User-agent: Mediapartners-Google* Disallow: Buses World News: January 2005
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Buses World News

In brief: Worldwide montly news & informations about Buses, Busmakers, Passengers' and the Transport Industry

28.1.05

ECOLOGY - USA - Hybrid buses, closed eyes on

Fort Wayne,IN,USA - Fort Wayne Journal Gazette - Jan. 27, 2005: Indiana’s environmental and transportation leaders should keep a close eye on the cost savings and environmental benefits of new hybrid buses in Indianapolis... On Feb. 1, Indianapolis’ public transportation provider, IndyGo, will add two newly purchased diesel-electric hybrid buses to its fleet. The 38-seat buses are more fuel efficient, quieter and emit less air pollution than traditional diesel buses. The two buses are expected to save IndyGo about $8,000 a year in fuel costs...

SALES - VOLVO's Largest-Ever Bus Order

1,667 Volvo Buses to Chile
PrimeZone (press release), Los Angeles,CA,USA - Jan. 27, 2005: - GOTEBORG, Sweden -- Three operators in Santiago, Chile have placed a joint order for 1,667 buses from Volvo. This is the single largest-ever order for Volvo Buses. The buses will be used in Santiago's new public transportation system that includes dedicated bus lanes... The order is for 1,157 articulated buses, the Volvo B9SALF, and 510 regular buses, the Volvo B7RLE. Three operators are behind the order, namely Subus Chile, Express de Santiago Uno and Inversiones Alsacia...

STUDIES - USA - Creating a new traffic pattern for Downtown

Downtown Adrian traffic study exciting
Adrian,MI,USA - Adrian Daily Telegram - 23/JAN/2005: ... One of the biggest areas of concern is how to allow delivery trucks to continue to drop off goods to businesses without rear entries on Main Street. Currently, the trucks park temporarily in one of the traffic lanes, and traffic moves around them. If some, or all, downtown streets are turned into two-way streets, that can't continue. One of the biggest areas of concern is how to allow delivery trucksto continue to drop off goods to businesses without rear entries on MainStreet. ...

INVESTIGATION - USA - GOVERNMENT investigating Ford trucks

Australia - WDIV-TV Detroit/ Big News Network.com - 28th January, 2005: The US government was investigating Saturday a potential danger in the design of Ford F-150 trucks, reported Saturday...

STUDIES - RUSSIA - Mass Transit Systems and Equipment in Russia

Summary: Overview of Russia's Mass Transit System: Mass transit system's position in the overall passenger transportation - October 2003 --Table 1: Passengers Transported by All Means of Transport (million passengers) Growth of the Private Sector in Mass Transit

Transport STUDIES - INTERNATIONAL MARKET RESEARCH REPORTS

INTERNATIONAL BUSSINESS STRATEGIES: Examples: -- Bus and Bus Equipment in Spain / June 2003 -- Equipment for Intermodal Terminals in Mexico / January 2003 -- Intelligent Transport Systems in Hong Kong / September 2002 -- Intelligent Transportation Equipment in Taiwan / May 2004 -- Intelligent Transportation System (ITS) Market in Korea / September 2003

SALES - DaimlerChrysler hits truck sales record

FRANKFURT, Germany - Today's Trucking - Jan. 27, 2005: DaimlerChrysler is reporting a company record for commercial vehicle sales in 2004... The German-U.S. automotive giant, which is the parent company of Freightliner LLC in North America says a booming global freight market boosted commercial truck sales 42 per cent to a record 712,200 units last year... DaimlerChrysler Mercedes-Benz truck business in Europe and Latin America boosted sales 24 per cent to some 137,400 units with the rollout of the second-generation Actros truck, its flagship. In North America Freightliner trucks increased sales 28 per cent to 152,400 vehicles.

OPINION - CANADA - Where the good drivers are ?

CANADA - Today's Trucking, by Rolf Lockwood - Jan/2005: You're never very deep in a conversation about this industry before somebody brings up the infamous “driver shortage” that's supposedly going to be the undoing of us all... The Canadian Trucking Human Resources Council is eager to point out that we're going to need something on the order of 37,000 new drivers every year and that between 18,000 and 22,000 drivers will switch to other jobs at the same rate...

TECHNOLOGY - USA - Online driver training

USA - eTrucker - Jan/2005: Wichita Area Technical College has created a distance-learning course for commercial truck drivers who need to prepare for and complete new federal training requirements... The New Entry-Level Driver Requirements program was developed in response to updated FMCA federal regulations for commercial truck drivers. These updates include hours of service, driver qualifications, driver wellness, and whistleblower regulations.

