A bus (contracted from omnibus, with variants multibus, motorbus, autobus, etc.) is a road vehicle that carries significantly more passengers than an average car or van, but less than the average rail transport. It is most commonly used in public transport, but is also in use for charter purposes, or through private ownership. Although the average bus carries between 30 and 100 passengers, some buses have a capacity of up to 300 passengers. The most common type is the single-deckrigid bus, with double-decker and articulated buses carrying larger loads, and midibuses and minibuses carrying smaller loads. Coaches are used for longer-distance services. Many types of buses, such as city transit buses and inter-city coaches, charge a fare. Other types, such as elementary or secondary school buses or shuttle buses within a post-secondary education campus, are free. In many jurisdictions, bus drivers require a special large vehicle licence above and beyond a regular driving licence.
The Q111, Q113, and Q114bus routes constitute a public transit line between the Jamaica and Far Rockaway neighborhoods of Queens, New York City, running primarily along Guy R. Brewer Boulevard. The Q113 and Q114 provide limited-stop service between Jamaica and Far Rockaway, connecting two major bus-subway hubs, and crossing into Nassau County. The Q111 provides local service exclusively within Queens, with the exception of select rush-hour trips to or from Cedarhurst in Nassau County. Some of the last bus routes to be privately operated in the city, they are currently operated by the MTA Bus Company brand of MTA Regional Bus Operations. The Q113 and Q114 are one of the few public transit options between the Rockaway peninsula and "mainland" New York City.
The corridor was originally a streetcar line that began operation in 1897, referred to as the Far Rockaway line, Jamaica−Far Rockaway line, Far Rockaway−Jamaica line or Jamaica and Far Rockaway line. In 1933, the railroad company reorganized as Jamaica Buses and began operating buses (the predecessor to the Q113) along the route under a franchise with New York City. The Q111 and Q113 would be operated under a subsidy of the New York City Department of Transportation (NYCDOT) until January 2006, when Jamaica Buses was absorbed by the MTA Bus Company. On August 31, 2014, the Q114 was split from the Q113 to provide additional limited-stop service. (Full article...)
A school bus is any type of bus owned, leased, contracted to, or operated by a school or school district. It is regularly used to transport students to and from school or school-related activities, but not including a charter bus or transit bus. Various configurations of school buses are used worldwide; the most iconic examples are the yellow school buses of the United States which are also found in other parts of the world.
In North America, school buses are purpose-built vehicles distinguished from other types of buses by design characteristics mandated by federal and state/provincial regulations. In addition to their distinct paint color (National School Bus Glossy Yellow), school buses are fitted with exterior warning lights (to give them traffic priority) and multiple safety devices. (
Image 41MAN A39 double-deck bus on route 500 in Porto, Portugal (from Double-decker bus)
Image 422009 Volvo 9700HD NG bruck coach from Bussring. In service for Riksteatret, outside their headquarters in Nydalen, Oslo. (from Bruck (vehicle))
Image 50Replica of the Jinghua BK670, a 1970s-1980s front-engined articulated bus model based on Huanghe JN150 trucks, in Beijing (from Articulated bus)
Image 84A typical transit bus in Eindhoven, The Netherlands. The floor at the forward section of the vehicle is low to allow for easy entry and egress. (from Transit bus)
Image 89One of the NAW/Hess articulated trolleybuses delivered to Geneva in 1992, which were among the first production-series low-floor trolleybuses (from Trolleybus)
Image 96In some cities, such as in Singapore, double-decker buses are used, which have more seating capacity than a single-decker bus of equivalent length. (from Transit bus)
Image 97A 1965 Mercedes-Benz LPO 322 Bruck in Karlskrona, Sweden (2005) (from Bus)
Image 101The kerb guide wheel of a guided bus in Mannheim, Germany (from Guided bus)
Image 102Interiors of coaches include many features not found in buses intended for shorter travel. (from Coach (bus))
Image 103A low-floor bus can provide accessibility for wheelchair users and those on personal mobility devices, often through the use of a wheelchair ramp. (from Low-floor bus)
Image 104A retired bus is used for an ambulance bus in Toronto (2014) (from Bus)
Image 113Some coal mines also operate separate trolleybus systems to serve workers. Wuyang Coal Mine in Xiangyuan, Changzhi, Shanxi has the last remaining mine trolleybus system in China. (from Trolleybus)
Image 122CuritibaNeobus bodied bi-articulated Volvo B12M running with 100% biofuel. At 28 metres, it is one of the world's longest buses. Each section features train-like doors for rapid exchange of people. (from Bi-articulated bus)
Image 166Fuso Canter Modern PUV, Philippines (Cab is separate and can be tipped over, unlike most conversions which weld it to the bus box) (from Combination bus)
Image 216A ZiU-9 trolleybus in service in Piraeus, Greece, on the large Athens-area trolleybus system. The Russian-built ZiU-9 (also known as the ZiU-682), introduced in 1972, is the most numerous trolleybus model in history, with more than 45,000 built. In the 2000s it was effectively rendered obsolete by low-floor designs. (from Trolleybus)
Image 261An integral bodywork MCI 102DL3, an intercity bus owned by Greyhound Lines, typical of those used in the 1990s and early 2000s. (from Intercity bus service)
Image 22A Setra S 415 NF of the operator BahnBus Hochstift, in Paderborn bus terminal.
