Bus manufacturing , a sector of the automotive industry , manufactures buses and coaches .
68-622: The East Lancs OmniTown was a low-floor midibus body sold in the United Kingdom by East Lancs and Scania . It used the Scania N94UB chassis, which is the single-decker version of the N94UD double-decker chassis, with East Lancashire Coachbuilders bodywork. It is sometimes mistakenly referred to as the OmniTown chassis. The confusion concerning the chassis, and indeed the buses, arises due to
136-598: A basic dual-purpose fitment. In past double-deck designs, buses were built to a low-bridge design , due to overall height restrictions. Bus manufacturers have to have consideration for some general issues common to body, chassis or integral builders. In the 1990s onwards, some bus manufacturers have moved towards making transit bus interiors more comparable to private cars, to encourage public transport ridership. Other additions have seen multimedia and passenger information systems , and CCTV systems. With these developments, bus designs have been increasing in weight, which
204-402: A bus builder may be required to refit them into the new owners preferred configuration. This can include adding or removing doors, or changing the destination display equipment to or from LED, dot-matrix, or roller blind types. Some operators will rebuild a buses bodywork after superficial crash damage, or a bridge strike , again leading to odd one-off looking buses where the standard bodywork
272-407: A bus deck that is accessible from the sidewalk with only a single step with a small height difference, caused solely by the difference between the bus deck and sidewalk. This is distinct from high-floor , a bus deck design that requires climbing one or more steps (now known as step entrance) to access the interior floor that is placed at a higher height. Being low-floor improves the accessibility of
340-478: A chassis and body builder will offer an exclusive combination of one body on one chassis, as a 'semi-integral'. This combines the expertise of the two companies, and saves the cost of making their chassis/body usable on different products. Often builders, such as Duple Metsec will assemble products into kits, for export and local assembly at a partner site. Large users of transit buses , such as public transport authorities, may order special features. This practice
408-765: A high floor bus where the floor is flat in order to align with the high platforms in certain Bus Rapid Transit systems. Thereby, referring to it as a non-step high floor bus. The Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) mandates the use of low-floor or low-entry buses on city bus routes in the Philippines since 2016. Low-floor buses are used on city bus networks in Metro Manila , Metro Cebu and Davao City , and on some provincial routes, and most Point-to-Point Bus services, although older coaches are still largely used for such services. Buses used on
476-546: A low floor height by making rear-engined rear-wheel drive buses with independent front suspension , so that no axle is needed to pass under the floor of the front part of passenger compartment, or a lowered front axle. Some full low-floor buses also have a lowered rear axle, while the rear axle is not an issue on a low-entry bus. Many low-floor buses, including the Irisbus Citelis (also in Skoda 24Tr trolleybus version), have
544-454: A low floor, can provide a nearly level entry. An implementation of the low floor design exists in Australia where custom coaches make a "hybrid" variant of its CB60 bodywork. These buses combine a smaller low floor area with a small underfloor bin for some luggage. Whilst these buses do not provide a full amount of luggage space, they can be used to house more luggage than what can be held inside
612-457: A low-floor bus "no-step bus (ノーステップバス)". At Enshu Railway Company in Hamamatsu Area, a low-floor bus is called "omnibus (オムニバス)", " cho-teisho bus (超低床バス; very low-floor bus)" and " cho-teisho omnibus (超低床オムニバス; very low-floor omnibus)". Japanese government calls a low-floor bus " cho-teisho non-step bus (超低床ノンステップバス; very low-floor non-step bus)". The term non-step bus may also refer to
680-745: A low-floor design. A small number of higher capacity articulated low-floor buses are used to service the city's southern busways. In Sydney , routes may be operated by both high-floor buses and low-entry ones. Selected routes can be set aside specifically for low-entry buses which are considered to be wheelchair-accessible routes. A recent all-low-entry bus network is the Metrobus system. Bus manufacturer Bus manufacturing had its earliest origins in carriage building. Other bus manufacturers had their origins in truck manufacturing. Historically, chassis designs were shared between trucks and buses, but in later years specific bus chassis have been developed, and
748-613: A more comfortable ride on rough roads. Some manufacturers use the initials LF or L in their model designations for fully low-floor models (or in the case of German manufacturers, NF or N , based on the German word Niederflur , which means low floor), and in North America buses that are partially low-floor are often also designated LF. In some countries, LE , short for Low Entry , is used by some manufacturers in their model designations for low-entry buses. Most bus manufacturers achieve
