 35 years ago, deployed in buses in limited application and, for no apparent reason, forgotten Jet Propulsion Laborato-

r i e s h a d a p u r e - h y d r o g e n f u e l c e l l f u l l y

d e v e l o p e d i n t h e l a t e 1 9 8 0 s . T h o u s a n d

P a l m s , C a l i f o r n i a , w a s d e p l o y i n g a f u e l -

c e l l - p o w e r e d t r a n s i t b u s w h e n D i c k Cromwell was the general manager of the

c i t y ’ s t r a n s i t d i s t r i c t a n d t h e c h a i r m a n o f

t h e s c h o o l b o a r d T h e n n o t h i n g T h a n k s

l a r g e l y t o m y f a t h e r ’ s c o n t a c t s , I e x p e r i -

e n c e d s o m e d i s t u r b i n g d e v e l o p m e n t s i n the early 1990s – developments that went nowhere:

• A t o p t e c h n i c a l o f f i c i a l f r o m

N o r t h ro p i n f a v o r o f i t w a s s h o t d o w n b y

h i s u p p e r m a n a g e m e n t re g a rd i n g a t r a d e

d e a l I d e v e l o p e d f o r m y f o r m e r b u s - m a n -

u f a c t u r i n g p a r t n e r, TA M - B U S , w h e r e b y

w e w o u l d p ro v i d e N o r t h ro p C o r p o r a t i o n

w i t h a c c e s s t o t h e 5 5 - n a t i o n m a r k e t i n

e x c h a n g e f o r i t s s a l e , t o u s , o f i t s c a r b o n

f i b e r v e h i c l e e n v e l o p e We l a t e r l e a r n e d

t h a t w e c o u l d h a v e b o u g h t o n e f ro m N e o -

p l a n f o r $ 2 4 0 , 0 0 0 , b u t t h a t o p p o r t u n i t y

s l i p p e d a w a y w i t h TA M - U S A’ s f a i l u re i n

t h e N o r t h A m e r i c a n m a r k e t a f t e r

Yu g o s l a v i a c o l l a p s e d . Wi t h n e w d e m o c -

r a c y S l o v e n i a ’ s b a n k e r s a n d e l e c t e d o ff i -

c i a l s a l l e d u c a t e d i n U S c o l l e g e s , TA M -

B U S t o o k t h e l a s t 3 0 s e t s o f e n g i n e s a n d

t r a n s m i s s i o n s w e p u rc h a s e d w i t h f u n d s from a U S bank (a loan which the Slovene government cleverly “covered”) – curtailing the second set of 30 motorcoaches sold, a n d e f f e c t i v e l y e n d i n g TA M - U S A , a s TAM-BUS was carved up and sold in 1000 p i e c e s b y S l o v e n e m o g u l s a n d e n t r e p r en e u r s j u s t t h r i l l e d w i t h t h e f re e d o m t h a t d e m o c r a c y o f f e r e d t h e m . T h e p l a n s t o e v e n t u a l l y c re a t e a n e l e c t r i c v e h i c l e d i e d i n t h o s e a s h e s

• In 1991, I attended a huge fuel cell conf e re n c e i n P h o e n i x w i t h m y f a t h e r ’ s b o s s , Patrick Grimes, the head of Exxon’s Battery

Division. It is probably an underestimate to state that at least 90 percent of the participants were Japanese (Japan has zero petrol e u m s u r r o u n d i n g i t ) T h e f e w h u n d r e d Americans attending apparently did little o r n o t h i n g t o f u r t h e r t h e b o l d i d e a s t h a t exploded at that conference (Over the years, I managed to lose the 300-page proceedings from that conference.)

