National Bus Trader November 2024 Digital Edition by Bus Tours Magazine

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The Magazine of Bus Equipment for the United States and Canada

Generations of Innovation – Prevost Leaders

This is a look back at Prevost leaders over the years starting with Eugene Prévost How each of them brought their own ideas to the company and how it led to bringing Prevost to where it is today.

New York MTA Fare Evasion (by Larry Plachno)

Almost half of MTA bus passengers avoid paying fares as do many subway riders This represents a loss of $600 million annually Opponents of Congestion Pricing ask why should outsiders pay for riders who evade fares.

Deaccession II (by Dave Millhouser)

Here is the second round of excess buses being bid out to reduce the size of the museum ﬂeet in Hershey. These range from an historical GM “Old Look” to some more recent MCI coaches

How Big Should My Fleet Be? (by Dave

Millhouser)

This month we ask the question: “How Big Should My Fleet Be?” Here are some thoughts on the question including the subject of dealer loyalty and whether buying from two dealers might have advantages.

Equipment News

In mid-September, Prevost hosted employees, customers, suppliers, government officials and local dignitaries to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Prevost in Sainte-Claire Quebec Founded by Eugene Prévost in Sainte-Claire, the company continues to produce buses at the same location today The event was the culmination of nine months of activities that took place throughout Canada and the United States

Prevost 100th Anniversar y Celebration Culminates in Sainte-Claire

On September 14, thousands of Prevost employees, customers, suppliers, gover nm e n t o f ﬁ c i a l s a n d l o c a l d i g n i t a r i e s c e l ebrated the 100th anniversary or Prevost The g a t h e r i n g t o o k p l a c e i n S a i n t e - C l a i re , t h e small town where Eugène Prévost founded the company in 1924

“ T h e s u c c e s s o f P re v o s t i s d u e t o o u r committed employees and loyal customers – many of whom have been with us for gene r a t i o n s , ” s a i d P re v o s t a n d Vo l v o G ro u p Canada President François Tremblay “The anniversar y is an oppor tunity to recognize them while honoring the legacy of Eugène Prévost ”

Additionally, in the week prior, 165 Prevost motor home owners traveled hundreds, and in some cases thousands, of miles to Quebec City to take par t in a multi-day 100 Year Anniversar y Rally

The September 14 event was the culmination of nine months of activities that took place throughout Canada and the United States The 100th anniversar y celebration i n S a i n t e - C l a i re i n c l u d e d P re v o s t f a c t o r y t o u r s , v i s i t s t o t h e P re v o s t m u s e u m a n d a special appearance by Clarisse, along with food and enter tainment

C l a r i s s e i s a h a n d - b u i l t r e p l i c a o f t h e wooden body coach that Eugène Prévost f a s h i o n e d F o r y e a r s , i t w a s t h e d re a m o f André Tur mel, one of Eugène’s grandsons, to recreate the very ﬁrst Prevost ever made

As the 100th anniversar y approached, t h e f a m i l y w o r k e d

g e t h e r t o m a k e t h e dream a reality The project was a labor of love that spanned three generations The n a m e C l a r i s s e w a s c h o s e n t o h o

Eugène’s wife who was his biggest champion and tireless suppor ter

Coincidentally, Prevost and Sainte-Claire are celebrating anniversaries that mark 100 and 200 years, respectively Sainte-Claire was founded in 1824, followed by Prevost a centur y later

Since Januar y, Prevost has chronicled i t

, Yo u Tu

X Through videos, images, stories and recol-

lections, the company has captured the histor y and future of Prevost

Prevost has provided coach solutions for a century with an uncompromising commitment to quality, a drive for constant innovat i o n a n d i m p ro v e m e n t a n d d e d i c a t i o n t o safety and sustainability in ever y business aspect Today, Prevost is one of North America’s largest producers of premium intercity tourism coaches, and is the world leader in the production of high-end motor home and s p e c i a l t y c o n v e r s i o n c o a c h e s C u s t o m e r suppor t is secured via the largest service n e t w o r k i n t h e m o t o rc o a c h i n d u s t r y w i t h strategically located OEM-owned and operated service centers across North America, a specialized customer suppor t team with more than 260 years of industry experience, and 50+ mobile service vans Prevost manu f a c t u r i n g f a c i l i t i e s a re l o c a t e d i n S a i n t eClaire, Quebec, Canada Prevost is par t of the Volvo Group, one of the world’s leading manufacturers of buses, trucks, construction equipment, power solutions for marine and i n d u s t r i a l a p p l i c a t i o n s , ﬁ n a n c i n g a n d services that increase customer uptime and p r o d u c t i v i t y F o r m o r e i n f o r m a t i o n , v i s i t www volvogroup com

Equipment News

all have living in RVs,” said Brian Addotta, who owns a Liber ty Coach

To h e l p o w n e r s e n j o y l i f e o n t h e r o a d together, Prevost and its conversion partners support a variety of clubs, including the Prev o s t M o t o rc o a

C o a c h Club, Bus ‘N Bikers, Road Hogs and Jewell’s Club Rick Smith, president of Road Hogs, and his wife, Lesley, assembled a convoy of Prevost motorcoaches to attend the Prevost celebration The group hit several sites on their way to Quebec, including Sturgis and Yellowstone National Park, as well as Montreal, Sault Ste Marie and Niagara Falls in Canada After the rally, they planned to visit Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island before heading back to the United States

a y coaches were part of the 100th anniversary rally from featured converters Liberty Coach, M a r a t h o n C o a c h , M

i u m L

u r y Coaches, Featherlite Coaches and Emerald Luxur y Coaches

“

rides, golf outings, live enter tainment and, of course, lots of time with friends

family, working to restore the ver y ﬁrst 1924 coach built by Eugène, the founder of Prevost, was beyond worlds You just had to be t

Marathon Coach Club International “I know I speak for all of our members when I say that this was a once in a lifetime event and proved to be a spectacular gathering for all the events that were planned and meeting friends and making new friends ”

Since Januar y, Prevost has chronicled i t s 1

Through videos, images, stories and recollections, the company has captured the histor y and future of Prevost

in Style

Prevost Owners Celebrate 100th Anniversar y

In mid-September, Prevost motor home owners from far and wide arrived in Quebec City to celebrate the 100th anniversar y of P re v o s t d u r i n g a w e e k l o n g h o m e c o m i n g rally For many, it was an event they would not dream of missing since it was an opportunity to connect with old friends and make new ones

“ W h e n y o u a re i n t h e RV w o r l d , e v e r ybody is friends The group of us that are Prev o s t o w n e r s h a v e a s p e c i a l c o n n e c t i o n above and beyond the connection that we

+ P r e v o s t coaches from all different eras and conversions come together at their bir thplace to celebrate Prevost 100 in Quebec City It was equally unique to see the various clubs representing one common thing – Prevost We were honored to represent Prevost Motorcoach Club, as well as Road Hogs, during the event Trading stories with fellow owners a s w e l

both clubs,” said Tom Klause from Prevost Motorcoach Club

For nearly a week, rally attendees were immersed in the history of Prevost, Quebec City and Sainte-Claire – where the company was founded and is still located to this day The itinerary included a Prevost factory visit, converter display coaches, historic Quebec t o u r

Prévost star ted in 1924,” said Prevost and Vo l v

Tremblay “I heard so many stories of friendships that span decades and unforgettable adventures Prevost owners have been on together ”

Prevostmotorhomes com

NFI Talks Innovative BusTech at CTE’s ZEB Con

As a Platinum-level sponsor, NFI par ticipated in the Center for Transpor tation and the Environment’s (CTE) Zero Emission Bus Conference in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania The event kicked off with a tour of SEPTA’s Midvale and Frankford districts, where the

More than 160 Prevost coaches with their owners arrived in Quebec C

homecoming rally that offered

friends and make new ones. Dozens of motor h

Coach, Millennium Luxury Coaches, Featherlite Coaches and Emerald Luxury Coaches

N F I t e a m l e d b y D r M i c h a e l M c D o n a l d , operations manager of NFI’s Vehicle Innov a t i o n C e n t e r, s h a r e d t h e i r e x p e r t i s e i n hydrogen technologies using SEPTA’s new X c e l s i o r C H A R G E F C ™ f u

c bus, proudly built by New Flyer Attendees explored its innovative features, giving them a g l i m p s e i n t o t h e f u t u r e o f h y d r o g e npowered public transit

#ZEBCon2024 wrapped up with an “Ask an OEM” roundtable discussion featuring New Flyer and MCI’s Mark Fisher, director

Equipment News

of National Sales The session addressed the challenges facing bus OEMs in Nor th America and covered the latest trends in the public transit industr y

CCW Delivers Five Refurbished Buses to Everett Transit

has announced the successful deliver y of

NFI staff went to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to participate in the Center for Transportation and the Zero Emission Bus Conference A tour of SEPTA’s Midvale and Frankfort districts kicked off the event The NFI team shared their expertise in hydrogen technologies using SEPTA’s New Xcelsior CHARGE FC™ fuel cell-electric bus.

Everett Transit recently received five refurbished transit buses from Complete Coach Works The 2008 35-foot Gillig transit buses were refurbished by CCW including two-color exterior paint and decals to match their more recent buses They also received frameless passenger windows, new exterior mirrors, flooring, suspension components, a bike rack, a fare box and passenger seat inserts

6 • National Bus Trader / November, 2024

The ﬁve buses supplied by sister company Transit Sales Inter national, originally 2 0 0 8

refurbishment by CCW The refurbishment p

meet Everett Transit’s speciﬁc needs including: two-color exterior paint and decals to m

European-style frameless passenger windows; new exterior mirrors, ﬂooring suspension components, bike rack, fare box and p a s s e

A mobility device securements were installed as well as a new steering wheel, updated a

safety barrier and a full camera surveillance system

The project was conducted through the Washington State Transit Bus Cooperative Purchasing Schedule, which allows transit agencies to procure refurbished, repowered and rebuilt buses through a streamlined and e

exper tise, Everett Transit has expanded its ﬂeet without the high costs and long lead t

buses, while also reducing its environmental impact

Everett Transit recently joined CCW in a

shared insights on why they chose to refurb i s h t h

r b u s e s S c h m i e d e r s t a t e d t h a t these buses represent added service assura n c e , a l l o w i n g E v e re t t Tr a n s i t t o m a

their commitment to the community by providing greater fleet resiliency to ensure on time service per for mance The decision to refurbish also showcases an intelligent use of financial resources, as for the cost of a single batter y-electric bus, Everett Transit can add five refurbished buses to their fleet, s u p p o r t i n g t h e i r c o m m i t m e n t t o fi n a n c i a l sustainability

“We are proud to suppor t Everett Transit in enhancing their ﬂeet,” said James Carson, regional sales manager, of Complete Coach Works “The collaboration with Everett’s team h a s b e e n f a n t a s t i c We ’ re e x c i t e d t o s e e t h e s e b u s e s s e r v i n g t h e i r c o m m u n i t y We look forward to working on future projects with Everett Transit ”

C o m p l e

tered in Riverside, Califor nia, is the largest

CCW unveiled

u f a c t u r e d a l l - e l e c t r i c , b a t t e r y - p o w e r e d

b u s i n 2 0 1 2 F o r j o b s o f a n y s i z e , C C W ’s

t e a m o f

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

c u s t o m e r s e r v i c e

Alberta’s Diversiﬁed Transportation Receive First of 33 MCI Coaches

D i v e r s i ﬁ e d Tr a n s p o r t a t i o n LT D i s w e lcomed to the MCI family Diversiﬁed offers

e m p l o y e e t r a n s p o r t a t i o n a n d c h a r t e r services and is experienced in operating in the extreme weather conditions of Northern Canada They transport workers to and from remote worksites, relying on motorcoaches that can withstand the bitter cold, blustering snow and pervasive ice; quality and reliability are critical