STUDIES - RUSSIA - Mass Transit Systems and Equipment in Russia

Summary: Overview of Russia's Mass Transit System: Mass transit system's position in the overall passenger transportation - October 2003 --Table 1: Passengers Transported by All Means of Transport (million passengers) Growth of the Private Sector in Mass Transit

25.1.05

TECHNECOLOGY - GM, Shell Bringing Fuel Cell Vehicles and Fueling to NY

USA -Green Car Congress -Jan,24,2005: On Thursday of this week, GM and Shell will announce their plans to bring fuel cell vehicles and hydrogen refueling to New York... GM will provide approximately 40 fuel cell-powered minivans and fuel cell-powered SUVs to the state of New York and Shell Oil will develop hydrogen refueling capabilities...The scale of the demonstration... which include: Fleets building up to 100 vehicles and beyond -- Fueled from mini-networks of 4-6 integrated hydrogen/gasoline stations
http://www.greencarcongress.com/2005/01/gm_shell_bringi.html

TECHNECOLOGY - USA - Prototype Bioreactor for Hydrogen Production

USA -Green Car Congress -Jan,19,2005: Infectech, a Pennsylvania biotech company, is developing a prototype bioreactor to produce hydrogen with the Department of Environmental Science and Engineering of Gannon University in Erie, PA.... is diversifying into technologies for the production of alternative sources of fuel and the remediation of toxic materials... There are two basic approaches to the microbial production of hydrogen: fermentative and photosynthetic...
http://www.greencarcongress.com/2005/01/prototype_biore.html

TECHNECOLOGY - USA - MACK Landfill Gas to LNG for Garbage Trucks

USA -Green Car Congress -Jan,20,2005: Mack Trucks and Acrion are wrapping up a program testing the conversion of Landfill Gas (LFG) to LNG to fuel garbage trucks... serving a landfill operation could be run on fuel made from LFG produced inside the landfill itself... Converting a 12-year-old diesel... reductions of up to 90% for particulate matter, 70% for NOx, and 80% for non-methane hydrocarbons... The key to the system is Acrion’s clever CO2 wash process...
http://www.greencarcongress.com/2005/01/land_fill_gas_t.html

24.1.05

TECHNOLOGIES - USA - WIRELESS: The New Generation

USA -Fleet Owner(subscription),by JIM MELE -Jan,1,2005: EV-DO, EDGE, GPRS, 1XRTT, UMTS, 3G, 4G, CDMA, GSM, iDEN — it's called wireless communications, but sometimes it seems more like a Tower of Babel than a cell tower... The problem for trucking is that wireless communications is well established as an essential tool. If you aren't using some type of wireless system to manage your fleet, you're shopping for one...

REPLACEMENT - SWEDEN: Volvo Trucks appoints new head of global manufacturing

Bromsgrove,Worcs,UK -just-auto.com(subscription)- 19,Jan,2005: Leif Hultman has been appointed senior vice president of global manufacturing at Volvo Truck Corporation. He replaces Ulf Johansson ...


RECOGNITION - Volvo Trucks CEO to chair SAE forum

USA -Fleet Owner(subscription)- Jan,18,2005: Volvo Trucks North America, Inc. president & CEO Peter Karlsten has agreed to serve as executive chair of the 2005 Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) Commercial Vehicle Engineering Congress & Exhibition. The event is slated from Nov. 1 to 3 at the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center in Chicago...
http://fleetowner.com/news/volvo_sea_exhibition_011805/

UK - 'Bendy buses' to be trialled in city

Wales,UK -ic Wales/South Wales Echo -Jan,24,2005: CONTINENTAL-STYLE “bendy” buses are to take to the roads of Cardiff on a trial which could see them introduced before the end of the year... The vehicles, which would set Cardiff Bus back a cool £200,000 a time, have double the capacity of existing single-deckers...

HISTORICAL - AUSTRALIA - It's back on the buses

Melbourne,Victoria,Australia -The Age (subscription,By Liz Gooch -Jan,25,2005: A parade of 10 Pioneer Express Flxible Clippers prepare for their golden anniversary run to Sydney to celebrate the launch of the first interstate coach service ... But yesterday, 50 years to the day since the first Pioneer Express bus headed north from the Franklin Street depot, 10 of the original buses left Campbellfield for a nostalgic trip up the Hume Highway...
http://www.theage.com.au/news/National/Its-back-on-the-buses/2005/01/24/1106415530050.html

SAFER ROADS? - VIETNAM - Old trucks, buses to be retired

Ageing buses may pose great danger to passengers and other road users.
Hanoi,Vietnam -Viet Nam News -24/01/2005: To make the roads safer this year, the Viet Nam Register will scrap some 17,000 old trucks and buses in early February under a new decree... The decree defined time limits for use of each vehicle: trucks may be operated for 29 years after the date of manufacture and buses for 23 ...
http://vietnamnews.vnagency.com.vn/showarticle.php?num=07ECO240105

HYBRID - USA - Testing find hybrid buses more efficient

HARTFORD,Conn,USA -Newsday -Jan,24,2005: Officials with CT Transit say an 18-month demonstration has found that hybrid-electric diesel buses are very efficient... The two hybrids increased fuel economy and were more reliable than standard diesel buses, according to preliminary results...
http://www.newsday.com/news/local/state/ny-bc-ct--hybridbuses0124jan24,0,5049928.story?coll=ny-region-apconnecticut

SAFETY CHILDRENS - USA - BUSES, not patrols, key to

Escondido,CA,USA -North County Times,By: CARYN MARSHALL WILDER - Jan,22,2005: When Mr. Trageser was walking to school three decades ago, he probably noticed a long line of large yellow school buses parked in a "buses only" loading zone ...