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#1732859012217816-515: A preference for high floor buses. Although New York City Transit runs some 40-foot low-floors, it originally refused to order low-floor buses, namely D60LFs from New Flyer , after the D60HF, a high floor model, was discontinued mid-delivery. However, they have demonstrated both the D60LF and NovaBus LFSA, the latter of which they have decided to order. Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation Bangalore
884-485: A result, many of such buses require electronically controlled air suspension to compensate the lopsided configuration. Low-floor buses usually include an area without seating (or seating that folds up) next to at least one of the doors, where wheelchairs , walkers , strollers/prams, and where allowed even bicycles, can be parked. This is sometimes not the only purpose of this area, though, as many operators employ larger standee areas for high occupancy at peak times. Despite
952-824: Is a concern for operators with the rising price of fuels in the 2000s (decade). Specialist builders may also produce bodies for executive , sleeper bus , tour bus , airport bus , or school bus uses, with special features for these uses. Builders may also adapt standard designs for these uses, and especially for paratransit use. In Israel , due to terrorist attacks on buses, general bus builders have developed armoured buses , and are investigating controlled boarding systems. Armoured buses are also used for prisoner transport . Several manufacturers and operators have invested in articulated bus designs, and even bi-articulated buses , to increase capacity without using two decks. The use of different body and chassis manufacturers can mean one bus can have up to four identifying badges –
1020-662: Is a very low or non-existent availability of high-floor electric buses. The majority of standard and truncated vehicles were and are the Caio Millennium and Millennium BRT "toco" models, on Mercedes-Benz O500U, Scania K270 and K310, Volvo B7RLE and B290RLE and Volkswagen 17.240 and 17.260 chassis. For articulated vehicles, Caio Mondego HA and Millennium BRT vehicles with Mercedes-Benz O500UA and O500UDA chassis were and are used. The Biarticulates were made with Caio TopBus PB and Millennium BRT TopBus bodies on Volvo B360S and B9Salf chassis. In Brisbane , all Translink buses are of
1088-415: Is more expensive for the operator, and only attractive for regular busy scheduled routes. For infrequent routes or routes with hail and ride sections, or demand responsive transport , raised curbs would only be feasible in terminuses . Some transit agencies refused to order low-floor buses altogether, such as New Jersey Transit and MUNI owing to terrain conditions in the service area. DART still has
1156-462: Is one of the first cities in India that introduced Low Floor buses. The Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation, BMTC operates many services using the premium Volvo 8400LE Low-floor buses. These buses are air-conditioned, and offer features such as automatic transmission, kneeling and wheel-chair ramp, typical of modern city buses. They are also fitted with LED display boards as well as ITS to announce
1224-693: The Den Oudsten B85/B86 [ nl ] . Other competitors followed suit, with the Orion VI (1995), Nova Bus LF Series (1996, also derived from the Den Oudsten B85), Gillig Low Floor (1997, derived from a shuttle bus design for the Hertz rental car agency), and Neoplan AN440L (1990/94/99). By 2008, most new bus orders in the United States were for low-floor buses. In the capital of this country,
1292-860: The EDSA Busway are usually equipped with 1-2 doors on the left side for boarding at the median stations, although not all units currently have them installed. Low-floor buses often use upholstered coach-style seating in a 2-3, or 2-2 configuration, although plastic seats may be found in some buses. Low-floor wheelchair-accessible buses were first introduced in Singapore in 2006 with 150 Volvo B9TL CDGE buses procured by SBS Transit . These buses were registered SBS7300P - SBS7499A. Volvo B9TL CDGE buses were fully retired in 2023. In 2007, SBS Transit procured 1101 units of low-entry Scania K230UB buses bodied by Gemilang Coachworks of Senai , Malaysia . Afterwards, all new city buses procured by SBS Transit, SMRT Buses and
1360-549: The Land Transport Authority are low-floor. Low-floor buses are first adopted in Germany in 1989, and to make them easier to use for wheelchairs and strollers, the minimum ground clearance of the entire vehicle is lowered and the floor is proportionately raised by 30 centimetres (12 in) above the road surface. The Dennis Dart SLF (Super Low Floor) marked the wholesale introduction of single-deck low floor buses in
1428-579: The OmniDekka , was built by East Lancs but received front and rear panels from Scania, to match the OmniCity / OmniDekka . The body only differed from the East Lancs Myllennium in terms of the front and rear panels. In 2006, the OmniTown could temporarily be ordered with modified Esteem front and rear panels. This version is currently operating with Metrobus and Plymouth Citybus . The central part of
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#17328590122171496-399: The midibus introduced a lighter weight bus chassis than normal trucks. Bus manufacture historically developed as chassis and body builds . Often, large bus operators or authorities would maintain separate stocks of bus bodies, and would routinely refurbish buses in a central works , and refurbished chassis might receive a different body. One of the first integral type bus designs combining