“ S a f e l y H o m e ” i s D i v e r s i f i e d ’s p ro m i s e t o

Ace Express Gets

Colorado Contract

Kelsian’s wholly-owned USA subsidiar y Ace Express Coaches LLC (ACE Express) has been awarded the contract to provide s t a t e - w i d

n s throughout Colorado for the “Bustang” and

Equipment News

“Pegasus” services ACE Express has successfully operated this service since incep-

tion in 2015 with vehicles owned and procured by the state of Colorado

Diversified Transportation, a company operating in extreme weather conditions in Northern Canada, recently received the first of a 33-coach order Standing in front of one of the new J4500 coaches at Fort McMurray are David Richards, vice president, and Tim Lindsay, executive vice president of Diversified, with MCI’s Scotty Kessler

The new one-year contract is for services from November 1, 2024 under substantially the same ter ms and rates as currently prov i d e d a n d w i t h f o u r o n e - y e a r e x t e n s i o n

o p t i o n s E x p a n s i o n o p p o r t u n i t i e s o f t h e

service are meaningful throughout the contract ter ms with scope to more than double the existing services with additional vehicles to be supplied by the State of Colorado; and this demonstrates a long track record of successful contract retention

K e l s i a n G ro u p L i m i t e d o n S e p t e m b e r 20 announced that Ace Express Coaches

L L C ( A c e E x p re s s ) , a w h o l l y - o w n e d s u b -

I n c ( A A A H I ) w h i c h i n t u r n i s a w h o l l y -

o w n e d s u b s i d i a r y i n t h e K e l s i a n G r o u p ,

h a s e n t e re d a n e w o n e - y e a r b i n d i n g c o n -

t r a c t w i t h t h e S t a t e o f C o l o r a d o ’s D e p a r t -

ment of Transpor tation The contract is for o p e r a t i o n f o t h e s t a t e w i d e B u s t a n g a n d

Pegasus motorcoach transit networks from

N o v e m b e r 1 , 2 0 2 4 a n d s e c u r e s u p t o

$ 2 6 5 m i l l i o n ( U S ) o f r e v e n u e i n t h e f i r s t

y e a r T h e c o n t r a c t w a s a w a r d e d t o A C E

E x p r e s s f o l l o w i n g a c o m p e t i t i v e t e n d e r

a n d d e m o n s t r a t e s A A A H I ’s l o n g t r a c k

re c o rd o f s u c c e s s f u l c o n t r a c t re t e n t i o n

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

f l e e t m a i n t e n a n c e o f a p p r o x i m a t e l y 4 9

m o t o r c o a c h e s ( B u s t a n g ) a n d 1 6 v a n s

( P e g a s u s ) a n d s t a ff e d b y a p p ro x i m a t e l y

1 2 5 e m p l o y e e s

AAAHI Chief Executive Ofﬁcer Graeme

L e g h s a i d : “ I a m d e l i g h t e d t h a t A C E

Express has again been awarded this contract which ranks as a top 10 contract for

A A A H I A s a c a p i t a l l i g h t c o n t r a c t w i t h assets supplied by the State of Colorado,

t h e f o c u s i s n o w o n e n s u r i n g w e a re w e l l positioned to capitalize on the expansion oppor tunities,” he said

ZF Presents Hydrogen Recirculation Blower

A t t h e I A A Tr a n s p o r t a t i o n 2 0 2 4 , Z F

C o m m e rc i a l Ve h i c l e S o l u t i o n s ( C V S ) d i v i -

s i o n u n v e i l e d i t s l a t e s t a d d i t i o n t o i t s em o b i l i t y p o r t f o l i o , a n e w H y d ro g e n R e c i r -

c u l a t i o n B l o w e r D e s i g n e d t o o p t i m i z e hydrogen levels for fuel cell-powered vehi-

c l e s , Z F ’s H y d ro g e n R e c i rc u l a t i o n B l o w e r re c i rc u l a t e s u n u s e d h y d ro g e n t o i m p ro v e hydrogen consumption and per for mance

H i g h l y e f f i c i e n t , t h e s y s t e m d r a w s m i n im u m p o w e r f r o m t h e f u e l c e l l s y s t e m t o re d u c e h y d ro g e n u s a g e

T h e H y d r o g e n R e c i r c u l a t i o n B l o w e r works in conjunction with ZF’s Fuel Cell Air Compressor, which was announced in April 2 0 2 3 T h e c o m p re s s o r s u p p l i e s a i r t o t h e fuel cell stack, facilitating the chemical react i o n b e t w e e n h y d ro g e n a n d o x y g e n a n d uses turbo technologies for improved efﬁ-

Equipment News

Ace Express Coaches, the wholly-owned USA subsidiary of Kelsian Group Limited, has been awarded a contract by Colorado to provide motorcoach operations Ace Express has been operating this service since its inception in 2015 with vehicles provided by the State of Colorado The contract involves the operation and maintenance of 49 coaches and 26 vans

ciency Together, these products for m par t of ZF’s growing Balance of Plant (BoP) portfolio, suppor ting the efﬁcient operation of f u e l c e l l s y s t e m s i n c o m m e rc i a l v e h i c l e s Similar to the Fuel Cell Air compressor, the Hydrogen Recirculation Blower is built to be durable, throughout the lifetime of the commercial vehicle, helping to reduce its Total Cost of Ownership (TCO)

“ZF has applied its extensive exper tise in system integration and air bearing systems to develop these innovative products,” says Dr Christian Brenneke, head of Innovation & Development at ZF’s Commercial Ve h i c l e

d H y

B l o w e r, combined with our fuel cell air compressor, is par t of our expanding full-ﬂex e-mobility p

ZF recently introduced its new Hydrogen Recirculation Blower for hydrogen fuel cell buses It works in conjunction with ZF’s Fuel Cell Air Compressor to optimize the efficient operation of fuel cell systems The compressor supplies air to the fuel cell stack, helping the chemical reaction between hydrogen and oxygen

how our products for fuel cell systems are driving decarbonization in a technologically open manner alongside our growing range of decarbonized technologies ”

T h e H y d r o g e n R e c i r c u l a t i o n B l o w e r, based on the turbomachiner y concept, is compact, lightweight and optimized for efﬁciency Its ultra high-speed electrical motor

c a n r e a c h u p t o 1 0 0

d for lubrication and prevent contamination of the fuel cell stack This ensures optimal efﬁciency and high media mass ﬂows Addit i o n a l l y, t h e

voltage systems

Leading in the industry, ZF’s Hydrogen Recirculation Blower solution efﬁciently manages w a t e r a n d i n e r t g a s e s i n t h e a n o d e p a t h

Thanks to the use of the patented electric media-gap motor technology, the water sepa r a t o r w i l l b e i n t e g r a t e d d i r e c t l y i n t h e device, and the need for active cooling is eliminated This offers great advantages in packaging and less complexity in the system assembly

New Flyer St Cloud Celebrates 25th Anniversar y

S e p t e m b e r 1 1 m a r k e d a s p e c i a l m i l estone: Twenty-ﬁve years since the doors of t h e S t C l o u d f a c i l i t y w e re o p e n e d f o r t h e ﬁrst time

R e ﬂ e c t i n g o n t h e j o u r n e y, i n t h e l a t e

1990s there were two manufacturing facilit i e s – o n e i n W i n n i p e g , M a n i t o b a a n d

Equipment News

Trans-Bridge Lines is “stuffing the bus” with much-needed supplies in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene in the Southeast The request for help went out to employees, customers and local businesses in Lehigh Valley communities Trans-Bridge has been accepting donations at its Lehigh Valley Industrial

another in Crookston, Minnesota to support c u s t o m e r s A s t h e i n d u s t r y g r e w a n d demand surged, a uniﬁed facility to streamline and enhance production was needed The vision was bor n: combining the best of Winnipeg and Crookstone into one powerhouse manufacturing facility

Since then, New Flyer St Cloud has been m a n u f a c t u r i n g f u l l - b u i l d s t o s u p p o r t N e w Flyer customers across North America Currently, St Cloud manufactures the Xcelsior® b a t t e r y - e l e c t r i c , t r o l l e y - e l e c t r i c , h y b r i delectric, compressed natural gas and cleandiesel vehicles, with fuel cell-electric vehicles in the future

The St Cloud facility is home to 900 team members and stands as a testament to their growth and innovation

Trans-Bridge Lines to Assist

Hurricane Helene Relief Effor ts I n t h e a f t e r m a t h o f H u r r i c a n e H e l e n e , which has devastated the Southeast, TransBridge Lines motorcoach company is taking action by “stufﬁng a bus” with much-needed supplies

P re s i d e n t To m J e B r a n h a s

d a local donation drive to send critical items to those in need “We are asking our employe e s , c u s t o m e r s , l o c a l b u s i n e s s e s a n d Lehigh Valley communities to join together to assist areas that have been decimated by the hurricane,” JeBran said

Valley Industrial Park facility located at 2012 Industrial Drive, Bethlehem Any business, group or individual who wishes to drop off items, may do so between 8 a m and 5 p m or Friday from 8 a m to noon A list of items being collected is available at www transbridgelines com/aler ts

what is inside in order to make sorting, loading and transporting easier Boxes containing several items that are the same or larger items such as boxes of diapers, do not need to be marked and will be sor ted by TransBridge employees

“We are humbled to help any way we can and appreciate all donations, big and small,” said JeBran “Together, we can make a huge impact I encourage everyone to show their suppor t ”

The St Cloud facility of NFI recently celebrated its 25th anniversary This facility produces the Xcelsior® battery-electric, trolley-electric, hybrid-electric, compressed natural gas and clean diesel vehicles with hydrogen fuel cell bus production coming in the future NFI has a staff of 900 working at St Cloud

Park facility

Vicinity Motor Corp. Provides Update on Filing of Quar terly Financial Statements

Vicinity Motor Corp (Vicinity or the company), a Nor th American supplier of commercial electric vehicles recently provided an update to its news release dated August 14, 2024 (the announcement) announcing its request for a management cease trade order (the MCTO) relating to the late filing o f t h e c o m p a n y ’s i n t e r i m fi n a n c i a l s t a t ements, MD&A and applicable CEO and CFO certifications for the six months ended June 30, 2024 (the interim filings)

The company’s principal regulator, the British Columbia Securities Commission (the commission), granted the MCTO on August 1 5 , 2 0 2 4 , u n d e r N a t i o n a l P o l i c y 1 2 - 2 0 3 –Management Case Trader Orders (NP 12203) Pursuant to the MCTO, the chief executive officer and the chief financial officer of the company may not trade in securities of the company until such time as the company files the interim filings and the commission re v o k e s t h e M C T O T h e M C T O d o e s n o t a ff e c t t h e a b i l i t y o f s h a re h o l d e r s t o t r a

e c

m p a n y ’s b o a rd o f directors and management are continuing to work with its accounting team and other stakeholders to prepare the interim filings a s s o o n a s p r a c t i c a b l e a n d i t i s t h e c o mp a n y ’s r e a s o n a b l e e x p e c t a t i o n t h a t t h e interim filings will be finalized on or before October 11, 2024, to coincide with the end of the 60-day workout and financial restructuring plan

Until the interim ﬁlings are ﬁled, the company intends to comply with the provisions

Equipment News

NFI recently announced the addition of BAE Systems Gen 3 modular power control system and traction motor as an available powertrain option for Xcelsior® hybrid-electric transit buses built for model year 2025 onward This next-generation system from BAE is smaller and lighter than the previous generation product This new system also provides an ultracapacitor as a second energy storage solution

of the alter native infor mation guidelines as set out in NP 12-203 for as long as it remains i n d e f a u l t , i n c l u d i n g t h e i s s u a n c

weekly default status repor ts in the for m of a news release The company has imposed an insider trading blackout pending the ﬁling of the interim ﬁlings