INFORM: Transportation Boom in Asia, Crisis for the US

USA -Green Car Congress -Jan 23, 2005: INFORM Inc, a nonprofit research organization, is publishing a new analysis: The Transportation Boom in Asia: Crisis and Opportunity for the United States... The report provides a very useful summary and quantitative description of critical market drivers—the growth of transportation and energy use in China and India and the ongoing growth of oil consumption in the US...
http://www.greencarcongress.com/2005/01/inform_transpor.html

LATE BUSES - UK - Warning over plan to fine late buses

Norfolk,England,UK -Norfolk Eastern Daily Press,by JAMES GOFFIN -23 Jan 2005: Plans to fine bus operators for late running services could backfire and leave the public worse off... announced at the weekend that it wanted companies to pay if buses failed to leave depots within five minutes of their timetable... The fines of up to £550 would be policed by traffic commissioners appointed by local authorities...

FREE BUSES - USA - CAB companies losing business

Anderson,SC,USA -Anderson Independent Mail(subscription)- 22/jAN/2005: ...People who have stopped taking his taxis in order to ride the bus can afford to pay for a ride, but will not as long as the buses run for free ...

LATE BUSES - UK - NEW fines for

UK -DeHavilland - ... "We are very much supportive of the fines - if buses are late then it is absolutely right operators should be fined," said Simon Posner of the Confederation of ... It is reported that the new system of fines will be enforced by traffic commissioners with semi-independent status, who are appointed by local authorities...


CHINA - MORE buses ready for the Spring Festival transport

Beijing,China -China Daily - 2005-01-21: ... In order to better serve the public, thousands of additional buses are to be put into service in areas with inadequate transportation. ...At the beginning of this year, 30 thousand additional buses were put into service in Guangdong Province to ease the province's growing transportation problems...
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/english/doc/2005-01/21/content_411105.htm

FIGHT - UK - BUSES vs. CABBIES

BUSES and taxi drivers have never been the closest of allies
Edinburgh,Scotland,UK -The Scotsman,by CHRIS MOONEY -21 Jan 2005: Buses not in the right, say cabbies. Anger as service ignores road signs ... But the animosity between the Capital’s "fast blacks" and Lothian Buses escalated this week when it emerged that the No. 35 has been breaking the law 50 times a day for the past two weeks...
http://news.scotsman.com/edinburgh.cfm?id=75552005

CULTURE - UK - ANTI-SPIT kits for city's buses

London,England,UK -BBC News -20 jan 2005: ... Bus drivers in Cardiff are being issued with DNA testing kits to help prosecute passengers who spit on them... Drivers suffered 20 "spitting" assaults in 2004. On average, there has been one attack a fortnight over the last three years...
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/wales/4192465.stm


NEW ZEALAND - BETTER buses and rail the answer

Auckland,New Zealand -New Zealand Herald,by Arnold Pickmere
- 21.01.05: ...examining the multimillion-dollar improvements to Auckland's motorways... About 44,000 (60 per cent) come by car, with 27,000 (37 per cent) using public transport (mostly buses but also trains or ferries). About 2000 walk or cycle...
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/index.cfm?c_id=1&ObjectID=10007373

TECHNOLOGY - UK - 'Hurry up' on buses signs

Birmingham,UK -Evening Mail,By Ben Hurst -Jan 19 2005: ... These would be linked to buses via satellite systems, so they would know, down to the last minute, when the next service would arrive...

INFORM: Transportation Boom in Asia, Crisis for the US

USA -Green Car Congress -Jan 23, 2005: INFORM Inc, a nonprofit research organization, is publishing a new analysis: The Transportation Boom in Asia: Crisis and Opportunity for the United States... The report provides a very useful summary and quantitative description of critical market drivers—the growth of transportation and energy use in China and India and the ongoing growth of oil consumption in the US...
http://www.greencarcongress.com/2005/01/inform_transpor.html

ECOLOGY - INDIA - Calcutta to Phase Out Diesel Taxis for LPG

USA -The Telegraph/Green Car Congress -Jan 23, 2005: In a bid to clean up Calcutta’s air, the West Bengal state government is planning to phase out diesel taxis and replace them with cars operating on liquefied petroleum gas (LPG)...
http://www.greencarcongress.com/2005/01/govrsquot_to_ph.html

TECHNOLOGY - USA - Johnson Controls Introduces New Battery for Hybrids

USA -Green Car Congress -Jan 18, 2005: Johnson Controls, North America's largest manufacturer of lead-acid batteries, introduced at NAIAS a new NiMH battery designed for hybrid cars. The new 7.2-volt, 7.0 Ah prismatic nickel-metal-hydride battery was developed ...
http://www.greencarcongress.com/2005/01/johnson_control.html

ECOLOGY - EUROPEAN PARLIAMEN Calls for Legislative Restrictions on CO2 from New Cars