1564-527: The seating capacity within legal size constraints, the trend is now towards rear- and mid-engined designs due to the lack of need for a transmission tunnel. In the 1990s, bus manufacture underwent major change with the push toward low-floor designs, for improved accessibility . Some smaller designs achieved this by moving the door behind the front wheels. On most larger buses, it was achieved with various independent front suspension arrangements, and kneeling technology, to allow an unobstructed path into
1632-607: The AC volvo bus and MW series are served by the Tata Marcopolo buses operated by WBSTC. AC Marcopolo buses serve the MH series route operated by WBHIDCO and the MB series route operated by BHBL. Calcutta State Transport Corporation (CSTC) also run AC Volvo Bus & Ashok Leylan JanBus. In Japan , a low-floor bus is called "non-step bus (ノンステップバス)". Mitsubishi Fuso Truck and Bus Corporation used to calling
1700-772: The Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, since 1997 the legislation governs that all buses of lines of "national" jurisdiction (bus lines that circulate within the capital district and/or cross from here to the suburbs). The first low-floor bus produced in Argentina and marketed in this country was the El Detalle OA105, and the first low-floor bus imported by Argentina was the Marcopolo Torino GV Low-Entry brought from Brazil in 1998. Within Paraguay's public transit system, it
1768-524: The Scania badges were added the following year. Mayne of Manchester also bought two Scania N94UBs with East Lancs Myllennium bodies in 2004. After the acquisition of its bus business by Stagecoach , they were renumbered 28506 (YN53GFJ) and 28507 (YN53PCV). The first batch of OmniTowns with a different bodywork style to appear in the United Kingdom were delivered to Nottingham City Transport in 2004 for use on tram feeder services. The bodywork, in common with
1836-488: The United Kingdom in 1995, after many small-scale demonstrator usages. Low floor buses were rapidly introduced on high-profile routes, notably becoming a requirement for London Buses contracts. The Optare Solo introduced in 1997 marked another step change with inroads into smaller usages traditionally served by minibuses . The final phase came with low floor double-deckers the Dennis Trident 2 and Volvo B7TL entering
1904-874: The WBSTC. These buses connects places like the Kolkata Airport , Barasat (Capital Town of North Suburb), New Town , Salt Lake , Howrah , Santragachi (a station on the Howrah-Kharagpur railway line), Kudghat and Tollygunge . The road network in Kolkata is vast. Under Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission, air conditioned buses have been included as a part of travel comfort to commuters. Air-conditioned buses are operated by West Bengal Surface Transport Corporation (WBSTC) directly & through outsourcing. These buses are served by Tata Marcopolo Buses and Volvo Low Floor Buses. The V Series and VS series bus routes are served by
1972-540: The above, offering chassis only or integral buses, or offering bodywork only as used on integral buses. The splitting of body and chassis construction allows companies to specialise in two different fields. It also allows differing offerings of product to customers, who might prefer different chassis/body combinations. For the manufacturers, it lessens the exposure if one or the other goes out of business. Larger operators may also split orders between different body/chassis combinations for shorter delivery schedules. Sometimes,
2040-498: The body and chassis was the AEC Routemaster . In the 1980s, many minibuses were built by applying bus bodies to van chassis, so called van-derived buses. Many of these have been replaced by purpose-built designs, although for smaller minibuses this is still an option. In several parts of the world, the bus is still a basic chassis, front-engined, rear-wheel-drive vehicle; however, where manufacturers have sought to maximise
2108-496: The body onto the chassis. This will involve major consideration of: Bodywork is built for three general uses: Bus bodywork is usually geared to short trips, with many transit bus features. Coach bodywork is for longer-distance trips, with luggage racks and under-floor lockers. Other facilities may include toilets and televisions. A dual-purpose design is usually a bus body with upgraded coach-style seating, for longer-distance travel. Some coach-body designs can also be available to
East Lancs OmniTown - Misplaced Pages Continue
2176-405: The bodywork was the same as the OmniTown. Low-floor bus A low-floor bus is a bus or trolleybus that has no steps between the ground and the floor of the bus at one or more entrances, and low floor for part or all of the passenger cabin. A bus with a partial low floor may also be referred to as a low-entry bus or seldom a flat-floor bus in some locations. Low floor refers to
2244-456: The bus for the public, particularly the elderly and people with disabilities , including those using wheelchairs and walkers . Almost all are rear-engine, rear-wheel-drive layout . Low-floor buses are generally divided into two major types: fully low-floor buses with a low floor throughout the length of the bus (more popular in Europe ), and low-entry buses with step-free access to only a part of
