Bus manufacturing
Encyclopedia
Automotive industry
The automotive industry designs, develops, manufactures, markets, and sells motor vehicles, and is one of the world's most important economic sectors by revenue....
, which carries out the manufacturing
Manufacturing
Manufacturing is the use of machines, tools and labor to produce goods for use or sale. The term may refer to a range of human activity, from handicraft to high tech, but is most commonly applied to industrial production, in which raw materials are transformed into finished goods on a large scale...
of bus
Bus
A bus is a road vehicle designed to carry passengers. Buses can have a capacity as high as 300 passengers. The most common type of bus is the single-decker bus, with larger loads carried by double-decker buses and articulated buses, and smaller loads carried by midibuses and minibuses; coaches are...
es and coaches
Coach (vehicle)
A coach is a large motor vehicle, a type of bus, used for conveying passengers on excursions and on longer distance express coach scheduled transport between cities - or even between countries...
.
History
Carriage
A carriage is a wheeled vehicle for people, usually horse-drawn; litters and sedan chairs are excluded, since they are wheelless vehicles. The carriage is especially designed for private passenger use and for comfort or elegance, though some are also used to transport goods. It may be light,...
building. Other bus manufacturers had their origins in truck
Truck
A truck or lorry is a motor vehicle designed to transport cargo. Trucks vary greatly in size, power, and configuration, with the smallest being mechanically similar to an automobile...
manufacturing. Historically, bus chassis were shared between truck designs, but in later years specific bus chassis have been developed, and the midibus
Midibus
A midibus is a classification of single-decker minibuses which generally are larger than a traditional minibus but smaller than a full-size single decker and can be anywhere between and long...
saw the introduction of a lighter weight bus chassis than normal trucks.
Bus manufacture historically developed as chassis and body builds
Coachwork
Coachwork is the body of a horse-drawn coach or carriage, a motor vehicle , a railroad car or railway carriage. Usually reserved for bodies built on a separate chassis, rather than being of unitary or monocoque construction...
. Often, large bus operators or authorities would maintain separate stocks of bus bodies, and would routinely refurbish buses in a central works
Bus garage
A bus garage or bus depot is a building where buses are stored and maintained. In many conurbations, bus garages are on the site of former car barns or tram sheds, where Streetcars or Trams were stored, and the operation transferred to buses...
, and refurbished chassis might receive a different body. One of the first integral type bus designs combining the body and chassis was the Routemaster
Routemaster
The AEC Routemaster is a model of double-decker bus that was built by Associated Equipment Company in 1954 and produced until 1968. Primarily front-engined, rear open-platform buses, a small number of variants were produced with doors and/or front entrances...
.
In the 1980s, many minibus
Minibus
A minibus or minicoach is a passenger carrying motor vehicle that is designed to carry more people than a multi-purpose vehicle or minivan, but fewer people than a full-size bus. In the United Kingdom, the word "minibus" is used to describe any full-sized passenger carrying van. Minibuses have a...
es were built by applying bus bodies to van
Van
A van is a kind of vehicle used for transporting goods or groups of people.In British English usage, it can be either specially designed or based on a saloon or sedan car, the latter type often including derivatives with open backs...
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
Front-engine design
A front-mounted engine describes the placement of an automobile engine in front of the vehicle passenger compartment.Historically, this designation was used regardless of whether or not the entire engine was behind the front axle line...
bonneted
Hood (vehicle)
The hood or bonnet is the hinged cover over the engine of motor vehicles that allows access to the engine compartment for maintenance and repair. In British terminology, hood refers to a fabric cover over the passenger compartment of the car...
vehicle; however, where manufacturers have sought to maximise the seating capacity
Seating capacity
Seating capacity refers to the number of people who can be seated in a specific space, both in terms of the physical space available, and in terms of limitations set by law. Seating capacity can be used in the description of anything ranging from an automobile that seats two to a stadium that seats...
within legal size constraints, the trend is towards rear-
Rear-engine design
In automobile design, a rear-engine design layout places the engine at the rear of the vehicle. The center of gravity of the engine itself is past the rear axle...
and mid-engined
Mid-engine design
A mid-engine layout describes the placement of an automobile engine between the rear and front axles. Another term for this is mid-ship.-Benefits:The mid-engine layout is typically chosen for its relatively favorable weight distribution...
designs.
In the 1990s
1990s
File:1990s decade montage.png|From left, clockwise: The Hubble Space Telescope floats in space after it was taken up in 1990; American F-16s and F-15s fly over burning oil fields and the USA Lexie in Operation Desert Storm, also known as the 1991 Gulf War; The signing of the Oslo Accords on...