USA -Green Car Congress -Jan 18, 2005: Point Carbon. A resolution adopted by European MEPs at their Strasbourg plenary session last week calls on the European Commission “urgently to put forward proposals for binding CO2 limits for new vehicles”...
http://www.greencarcongress.com/2005/01/european_parlia.html

TECHNECOLOGY - USA - CNG Hybrid Buses to LAX

USA -Green Car Congress -Jan 19, 2005: Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) has taken delivery of two CNG-fueled series hybrid buses. Manufactured by Hybrid Bus Technologies and powered by UQM Technologies drivetrains, the low-floor hybrid buses will be used as passenger shuttles...
http://www.greencarcongress.com/2005/01/cng_hybrid_buse.html


USA - HANDICAPPED ACCESS, Feds probe Detroit buses' compliance

Detroit,MI,USA -Detroit Free Press/AP -Jan 19, 2005: The U.S. Department of Transportation says it is investigating whether the municipal bus system is complying with the Americans with Disabilities Act requirements for wheelchair lifts...
http://www.freep.com/news/statewire/sw110286_20050119.htm

18.1.05

AWARD - USA - VOLVO Trucks Executive Named Chair of the 2005 SAE Commercial Vehicle Engineering Congress

WARRENDALE,Pa,USA -PRNewswire -Jan. 17 2005: The Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) announced that Peter Karlsten, president and CEO of Volvo Trucks North America, Inc., has agreed to serve as the Executive Chair of the 2005 SAE Commercial Vehicle Engineering Congress...
http://www.mysan.de/international/article25205.html

TIRES - USA - Goodyear rolls out self-sealing tires

Gel-like compound seals tread punctures on commercial tires
Akron,OH,USA -Akron Beacon Journal,By John Russell -Jan. 16, 2005: Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. is launching a line of truck tires with a gel-like rubber compound designed to instantly seal tread punctures... The goal is to help trash trucks, concrete trucks, logging trucks, mining trucks and other heavy-use rigs take a beating and keep on rolling...
http://www.ohio.com/mld/beaconjournal/business/10652908.htm?1c

What’s the Future Hold?

Green Car Congress/Detroit Free Press -USA -Jan 15, 2005: At NAIAS, the Michigan Economic Development Corp. (MEDC) hosted a panel comprising Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm and auto executives to talk about the vision for the automobile in 15 years... Representatives from General Motors Corp., Ford Motor Co., DaimlerChrysler AG, Nissan Motor Co., Toyota Motor Corp. and Hyundai-Kia Motors Co. participated in addition to the Governor...
http://www.greencarcongress.com/2005/01/whatrsquos_the_.html

GAS - CANADA - TTC wants more of gas tax

$122 million needed to replace old buses, plus other costs Toronto,Ontario,Canada -Toronto Star,by PAUL MOLONEY -Jan. 18, 2005:
Capital expenses expected to keep growing in coming years ... Members of the Toronto Transit Commission are urging federal and provincial governments to increase and speed up the flow of gas tax funds to keep the cash-strapped transit system rolling...

NATURAL GAS - USA - Natural gas flames out as choice for Cleveland buses

Cleveland,OH,USA -Cleveland Plain Dealer, by Rich Exner
-Jan 18, 2005: Natural gas has run its course as the power source for RTA's big-bus fleet... Today, the Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Agency board is expected to approve buying 92 diesel buses over the next two years at $318,904 each...

CELL BUSES - EU - SUCCESSFUL first year for CUTE fuel cell buses

EU -Cordis News -2005-01-18: Fuel cell buses developed within the CUTE project, funded under the EU's Fifth Framework Programme, have been operating for over a year in ten European cities, as well as Perth in Australia... In London alone, the fleet of three buses travelled over 37,000 km and were on the road for 3,400 hours during their first year of operation. They also excelled in reliability, according to Transport for London.

FAILURES - Records indicate `clean' buses have many breakdowns

A CNG fueled MBTA bus has seen hundreds of failures in the past few months.
Boston, USA -Boston Herald,By Casey Ross -Jan 17, 2005: A new MBTA computer maintenance system has revealed hundreds of engine failures on clean-burning buses deployed only months ago... Maintenance records provided by the MBTA show one brand of compressed natural gas buses purchased recently suffered 280 engine failures in a nine-month period between April 2004 and this month... While the records show a high number of failures and other problems, T officials say breakdowns are not occurring at a frequency that would indicate a serious problem or require the buses to be replaced...
http://news.bostonherald.com/localRegional/view.bg?articleid=63849

SALES - SENEGAL - TATA Motors to supply 350 buses

New Delhi,India -Deepika. UNI -Jan 17: India's largest automobile manufacturer Tata Motors today said it has bagged an export order to supply 350 buses to Senegal and another ...

TECHNOLOGY - INDIA - HIGH Capacity Buses coming by January end

New Delhi,India -Webindia123 -Jan 16 2005: After many stutters and false starts, the much-hyped High Capacity Buses are finally due to join the state transport fleet by the end of this ...

