Monday, March 3, 2008

The MC 400 D buses were ordered originally by Greyhound, then rejected.

I have uncovered some information about the MC 400 D buses, or the larger 'Stripers' as some refer to them as, that UTA has been putting into service.

It turns out that this model was ordered by Greayhound Lines, Inc., but at some point Greyhound cancelled the order but these were already built or otherwise in production. So the manufacturer had to get rid of them, and UTA was able to get them 'on the cheap', at a substantial discount.

These buses therefore, were not designed for short-haul use, even within a Metro area. Also there are some serious issues about ADA compliance, as some have recently found that not all generally-used mobility assist equipment will fit properly in them. This includes power scooters and wheelchairs. It takes some 10 minutes to prepare, load/unload a wheelchair/scooter, and finish up afterwards. Most other buses on the fleet you are done with this proceess in usually two minutes.