• A l s o w i t h M r G r i m e s , I a t t e n d e d a huge “automobile exhibition” in the Coliseum in Los Angeles. Exponentially more knowledgeable about such things as me, we walked around, booth to booth, asking electric car manufacturers with prototypes about their technology – with Grimes mostly asking the same three or four questions I recall him walking away from one chat muttering that the energy it would take that vehicle to ru

w York City is slowing ﬁlling up with electric vehicles, yet does not have the energy to support the thousands of overbuilt skyscrapers and other tall buildings constructed over the p a s

the past 45 years. At least these million dollar units are being occupied by homeless residents, keeping many of Manhattan’s main streets more free of tents

• At least 30 years ago, at a school bus c o n f e re n c e , I s a w a n

t r i c T h o m a s b u s outﬁtted with scores of lead acid batteries One engineer with whom I spoke told me that Thomas spent $85 million developing it (With a little help, I could have designed this vehicle in my back yard ) I asked him w h y h e w o

s t o a vehicle envelope with a massive frame rail chassis and steel sidewalls and frame members when a carbon ﬁber vehicle would need far fewer batteries. He told me that this is the only format that school bus purchasers would accept I knew he was right from the experiences of failing to sell a single TAM school bus – whose prototypes were painted a different color, the stop arm and ﬂashers removed, and deployed, almost non-stop, in a motorcoach duty cycle for about 20 years by the clever motorcoach operator who purchased them

I n s h o r t , f o r m o s t o f t h e p a s t 3 5 y e a r s , t h e e l e c t r i c v e h i c l e i n d u s t r y w a s a c l o w n show Update to the present – when we are at least developing a network of charging

stations, and electric vehicles are selling to t h e w e

before our next administration slaps tariffs on most of them – allegedly 60 percent on Chinese vehicles. (Half of all Teslas are curr e n t l y

update to the present, and focus on a typical, small, Midwest town with a tiny ﬂeet of school buses.

Electric Vehicles in the School Bus World

future,” New York Times) The problem this s m a l l c o

this much-larger, brand new bus was powe r e d b y e l e c t r i c i t y. E v e r y o n e f r o m t h e t o w n ’ s s c h o o l s u p e r i n t e n d e n t t o t h e s t udent s riding it (event ually ) loved it Some of the latter noted the engine’s whirr made them think of riding in a UFO. At the same t i m e , t h i s v e h i c l e f r i g h t e n e d t h i s t o w n o f 1,300 residents – exposing fears of a future w i t h w i n d t u r b i n e s , p o w e r f r o m s o l a r f a r m s i n o t h e r s t a t

e l e c t r i c c

s s t r a n d e d

r a v e l r

e s i d e n

w h o f e l t t h i s f u t u re w o u l d j e o p a rd i z e h i s 40-acre salvage farm funded by used spare parts from “muscle cars,” said, “We’ll fight i t t o o t h a n d n a i l ”

A n o l d r a i l ro a d t o w n , o n c e a l i v e w i t h hotels, restaurants and music halls, was now a pass-through, as cars whizzed by on Highway 77 without stopping The town’s roads w e re s t i l l p a v e d w i t h b r i c k s T h e re w e re huge gaps where buildings used to stand. Otherwise, “the car became king” (New York Times) In the 1980s, the old train depot was burned down as a ﬁreﬁghting exercise The n e w s c h o o l b u s w a s h a rd l y w e l c o m e d b y t h e v a s t m a

dreamed of someday owning their own salvage yards. This poor community managed

everything from weight room equipment to

enlightened town ofﬁcials saved thousands by switching to everything from LED lighting to weatherizing windows

cost about $120,000), the school board was

school board.

t o l d t h a t i t c o u l d s a v e $ 11 , 0 0 0 a y e a r o n maintenance (quoting an article in School Bus Fleet). The battery came with a 10-year warr a n t y S i n c e t h e b u s w a s f r e e , n o v o t e o n obtaining it was needed by the school board The idea did not sound practical to a number of ofﬁcials tracking the latest farming techniques The notion of dead-heading one’s tractor – driven at less than 10 m p h all day long – home every night to charge it troubled one of the board members. For similar reasons, this community voted against building a wind farm – and modiﬁcations in legislation were gradually created to make doing so nearly impossible. Many worried about digging up the cement when all these turbines wore out in 35 years