PRODUCTION - USA - Hybrids could fuel Park City busmaker

Wichita,KS,USA -The Wichita Eagle,BY CARRIE RENGERS -Jan. 16, 2005
Optima Bus Corp. is planning the first hybrid-electric vehicle of its kind... one way to do it with Optima Bus Corp. The Park City maker of trolleys, and30-foot and 35-foot buses has its sights on manufacturing the first commercially viable 30-foot, low-floor hybrid-electric bus, in part thanks to two $100,000 loans from Sedgwick County and the Kansas Department of Commerce...
http://www.kansas.com/mld/eagle/business/10655448.htm


OIL - INDIA Goes Global for Energy Security

Green Car Congress/Indo-Asian News Service -USA -Jan 15, 2005: Indian companies have to go global to ensure energy security for the country that imports 70% of its oil needs, a top petroleum ministry official said Friday... India, with 15% of the global population, possesses less than 0.5% of global hydrocarbon reserves...
http://www.greencarcongress.com/2005/01/india_goes_glob.html

TECHNECOLOGY - BURMA, to Convert 5,200 Vehicles to CNG

Green Car Congress -USA -Jan 15, 2005: Myanmar, Burma -- Will convert 5,200 trucks and buses to run on natural gas this year, according to the government’s official newspaper New Light of Myanmar... Myanmar has more than 940,000 gasoline and diesel vehicles and 56% of them are in Yangon (Rangoon).
http://www.greencarcongress.com/2005/01/myanmar_burma_t.html

TECHNECOLOGY - USA - Gasoline-Electric Hybrid Buses to Long Beach

USA -Green Car Congress -Jan 15, 2005: Long Beach Transit will take delivery of the first of 27 gasoline-electric hybrid buses next month... The acquisition ... marks the first volume purchase of transit buses using a gasoline-hybrid drivetrain. Nearly 100 of the gas-electric hybrids are currently on order (including options) by California municipalities for delivery this year...
http://www.greencarcongress.com/2005/01/gasolineelectri.html

INDIA - 777 PMT buses on road

Pune,New Delhi,India -Indian Express -Jan 14 2005: THE Pune Municipal Transport (PMT) on Thursday brought out a record number of 777 buses on the roads... informed that the total number of buses plying on the road were 650 in October, whereas recently the number has gone up due to the purchase of new buses and hiring some buses from private operators.


15.1.05

INDIA - BUSES, rickshaws will live in harmony

Mumbai,India -Times of India -14/JAN/2005 - ... Buses will operate in the middle of the roads in designated lanes that will be segregated with mountable concrete medians. Specially ...


SALES - INDIA - 1,200 CNG buses, 15 interested firms

Ahmedabad,INDIA- Express News Service -January 14, 2005: The news comes like fresh air. The city will have about 1,200 new CNG buses by the second week of March. Private companies attending the Global Investors’ Summit, 2005 have inked MoUs worth Rs 400 crore with Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) to supply and run CNG buses in the city.
http://cities.expressindia.com/fullstory.php?newsid=113910


TECHNECOLOGY - UK - Green hydrogen buses are a 'hit'

London,England,UK -BBC News -14 January, 2005: It could be at least 10 years before the buses are a common sight. A £4m trial of three zero-emissions buses on routes in central London has been a success, transport bosses say. The fuel cell vehicles have run on route 25 between Oxford Circus and Ilford and RV1, Covent Garden to Tower Gateway, during the past year.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/london/4173535.stm



PRODUCTION - N.A. - This week up 26,4 percent

WARD'S Reports Estimated Production
Castle Rock,CO,USA - ArriveNet -14/JNA/2005: ... production this week in the US, Canada and Mexico is expected to hit an estimated 322,282 units, up 26.4 percent from the 255,020 cars and trucks built last built last week, according to Ward's Automotive Reports.
...

TECHNECOLOGY - USA - Hybrid Buses Almost Ready

Long Beach Transit is cleaning up its act.
Long Beach,CA,USA -Gazette Newspapers/By Steve Irsay -13/01/05: Next month, the first hybrid gasoline-electric bus will roll into town for testing and training purposes... with another 26 hybrids expected to be in service by July... The hybrid buses allow LBT to conform to environmental standards... regulations require all city fleets to gradually shift toward low-emission and clean-burning vehicles...
http://www.gazettes.com/hybrid01132005.html


TECHNOCOLOGY - ICELAND buses come clean with hydrogen

REYKJAVIK, Iceland -CNET News.com,By Reuters -January 12, 2005: Hydrogen, tested in buses from Amsterdam to Vancouver and used in the rockets of the U.S. space shuttle, is a clean power that promises to break dependence on oil and gas--at least in Iceland... With almost unlimited geothermal energy sizzling beneath its surface, Iceland has an official goal of making the country oil-free by shifting cars, buses, trucks... to hydrogen by about 2050...
http://news.com.com/Iceland+buses+come+clean+with+hydrogen/2100-7337_3-5534416.html

12.1.05

INDIA - Buses monopolise city roads

HYDERABAD, INDIA -TIMES NEWS NETWORK,by ROLI SRIVASTAVA -JANUARY 12,2005 -- It is not by choice that two-wheeler drivers go zigzag on roads. They have to change their course, thanks to RTC buses, which do not always halt at bus stops. Even when they do, they cause much inconvenience to the two-wheeler drivers, as they move from the left lane to the right lane. With the bus stops located on the left side of roads, RTC buses move diagonally to the right side of the road after a halt. What may appear as a simple bus movement gives motorists nightmares...
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/987813.cms



KOREA - Card reader glitch strikes buses

Commuters say bus drivers nagged them for cash fares
Seoul,South Korea -Joongang Ilbo -January 12, 2005 -- More than half of the fare card readers on Seoul's buses malfunctioned yesterday, causing the city to allow free rides until the problem ...