, bus manufacture underwent major change with the push toward low-floor designs, for improved accessibility
Accessibility
Accessibility is a general term used to describe the degree to which a product, device, service, or environment is available to as many people as possible. Accessibility can be viewed as the "ability to access" and benefit from some system or entity...
. Some smaller designs achieved this by moving the door
Vehicle door
A vehicle door is a partition, typically hinged, but sometimes attached by other mechanisms such as tracks, in front of an opening which is used for entering and exiting a vehicle. A vehicle door can be opened to provide access to the opening, or closed to secure it. These doors are similar to...
behind the front wheels. On most larger buses, it was achieved with various independent front suspension
Independent suspension
Independent suspension is a broad term for any automobile suspension system that allows each wheel on the same axle to move vertically independently of each other. This is contrasted with a beam axle, live axle or deDion axle system in which the wheels are linked – movement on one side affects...
arrangements, and kneeling technology, to allow an unobstructed path into 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 lift
Wheelchair lift
A wheelchair lift, also known as a platform lift, is a powered device designed to raise a wheelchair and its occupant in order to overcome a step or similar vertical barrier....
s.
While the overwhelming majority of bus designs have been geared to internal combustion engine
Internal combustion engine
The internal combustion engine is an engine in which the combustion of a fuel occurs with an oxidizer in a combustion chamber. In an internal combustion engine, the expansion of the high-temperature and high -pressure gases produced by combustion apply direct force to some component of the engine...
propulsion, accommodation has also been made for a variety of alternative drivelines and fuels, as in electric
Electric bus
An electric bus is a bus powered by electricity.There are two main electric bus categories:* Non-autonomous electric buses:**The trolleybus is a type of electric bus powered by two overhead electric wires, with electricity being drawn from one wire and returned via the other wire, using two...
, fuel cell
Fuel cell bus
A fuel cell bus is a bus that uses a hydrogen fuel cell as its power source for electrically driven wheels, sometimes augmented in a hybrid fashion with batteries or a supercapacitor....
and hybrid bus technologies. Some bus designs have also incorporated guidance
Guided bus
Guided buses are buses steered for part or all of their route by external means, usually on a dedicated track. This track, which often parallels existing roads, excludes other traffic, permitting the maintenance of reliable schedules on heavily used corridors even during rush hours.Guidance systems...
technology.
Types of construction
- Chassis manufacturer - builds the underframe in a body-on-frameBody-on-frameBody-on-frame is an automobile construction method. Mounting a separate body to a rigid frame that supports the drivetrain was the original method of building automobiles, and its use continues to this day. The original frames were made of wood , but steel ladder frames became common in the 1930s...
type construction - Body manufacturer - builds the coachworkCoachworkCoachwork is the body of a horse-drawn coach or carriage, a motor vehicle , a railroad car or railway carriage. Usually reserved for bodies built on a separate chassis, rather than being of unitary or monocoque construction...
a body-on-frameBody-on-frameBody-on-frame is an automobile construction method. Mounting a separate body to a rigid frame that supports the drivetrain was the original method of building automobiles, and its use continues to this day. The original frames were made of wood , but steel ladder frames became common in the 1930s...
type construction - Integral manufacturer - builds entire buses, often using no underframe at all
Manufacturers may also be a combination of 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, 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
Duple Metsec
Duple Metsec is a former bus bodywork builder based in West Midlands of the United Kingdom, which usually supplied body kits for assembly overseas....
will assemble products into kits, for export and local assembly at a partner site.
Large users of transit bus
Transit bus
A transit bus , also known as a commuter bus, city bus, or public bus, is a bus used for short-distance public transport purposes...
es, such as public transport authorities, may specify specific features that a bus design must feature. This practice was notable in the Transport for London
Transport for London
Transport for London is the local government body responsible for most aspects of the transport system in Greater London in England. Its role is to implement the transport strategy and to manage transport services across London...
bus specification, and predecessors.
Chassis
- A structural underframe
- Engine and radiator
- Gearbox and transmission
- Wheels, axles and suspension
- Dashboard and steering wheel and driver's seat
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
Front-engine design
A front-mounted engine describes the placement of an automobile engine in front of the vehicle passenger compartment.Historically, this designation was used regardless of whether or not the entire engine was behind the front axle line...