Vicinity Motor Corp provides an update on the late filing of the company’s interim financial statements

The British Columbia Securities Commission granted a Management Cease Trade Order on August 15, 2024 until such time as the company files the interim filings and the commission revokes the MCTO

l y d i s c l o s e d ; ( i i ) t h e r e h a s n o t b e e n a n y o t h e r s p e c i f i e d d e f a u l t by the company under NP 12-203; (iii) the c o m p a n y i s n o t s u b j e c t t o a n y i n s o l v e n c y p r o c e e d i n g s a s o f t h e d a t e o f t h i s n e w s release, though the company has entered i n t o a w o r k o u t a n d f i n a n c i a l re s t r u c t u r i n g plan with its secured lenders as disclosed i n t h e c o m p a n y ’s n e w s r e l e a s e d a t e d August 21, 2024; and (iv) there is no mater i a l i n f o r m a t i o n c o n c

y d i s c l o s e d

New Flyer Hybrid-Electric Buses to Include Next-Generation BAE Systems Propulsion System New Flyer of America Inc (New Flyer), a s u b s i d i a r y o f N F I G ro u p I n c ( N F I ) a n d a leader in zero-emission electric mobility solutions, on August 14 announced the addition of BAE Systems’ Gen3 modular power control system (MPCS) and traction motor as an available powertrain option for Xcelsior® hybrid-electric transit buses built from model year 2025 onward T

Systems is smaller and lighter than the previous generation product The reduced number of components, cables and connections in the MPCS works in conjunction with hardware and software improvements to provide more reliability, more efﬁciency and a better

s t o r a g e o p t i o n s , i n c l u d i n g a 1 2 - y e a r- l i f e

u l t r a c a p a c i t o r o r a p a r t - t i m e e l e c t r i c , geofencing-capable solution, all supported by BAE Systems’ extensive North American service network BAE Systems’ Gen3 sys-

t e m r e p r e s e n t s p r o g r e s s g a i n e d a c r o s s

m o r e t h a n 2 7 y e a r s o f i n n o v a t i o n a n d improvement, built off lessons learned from a c ro s s 1 8 , 0 0 0 ﬁ e l d e d e l e c t r i c p ro p u l s i o n systems

“ A t N e w F l y e r, w e a re w o r k i n g c o n t i n -

u o u s l y t o i n t e g r a t e n e w p a r t s a n d technologies, and with each new inclusion w e a i m t o s t r i k e a b a l a n c e b e t w e e n p ro ducts that are innovative and reliable,” said Ian Macpherson, vice president, Engineeri n g S e r v i c e s , N e w F l y e r a n d M C I “ W e

b e l i e v e o ff e r i n g t h i s n e w M P C S o p t i o n s i s

a n i m p o r t a n t n e x t s t e p i n o u r c o n t i n u i n g

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

“Our next-generation electric drive system har nesses our commitment to continu e d i n n o v a t i o n , e n h a n c i n g t h e p r o v e n b e n e f i t s o f h y b r i d - e l e c t r i c t e c h n o l o g y i n transit,” said Rob Dykema, senior director o f N o r t h A m e r i c a n Tr a n s i t A c c o u n t s f o r Power & Propulsion Solutions at BAE Systems “This system improves hybrid-elect r i c b u s e ff i c i e n c y, l o w e r i n g f u e l u s e a n d e m i s s i o n s t o a d v a n c e s u s t a i n a b l e p u b l i c

t r a n s p o r t a t i o n ”

New Flyer has a wide variety of propuls i o n o p t i o n s a c ro s s i t s X c e l s i o r f a m i l y o f heavy-duty transit buses, including batteryelectric, fuel cell-electric and hybrid-electric options Hybrid-electric vehicle s can often serve as a low-emission steppingstone for a g e n c i e s b e f o r e t h e y t r a n s i t i o n t o z e r oe m i s s i o n o p t i o n s T h e i m p l e m e n t a t i o n o f t h e s e v e h i c l e s a l l o w s t i m e f o r n e c e s s a r y support elements, such as infrastructure, to b e i m p l e m e n t e d w h i l e s t i l l i m m e d i a t e l y

r e d u c i n g a n a g e n c y ’s g r e e n h o u s e g a s (GHG) contributions

“New Flyer understands that our position as a leader in sustainable transit makes it necessary for us to meet communities where they are as they work towards their emission reduction goals,” said Jennifer McNeill, vice president, Public Sector Sales & Marketing, N e w F l y e r a n d M C I “ F o r m a n y a g e n c i e s , h y b r i d - e l e c t r i c b u s e s a re t h e o p t i o n b e s t suited to their current circumstances and a ﬁrst step towards ﬂeet decarbonization ”

To d a y, N F I s u p p o r t s g r o w i n g N o r t h A m e r i c a n c i t i e s w i t h s c a l a b l e , c l e a n a n d s u s t a i n a b l e m o b i l i t y s o l u t i o n s t h ro u g h i t s mobility solution ecosystem, which includes b u s e s a n d c o a c h e s ; i n f r a s t r u c t u re ; p a r t s and service; technology; workforce development and training; and vehicle ﬁnancing

Equipment News

N F I a l s o o p e r a t e s t h e Ve h i c l e I n n o v a t i o n Center (VIC), the ﬁrst and only innovation lab of its kind dedicated to advancing bus and coach technology and providing workforce development Since opening in late 2 0 1 7 , t h e V I C h a s h o s t e d m o re t h a n 4 0 0 interactive events, welcoming 9,000 industr y professionals for EV and infrastructure training

Leveraging 450 years of combined experience, NFI is leading the electriﬁcation of mass mobility around the world With zeroemission buses and coaches, infrastructure a

’ u r b a n demands for scalable smar t mobility solutions Together, NFI is enabling more livable c i t

tainable transpor tation

tions under the brands New Flyer® (heavyduty transit buses) MCI® (motorcoaches), A

double-deck buses) and NFI Par ts™ NFI

tainable drive systems available, including zero-emission electric (trolley, batter y and f u e l c e l l ) , n

c t r i c h y b r i d a n d c l e a n d i e s e l I n t o t a l , N F I s u p p o r t s i t s installed base of more than 100,000 buses a n d c o a c h e s a ro u n d t h e w o r l d

able charging and mobility solutions New F l y e r a c t i v

heavy-duty transit buses (New Flyer, NABI a n d O r i o n ) c u r re n t l y i n s e r v i c e

8,600 are powered by electric motors and battery propulsion and1,900 are zero-emiss

www newﬂyer com

Kelly Tours Orders Two 35-Foot Gillig Transit Buses

buses, has announced a fur ther deliver y to K e

y To

35-foot model year 2005 Gillig transit buses

Kelly Tours is a premier provider of educational and group tour services on the East Coast

TSI will bring the vehicles to operational r e

process to ensure that all systems are fully operational and ready for service for Kelly Tours TSI’s process involves inspection and service to all functional systems of the bus and the exterior will receive a fresh coat of white paint The acquisition of these buses will further enhance Kelly Tours’ ﬂeet building on a previous contract of eight buses delivered in 2023

New Flyer is Nor th America’ heavy-duty t r a n s i t b u s l e a d e r a n d o f f e r s t h e m o s t advanced product line under the Xcelsior® and Xcelsior CHARGE® brands It also offers i n f r a s t r u

h r o u g h N F I

Infrastructure Solutions™, a service dedicated to providing safe, sustainable and reli-

“We are honored that Kelly Tours has chosen TSI once again for their vehicle provider of choice,” said Patrick Scully, chief commercial ofﬁcer of Complete Coach Works “This award highlights the trust they place in our ability to deliver high-quality, reliable transit solutions for their operations We look forward to the delivery of the buses later this fall ”

Kelly Tours of Savannah, Georgia recently ordered two 35-foot 2005 Gillig transit buses from Transit Sales International TSI will bring the vehicles to operational readiness through its comprehensive process. TSI had previously delivered eight buses to Kelly Tours in 2024.

Irizar E-Mobility at European Mobility Expo 2024

I r i z a r e - m o b i l i t y w a s a t t h e E u r o p e a n

M o b i l i t y E x p o 2 0 2 4 f a i r, w h i c h w a s h e l d

f r o m O c t o b e r 1 - 3 i n t h e F r e n c h c i t y o f

Strasbourg A 12-meter long Irizar ie tram, t h e c o m p a n y ’s f l a g s h i p v e h i c l e , w a s e x h i b i t e d a t t h e i r s t a n d

The European Mobility Expo is a biennial event focused on public transport where the main companies and bodies in the sustainable mobility industr y meet together

Irizar e-mobility invited attendees to the fair where they saw the 12-meter long Irizar ie tram model electric bus That bus, speciﬁcally, was owned by Orleans Métropole, and it belongs to the last batch of orders

Last year, Orleans Métropole chose the Irizar e-mobility ie trams once again After 29 ie trams were put into operation in 2021, Orleans Métropole once again decided on Irizar e-mobility electric bus and they made another order, this time for seven units more of the same length and model

T h i s y e a r t h e C o m m u n a u t é d ’ a gg l o m é r a t i o n d u P a y s B a s q u e h a s o n c e a g a i n c h o s e n t h e e l e c t r i c i e t r a m s f r o m

I r i z a r e - m o b i l i t y S e v e n u n i t s w i l l b e 1 8 m e t e r s l o n g a n d f o u r w i l l b e 1 2 m e t e r s

l o n g T h e s e n e w v e h i c l e s a r e a d d e d t o the 18 ie trams that have been on the road i n t h i s F re n c h re g i o n s i n c e 2 0 1 9

Both cities have once again decided to rely on Irizar e-mobility electromobility solu-

tions, while in Paris the RAPT has put its ﬁrst 1 2 - m e t e r i e b u s e s o n t h e r o a d t h i s y e a r (there will be 60 buses in total)

T h e i n n o v a t i v e a n d m o d e r n d e s

the ie tram has captivated numerous cities a

(France) and Schaffhausen (Switzerland), a

Irizar e-mobility also has the ie bus model available in 10-, 12- and 18-meter versions i

s e design is close to the aesthetic features of Irizar coaches When it comes to the interior design, although the standard version has a more conventional speciﬁcation, some of the Irizar ie tram options may be incorporated, including large windows, side lighting or screens above the windows, among others

Since the beginning of this year, the company has been delivering their new generation of electric buses to their clients The new generation has improvements in safety a n d

G S R 2 ADAS regulations that also include vehicle cybersecurity It also has a renewed genera

and a longer range that improves the energy available at BOL and EOL by 30 percent T

more compact design, reduces weight up to 26 percent and also includes a new digital HMI that allows maximum personalization

Irizar e-mobility exhibited a 12-meter Irizar ie tram bus at the recent European Mobility Expo 2024 Fair in Strasbourg, France The bus on display was owned by Orleans Métropole and is from their most recent order Irizar announced that it will soon deliver its 1000th electric bus

B i b u s n e t w o r k f o r B r e s t M

t r o p o l e , w i l l star t operating 10 new Irizar electric buses i n m i d - J u l y, 2 0 2 5

l o n g I r i z a r i e b u s m o d e l T h e b u s i s characterized by its effectiveness, silence a n d a c c e s s i b i l i t y I t w i

q u i p p e d w

t h the latest generation of 470 kWh Irizar batteries The bus has three doors, an electric ramp, 24 seats and two spaces for wheelc h a i r s

“After the recent order from the Commun a u t é d ’ a g g l o m é r a t i o n d u P

y s B a s q u e , we’re delighted to announce this new cont r a c t w i t h R AT P D e v f o r B re s t M é t ro p o l e France is an impor tant countr y for us More than 200 Irizar electric buses are on the road in several French cities At Irizar e-mobility we’re committed to giving our full suppor t to Brest Métropole We’re looking forward to being by their side during their transform a t i