RECALLS - USA - GM Recalls Over 98,000 Trucks on U.S. Market

DETROIT,ILL,USA -Reuters - Jan 11,2005 -- General Motors Corp. is recalling more than 98,000 pickups, vans and sport utility vehicles because of a potential problem with their power steering and braking systems, federal safety regulators said on Tuesday... said the problem -- which can hamper but not eliminate the ability to stop or steer the vehicles -- stems from fractures in their hydraulic pump driveshafts...
http://olympics.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=domesticNews&storyID=7293038

ACCIDENTS - USA - Rain Is More Lethal For Drivers After A Long Dry Spell

Berkeley,CAL, USA - Science Daily/University Of California Berkeley - 2003-11-05 -- Going out for a drive in the rain? A study by a researcher at the University of California, Berkeley, provides new data on how risky that road trip might be... In an analysis of more than 1 million fatal crashes in 48 states ... was surprised to find that the more it rained or snowed in a month, the fewer deadly traffic accidents there were. Specifically, ...
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2003/11/031105065123.htm

ACCIDENTS - USA - Rural Roads In Southeast Are Deadliest In Nation

Accidents Waiting to Happen
Georgia, USA -Science Daily/Georgia Institute Of Technology - 2004-12-31 -- Rural two-lane highways are the largest single class of roads in the United States — and they are the deadliest, especially in the Southeast... A traffic fatality study by Georgia Tech shows the Southeast's rural two-lane highways are the deadliest roads in the nation. One contributing factor may be the 2.5- to 5-inch pavement drop-offs often found on rural highway edges. Drop-offs develop as roads are repaved and/or soil erodes along the shoulder...
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2004/12/041219183141.htm

TECHNOLOGY - USA - CO2 Injection Boosts Oil Recovery, Captures Emissions

Tulsa,Okla,USA -Science Daily/National Energy Technology Laboratory - 2005-01-10 -- Technology advances, economic improvements, and environmental needs have aligned to create a "perfect storm" of growth opportunity for a proven method for enhancing oil recovery in the United States: carbon dioxide (CO2) flooding... A watershed project in Kansas funded by the U.S. Department of Energy seeks to demonstrate that this technology’s time has come ... The project then recovers some of the CO2 that is a byproduct of the fermentation process ...
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2005/01/050110091718.htm

TECHNOLOGY - UK - Discovery Is A Step Towards Pollution-free Cars

Newcastle,UK -Science Daily/University Of Newcastle Upon Tyne -2004-11-03 -- Scientists have made a world-first discovery which is a step towards using environmentally-friendly hydrogen to power our cars... A team from ...in the UK, have found a safe way of storing and releasing hydrogen to produce energy. They do this using nanoporous materials, which have tiny pores that are one hundred-thousandth (100,000th) the thickness of a sheet of paper...
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2004/10/041030145144.htm

TECHNOLOGY - USA - GM Joins With Sandia To Advance Hydrogen Storage

DETROIT, Mich., and LIVERMORE, Calif., USA - Science Daily/Sandia National Laboratories -2005-01-11 -— General Motors Corp. and Sandia National Laboratories have launched a partnership to design and test an advanced method for storing hydrogen based on metal hydrides... Metal hydrides — formed when metal alloys are combined with hydrogen — can absorb and store hydrogen within their structures. When subjected to heat, the hydrides release their hydrogen. In a fuel cell system, the hydrogen can then be combined with oxygen to produce electricity...
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2005/01/050110092105.htm

TECHNOLOGY - USA - Hydrogen buses hit the streets

FLORIDA, USA -Platinum Today/DeHavilland Information Services -10/ Jan,2005 -- Florida has become the world's first purchaser of hydrogen-powered buses for commercial purposes... The state has bought eight new shuttle buses from Ford, planned for use by Orlando tourists next year... The 12-passenger bus is propelled by an internal combustion engine that is supercharged and inter-cooled for maximum efficiency...
http://www.platinum.matthey.com/media_room/1105362003.html

COMMENTS - USA - Old-line industry needs new-age speed

Detroit, ILL, USA -The Detroit News,By Daniel Howes -January 9, 2005 -- ... And the biggest players in consumer products -- global automakers -- are tailoring more new vehicles to promising niche markets. But they aren't much closer to attaining the Holy Grail of speedy made-to-order cars they started touting nearly a decade ago... That's an Old Economy-New Economy chasm that will only grow wider until someone figures out how to build and deliver cars and trucks as fast as Dell delivers PCs and laptops to your subdivision. To the winner will go bigger shares of lucrative, consumption-obsessed markets like the United States -- and a lot of feel-good attention.
http://www.detnews.com/2005/autosinsider/0501/09/B02-54286.htm