2312-526: The bus itself. Another drawback is the arrangement means the section of the bus that is at curb height is very short—consisting of enough space to house the wheelchair area and then rising up, to accommodate the luggage bin. These buses also lack the ability to have a center door. Many bus rapid transit systems employ a level boarding by using high-floor buses stopping at "station" style bus stops. Specially raised sections of curb may also be used to achieve accessibility with lesser low floor models, although this
2380-480: The bus, most commonly between the front door and the middle door (more popular in North America). In North America, both types are commonly called low-floor, as the majority of the vehicle has a low floor, without steps at the doors. The main reason for choosing a low-entry configuration is to allow better placement for the powertrain and other technical equipment in the raised floor section, in addition to allowing
2448-514: The case where identical bodywork is applied to different chassis. This is sometimes truly identical, or only different in minor details. Mid-engined chassis designs are often identifiable by a mid mounted radiator and exhaust. Radically different bus company liveries can cause problems in the application of a livery to a specific design. Many operators will apply a corporate design in the same way to any bus, leading to some odd sight lines. Some operators are more sympathetic, and tailor their liveries to
2516-436: The chassis maker and model, and the bodywork maker and model, making non-expert recognition difficult compared to the identification of other vehicles, such as cars. Operators may also paint over, or completely remove, badges. Several bus companies have changed ownership and name many times, leading to the same bus design receiving many different name badges, most notably Transbus International . A further confusion can arise in
2584-536: The city center. Low-floor buses have become popular on the Structural and Regional Articulation lines, and have been a mandatory model to be purchased for these since 2015. Until then, exceptions for local lines with low-floor buses were rare, but this has been changing since 2019 and especially since 2023. In 2023, the city banned the purchase of new diesel buses. With the mandatory use of electric buses, new buses on local lines are also being made with low floors, as there
2652-514: The complexity of the OmniTown's and other Scania products' histories. A batch of N94UB chassis were bodied by East Lancs . In early 2002, receiving the Myllennium style of bodywork, as fitted to DAF SB220 and Dennis Dart SLF chassis. These were delivered to London Easylink , then were transferred to East Thames Buses as the ELS class, and were, in essence, OmniTowns, but lacked the Scania identity,
2720-499: The conventional buses. A revamp plan is underway to improve bus-shelters in the city and to integrate GPS systems in DTC buses and bus stops so as to provide reliable information about bus arrivals. The Delhi Government decided to expedite this process and procured 6,600 low floor buses for the DTC before commonwealth games in 2010. Kolkata has an extensive network of government run buses. Recently air-conditioned buses have been introduced by
2788-433: The curb the bus is parked and wheelchair design, this can allow wheelchair users to board unaided. Though such technology has been available and in use on high-floor buses since the 1970s, it is of significant utility on low-floor vehicles only where it enables less-mobile passengers to board and leave the vehicle without help from others. Many vehicles are also equipped with wheel-chair lifts, or ramps which, when combined with
East Lancs OmniTown - Misplaced Pages Continue
2856-405: The door and between the front wheel arches. Accordingly, these 'extreme front entrance' designs cannot feature a front-mounted-engined or mid-engined layout, and all use a rear-engined arrangement. Some designs also incorporate extendable ramps for wheelchair access. Further accessibility is being achieved for high-floor coaches, whereby new designs are featuring built-in wheelchair lifts . While
2924-628: The ease of replacement of consumable items, such as bulbs, and easily damaged parts, such as the lower panels of the body, or windows. This is to maximise the time in service for its buses, although now builders will offer whole life servicing contracts. Operators may also make decisions on a particular bus type or components based on the particular terrain operated in. Some hillier areas may select different powertrain options. Areas with many low bridges may have more single-deckers than double-deckers. Operators in humid climates may select air-conditioning as standard. A particular difficulty with double-deckers
2992-456: The end of 2005, 10 years ahead of the national requirement. London was one of the first major cities in the world to have a fully accessible bus fleet. Due to the deregulated nature of the public transport system in the UK, adoption of the higher cost low floor buses was usually in conjunction with some sort of grant or quality partnership with a local authority , as the profitability of many routes
3060-446: The enforced sale of non-compliant existing vehicles, allowing operators to retain a high floor vehicle until "the end of their economic life". In reality, as the prevalence of low floor buses spreads, combined with grants/incentives, it is likely that the prevalence of high floor vehicles in the national fleet will markedly reduce before all buses were de-registered by 27 October 2014. In the past, in times of reduced economic investment, it