, mid-engined
Mid-engine design
A mid-engine layout describes the placement of an automobile engine between the rear and front axles. Another term for this is mid-ship.-Benefits:The mid-engine layout is typically chosen for its relatively favorable weight distribution...
, or rear-engined
Rear-engine design
In automobile design, a rear-engine design layout places the engine at the rear of the vehicle. The center of gravity of the engine itself is past the rear axle...
. Most chassis will mount 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
Articulated bus
An articulated bus is an articulated vehicle used in public transportation. It is usually a single-deck design, and comprises two rigid sections linked by a pivoting joint...
, and often be used for both bus and coach bodywork, such as the Volvo B10M
Volvo B10M
The Volvo B10M is a popular mid-engined bus and coach chassis built by Volvo between 1978 and 2001. It was built as the successor of the B58 and was equipped with a 9.6-litre horizontally-mounted Volvo THD100/THD101/THD102/THD103/THD104/DH10A diesel engine mounted under the floor, near the middle...
. The same chassis may even be used for single-
Single-decker bus
A single-decker bus or single-decker is a bus that has a single deck for passengers. Normally the use of the term single-decker refers to a standard two-axled rigid bus, in direct contrast to the use of the term double-decker bus, which is essentially a single decked bus with an extra deck and...
or double-decker bus
Double-decker bus
A double-decker bus is a bus that has two storeys or 'decks'. Global usage of this type of bus is more common in outer touring than in its intra-urban transportion role. Double-decker buses are also commonly found in certain parts of Europe, Asia, and former British colonies and protectorates...
bodywork. Chassis builders may also offer different options for gearbox and engine suppliers. Chassis may also be built in multiple axle configuration
Multi-axle bus
A multi-axle bus is a bus or coach that has more than the conventional two axles, usually three , or more rarely, four...
.
Bodywork
- Usage
- Seating capacitySeating capacitySeating capacity refers to the number of people who can be seated in a specific space, both in terms of the physical space available, and in terms of limitations set by law. Seating capacity can be used in the description of anything ranging from an automobile that seats two to a stadium that seats...
- Staircase position/design (double-decker busDouble-decker busA double-decker bus is a bus that has two storeys or 'decks'. Global usage of this type of bus is more common in outer touring than in its intra-urban transportion role. Double-decker buses are also commonly found in certain parts of Europe, Asia, and former British colonies and protectorates...
es) - Number and position of doors
Bodywork is built for three general uses:
- Bus
- Dual Purpose
- Coach
Bus bodywork is usually geared to short trips, with many transit bus
Transit bus
A transit bus , also known as a commuter bus, city bus, or public bus, is a bus used for short-distance public transport purposes...
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 exclusive coach body designs can also be available to a basic dual purpose fitment.
In past double-deck designs, buses were built to a low bridge design
Lowbridge double-deck bus
A lowbridge double-deck bus is a double-decker bus which has an asymmetric interior layout, enabling the overall height of the vehicle to be reduced compared to that of a conventional double-decker bus. The upper deck gangway is offset to one side of the vehicle, normally the offside , and is...
, due to overall height restrictions.
General design issues
- Maximum weight (laden and unladenTare weightTare , from the Middle French word tare "wastage in goods, deficiency, imperfection" , from Italian tara, from Arabic tarah, lit. "thing deducted or rejected," from taraha "to reject" weight, sometimes called unladen weight, is the weight of an empty vehicle or container...
) - Stability - often a tilt testTilt testThe Tilt test is a type of safety test that certain government vehicle certification bodies require new vehicle designs to pass before being allowed on the road or rail track....
pass is required - Maximum dimensions - length and width restrictions may apply
- Fuel consumption
- Emissions standards
- AccessibilityAccessibilityAccessibility is a general term used to describe the degree to which a product, device, service, or environment is available to as many people as possible. Accessibility can be viewed as the "ability to access" and benefit from some system or entity...
In the 1990s onwards, some bus manufacturers have moved towards making transit bus
Transit bus
A transit bus , also known as a commuter bus, city bus, or public bus, is a bus used for short-distance public transport purposes...
interiors more comparable to private cars, to encourage public transport
Public transport
Public transport is a shared passenger transportation service which is available for use by the general public, as distinct from modes such as taxicab, car pooling or hired buses which are not shared by strangers without private arrangement.Public transport modes include buses, trolleybuses, trams...
ridership. Other additions have seen multimedia and passenger information
Passenger information
Passenger information is information provided to public transport users about the nature and state of a public transport service, though visual, voice or touchable media...
systems, and CCTV systems. With these developments, bus designs have been increasing in weight, which is a concern for operators with the rising price of fuels in the 2000s.