AUSTRALIA - LONG-HAUL Metro buses

Australia -NEWS.com.au, By DANNY ROSE -10/JAN/2005 -- ONE of Tasmania's Metro buses has racked up enough kilometres to travel around the world 24 times and keep going... And about a quarter of the state's bus fleet would make the 40,000km journey around the Equator 15 times... Documents obtained by The Mercury under Freedom of Information show 59 of the 224 buses on the Metro's books have travelled more than 600,000km...
http://www.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,4057,11897406%255E3462,00.html

ECOLOGY - PAKISTAN - ‘CNG buses'? The Karachi city govt's claim is gas

Karachi,Pakistan -Daily Times -9/JAN/2005 -- No CNG bus runs in Karachi, contrary to the claims of the city government... The city government had promised that most of the more than 300 large buses plying in the city under the UTS would use the environment friendly, and cheap, CNG...

ECOLOGY - ICELAND - Hydrogen buses zip to oil-free economy

Switzerland -swissinfo/Reuters, By Alister Doyle -January 9, 2005 -- REYKJAVIK - Hydrogen, tested in buses from Amsterdam to Vancouver and used in the rockets of the U.S. space shuttle, is a clean power that promises to break dependence on oil and gas -- at least in Iceland... In Reykjavik, hydrogen is produced using technology developed by Norwegian energy and aluminium group Norsk Hydro. Competitors include Canada's Stuart Energy and the German industrial group mg technologies.
http://www.swissinfo.org/sen/swissinfo.html?siteSect=143&sid=5455478

On the Road- USA's: Top 10 of 2004

ELLSWORTH,ME,USA -Waldo Village Soup,By Tim Plouff -Jan 5,2005 -- The year 2004 was great for the American auto industry. Full of constant changes, '04 brought more hybrid-powered vehicles to our market ... General Motors lost some market share... Ford lost some sales volume, too, but truck sales are strong and there are... Chrysler made a huge splash with its new 300-series rear-drive sedan.. Toyota is the big elephant in the room... is poised to pass the whole Chrysler Corp. in total sales in 2005... Honda, Nissan and the Korean makers all had a good 2004 as the industry exceeded projections and again totaled more than 16 million new units sold...
http://waldo.villagesoup.com/Community/Story.cfm?StoryID=29653

TECHNOLOGY - USA - Automakers in Detroit likely to team up more for high tech

Detroit,ILL,USA -The Detroit News,By Christine Tierney -December 14, 2004 -- Two years ago, General Motors Corp. set out to become a leader in the development of fuel-cell cars, taking on front-runner DaimlerChrysler AG in a field that both companies believed was the next wave in automotive technology. .
http://www.detnews.com/2005/insiders/0501/12/B01-33096.htm

CHINA PIRACY - Automakers must toughen tactics to fight rampant

Detroit,ILL,USA -The Detroit News,By Christine Tierney -December 21, 2004 -- If imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, foreign automakers must be feeling exalted in China... Local Chinese manufacturers are churning out copies of models built in China by General Motors Corp., Volkswagen AG, Toyota Motor Corp. and other ... Now Honda Motor Co. has identified 11 Chinese manufacturers that are making, or preparing to roll out, dead-ringers for its popular CR-V sport utility vehicle...
http://www.detnews.com/2005/insiders/0501/12/B01-38539.htm

SALES - USA - Sales of big rigs climb

Economists' holiday wishes come true as sales of big rigs climb
Detroit,ILL,USA -The Detroit News,By Doron Levin-December 28, 2004
... U.S. trucking companies, emboldened by higher demand for consumer and industrial goods, are on a spending binge, ordering big rigs to replace aging fleets and, in some cases, expand them... Sales of Class 8 tractors, the largest trucks, which are defined as those weighing 33,000 pounds or more (including load), increased 37 percent in November from a year earlier, according to Ward's Automotive Reports...
http://www.detnews.com/2005/insiders/0501/12/C01-43498.htm

INFRAESTRUCTURE - CHINA - A well-kept secret, quality highways

SHANGHAI,China -Autos Insider,By Michael Dunne -December 30, 2004 -- When it comes to infrastructure, China always thinks big... China is investing billions of dollars into world-class highways. Smoothly paved roads connect major cities with inland neighbors... Look no further than the Great Wall, Tiananmen Square or giant man-made canals to appreciate the nation's proclivity for massive public works...
http://www.detnews.com/2005/insiders/0501/12/insiders-45847.htm

AUTOMAKERS - 2005 Year of the Lawsuit.