3128-420: The engine in a vertical cabinet at the rear of the bus. Van Hool have a series of "side-engine mid-drive" buses that puts the engine off to one side of the cabin longitudinally between the first and the second axle, to maximize usable cabin space. The same concept was also utilized by Volvo on their B9S articulated chassis. For smaller buses, such as midibuses , the low-floor capability is achieved by placing
3196-525: The fitment of special lifts. The inception of small low-floor buses has allowed the development of several accessible demand-responsive transport schemes using standard 'off-the-shelf' buses. A disadvantage of the low floor is accommodating the bus's own wheels. With the low floor, the wheels protrude into the passenger cabin, and need to be contained in wheel pockets of waist height, and this occupies space which would otherwise be used for seating. To allow space for technical equipment, many low-floor buses have
3264-479: The front wheels ahead of the entrance. One of the last types of buses to gain low-floor accessibility as standard was the minibus , where a similar front-wheel arrangement allows around 12 seats and a wheelchair space to be accommodated in very small low-floor minibuses , such as the Optare Alero and Hino Poncho . Accessibility was previously achieved in paratransit type applications, which use small vehicles with
3332-739: The halts. The corporation also had tried Mercedes-Benz Low-Floor buses as well as Ashok Leyland ULE coaches, but chose to stick to the Volvo offering. In order to keep the bus ticket prices low, the BMTC operates the majority of their services using Non-Airconditioned Semi-Low Floor (SLF) buses that have a floor height of 650mm as against the 400mm floor height of the true Low-Floor buses. These buses are from Ashok Leyland and Tata Motors, with future procurements planned to be from Eicher (VECV). These cheaper alternative to low-floor buses do not have kneeling or wheel-chair accessible ramps, but they have air suspension and use
3400-402: The lack of steps, studies have found the opposite effect in the UK. This is apparently due to the prevailing system of operation where passengers enter and exit through one single front door. It has been suggested that the previous 1980s/90s high floor step entrance buses which featured a centre rail, encouraged a bi-directional flow of entering and exiting passengers simultaneously. The removal of
3468-476: The mass market, even though they were introduced after the Optare Spectra . London Buses was one of the earliest major users of low-floor buses, with the first low-floor single decker vehicles entering service in 1993 and the first low-floor double decker vehicles entering service in 1998. Following withdrawal of older, high-floor vehicles such as the AEC Routemaster , the bus fleet became fully accessible at
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#17328590122173536-405: The overwhelming majority of bus designs have been geared to internal combustion engine propulsion, accommodation has also been made for a variety of alternative drivelines and fuels, as in electric , fuel cell and hybrid bus technologies. Some bus designs have also incorporated guidance technology. There are three basic types of bus manufacturer: Manufacturers may also be a combination of
3604-436: The pole to allow wheelchair/buggy access created the situation where the quintessentially polite British bus passenger would wait for all passengers to alight before boarding, leading to an increase in dwell times . Moscow was the first city to introduce low floor as the compulsory requirement for the suppliers of the city buses. By 2005 a few hundreds of low-floor buses started intra-metropolitan service. At first, PAZ-3237
3672-590: The radiator at the front, irrespective of engine position, for more efficient cooling. Chassis products will often be available in different standard lengths, even produced in articulated variants , and often be used for both bus and coach bodywork, such as the Volvo B10M . The same chassis may even be used for single- or double-decker bus bodywork. Chassis builders may also offer different options for gearbox and engine suppliers. Chassis may also be built in multiple-axle configuration . The bus body builder will build
3740-501: The rear end of the bus. The same applies to trolley buses that are mostly of low-floor design. Other cities that use low-floor buses on the regular routes are Kazan , Sochi , Tyumen , Pskov and more. Most of these vehicles are domestically manufactured by LiAZ , GAZ , KAMAZ and Volgabus . In the United States, the Americans with Disabilities Act is credited with motivating the development of low-floor buses, directly affecting
3808-408: The regions to the center, or connect two large terminals of two regions passing through the center Regional Articulation, which connect distant neighborhoods to the center without passing through large terminals, or connect two distant neighborhoods passing through important regions. Locations/distributors, which connect neighborhoods to large terminals or stations. None of these lines pass through