, ” noted Iñigo Etxeberria, general director of Irizar e-mobility

I r i z a r e - m o b i l i t y w i l l s o o n d e l i v e r i t s 1000th bus It is a signiﬁcant number, taking into account that the Basque company was created barely eight years ago “The 1000th vehicle is more than a number for us It signiﬁes effor t, teamwork and commitment by all the people who are part of this great company We’re a medium-sized company with local production that competes in an international market with major brands Innovation and technology are key to keeping up in this highly demanding market We keep working on new generations of vehicles and batteries in order to adapt to the needs of operators and the market,” noted Iñigo Etxeberria, managing director of Irizar e-mobility, a few weeks ago

’s 2024 EuMo fair since late 2020 The Strasb o u r g E

i z

e - m o b i l i t y e l e c t r i c b u s e s t o i m p l e m e n t c o m p l e t e l y s u s t a i n a b l e t r a n s p o r t i n t h e i r c i t y T h e m o d e l c h o s e n w a s t h e 1 2 - m e t e r l o n g I r i z a r i e b u s

I r i z a r e - m o b i l i t y c o n t i n u e s t h e i r i n t e r -

n a t i o n a

Irizar ie trams

Arriva Places Mega Order for New Generation Citea

Arriva has placed an order for as many as 157 new electric buses from VDL Bus & C o a c h T h e s e b u s e s a re d e s t i n e d f o r t h e new West Brabant concession, which will enter into operation on July 6, 2025

VDL Bus & Coach will start delivering 58 new generation Citeas of type LE-122 and 99 buses of type LE-135 to Arriva from the ﬁrst half of 2025 These vehicles will be used for public transport in West Brabant Arriva, together with Nor th Brabant province, previously ordered 64 new-generation Citeas in various versions for East Brabant These vehicles will soon be put into operation for public transport in the city of Tilburg and for deployment on high-quality public transport lines between Uden-Veghel-Eindhoven and Uden-Veghel-Den Bosch

Arriva’s 58 new generation Citea LE-122 will be equipped with 429 kWh traction batteries and the 99 LE-135 version will get 368 kWh traction batteries All 157 new vehicles for Arriva will be equipped with CCS Combo 2 charging sockets on both left and right for o p t i m a l c h a r g i n g ﬂ e x i b i l i t y a t d e p o t l o c ations In addition, the vehicles will have camera monitoring systems instead of convent i o n a l m i r ro r s , b e f u l l y e m i s s i o n - f re e a n d equipped with the innovative climate control system Each bus comes with the ergonomic driver environment to provide maximum supp o r t t o t h e d r i v e r, w i t h t h e d r i v e r ’s c a b i n equipped with an electrically adjustable, airconditioned driver’s seat with memory func-

Equipment News

tion All vehicles have additional interior lighti n g a n d a re f u

d b y t h e large number of luxury seats ﬁtted with extrat h i c

i n l y forward-facing seats for optimal passenger comfor t

What is new is that, in addition to exterior, these buses are also fully kitted out in the Bravo branding The corporate colors red, purple and blue are reflected in the bus’s seat covers, bars and floors The signature Bravo hear t is also reflected in the design inside the bus On board the bus, the Bravo and Bravodirect product formulas both have their own features and coloring

focused on comfor t and home style, safety is a central theme elsewhere in the vehicles For example, all buses will have an electric w

vehicles feature the various safety systems and driver assistance systems according to the latest GST directive, such as the following ADAS options: cruise control including speed limiter, Tire Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS), camera mirrors including b l i n d s p o t c a

blind spot war ning (Blind Spot Infor mation System), trafﬁc sign and speed recognition (Intelligent Speed Assistance), Moving Off I n

s s Detection, Acoustic Vehicle Alerting System (AVAS) and a reversing camera

W i t h t h i s e x p a n s i o n

g another important step in our zero emission

Arriva recently placed a large order with VDL for new Citea buses The order includes 58 new Citea LE-122 model buses and 99 Citea LE-135 model buses Special equipment on the electric buses includes charging sockets on both sides of the bus, cameras replacing mirrors, a new climate control system, an electrically-adjustable driver ’s seat and extra thick cushions on the passenger seats

ambitions, explains Jan Pieter Been, Arriva South regional director “Over 90 percent of public transpor t in West Brabant, which is provided by Arriva, will soon be by electric bus A number we are proud of and which ﬁ t s w i t h

pletely CO2-neutral basis in Brabant by as early as 2027

“Arriva and VDL has been each other’s partners for many years, pulling together to a c h i e v e E u r o p e ’s z e

s s i o n t a r g e t Because of the good cooperation, we have a

together Arriva’s recurring trust in our produ c t a

par tnership and we are 100 percent committed to delivering and operating our produ c

province,” said Rob Mol, managing director VDL Bus & Coach Nederland

Arriva Nederland is part of Arriva Group A

services and operates in 10 European countries In the Netherlands, Arriva has about 5 ,

provinces of Drenthe, Fr yslân, Gelderland, Groningen, Limburg, Nor th Brabant, Overijssel and South Holland Besides train and bus transpor t, Arriva operates in the Dutch coach business under the name Arriva Touring Arriva Touring also provides transpor t at Schiphol Amsterdam Airpor t

The core activities of VDL Bus & Coach c o m p r i s e t h

e v e l o p m e n

, p r o d u c t i o n , sales, aftersales and service of a wide range of public transport buses and coaches VDL Bus & Coach consists of several operating companies that are jointly active on the world market Production takes place in Wester n Europe Quality, safety, durability, the environment, low energy consumption, comfort a n d l o w m a i n t e

mount impor tance In the transition to zero emission transport, VDL Bus & Coach offers total solutions VDL Bus & Coach products are sold through a worldwide network of own b r a n c h

than 30 countries The customer can rely on a fast and faultless aftersales, servicing and maintenance service by employees of one of the many service points A very extensive distribution network ensures that spare parts are delivered to their destination as quickly as possible VDL Bus & Coach has grown into one of the largest bus manufacturers in Europe

Marcopolo Electric Attivi Buses Produced in Mexico

Marcopolo Mexico delivered the ﬁrst 100 percent electric Attivi bus out of a total of 45 vehicles that will be supplied for public city transport in the city of Monterrey, in the state of Nuevo León, Mexico The handover ceremony took place at the Government Palace

of Nuevo León and was attended by Gover nor Samuel Garcia

“Actively par ticipating in actions for the d e c a r b o n i z a t i o n o f t r a n s p o r t a ro u n d t h e w o r l d d e m o n s t r a t e s M a rc o p o l o ’s l e a d i n g role in the search for sustainable and efﬁcient mobility We already produce and supply vehicles powered by renewable and sustainable fuels in several countries such as Brazil, Australia, Chile, China and Uruguay, among others,” says André Ar maganijan, CEO of Marcopolo

T h e M a rc o p o l o A t t i v i b u s i s o n e o f t h e most moder n in existence and the ﬁrst fully produced in that countr y The vehicles will b e u s e d i n t h e M e t r o r r e y t r a n s i t s y s t e m , which will promote a mobility plan to transfor m public transpor t in the Mexican city

The 45 Marcopolo Attivi buses that will be supplied have a low-ﬂoor Yutong chassis 13 meters long and have an air conditioning system, a security monitoring camera and an access ramp for total accessibility

Alexander Dennis Launches Enviro100EV “Big Small Bus” in Hong Kong

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 Sept e m b e r 1 2 l a u n c h e d i t s n e x t - g e n e r a t i o n Enviro100EV small zero-emission bus at the R e T h i n k H K s u s t a i n a b i l i t y e v e n t i n H o n g Kong

It is the ﬁrst time Alexander Dennis has shown the Enviro100EV in the territory, where i t c o m p l e m e n t s t h e h i g h - c a p a c i t y Enviro500EV zero-emission double-decker

With a length of just 8 5 meters (28 feet) a n d a n a r r o w w i d t h o f 2 3 5 m e t e r s ( 9 2 5 inches), the Enviro100EV is ideal for operators who run services in narrow streets or are otherwise limited in space This makes t h e s m a l l b u s a p e r f e c t c h o i c e f o r p r i v a t e residential services as well as corporate or education transport and other shuttle duties

A low ﬂoor ensures easy access for wheelchair users boarding through the main pass e n g e r d o o r a n d m a k e s t h e E n v i ro 1 0 0 E V w e l l s u i t e d t o s e r v e h o s p i t a l s a n d o t h e r healthcare establishments

In Hong Kong speciﬁcation, the compact and maneuverable bus offers a comfortable and spacious interior with room for up to 28 seats and capacity for up to 45 passengers in total

T h e E n v i r o 1 0 0 E V i s p o w e r e d b y t h e medium-duty Voith Electrical Drive System, which has been designed to deliver marketleading energy efﬁciency that keeps operating costs low A choice of 236 kWh and

Equipment News

Marcopolo recently delivered the first electric Attivi bus for public transport in Monterrey, Mexico There will be a total of 45 buses in the order and they will be built on a low-floor Yutong chassis 13 meters (42 6 feet) long They will come with a security monitoring camera, air conditioning and an access ramp

354 kWh batteries provides ample energy s t o r a g e f o r d i ff e re n t r a n g e re q u i re m e n t s Alexander Dennis provides comprehensive route modeling to determine expected operational range and per for mance

Andy Boul ton, m anagi ng di re cto r A si a P

Enviro100EV is a fantastic combination of high passenger capacity with a small vehicle footprint and stylish, moder n design, ready to make a landmark statement of any operator’s investment in zero-emission buses

“This zero-emission bus is ideal for opera t o r s w i

Alexander Dennis recently launched its Enviro100EV “Big Small Bus” in Hong Kong Alexander Dennis has previously been selling their Enviro500EV zero-emission double-decker in Hong Kong With a length of 28 feet and a width of 92 5 inches, the Enviro100EV is ideal for operators who run services on narrow streets or are otherwise limited in space

Equipment News

Sydney, Brisbane and Perth, is designed to s u i t v a r i o u s d i e s e

d u r a b l e v e h i c l e w i t h a n e x p e c t e d o p e r at i o n a l l i f e o f u p t o 2 0 y e a r s t h a n k s t o i t s u n c o m p ro m i s i n g d e s i g n a s

vehicle The Enviro100EV builds on almost 50 years of Alexander Dennis experience in Hong Kong and is fully backed up by our comprehensive customer suppor t ”

Volgren Launches New Buses in Australia

Vo l g r e n , a c o m p a n y o w n e d b y M a rcopolo S A and an Australian leader in bus production, was present at the National Bus and Coach Show 2024, held on September 17 and 18 at the Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre

The launches presented were the Volgren Optimus Electric, with Yutong E12 and BYD B C 1 2 “ B l a d e 1 ” c h a s s i s o p t i o n s , a n d t h e Volgren Optimus Hydrogen, developed in par tnership with Wrightbus

The Volgren Optimus electric city bus, a tried and tested solution that operators have s u c c e s s f u l l y i m p l e m e n t e d i n M e l b o u r n e ,

highest levels of quality, safety and ﬂammability standards for buses in Australia The models have a range of up to 350 kilometers a

options, ranging from 11 7 meters to 12 5 m

emission bus bodies in its class, the result o

dynamic testing

Volgren Optimus Hydrogen began development in 2022, when the company signed a landmark agreement with Wrightbus, one of Europe’s leading hydrogen bus manufacturers, to introduce the ﬁrst hydrogen-powered fuel cell buses to the Australian market Hydrogen fuel cell buses will play an import a n

transport and Volgren is committed to accelerating this exciting technology

In addition to the launches, the company also exhibited the electric Volgren Optimus

