®
Insight
The Rapid Grand Rapids, Michigan 2007
D39777 Seat
1940s Turret Gunner
As the region’s public transit authority, The Rapid provides a variety of public transportation services for the Grand Rapids metro area and beyond. It is organized and operates under Michigan Public Act 196 of 1986. The Rapid operates both fixed-route and demand-response services. American Seating introduced the InSight seat to The Rapid in 2007, which became one of the first transit authorities in the United States to purchase and install the bus seat.
The M4 and M7 Medium Tank Seats for Driver, Assistant Driver and Gunner were used in more types of vehicles than any other seat of the time. The flexible seat was readily adaptable to many different locations inside a vehicle.
Innovator ® 850
Los Angeles County Metro Rail Los Angeles, California 2007
The Metro Rail is the rapid-transit rail system serving Los Angeles County. Since opening in 1990, the network now comprises five lines, including two heavy-rail subway lines and three light-rail lines. Altogether, these lines total 79.1 miles (127.3 km) of rail, 70 stations and more than 350,000 weekday boardings. The Metro Rail showcases American Seating’s Innovator 850, a stainless-steel seat that features a vandal-resistant solution for rail seating.
American Seating Transportation Manufacturing Grand Rapids, Michigan 1937
Premier ®
Indian Trails Owosso, Michigan 2009
American Seating entered the transportation seating industry in 1931. Pictured: local transit buses parked on the grounds of the American Seating factory.
Indian Trails, which uses the Premier seat, operates one of the largest and newest fleets of deluxe motorcoaches in Michigan. American Seating introduced the Premier seat in 2009, providing the highest level of safety in belted motorcoach seating.
6463 1973
The company developed the first fiberglass transportation seat with quick-release, replaceable seat cushion inserts.
Vision® 2009
Tubular City Service Bus Seat 1221
Grand Rapids, Michigan 1931
In 2009, American Seating introduced its newest innovation, Vision, the next generation in stainless seating that provides vandal resistance, durability, comfort and style. North American transit agencies that quickly adopted the Vision seat include those in Rhode Island, California and Ottawa (Canada).
American Seating manufactured all-tubular, steel-framed seats for transit buses. This type of seating offered both enhanced comfort and durability. It was the first seat of its kind to be fully upholstered but without exposed fasteners on the seat backs. Much history has taken place in American Seating seats. Most notable: On December 1, 1955, in Montgomery Alabama, the seat Rosa Parks refused to give up was the American Seating City Service Bus Seat 1221, introduced in 1931. Ms. Parks’ action became an important symbol of the modern civil rights movement.
Mobility Aid Securement The Rapid Grand Rapids, Michigan 2009
American Seating leads in the development of mobility aid securement systems. The company’s latest innovation features the industry-leading A.R.M.® and Dual Auto-Lok® remote release systems, allowing both hands to be free to secure the mobility aid. The technology provides the easiest and quickest securement while reducing physical demands on the bus driver.