R e g a r d i n g t h e b u s , s o m e f e l t t h a t o l d vehicles stripped of their parts make great s t o r a g e s h e d s T h e c o m p o n e n t s c o u l d b e recycled, but no one in town had the expert i s e t o d o t h i s w i t h a n e l e c t r i c s c h o o l b u s . Plus the grant actually required the destruction of the former bus’s diesel engine – so it would have to be hauled to a junkyard 100 miles away with the technology to punch a hole through the engine block Many wondered what they could do with this new bus in 20 years

The town’s lone owner of an electric car – a Navy veteran who had studied electronics – commented that renewable energy is cheaper than other forms of energy. Yet others worried what would happen when the new bus would lose its charge – stranding d o z e n s o f s t u d e n t s m i l e s f ro m a c h a rg i n g s t a t i o n . To a s s u a g e h i s c u r i o s i t y, a n o t h e r school board member attended a school bus conference where an electric vehicle was on display Peering beneath it, he immediately became concerned about all the wires and cables below – when this bus would cruise down the roads in and around their town through the mud and manure, and get salt all over it. The town’s fire chief began thinking of the worst-case fire-fighting scenarios with an electric bus full of children He had heard that lithium battery fires were hard to put out. Another concern was the electrocution of rescuers who might have to cut into the bus

On the launch day of the new bus, nothing happened The bus would not charge

T h e s c h o o l h a d t o s e n d i t t o C o l o r a d o f o r

The bus could only travel 120 miles on a charge.

repairs (One can only wonder about the disr u p t i o n t o p e rh

whose rides had to be re-scheduled since the t own now had one fewer b us ) The repair t

read that E V batteries could struggle in cold weather Plus, the bus could only travel 120 miles on a charge.

the edge of town. The ﬁrst day, many of the c

approach from a few blocks away as the cue t

, since the bus was so quiet – and missed it. T

as the driver was told to honk constantly –at ﬁrst, alarming everyone along the route other than the few students who scurried outside to meet it

At this point, the bus had proven itself –within the constraints noted – and it sits happily alongside the schools remaining diesel buses At dusk, residents can see the twinkling lights on the horizon from a wind farm a c ro s s t h e s t a t e l i n e i n K a n s a s . A s a ﬁ n a l comment, one resident said, ”It’s annoying, but you get used to it

Introducing 21st Centur

amount of wind turbines could conceivably power the number of skyscrapers and overbuilt tall ofﬁce buildings and condos ﬁlling M a n h a t t a n a n d , s l o w l y e n c ro a c h i n g i n t o most of the city’s other boroughs. In a faceoff between a thousand mini-rump-styled d

stand in its efforts to get its much-needed share of this energy?

The next installment will not resolve this particular issue It will provide considerable i n

lenges of electric vehicles deployed in even the most sensible of operating environments

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

Einstein (einstein@transit com) specializes in catastrophic motorcoach accidents

y when it is free It does point out that introd u

of America mired in the 1960s will involve

Electric transit buses will face far fewer o f t h e s a m e c h a l l e n g e s , w i l l o p e r a t e i n smaller service areas saturated with charging stations, and replete with facilities and e x p e r t s w h o c a n m a i n t a i n t h e m . Ye t t h e y still face challenges – as in New York City, w h e r e o n e c i t y o f ﬁ c i

Photographs

increasingly popular on longer routes i n S o u

h A

r photo of a recent order from Marcopolo for Transportes Loja in Ecuador that is

adiso G8 1800 double-deck buses. With a length of 46 feet, the buses seat 43 passengers in these highly-padded sleeper seats that have USB ports, cup holders and cell phone holders.

Below: Alexander Dennis in the UK, a subsidiary of NFI Group Inc., is introd

These single-deck models with a length

Number 308 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 Have there been any developments in the Coach USA bankruptcy situation?