Volgren, a company owned by Marcopolo, had buses on display at the recent National Bus and Coach Show in Brisbane, Australia On display was the Volgren Optimus Hydrogen fuel cell bus It was developed with Wrightbus in the UK and is the first hydrogen fuel cell bus on the Australian market

Marcopolo Audace 1050 intercity bus, with Volvo B8R chassis, currently produced at Marcopolo China

Alexander Dennis Electric Buses for London

Group Inc , one of the world’s leading independent global bus manufacturers, on October 3 announced that Go-Ahead Group subsidiar y Go-Ahead London has ordered 32 Enviro100EV small electric buses in the second deal with an operator in the capital for the manufacturer’s next-generation electric buses

The buses will be used on Transpor t for London (TfL) services that navigate narrow s t r e e t s a n d h o u s i n g e s t a t

Enviro100EV’s compact dimensions of 8 5 meters length and 2 35 meters width allow for great maneuverability while also offering room for up to 41 passengers, 21 of them seated

Go-Ahead London will operate the buses from its Orpington Garage on local routes R 1 , R 3 , R 4

2 3 3 between Eltham and Swanley All are powered by the medium-duty version of the Voith Electrical Drive System and will have 354 k

1 2GWh warrantable energy throughput to allow for long operating lives without battery replacement

Neil Gladstone, national account mana g e r f o r A

size of single-deck bus operated on behalf of Transport for London, offering a great passenger experience and features of Transport for London’s Bus Safety Standard and comb i n i n g t h i s w i t h a d r i v e l i n e a n d

t e r i e s designed for longevity We’re delighted that G o - A h e a d L o n d o n h a s c h

h e Enviro100EV for its small bus requirements and look forward to delivering these vehicles in early 2025 ”

C h r i s M c K e o w n , G o - A h e a d L o n d o n ’s engineering director, said: “These vehicles showcase high quality public transport and w e l o o k f o r w a r d t o d e p l o y i n g t h e Enviro100EV ﬂeet on a series of busy outer L

most experienced, largest and innovative zero-emission bus company, I have ever y conﬁdence they will be well received by colleagues and passengers alike ”

s passengers choose a sustainable, access i b l

Equipment News

greener procurement decisions to help us deliver on the mayor’s commitment to have a 100 percent zero emission fleet by 2030

GO-Ahead London has ordered 32 Enviro100EV small electric buses from Alexander Dennis These short and narrow buses will be used on narrow streets and housing They will come with the Voith Electric Drive System and have batteries supplied by Impact Clean Power Technology

NFI Group

Bus Equipment People

NFI Group Inc (NFI), a leading indepen-

d e n t b u s a n d c o a c h m a n u f a c t u re r a n d a leader in zero-emission electric mass mobility solutions on October 1 announced Board Chair Wendy Kei has received Women Corporate Directors (WCD) Visionary Award for S t r a t e g i c L e a d e r s h i p a t W C D ’s a n n u a l Visionar y Awards Celebration in Orlando, Florida

W C D i s t h e w o r l d ’s l a r g e s t c o m m u n i t y

o f w o m e n c o r p o r a t e b o a rd d i re c t o r s , w i t h

7 0 c h a p t e r s a c ro s s s i x c o n t i n e n t s a n d a

m e m b e r s h i p o f 2 , 5 0 0 w o m e n c o r p o r a t e

d i re c t o r s T h e W C D ’s Vi s i o n a r y Aw a rd f o r

S t r a t e g i c L e a d e r s h i p i s g i v e n t o a c u r re n t

w o m a n C E O o r b o a rd c h a i r w h o d e m o n -

s t r a t e s l e a d e r s h i p t h r o u g h i n n o v a t i o n ,

b o a r d a n d m a n a g e m e n t t e a m d i v e r s i t y

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

s t r a t e g i c g r o w t h , w h i l e d e v e l o p i n g p r o -

g r a m s t o m e n t o r a n d p r o m o t e f e m a l e

e m p l o y e e s T h i s a w a rd , a l o n g w i t h o t h e r

W C D h o n o r e e s a r e c h o s e n b y W C D ’s

Vi s i o n a r y Aw a rd s S e l e c t i o n C o m m i t t e e , a

g r o u p o f 1 2 m e m b e r s r e p r e s e n t i n g a l l re g i o n s a ro u n d t h e g l o b e , b a s e d o n t h e

r e c i p i e n t s ’ c o n t i n u e d c o m m i t m e n t a n d e ff o r t s i n t h e i r re c o g n i t i o n a re a s

“ C o n g r a t u l a t i o n s t o W e n d y o n t h i s e x t r a o r d i n a r y a w a r d r e c o g n i z i n g h e r excellence in leadership, her commitment to strategy and her mentorship of the next g e n e r a t i o n o f w o m e n l e a d e r s , ” s a i d P a u l

Soubr y, president and chief executive offic e r, N F I “ S i n c e j o i n i n g o u r b o a rd i n 2 0 2 2 Wendy h a s b e e n i n s t r u m e n t a l i n g u i d i n g u s t h r o u g h a n e x t r e m e l y c h a l l e n g i n g p e r i o d a n d h e l p i n g s u p p

r t

u r o p e r at i o n a l a n d f i n a n c i a l re c o v e r y H e r d e d i c ation and leadership have made our Board a n d N F I s t ro n g e r ”

Ke i w a s h o n o re d w i t h t h i s p re s t i g i o u s award on September 30, during WCD’s twoday marquee conference, the Global Institute The Global Institute gather corporate leaders who provide thought leadership and b e s t p r a c t i c e s o n t o d a y ’s m o s t p re s s i n g issues for boards and executive leadership teams worldwide

“I am proud to support WCD in their mission of increasing women’s representation and inspiring visionar y boards worldwide,” said Kei, board chair, NFI “The work they do to connect and inspire women corporate directors is truly transformational and driving change in boardrooms around the world It is an honor to accept this award on behalf o f t h e d i r e c t o r s a n d t e a m s a t N F I a n d Ontario Power Generation, and I congratul a t e a l l o f m y f e l l o w h

awards ”

Kei currently serves as the board chair for NFI and Ontario Power Generation Inc She previously served as chief ﬁnancial ofﬁc e r o f D o m i n i o n D

merly Harr y Winston Diamond Corporation and Aber Diamond Corporation)

(FICD), named BMO Celebrate Women on Boards 2022 Honoree, and in 2020, she was s e l e c t e d o n e o f C a n

’s To p 1 0 0 M o s t Powerful Women and was honored as a Fell o w C h a r t e r e d P

(FCPA-FCA) designation In 2016, she was selected as a Diversity 50 Candidate by the Canadian Board Diversity Council

Kei is a Fellow of the Char tered Professional Accountants of Ontario, holds a Fellow designation from the Institute of Corporate Directors and holds a Bachelor of Mathematics for m the University of Waterloo

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 coaches, and its vehicles have completed more than 195 million EV service miles

John Hall’s Alaska

John Hall’s Alaska is thrilled to welcome t

i n c l u

a n d - o p e r a t e d c o m p a n y i s t h r

an individual who mirrors the family expect a t i o n s , re p u t a t i o n

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

i n d u s t r y k n o w ledge to strengthen the organization’s

g r o w t h i n M i n -

n e s o t a , c h a r t e r

o p e r a t i o n s a n d

c o n t i n u i n g t o deliver exceptional customer service

J o s e p h H a l l ,

v i c e p r e s i d e n t o f

Fleet Operations for J o h n H a l l ’s A l a s k a , e x p r e s s e d h i s enthusiasm for the addition of Adam to the Hall family of brands “Adam’s addition to the team showcases the demand of motorcoach charters across all industries, a pillar of the industr y growth and demand Adam will be a fantastic addition to our leadership team and key to the continued growth of the J o h n H a l l ’s A l a s k a o p e r a t i o n s , ” s a i d H a l l “ A f t e r y e a r s o f i n d u s t r y p a r t n e r s h i p s w i t h

Adam, it is extremely exciting to add someo n e t o t h e J H A f a m i l y w h o w i l l h e l p strengthen growth in the transportation and motorcoach char ter sector of the industr y ”

Over the past 13 years, Adam Hall has h e l d v a r i o u s ro l e s w i t h i n t h e m o t o

industry earning the reputation and respect of the most well-known companies around the United States To compliment a degree in journalism and a longstanding knowledge of sales in motorcoach products, Adam has f

technical suppor t and relationship building a

track record of fostering growth and enhancing efﬁciency in operations throughout every tur n, challenge and oppor tunity q

i n d u s t r y, a c r o s s a l l o p e r a t i n g l o c a t i o n s ,

Adam Hall

Wendy Kei

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Glass City River Wall – Nicole LeBoutillier

Toledo Museum of Art – Destination Toledo

The Toledo Zoo – Destination Toledo

ProMedica Museum of Natural History– Destination Toledo

Toledo Mud Hens – Destination Toledo

Toledo Botanical Garden Metropark – Destination Toledo

Generations of Innovation

A President’s Perspective

Eugène Prévost, President and Founder 1924 - 1957

20 • National Bus Trader / November, 2024

Editor ’ s Note: The following was put together by the Prevost staff and does a marvelous job of covering their past leaders Hence, we thought it would be worthwhile to include it in NATIONAL BUS TRADER for our readers

A c ro s s N o r t h A m e r i c a , s l e e k P re v o s t m o t o rc o a c h e s t r averse city streets, cruise down highways and carry supers t a r e n t e r t a i n e r s o n m u l t i - c i t y t o u r s . F o u n d e d b y E u g è n e

P r é v o s t i n 1 9 2 4 , t h e c o m p a n y h a s m a i n t a i n e d t h re e c o re

v a l u e s : c u s t o m e r i n t i m a c y, p re m i u m q u a l i t y a n d s o u n d i n n o v a t i o n . T h e s e p r i n c i p l e s h a v e g u i d e d l e a d e r s w h o

h a v e s h a p e d P re v o s t ’ s h i s t o r y a n d e v o l u t i o n o v e r a c e n -

t u r y

T h r o u g h o u t P r e v o s t ' s 1 0 0 - y e a r h i s t o r y, n u m e r o u s

a c h i e v e m e n t s a n d i n n o v a t i o n s , c r a f t e d b y t h e s e l e a d e r s , have resulted in products that exceeded market demands

a n d s e t n e w i n d u s t r y s t a n d a rd s

Eugène Prévost, President and Founder 1924 - 1957

E u g è n e P r é v o s t w a s a n i n t re p i d e n t re p re n e u r i n S a i n t e -

C l a i re , Q u e b e c , w h o s p e c i a l i z e d i n m a k i n g c h u rc h p e w s

a n d s c h o o l f u r n i t u r e P r é v o s t ' s e n t r é e i n t o m o t o r i z e d v e h i c l e s l e v e r a g e d h i s c a r p e n t r y s k i l l s . H e w a s c o m m i ssioned to build a wooden coach body to mount on an REO t r u c k c h a s s i s , a r e q u e s t t h a t l e d t o m a n y o t h e r s T h e c o m p a n y g re w, a n d i n 1 9 3 7 , i t b u i l t a b u s m a n u f a c t u r i n g f a c i l i t y i n S a i n t e - C l a i re E v e r t h e i n n o v a t o r, P r é v o s t b u i l t a n d e x p a n d e d t h e c o m p a n y i n t o a s e p a r a t e , v i a b l e operation, establishing a tradition of innovation for those w h o f o l l o w e d

Paul Normand, President 1957 - 1968

In 1957, Paul Normand became president and injected new life into the company with innovative products, subsequently renaming it Prevost Car Inc During his tenure, Prevost introduced new bus models, which dominated the market, leading to new distribution opportunities in the United States and the launch of the company ' s ﬁrst motor homes

André Normand, President 1968 - 1996

“ T h e b i g g e s t c h

plant We built the plant with the transporter so that we could take a bus somewhere, put it in the next stage, take a motor home shell somewhere, put it in the next stage We kept the ﬂexibility that we had when we were very small and even being much bigger we kept the same ﬂexibility ”

In 1968, André Normand became president of Prevost Car Inc.

the long run, paving the way for the development of new models

Georges Bourelle, President 1996 - 2003

“I'm very proud of having achieved 1,000 units in 2000 which was a long-term objective for Prevost, and I was very proud to be able to accomplish that.”