3876-566: The same or better seats as those found in the Volvo buses. They also feature manual transmission as against automatic transmission With the introduction of Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) and the development of dedicated corridors for the service, bus service is set to improve. The Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) has started introducing air-conditioned buses and brand new low-floor buses (with floor height of 400 mm (15.75 in) and even higher on one third area as against 230 mm (9.06 in) available internationally) on city streets to replace
3944-539: The same year, the first low floor bus specification was drafted by DPTAC. The Disability Discrimination Act 1995 provided for the completion of the Public Service Vehicles Accessibility Regulations 2000, which specified that all new public service vehicles over 22 seats should be low floor from 31 December 2000, with smaller vehicles mandated from 1 January 2005. The 2000 regulations do not require retro-fitting of pre-existing vehicles or
4012-434: The seats mounted on podiums, making a small step up from the floor, while others are able to mount the seats directly to the floor, avoiding the step. Seating layout for a low-floor bus therefore requires careful design. Low floor configuration is also known to have poor side to side dead load distribution within the chassis due to the asymmetrical off-centre placement of driveline components - mainly engine and transmission. As
4080-405: The space existing, operators may also insist that only one or two wheelchairs or pushchairs can be accommodated unfolded, due to space/safety concerns. Low floors can be complemented by a hydraulic or pneumatic 'kneeling device', which can be used when the bus is not in motion, tilting it or lowering it at the front axle even further, often down to normal curb height. Depending on how close to
4148-466: The specific lines of each bus body design in use. Often, a bus builder will embark on a rebody programme, such as the East Lancs Greenway , where an existing chassis receives a new body to extend the usable life of the bus. Sometimes this is done by a manufacturer on a piecemeal basis, leading to odd one-off designs. Sometimes, when a number of buses change hands, or operator requirements change,
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#17328590122174216-587: The standardized design of the Transbus Program , which concluded with the introduction of so-called 'interim' Advanced Design Buses with a lower floor height but which required lifts to board passengers in wheelchairs. The first low-floor (low-entry) buses to be delivered were the New Flyer Low Floor D40LF, to the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey in 1991. The New Flyer LF was derived from
4284-516: Was not available. Bridge strike buses are often converted to open top buses , or into single-decker bus . Older buses are often converted to shunters , tow trucks , tree-loppers, training buses, or canteens. Often, large operators with different types of buses will settle on a standard bus design for their fleet, to produce savings in maintenance and driver training. These operators may either sell off non-standard types, or consolidate them in one operating location. Operators are often concerned with
4352-550: Was not high enough to justify conversion based purely on increased revenue. It has been reported however that adoption of so-called Easy Access buses does have a positive effect of ridership and revenue levels. Under the Transport Act 1985 the Disabled Persons Transport Advisory Committee (DPTAC) (or commonly DiPTAC) was established to provide independent consultation on accessibility issues. In
4420-439: Was not uncommon for service buses to be used for 15 to 20 years. While some coaches have been produced with a small front low floor section at the driver's level, most coaches in the UK are being made accessible through the use of wheelchair lifts , with the 2005 Caetano Levante being one of the largest introductions. While another widely stated benefit of low floor buses is quicker boarding for able-bodied passengers due to
4488-454: Was not until 2012 that the first low-floor bus in the country were added to its fleet, being a 1999 Marcopolo Viale imported used from Argentina. In São Paulo, low-floor buses began to become popular in the 2000s with the creation of the so-called Sistema Interligado (Interconnected System, in English) which divided bus routes into so-called lines: Structural, which connect the large terminals of
4556-531: Was notable in the Transport for London bus specification, and predecessors. The Association of German Transport Companies was defining a VöV-Standard-Bus concept that was followed between 1968 and 2000. The chassis combines: Chassis will often be built as complete units, up to the point of being drive-able around the factory, or on the public highway to a nearby bodybuilder. The chassis can be front-engined, mid-engined , or rear-engined . Most chassis will mount
4624-527: Was selected for the city centre, while LiAZ-5292 were chosen to serve city outskirts. Later the articulated version of the latter, specifically designed for Moscow, the LiAZ-6213 was introduced. In St.Petersburg the transition to low-floor-only city bus services was completed only by 2021. Besides LiAZ-5292 and LiAZ-6213 and other full low-floor models that account for 85% of the city buses, there are also semi low-floor buses in service, with elevated floor in
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