–– Several Readers

A As we repor ted in our July issue, Coach U S A ﬁ l e d f o r v o l u n t a r y C h a p t e r 1 1 b a n kruptcy recently Plans are that Coach USA will sell off some of its locations and operat i o n s t o o t h e r c o m p a n i e s T h e c o m p a n y o p e r a t e s f ro m 2 7 l o c a t i o n s i n t h e U n i t e d States and Canada while transporting more than 38 million passengers annually

Following a face-to-face meeting on July 3, Coach USA notiﬁed NJ Transit that it needs to ter minate three commuter bus contracts on August 16

Included are 20 local transit lines in Bergen, Passaic and Hudson counties Buses provided by NJ Transit would be returned Howe v e r, C o a c h U S A d i d s a y t h a t t h e y w o u l d continue to provide service on more than 53 other routes in New Jersey and New York

This move creates problems for NJ Transit w h i c h r e c e n t l y r e a l i g n e d s e r v i c e a n d c r e a t e d n e w r o u t e s f o r d i s p l a c e d r i d e r s when DeCamp, A&C and Orange-NewarkElizabeth, Inc (par t of Coach USA) ended commuter operations last year

In other news, the federal judge in the bankruptcy case rejected a ﬁnancing package proposed for the Megabus brand as well as commuter coach lines connecting New York and New Jersey

The action came when lower-ranking, unsecured creditors accused the larger lenders of tr ying to get repaid by setting aside their rights The judge said that she had a “seri-

The Curious Coachowner

ous concer n” about a provision that would negatively affect those rights As a result, the people involved were told to negotiate with a panel of unsecured creditors

Q Are there any recent developments in the Van Hool bankruptcy and takeover?

–– Several Readers

A There has been a substantial amount of activity in Europe over deposits, warranties and the future product line

A s r e a d e r s a l r e a d y k n o w, V D L G r o e p acquired some of the assets of Van Hool in Koningshooikt, Belgium and Skopje, Nor th Macedonia

N u m e ro u s E u ro p e a n c o

approached VDL regarding warranty work on existing Van Hool coaches and deposits o

ﬂeets are asking about warranty work Other operators have paid for or placed deposits on new Van Hool buses

One bus operator paid for a new Van Hool b u s i n

n e d a b o u t deposits and orders placed No one seems to be getting replies to their questions and concer ns

When VDL was approached, they pointed out that they did not take over the Van Hool company or its staff, only some of its assets Deposits and money paid for buses went to Va n H o o l , n o t V D L H e n c e , t h e o p e r a t o r s should be talking to the Van Hool receivers It is believed that it is unlikely that they will re c e i v e m o re t h a n a f a c t i o n o f t h e m o n e y owed

National Express in England cancelled its order for 25 Van Hool Altano TDX21 threeaxle coaches The company said that there was too much concer n over warranty and parts They will be replaced by other buses

Numerous operators are unhappy with VDL n

k a n d deposits However, VDL did say that they w o u l d m a i n t a i n t h e 1 2 0 Va

e r v i c e points around Europe for maintenance, parts and technical suppor t

VDL did indicate that customers who had c o a c h e s

e b u s e s from VDL In some cases the quoted price w

warranty

Available records indicate the Van Hool coach sales have been declining in Europe In 2000, Van Hool sold more than 1,000 new buses in E u r

dropped to just more than 400 Some people suggest that the decline in sales was caused by Van Hool’s higher prices However, some operators have remained loyal to Van Hool because they have provided a heavy-duty coach that is right for their market

Moving forward, VDL seems to be looking at which models to retain They have indic a t e d t h a t t h e i r m

the American market and the double-deck m

coach models will no longer be produced Whether suitable replacement coaches will be available elsewhere may be a question

Q. How badly was the bus industry hurt by the pandemic?

–– Several Readers

A A g re a t d e a l d e p e n d s o n w h o y

k and what criteria you use Recent numbers from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administrations indicate that in December of 2019 they showed 2,976 for-hire motorcoach carriers, but this number dropped to 1,450 in December, 2020 – meaning we lost nearly half of the bus companies in that one year Numbers star ting going back up again in 2021 (1,495), 2022 (1,539) and 2023 (1,558) but may be dropping slightly in 2024

Of course, these ﬁgures do not show how m u c h m o n e y w a s l o s t b y b u s c o m p a n i e s that remained in business, but some may have been helped by CERTS money

New coach sales were down following the pandemic but moved up to 1,000+ units in 2023 Numbers are increasing as we move through 2024