During his tenure, Bourelle achieved record production numbers, some of which remain unsurpassed today Promoted to president in 1996, he led the organization until 2003 Under his leadership, the company reached record sales and production milestones, building more than 1,000 vehicles in a single year, including approximately 400 shells for conversion

Gaétan Bolduc, President 2004 - 2015

"I had a vision for the long term, a 10-year vision, and each year we were checking off what needed to be done. All working together, synchronized with high power, high performance, in every direction, in every department "

André Normand, President 1968 - 1996

Paul Normand, President 1957 - 1968

Georges Bourelle, President 1996-2003

and adding mobile units. Under his leadership, Prevost continues to demonstrate its commitment to customers by addressing operator challenges and offering programs and products that set a new standard for luxury motorcoaches q

Gaétan Bolduc rose through the ranks from operations to engineering before becoming president During his tenure, he focused on production excellence, propelling the company to new heights and market dominance The company ' s reputation as a leader in the North American coach market and provider of premier service and s u p p o r

throughout North America

François Tremblay, President 2016 - Present "Prevost will continue to push the boundaries of the industry by offering innovative products and unparalleled support with passionate people All this for the ultimate service of our customers for the next century."

François Tremblay became president of Prevost in 2016, driving tremendous product innovation and securing a consistent top market position The company has continued to expand its service support by growing the North American service network with new locations

"Every former president brought t h e i r o w n ﬂ a v o r t o t h e o rg a n ization. It led Prevost to where it is today."

— François Tremblay

François Tremblay, President 2016 - Present

Gaétan Bolduc, President 2004 - 2015

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

New York MTA Fare Evasion

by Larry Plachno

Arecent article in the New York Times

b r o u g h t a t t e n t i o n t o t h e f a c t t h a t fare evasion on the New York MTA buses and subways has increased substant i a l l y s i n c e t h e p a n d e m i c O n

c e n t report says that 48 percent of MTA bus riders are avoiding paying their fare while 14 p e rc e n t o f M TA s u b w

t h e s a m e .

MTA subways have twice the number of riders as the bus lines, but there are obvious differences The use of turnstiles and gates on the subway make it more difficult to get a w a y w i t h c h e a t i n g o n f a r e s I t w

a l s o noted that the bus system generally serves people who are less affluent and older than subway riders

There are people who think that this situation may have some impact on the nowpaused Manhattan Congestion Pricing Plan. This fare evasion represents an annual loss of somet hing lik e $315 million on t he b us system and about $285 million on the subway system Figures that would go a long

way towards providing financial support for the MTA Those opposed to congestion pricing may ask why commuters from other areas who do not ride should pay a congestion pricing fee to support the MTA when it does not make an effort itself to collect fares from passengers

before the pandemic, bus fare evasion was already growing into a serious problem in New York In 2018, the MTA estimated that bus fare evasion was already at 18 percent

11 percent while in Toronto, a city that uses

that fare evasion in London

Part of the problem might be attributed to the MTA’s actions during the pandemic

height of the pandemic, the MTA made bus r

MTA Chief Executive Janno Lieber has said that the fare evasion is “the No 1 existential threat” to the transit system because it creates a sense of lawlessness This brings up yet another problem because a recent survey of daytime subway riders indicated that only 49 percent said they felt safe This figure was a much higher 82 percent in 2017. The subways and buses are becoming homes for

crimes. This is not confined to the Big Apple but has become an increasing concern in several other cities.

One reason for the higher fare evasion on the buses is that they do not have the gates and turnstiles that the subways have Those who do not want to pay fares only have to

On the heels of the Manhattan Congestion Pricing pause comes word that the New York MTA bus and subway system is rife with fare evasion and riders who do not feel safe Almost half of the bus passengers do not pay fares while nearly half of subway riders do not feel safe People are questioning whether non-riders should support this. STOCKSNAP AT PIXABAY.

ators from interfering with those who ignore fares because this could lead to the bus driver being harassed or assaulted A few years ago a bus driver in Brooklyn was stabbed to death after confronting a fare-cheating pass e n g e r H e n c e , t h e U n i o n i s d i s c o u r a g i n g interaction with passengers

Some people suggest that the MTA and police have not done enough to reduce the f a r e e v a s i o n p r o b l

tem. Both police officers and some private s e c u r i t y g u a rd s

sengers who do not pay the fare Their

T h e re a re n u

this Many who pay the fare are unhappy about those who get away without paying There is also the fact that the area became less serious about law enforcement Back in 2017 both Manhattan and Brooklyn started

to ignore most fare evasion crimes Meanwhile, some people suggest that public transit serves many poor people and should be a free service funded by taxpayers

Based on a 2023 report, the MTA is looking at several ways to deal with this One is to hire more fare checkers for buses. Another i s c re a

would make riders aware of the need to pay a fare Some progress has already been made in these areas

Immediate concerns are that the MTA’s deficit keeps growing A substantial amount of work has already gone into developing a C

tions However, there are people who question whether it is fair that those driving into Manhattan should be forced to pay for the M

more than $600 million annually.

Fare evasion on MTA buses has been growing since the pandemic and is now up to 48 percent. It is fairly simple to walk past the bus driver without paying a fare The bus drivers and their union have decided that it is safer if they are not involved. NBT ARCHIVES.

Fare evasion is more difficult on the subways because of the gates and turnstiles used at subway entrances. This photo shows a line of subway payment turnstiles located under the World Trade Center Only 49 percent of subway riders say they feel safe MICHAEL KASTELIC AT PIXABAY

Museum Deaccession II

by Dave Millhouser

Th a n k s t o a l l t h e b i d d e r s a n d J i m Michaud for making the first round of deaccession a great success Six historic buses found loving homes, and all the proceeds go towards preserving bus history.

In the ongoing effort to curate our fleet we are doing a second round A number of enthusiasts have inquired about owning a piece of bus history, and this is your opportunity.

For those readers who missed it, here is t h e b a c k g ro u n d o n t h e m u s e u m d e a c c e ssion

The Antique Automobile Club of America (AACA) Museum’s (https://www.aacamuseum org/mobt/) Bus Collection Comm i t t e e h a

t situation. The museum ' s historic fleet has re a c h e d 6 0

d e storage for less than half of that number. B a s e d i n H

exhibit at a nearby facility The George Sage Annex has limited floor space, so many are parked outdoors. The situation is complicated by the fact that the annex is on a flood

plain In 2011, a historic flood seriously damaged a number of buses.

Even coaches stored outdoors incur costs of insurance, security and maintenance. As a result, museum leadership decided on a p l a n o f “ D e a c c e s s i o n ” t o , g r a d u a l l y a n d rationally, reduce the number of buses in the collection to a level that can afforded to properly preserve.

“Deaccession” is a formal, legal, process that museums adhere to when curating their collections, with specific protocols

Leading off the second deaccession group from the bus museum is this attractive 1947 TD-4507. This “Old Look” style GM transit bus style was the backbone of many transit fleets from the postwar years until the arrival of the “New Look” transit style The color scheme suggests a possible heritage with a National City Lines company.

Photos courtesy of the bus museum

Many of the buses have personal stories

o r u n i q u e h i s t o r i c s i g n i f i c a n c e , a n d t h o s e

c r i t e r i a a re b e i n g u s e d t o p r i o r i t i z e w h i c h

a r e c h o s e n f o r t h e p r o g r a m S u b s t a n t i a l

e ff o r t i s b e i n g m a d e t o f i n d a g o o d h o m e

f o r e v e r y c o a c h t h a t d o e s n o t f i t c u r r e n t n e e d s

“Unfortunately, we’re the victims of success During the past five years our historic collection rose from roughly 30 coaches to 60 We’re out of safe storage space, and preserving coaches is costly” according to one member of the Bus Committee

“ I n a n i d e a l w o r l d w e ’ d r e s c u e a n d restore every antique coach Sadly, we ‘can’t save every puppy in the pound ’ Resources are limited, so the Bus Committee made the decision to reduce the number of buses to a l e v e l w h e re t h e y c a n a ff o rd t o t a k e c a re of them.”

Over the years the museum received criticism from some for not acquiring certain buses, and from others for having too many (including one individual who made both criticisms)

T h e D e a c c e s s i o n a u c t i o n i s a n e ff o r t t o find good homes for the excess coaches, with resulting revenue used to support preservation efforts on the remaining buses

The Bus Committee welcomes members’ suggestions and questions The display at Spring Fling demonstrated that a substantial percentage of the fleet runs (including one bus nearing its 100th birthday).

Sadly, some do not A few are remaining victims of the 2011 flood, and others are static displays due to limited resources All have historic (and often emotional) value, hence the effort to find homes.

ing been delivered to Bonanza Bus Lines in Rhode Island and run-

museum The interior and exterior are in fine condition.

Annex, and find better storage is in the plann

the fleet, and allocating resources wisely best serves the goal of preserving bus history

buses on the list has meaning to you, please make an offer.

Below is the second group that is being deaccessioned

DEACCESSION SECOND ROUND

1947 GMC MODEL TD-4507 (FLEET NUMBER 1426)

A fine example of a timeless workhorse i n

equipped with a Detroit

engine a

TD4507-675. Bus needs batteries and a good cleaning; otherwise, it is in good overall condition Has some rust and corrosion and interior seats do have some rips in upholstery (see photos)

F a c e B

com/share/Dk5d5gNqJcg2cnZd/

158)

This MC-8 was owned and operated by Red Lion Tours out of Pennsylvania. It is now in the Peter Pan Bus Lines paint scheme It is equipped with a Detroit Diesel 8V-71 engine mated to an Allison HT-740 automatic transm

National Bus Trader / November, 2024 • 27

This 1974 MCI MC-8 originally ran for Red Lion Tours in Pennsylvania but is now painted in Peter Pan colors. As typical of the MC-8, it has an 8V-71 engine and an Allison automatic transmission It has a standard, seated interior

extended period of time and will need some attention Needs batteries Does not run or drive at this time It has a full seated interior The interior and exterior are both in fine condition Bus could use a good cleaning PLEASE NOTE: This bus has a salvage title

F a c e B o o k L i n k : h t t p s : / / w w w. facebook com/share/9MBpxc3gjCZLtFmE/

1984 MCI/TMC MODEL MC-9 (FLEET NUMBER 8405)

Ve r y r a re t w o - a x l e c o a c h . T h i s v e h i c l e was bought new by Bonanza Bus Lines in R h o d e I s l a n d a n d re m a i n e d i n t h e i r c a re u n t i l d o n a t i n g

s a Detroit Diesel 6V-92TA engine mated to an Allison HT-740 automatic transmission This bus has been sitting for an extended period of time and will need some attention Needs batteries. Does not run or drive at this time. It has a full seated interior The interior and exterior are both in fine condition Bus could use a good cleaning. PLEASE NOTE: This bus has a salvage title

F a c e B o o k L i n k : h t t p s : / / w w w f a c e b o o k com/share/WSCRDebHogMGndKy/

2011 FORD EL DORADO NATIONAL SHUTTLE BUS

Complete bus but needs work Seats 14 (no CDL required). Has wheelchair lift. The interior is in decent shape Drivers seat needs recovering Exterior and undercarriage has some rust/corrosion. 6.8L gas engine. Runs b

wheelchair lift Would make a nice little bus or schoolie with a little bit of work F a c e B

com/share/QQbXsoSr7jMg42AJ/

jim@busappraiser.com for additional information or to make a bid q

This 2011 El Dorado National shuttle bus seats 14. The interior is in decent shape and it is equipped with a wheelchair lift. It comes with a gas engine but apparently has a starting issue

How Big Should My Fleet Be?

by Dave Millhouser

“To Be, or Not to Be ” is not the q u e s t i o n “ H o w b i g s h o u l d m y f l e e t b e ? ” i s f a r m o re re l e v a n t t o profitability in this business

Someone (way smarter than me) once said

t h a t h e h a d n e v e r s e e n a n y o t h e r i n d u s t r y

t h a t i n c u r r e d s o m u c h d e b t t o m e e t p e a k demand The real goal is the delicate balance b e t w e e n m a x i m i z i n g u t i l i z a t i o n w i t h o u t passing up too many opportunities.