Bus People
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Kathleen Andrews (néeSmith; May 17, 1940 – November 17, 2013) was a British-Canadian bus driver and transport manager. Her pioneering role as the first female Transit Operator, Dispatcher and Manager in Edmonton, Alberta was later commemorated by the city.
Kathleen Smith grew up in Rochdale, Lancashire and migrated to Edmonton aged 14. She graduated from Ross Sheppard Composite High School in 1959. Following a marriage and subsequent divorce, she sought full-time employment to support her family, which led to joining the Edmonton Transit System (ETS) in 1975. She initially fulfilled the role of Bus Information Clerk, before becoming the first female bus driver that May. After three years, she became the first female Bus Dispatcher, and was eventually promoted to manager of Special Service charter buses. She was commended by the council as being the first female in any significant management capacity in the city. She continued to drive school buses after her retirement from ETS in 1998, and died of cancer in November 2013.
In 2014, the city council created the Kathleen Andrews Transit Garage at a cost of $196 million, covering 500,000 square feet of space and accommodating 300 buses and 700 drivers. The garage did not open officially until February 2020. (Read More)
Dame Ann Heron GloagDBE (née Souter; born 10 December 1942) is a Scottish businesswoman, activist, and charity campaigner. She is co-founder of the transport company Stagecoach Group.
According to The Sunday Times Rich List in 2020, Gloag and her brother, Sir Brian Souter, are worth £730 million, a decrease of £145 million from the previous year.
In January 2023, Gloag, with her husband and two other family members, was charged with criminal offences involving human trafficking. She disputes the charges. (Read More)
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Robert R. Kiley (September 16, 1935 – August 9, 2016) was an American public transit planner and supervisor known for his ability to rehabilitate transit systems experiencing serious problems. From 2001 to 2006 he was the initial commissioner of Transport for London, the public organisation that runs and maintains London's public transport network.
Julian Peddle (born November 1954) is an entrepreneur who has worked in the bus industry since the early 1980s, having owned or part-owned numerous bus companies. He spent 11 years as co-owner of Stevensons of Uttoxeter between 1983 and 1994, having previously been its traffic manager. During the late 1990s and early 2000s he ran Status Group, a group of small bus companies spread across England which included BakerBus, Choice Travel and MK Metro. He was a major shareholder in Tellings-Golden Miller and Centrebus Holdings before their sale to Arriva. (Read More)
The same year, Nepal Transport Service also started the first local shuttle between Kathmandu and Patan (Lalitpur), one of the three cities in the Kathmandu Valley. (Read More)
Sir Moir LockheadOBEDHC (born 25 April 1945 in County Durham, England) is an English businessman. He was Chief Executive and Deputy Chairman of UK transport group FirstGroup. Originally a mechanical engineer, he left school (West CornforthSecondary Modern) at 15 to become apprentice mechanic in a bus garage in Darlington, before working for a short period as a management trainee with Tarmac. In 1979, he was appointed Chief Engineer of Glasgow City Transport. He joined Grampian Regional Transport in 1985 as General Manager, and went on to lead the successful employee buy-out as GRT Group.
In 2011, he was appointed Chairman of the Scottish Rugby Union. In 2014, he was re-appointed for a second three-year term. In 2014, he was appointed Chairman of the National Trust for Scotland.
John Greenwood (born 1788, died 1851), transport entrepreneur, was the keeper of a toll-gate in Pendleton on the Manchester to Liverpool turnpike. In 1824 he purchased a horse and a cart with several seats and began an omnibus service, probably the first one in the United Kingdom, between Pendleton and Manchester. His pioneering idea was to offer a service where, unlike with a stagecoach, no prior booking was necessary and the driver would pick up or set down passengers anywhere on request. Later on he added daily services to Buxton, Chester, and Sheffield.
John Greenwood, and a number of competitors, created a network of omnibus services, often acting as feeders to the railways. When he died in 1851 he left a flourishing business to his son, also named John (II) (b. 12 May 1818, d. 21 March 1886), which in that year became the Manchester Carriage Company.
By gestation, and amalgamation, in 1880, this became the Manchester Carriage and Tramways Company, led by John Greenwood (II). Following the council taking control of passenger transport services, in 1903, the residuary operations became The Manchester Carriage Co. (1903) Ltd, led by John Greenwood (III) (b. 1856).