Specialist builders
Sleeper bus
A sleeper bus is a type of specially adapted coach, often used to transport bands and their technicians and road crew between cities and shows....
, tour bus
Tour bus
A tour bus service is a bus service that takes visitors sightseeing, with routes around tourist attractions. Double-decker buses and/or open top buses are commonly used, for their good views....
, airport bus
Airport bus
An airport bus, or airport shuttle bus or airport shuttle is a bus or coach used to transport people to/from, or within airports. These vehicles will usually be equipped with larger luggage space, and incorporate special branding....
or school bus
School bus
A school bus is a type of bus designed and manufactured for student transport: carrying children and teenagers to and from school and school events...
uses, with special features for these uses. Builders may also adapt standard designs for these uses, and especially for paratransit
Paratransit
Paratransit is an alternative mode of flexible passenger transportation that does not follow fixed routes or schedules. Typically mini-buses are used to provide paratransit service, but also share taxis and jitneys are important providers....
use. In Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
, due to terrorist attacks on buses, general bus builders have developed armoured bus
Armoured bus
An armoured bus or armored bus is a type of bus which provides increased protection for passengers, usually against small arms and improvised explosive devices. The bus can be a stock commercial bus with retro-fitted vehicle armour as well as bulletproof glass, or a specially built military...
es, and are investigating controlled boarding systems. Armoured buses are also used for prisoner transport
Prisoner transport
Prisoner transport describes the transportation of prisoners by land, air and water. It is performed by law enforcement agencies and their armed agents or officers. Handcuffs are often the minimum restraint, however the additional precaution of leg irons is more often taken, particularly if the...
.
Articulated buses
Several manufacturers and operators have invested in articulated busArticulated bus
An articulated bus is an articulated vehicle used in public transportation. It is usually a single-deck design, and comprises two rigid sections linked by a pivoting joint...
designs, and even bi-articulated bus
Bi-articulated bus
A bi-articulated bus or double articulated bus is an extension of an articulated bus in that it has three passenger compartment sections instead of two. This also involves the addition of an extra axle...
es, to increase capacity without using two decks.
Identification
Transport in Malta
The transportation system in Malta is small but extensive, and the islands' domestic system of public transport is reliant on buses and taxis, although there were both a railway and a tramway in the past....
, where the tradition of local modification has seen the wrong marques applied to buses. 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 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 the specific lines of each bus body design in use.
Rebuilds and modifications
East Lancs Greenway
The East Lancs Greenway, or National Greenway, is a type of bus which is rebuilt by East Lancashire Coachbuilders from a Leyland National single-deck bus.-History:...
, 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, a bus builder may be required to refit them into the new owners preferred configuration. This can include adding/removing doors, or changing the destination display equipment
Headsign
A destination sign or destination indicator is a sign mounted on the front or side of a public transport vehicle, such as a bus, tram/streetcar or light rail vehicle, that displays the vehicle's route number and destination, or the route's number and name on transit systems using route names...
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 was not available. Bridge strike buses are often converted to open top bus
Open top bus
An open top bus is a bus, usually but not exclusively a double-decker bus, where all or part of the roof has been removed to enable enjoyment of fresh air and uninterrupted views.-Usage:...
es, or into single-decker bus
Single-decker bus
A single-decker bus or single-decker is a bus that has a single deck for passengers. Normally the use of the term single-decker refers to a standard two-axled rigid bus, in direct contrast to the use of the term double-decker bus, which is essentially a single decked bus with an extra deck and...
. Older buses are often converted to shunters, tow truck
Tow truck
A tow truck is a vehicle used to transport motor vehicles to another location , or to recover vehicles which are no longer on a drivable surface.Towing services are generally provided by an emergency road service operator...
s, tree-loppers, training buses or canteens.
Operator considerations
Operators are often concerned with 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
Powertrain
In a motor vehicle, the term powertrain or powerplant refers to the group of components that generate power and deliver it to the road surface, water, or air. This includes the engine, transmission, drive shafts, differentials, and the final drive...
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 is trees striking the kerb-side top front corner. Manufacturers, or operators - post delivery, may fit a bull bar
Bull bar
A bullbar is a device fitted to the front of a vehicle to protect it and its passengers from damage in a collision with an animal. They vary considerably in size and form, and are usually made of welded steel or aluminium tubing, and, more recently, moulded polycarbonate and polyethylene materials...
type arrangement to protect this part of the bodywork.