H e c k , y o u k n e w t h a t , b u t h o w d o y o u arrive at right size?

The folks I respect most do serious analysis of their sales and know how many days each bus in their fleet is used They also look at the revenue side, because running a bus at cost (or less) during slow times is insignificant to your bottom line, and exposes you to risks t h a t m a y e v e n t u a l l y b i t e y o u . T h e y d o n o t buy buses to “turn wheels ”

Many coaches have been bought, over the years, to meet sudden “opportunities” that did not really use the bus enough of the year. Operators hoped to generate enough extra business to make it work “Hope” is a risky marketing plan. Even when the opportunity is year round, it is important to know how

long it is REALLY going to last Real excitement is financing a coach for seven years, and losing the contract after three years – just as the bus’s warranty runs out

Bus fleets are like cell phones – smaller is better If you are a little bit too small, the only serious risk is that you will chase some business to a competitor This pales in comparison to being too large

If you have too many buses, and business slows, the first sacrifice is price Trips are run for miniscule margins, often during the nastiest, riskiest time of the year What happens next can be even uglier; customers are trained to expect cheap transportation No amount of explanation about the seasonal nature of the charter business will ever quite convince them that they are not being gouged during peak periods

A certain amount of fluctuation is accepted, but when the spread gets big, operators lose either credibility – or profit If all the carriers in a region reach the conclusion that it is best to size their company to meet normal, not peak, demand, prices migrate upward

An ideal fleet has some buses that are paid for When those beauties are sitting, it does not

cause too much heartburn, and they are available to seize opportunities that are real An all new fleet sounds good, but is UGLY when it is parked Many well run companies have fleets that are a mix of new and older coaches, with the mix being determined by their mechanical skills and customer demands

Conventional wisdom has been that you a re

(even a single model). In recent years a number of operators, both mid-sized and large, have consciously decided to run two brands o

worth considering

Having a single model of coach simplifies maintenance, cuts parts inventory and makes driver training simpler. Your operations folks use fewer brain cells deciding which bus goes where Different models, from the same manufacturer, still offer the advantage of a single relationship with parts and technical people, and some parts commonality. Often a manufacturer ’s different models share components and a philosophy of maintenance that will serve you well.

There are a few downsides to a one vendor approach. A single meteor, the size of a basketball, could destroy his factory That has

One of the biggest questions in the bus industry is “How big should my fleet be?” Some bus companies prefer to remain small while others seek growth Statistics show that there are many more smaller bus operations than there are larger ones LAEKFRONT LINES

Are you better off buying from only one bus manufacturer or should you entertain two of them? Working with two different bus manufacturers avoids putting all of your eggs in one basket. In the event that a company has problems, you will also find yourself with problems. MCI

not happened yet, but we have had plants shut down by fire, flood and financial woes.

A p ro b l e m w i t h o n e m a n u f a c t u re r w o u l d

c re a t e a s h o r t a g e , a n d t h e o t h e r b u i l d e r s

w o u l d s e r v e e x i s t i n g c u s t o m e r s f i r s t A lengthy disruption could cause that brand’s resale value to plummet, having two brands hedges your bet

These days, transportation is so efficient that most operators stock fewer parts, so inventory is less important Most manufacturers have good technical support, so you are less likely to be left dangling than in ye olden days

Buses are not commodities – where cheapest is best Your manufacturer is your partner,

It always helps to have a good relationship with your bus supplier company. Not only will you need parts to keep your fleet going, but you may also need technical information and support along the way Maintaining a bond with your supplier or suppliers will ensure support when you need it. MCI.

and the relationship should be profitable and pleasant for both sides. If you only shop price, most manufacturers will lose interest On the other hand, all are happy to sell to a company that maintains a real bond with two builders –rewarding the most responsive with a larger share of each order. They value, and compete for, that kind of customer

Each company’s situation is different, so t h e d e c i s

fleet is an individual one

When I was in sales if you were buying from me, you should stick with the standardized fleet approach If you had been buying from the other guys, consider the two manufacturer plan. I could be at your place in an hour q

Sur vival and Pr osperity

by Ned Einstein

The Further Collapse of Fixed Route Transit

For those motorcoach owner-readers narro w l y c o n c e r n e d a b o u t t h e i r b u s i n e s s e s ’ f u t u re s, t h e y mi g h t n ot e t h a t Coa ch USA, the nation’s second-largest motorcoach company, recently ﬁled for bankruptcy Never mind that hints of this catastrophe were littering the transportation landscape as this latest victim’s motorcoach business had been thinning steadily as Coach USA increasingly scraped by as a contractor to transit systems – scenarios where their drivers’ salaries were far less than they were (in constant-dollar terms) than in the heyday of U S motorcoach s e r v i c e ( w h e n e v e r t h a t w a s ) . T h a t t h e i r salaries as drivers of transit contractors were substantially lower than those of all or most of their transit agencies’ own drivers is just a footnote. If this snapshot fails to sober you up, what follows should jolt you out of your seat

Fixed route transit service is not exactly doing well.

Fixed route transit service is not exactly doing well, either, despite enormous subsidies, none of which are provided to motorcoach operators (other than, technically, that small part of a transit agency’s subsidies that o n e m i g h t p ro p o r t i o n a l l y a t t r i b u t e t o t h e operation of their far-less-costly contractors’ service) This apportionment does not count the vehicles or other capital items. Almost universally, transit agencies receive 80 percent of their vehicles’ costs from the Federal Transit Administration When contracting out service deploying these vehicles, they s i m p l y l e a s e t h e m t o t h e c o n t r a c t o r s f o r, most often, $1/year (The contractors usually p e r f o r m t h e m a i n t e n a n c e , i n c l u d i n g o r excluding spare parts, but are paid for these things )

These factors are barely even the context for this collapse.

The Second Time Around

This is not just the title of a jazz standard c ro o n e d f a m o u s l y b y N a n c y Wi l s o n a n d covered by countless other vocalists It is the story of public transit in the United States –

the “car country ” While I have written about this critical period of transit’s history often, some younger NATIONAL BUS TRADER readers, and older sporadic readers, may need to recall that the U S transit system almost collapsed in the late 1950s and early 1960s, as those systems that continued to operate often did so with a thinner and thinner skeleton of routes As city dwellers began to disperse to tens of millions of homes in the suburbs – a move made possible by President Eisenhower ’s construction of the ﬁrst 49,500 miles of the planned 50,000-mile “Defense Highway” (part of an Act signed into law in 1956) – our urban densities began to thin out, a n d a ff o

route operating costs less and less

President Johnson addressed this probl

with the Model Cities Program, a huge core program within the Department of Housing and Urban Development A component of the Model Cities Program that began the resc

Transportation Administration (UMTA) –later renamed the Federal Transit Administration – which paid for 80 percent of a transit system’s (or municipality’s) buses Three

quickly moved UMTA into USDOT Alongside it, UMTA began providing operating assistance to these same transit agencies and m

, ” where most of the funding was provided by states, cities and or counties

ered only 50 percent of transit systems’ opera

than UMTA’s contribution of operating subsidies An often poorly-understood concept k

y meant that one could not simply make up the difference by raising fares Higher fares translated into lower ridership, and lower ridership translated into even less farebox revenue Likely vying for the Low Innovation Award of the Twentieth Century, transit w a s m i r e d i

since, despite higher and higher subsidies from cities, counties, states and the Federal government, along with higher fares (which likely contributed, periodically, to lower ridership, and even less operating revenue).

By 2022, farebox revenue covered a lower percentage of the operating costs of almost any service that was not completely free that c

being decimated by COVID – the nation’s transit system with the highest “operating ratio” was New York City – with fares topping out then, or perhaps a few years earlier, at 35 percent of operating costs. Other systems did far worse Following the construction of a hopelessly-unneeded subway system whose ﬁrst three lines put Los Angeles County $7 billion in debt decades earlier, by 2018, the county’s fares covered only nine percent of its total transit system’s operating

t s ( s e e h t t p s : / / w w w n y t i m e s c o m / 2 0 2 0 / 0 4 / 0 9 / u p s h o t / t r a n s i t - b a t t e re d -

coronavirus html?action=click&module=T op%20Stories&pgtype=Homepage) Then,

With transit not exactly a poster child for efﬁciency, within a single decade, fares cov-

dipped below eight percent, and according to some accounts, failed to cover the cost of collecting and processing them In response, t

while a few other systems (e g , Las Vegas) eliminated fares for certain types of lines or vehicles (in that case, double-decker buses) Needless to say, ﬁxed route transit is near collapse yet again, despite cost-saving measures like contracting out service – cost sav-

salaries (and possibly in a few cases eliminating all or most fringe beneﬁts) which will

Sur vival and Pr osperity

c e r t a i n l y o c c u r w h e n t h e s e a g e n c i e s n e x t engage transportation network companies (TNCs) to provide their service, as school systems in San Francisco and Los Angeles did roughly two years ago.

Narrowly Spread Delusion, Deception and Hypocrisy

Named the APTA 2016 TRANSform Conference and Expo, the American Public Transit Association (APTA) held its annual conference, in 2016, in New York City Then still a city resident, I attended a meeting of the Access Committee, APTA’s paratransit and A D A - o r i e n t e d C o m m i t t e e o f ro u g h l y 3 0 0 members Brieﬂy wandering the hallways on my way in and out of the building, I was dumbfounded by the emphasis and braggadocio of technology as a solution for the i n du st r y ’s resu r rect i on – a t er m n o on e i n the industry employed, and which I cite only f o r p u r p o s e s o f s a rc a s m H i g h a m o n g t h e technologies were “innovations” for fare coll e c t i o n I w r o t e a n i n s t a l l m e n t a b o u t t h e e m b a r r a s s i n g , i f n o t l u d i c ro u s , h i s t o r y o f fare collection approaches and technology for NATIONAL BUS TRADER in June, 2020 (see h t t p s : / / t r a n s a l t c o m / a r t i c l e / f a re - c o l l e ction-folly-waste-and-stupidity/). It took considerable restraint to limit the mockery

In the loose historical panorama of fare collection approaches and technology I cited was my observation of riding transit to and f r o m m y ﬁ r s t a n d o n l y s e m e s t e r o f l a w school in 1969 Washington, D C , and being mesmerized by the number of passengers who threw nickels and pennies into the farebox – observable to drivers, none of whom I s a w o n c e p r o t e s t e d d u r i n g t h e e n t i r e s e m e s t e r o f t w o - w a y t r i p s ( s e e

h t t p s : / / t r a n s a l t c o m / a r t i c l e / d r i v e r s - vrobots-part-8-collecting-the-fares-skimmingthe-passengers/) I followed up that installment with a more recent piece about the near irrelevancy of fares in an article this past June (see https://transalt com/article/fare-collection-folly-waste-and-stupidity/) On the theme of fare skimming, the latter piece was p r e m a t u r e A f e w m o n t h s a g o , T h e N e w Yorker (May 28, 2024) ran a major story centering on the fact that 48 percent of bus riders do not pay the fares. Thus, at its best – pre2018 levels – fares would cover less than 18 percent of operating costs