According to FMCSA, there are 536 companies running 11-100 coaches, 520 runn i n g 3 - 1 0 c o a c h e s , 2 6 8 r u n n i n g o n l y o n e coach and 157 running two coaches There are only 62 companies that run more than 100 coaches

A n s w e r s n o t c re 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 Larr y Plachno q

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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

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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

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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 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 7 June, 1990

q Vol XIII, No 8 July, 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. 8 July, 1995

q Vol XIX, No 2 January, 1996

q Vol. XIX, No. 3 February, 1996

q Vol XIX, No 4 March, 1996

q Vol. XIX, No. 8 July, 1996

q Vol XIX, No 11 October, 1996

q Vol. XIX, No. 12 November, 1996

q Vol XX, No 6 May, 1997

q Vol. XX, No. 6 May, 1997

q Vol XX, No 7 June, 1997

q Vol XX, No 8 July, 1997

q Vol XX, No 9 August, 1997

q Vol XX, No 10 September, 1997

q Vol XX, No 12 November, 1997

q Vol XXI, No 2 January, 1998

q Vol. XXI, No. 3 February, 1998

q Vol XXI, No 5 April, 1998

q Vol. XXI, No. 7 June, 1998

q Vol XXI, No 8 July, 1998

q Vol. XXI, No. 9 August, 1998

q Vol XXI, No 10 September, 1998

q Vol. XXII, No. 8 July, 1999

q Vol XXII, No 9 August, 1999

q Vol. XXII, No. 10 September, 1999

q Vol XXII, No 11 October, 1999

q Vol XXII, No 12 November, 1999

q Vol XXIII, No 2 January, 2000

q Vol XXIII, No 3 February, 2000

q Vol XXIII, No 4 March, 2000

q Vol XXIII, No 5 April, 2000

q Vol. XXIII, No.6 May, 2000

q Vol XXIII, No 8 July, 2000

q Vol. XXIII, No.9 August, 2000

q Vol XXIII, No 10 September, 2000

q Vol. XXIII, No.11 October, 2000

q Vol XXIII, No 12 November, 2000

q Vol. XXIV, No.3 February, 2001

q Vol XXIV, No 4 March, 2001

q Vol. XXIV, No.5 April, 2001

q Vol XXIV, No 6 May, 2001

q Vol. XXIV, No.7 June, 2001

q Vol XXIV, No 9 August, 2001

q Vol XXIV, No 10 September, 2001

q Vol XXIV, No 11 October, 2001

q Vol XXIV, No 12 November, 2001

q Vol XXV, No 2 January, 2002

q Vol. XXV, No. 3 February, 2002

q Vol. XXV, No. 4 March, 2002

q Vol. XXV, No. 5 April, 2002

q Vol XXV, No 6 May, 2002

q Vol XXV, No 8 July, 2002

q Vol XXV, No 9 August, 2002

q Vol XXV, No 11 October, 2002

q Vol. XXVI, No. 4 March, 2003

q Vol. XXVI, No. 6 May, 2003

q Vol XXVI, No 7 June, 2003

q Vol XXVI, No 8 July, 2003

q Vol XXVI, No 9 August, 2003

q Vol XXVI, No 10 September, 2003

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 Electri-

ﬁcation 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

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) 71

AZ I

1991 Hawkins motorcoach 3208T CAT, 35 ft with all awnings Alcoa wheels, landing/docking lights, heated m

, 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

Please mention National Bus Trader when answering adver tisers

10 – PARTS AND EQUIPMENT

6V-92T Detroit Diesel engine Fresh overhaul In storage Spent $4,700 Make offer Phone (815) 262-0587 in IL I

14 – NOTICES

Visit our 45+ vintage bus collection most Saturday morni

Transport Heritage Center ($30 annually) See/learn: www friendsnjthc org I

15 – MISCELLANEOUS

Author and Transportation Historian available to write “Your Story ” Company histories, vehicle memories or s

Phone, text or write: Stew Carter, PO Box 252, Silver Lake IN 46982; (314) 882-7859 I

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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.