Gluing together these observations and statistics a half-century apart, it is ironic that, p r i o r t o 2 0 1 8 , t h e n a t i o n ’ s s e c o n d h i g h e s t f a re c o l l e c t i o n r a t i o w a s i n t h e D i s t r i c t o f Columbia, with fares covering 25 percent of operating costs Even forgetting about my undocumented observations about the District’s fare evasion woes 55 years ago, New York’s experiences would seem to suggest that the District’s operating ratio would now likely lie well below 15 percent In fact, ear-

l i e r t h i

’ s C i t y C o u n c i l

voted unanimously to eliminate fares altogether beginning in July of 2024 – although this never happened

Given similar behavior nationwide – not likely, but as a mathematical postulate – one can only guess how much longer ﬁxed route transit will survive in various parts of the count ry At t he ext remes, even if fares are eliminated entirely, I can envision a few cities whose urban form and other formats might allow them to retain some, or even most, of their transit The characteristics of these cities would seem to include:

•

l e t r a f ﬁ c and, without transit, unbearable air quality

• R

downtown areas and limited suburban corridors into them – where natural ridership p

• Rich cities whose concentrations centered on limited corridors (e.g., San Francisco) needed and desired by both rich resi

counterparts who could not afford housing i n

distances

• Tiny cities requiring only a line or two (picture Atlanta, whose two crisscrossing subway lines were covered by buses)

I am sure there are cities with other configurations where some degree of conventional fixed route service might be margina l l y s u s t a i n a b l e , b o t h fi n a n c i a l l y a n d politically – particularly where honesty leve l s a n d / o r i n c o m e l e v

d t o t o l e r a b l e fare evasion and/or affordable enforcement costs for containing it Otherwise, “fuhget aboudit:”

• F o rg e t a b o u t a c i t y c u r t a i l i n g t h o s e h o u r s i t s s u b w a y s y s t

s h o u l d b e replaced by “shadowline” bus service opera t i n g t h e s a m

, o r c o m p l e t i n g t h e outer segments of the lines during periods of low demand.

• F o rg e t a b o u t e x o t i c f re q u e n c y - a n dcoverage innovations like “timed-transfer pulse systems” like Los Angeles County’s C a r s o n C i r c u i t Tr a n s i t S y s t e m ( s e e https://transalt com/map-and-scheduledesign/)

• F o r g e t a b o u t a n y s e n s e o f ﬁ s c a l a c c o u n t a b i l i t y i n t h e d e c i s i o n t o re t a i n o r curtail service One line I know of in New Jersey provides fewer than one passenger trip per hour – the same service would likely cost a ﬁfth to a tenth as much if provided by taxis, not to mention the elimination of wait time and the better directness of routing

Enforcement and Impunity

Regarding the fare evasion component of the problem – whereby half of the achiev-

a b l e f a

through a combination of law enforcement ofﬁcials supported by low technology (i e , video cameras), such solutions would likely work in those few small or medium-sized cities where vehicles were not packed with t o o m

York City, it could not build enough jails to h

tens of thousands of police ofﬁcers whose time would cost more than all but the heavi

then only effective if combined with reasona

e m almost inconceivable – and were barely disc u s s e d i n T h e N e w Yo r k Ti m e s a r t i c l e t h a t inspired this piece

severe.

In contrast, other nations have no remote p ro b l e m t h i s s e v e re I n o n e S c a n d i n a v i a n c o u n t r y n o t e d f o r i t s p a u c i t y o f f a re e v asion – only 1 5 percent (barely worth bothe r i n g w i t h a s a n e n f o r c e m e n t m a t t e r, a s many of these “deviants” are largely among t h a t n a t i o n ’ s m o s t d i r t - p o o r ) – t h i s i s s u e would barely qualify as a problem I can also p i c t u re i t n o t b e i n g a p ro b l e m i n n a t i o n s w h e r e t h e p u n i s h m e n t w o u l d s e e m t o grossly outweigh the crime – like some Midd l e E a s t e r n c o u n t r i e s w h e re p i c k p o c k e t s have their hands severed.

I n a p o l a r i z e d c o u n t r y l i k e o u r s , t h e extremes of opinions about solutions (gratef u l l y l o c a l s o l u t i o n s ) w o u l d r a n g e f r o m o p p re s s i v e t o “ w o k e ” I n s o m e a re a s , o n e could also expect punishment to depend on other factors, like race – where punishment h a s b e c o m e f a r m o r e e q u i t a b l e i n m a j o r crimes, but less so as they diminish in severi t y ( l i k e t h e u s e o f c e r t a i n c

ro l l e d s u bstances, or the complete tolerance of shoplifting goods whose combined value was less t h a n $ 2 5 0 ) S u c h v a r i a b l e s p l a c e l i m i t s o n the ability to discuss solutions on a national scale – even while problems like fare evasion are likely problematic in a broad spectrum of urban, suburban and perhaps even rural c o m m u n i t i e s – t h e l a t t e r p a r t l y o r l a rg e l y because the perpetrators would be far easier to catch, and thus, less punishments would serve as greater deterrents

During Japan’s rare bus strikes, the drivers continue to run the routes. They simply refuse to collect the fares (which, again, cover 160 percent of the systems’ operating costs) Fol-

Sur vival and Pr osperity

lowing major events in large venues, like the Olympics, the fans clean the stadiums. One would expect fare evasion to be a miniscule problem in such a society – just as it is also not a signiﬁcant problem in Scandinavia, as noted Fare evasion in a country where fully paid fares cover only a small fraction of operating costs, fare evasion is simply another tentacle of the pending collapse of ﬁxed route transit Forget about what this reality says about the future of public transportation in the United States What does it say about the future of the United States in general?

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

Ned Einstein is the president of Transportation Alternatives (www transalt com [1]), a p u b

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

Be prepared before the next power outage.

Number 311 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 Is anything more going on with the New York City Congestion Pricing? –– Several Readers

A S e v e r a l p e o p l e h a v e s u g g e s t e d t h a t

a c t i o n o n t h e N e w Yo r k C i t y C o n g e s t i o n Pricing plan was put off for fear of negative i m p a c t o n t h e p r e s i d e n t a l e l e c t i o n t h a t

a l s o i n c l u d e d s e v e r a l l o c a l c o n t e s t s I f

t h e re i s a n a t t e m p t t o re v i s e t h e C o n g e s -

t i o n P r i c i n g P l a n , i t w i l l n o t s h o w u p u n t i l

a f t e r t h e e l e c t i o n

Meanwhile, there has been substantial discussion on the fact that new information indicates that nearly half of MTA bus riders and a substantial number of subway riders avoid paying fares In addition, more than half of the daytime subway riders said that they did not feel safe Hence, people are questioning why those who do not ride the MTA should h a v e t o p a y f o r r i d e r s w h o e v a d e p a y i n g fares or are afraid to ride

All of this came out recently in a couple of a r t i c l e s i n t h e N e w Y o r k T i m e s T h e y repor ted that 48 percent of MTA bus riders a r e n o t p a y i n g t h e i r f a r e s I t w a s a l s o repor ted that 14 percent of subway riders a re a l s o e v a d i n g p a y i n g t o r i d e T h e p e rcentage ﬁgure is less for the subway pass e n g e r s b e c a u s e o f g a t e s a n d t u r n s t i l e s block access

This amounts to an annual loss of $315 million because of bus fare evasion and $285 million annually because of subway fare evasion The total is $600 million annually Peop l e o p p o s e d t o t h e C o n g e s t i o n P r i c i n g scheme point out that those who do not ride t h e M TA s h o u l d n o t b e f o r c e d t o p a y f o r those who do ride and do not pay

The Curious Coachowner

The New York Times further pointed out that fare evasion in New York City is substantially higher than in other major cities around the world The fare evasion rate is 11 percent in Paris and only ﬁve percent in Toronto – a city known for supporting public transportation London has fare evasion ﬁnes exceeding $ 1 , 0 0 0 a n d h e n c e o n l y

fare evasion rate

Worse yet, violent crime has increased on t h e M

new coach deliveries to operators in the UK

There was a concern because the previous deliver y of a Van Hool coach was back in August It now appears that new Van Hool coach deliveries to UK operators restar ted in September Included are several EX models as well as a T15 Alicron There were sugg e s

coaches were expected to be retained by VDL than was originally anticipated

This is obviously an ongoing stor y and we will continue to repor t as more infor mation becomes available

Hence, the question has been coming up

fare evasion and safety concer ns before it looks to Congestion Pricing and money from outsiders to subsidize this mess

Q Where did Peter Pantuso go after retiring from the American Bus Association?

–– Northeast Operator

A We have received infor mation that Peter Pantuso has founded Pantuso Advisors and Pantuso Holdings in Washington, D C The c o m p

g services to small businesses who are striving to enhance their customer base, improve i n

d improve overall performance The company has par tnerships in multiple travel and tour companies and in commercial construction

Q. Has any decision been made on what Van Hool models VDL will retain in production?

–– Several Readers

A While we have not seen anything ofﬁcial from VDL yet, and available information suggests that VDL management is still pondering this very question, there have been some developments in the UK

As expected, it appears that any deposits paid to the Van Hool company when ordering new coaches have been lost However, t h e re i s a s u g g e s t i o n t h a t s o m e Va n H o o l assets may still remain in the hands of the cour t-appointed Van Hool curators

Earlier, there was a concern that VDL would limit ongoing production to only the coaches being expor ted to the United States and to

Q What happened to the bus terminals l e a s e d b y C o a c h U S A f o l l

bankruptcy?

–– Reader in New York

A We have tracked down a notice from A&G R e a l E s t a t

would auction off eight bus ter minal leases with a bid deadline of August 28

The eight locations are: Bakersﬁeld, California; Landover, Maryland; Paulsboro, Eliza b e t h , N e w J e r s e y ; C o l u m b i a n a , O h i o ; Fairview, Pennsylvania as well as Austin and Houston, Texas

Q Has anyone been watching the ﬁnanc i a l s t a t u s o f V D L a f t e r a c q u i r i n g t h e bankrupt Van Hool?

–– Midwest Operator

A O n e i n d u s t r y s o u r c e s a y s t h a t V D L tur nover for the ﬁrst half of 2024 was lower than compared with Januar y through June 2023 Even 2023 was bad for VDL because the bus & coach division sales had dropped by 33 percent At least par t of the problem was their Nedcar operation that builds autmobiles under contract and is the largest a u t o

re still building Mitsubishi cars but their contract with BMW has ended Tu r n o v e r i n t h e f i r s t s i x m o n t h s o f 2 0 2 4 w a s 2 1 b i l l

are provided by Larry Plachno q

send in photographs of buses or equipment that may be of special interest to our readers. Please, include a list explaining what makes the pictured item different, unusual or interesting.

photo. Picture usage

Prevost celebrated its 100th anniversary in mid-September with events in Q

activities

Left: Most of the Prevost anniversary a

where the company was founded by Eugene Prévost. Prevost owners, cus-

join the party and inspect the Prevost factory. B

City to celebrate Prevost’s anniversary

clubs geared to Prevost motor homes. The event lasted a week and included a trip to the Prevost factory in SainteClaire.

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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

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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

s , propane generator, exhaust brake Always stored indoors

Asking $15,000 Contact Dallas in MI at (269) 591-2564 I 1956 Flxible coach – old conversion Phone (802) 9482886 in VT for details I

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

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.