For auto world, '05 looks litigious
Detroit,ILL,USA -The Detroit News,By Christine Tierney -January 4, 2005 -- If 2004 were the Year of the Car, this may be the Year of the Lawsuit... Detroit's automakers are embroiled in legal disputes ... at the least, or potentially devastating financial judgments... A verdict is still pending in ... case pitting billionaire investor Kirk Kerkorian against DaimlerChrysler ... the 1998 deal between Daimler-Benz and Chrysler was a merger when he says it turned out to be a takeover... Ford Motor Co. is gearing up to refute accusations by former Ford of Europe president Martin Leach, who claims... But the case with the highest stakes is the increasingly bitter dispute between General Motors Corp. and Italy's Fiat SpA...
http://www.detnews.com/2005/insiders/0501/12/D01-48887.htm

SALES - HONDA's U.S. Auto Sales Rise 35% in December, 3.3% in 2004

USA -Bloomberg -Jan.4 2005 -- Honda Motor Co.'s U.S. sales in December rose 35 percent to 137,381 cars and light trucks, giving the automaker a 3.3 percent increase for all of last year.
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000080&sid=aayqWGJCY3Uc&refer=asia

RECALLS - USA - RECORD 2004. More than 30 million recalled cars and trucks

Carmakers staggered by record '04 recalls, dent quality image, bottom line.
WASHINGTON,USA -Detroit News,By Jeff Plungis -January 4, 2005 -- Automakers recalled a record 30.6 million U.S. cars and trucks last year even as independent surveys showed automotive quality continued to improve, according to figures released by the federal government Monday... The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said there were 598 recalls last year, affecting 30,556,064 cars, pickups, minivans and SUVs. The previous record number of recalls was 541 covering 24.6 million vehicles in 2000. There were 527 separate recalls covering 19.1 million vehicles in 2003...
http://www.detnews.com/2005/autosinsider/0501/04/A01-48858.htm

8.1.05

USA - POWERTRAIN SPECS Kenworth's, available online

USA - Kenworth White Paper on Powertrain Spec'ing provide useful informations and recommendations on the new generation on heavy duty engines, transmissions, cooling systems, and related technology to ensure maximum perfomance, fuel economy, and minimum vehicle life cycle costs

7.1.05

TRAFFIC CONGESTIONS - INDIA - ENTRY of mini buses into Margao to be restricted

Panjim,Margao,India - Navhind Times - Jan 6 2005 -- To avoid the growing traffic congestion and chaos in Margaotown, the traffic committee has decided to restrict entry of mini busesin the town ...

STRIKES - BOLIVIA -CUT SUBSIDIES for petrol and diesel.

Bolivia buses strike over subsidy
London,England,UK - BBC News - 4 January, 2005 -- Bus owners and drivers in Bolivia are holding a 24-hour strike in protest at an unexpected government decision to cut subsidies for petrol and diesel ... The strikers blocked roads and stopped transport services in two of the main cities, La Paz and Cochabamba.

SALES - DAEWO to Supply Eco-friendly Buses to Chile

MEXICO CITY,Mex - Yonhap nEWS - Jan. 5 2005 -- A South Korean bus manufacturer will supply environmentally-friendly buses to the Santiago city government ... Daewoo Bus Corp. will ship 110 compressed natural gas (CNG) buses for service in Santiago by August this year, with an additional 115 buses to be delivered by 2007 ... Daewoo Bus produced 5,500 buses and registered sales of 323 billion won (US$308.5 million) last year, according to the company.

SAFETY - UK - Police on buses in bid to cut robberies among pupils

Birmingham,UK - ic Birmingham - Jan 5 2005 -- West Midlands Police will be on the beat in school corridors and on bus routes this month to help crack down on robbery among school children... Operation Trojan is a two-week intensive Safer Streets anti-robbery operation, working with more than 40 schools in Birmingham, ...

SAFETY - USA - TUCSON City Buses Help Youngsters Find Safe Haven

TUCSON,USA - JoinTogether On Line - 1/5/2005 -- The city bus authority in Tucson, Ariz., has partnered with Project Safe Place's Open Inn initiative, which helps young people in an effort to prevent homelessness, drug use, and other problems ... Under the program, drivers of the city's 189 buses will provide young people in distress with a free ride while they radio their dispatcher to contact ....

SAFETY - USA - TUCSON City Buses Help Youngsters Find Safe Haven

TUCSON,USA - JoinTogether On Line - 1/5/2005 -- The city bus authority in Tucson, Ariz., has partnered with Project Safe Place's Open Inn initiative, which helps young people in an effort to prevent homelessness, drug use, and other problems ... Under the program, drivers of the city's 189 buses will provide young people in distress with a free ride while they radio their dispatcher to contact ....

ESASY TRANSPORT - USA - Catching a bus is just a phone call away in Pierce County

TACOMA, Wash. - THE ASSOCIATED PRESS - January 3, 2005 -- Catching a bus for folks in the city's northeast area is about to become as easy as hailing a cab... In February, Pierce Transit will offer "Bus PLUS" service that allows people to call and make appointments for a bus to pick them up at a designated location.... It's part of the local transit authority's route redesign to improve service to hard-to-reach neighborhoods and increase ridership.

SCIENCE - USA - School Buses Outfitted To Promote Science

CLEVELAND,OH, USA - The Chief Engineer - 4 JAN 2004 -- An Ohio company has found a niche by converting yellow school buses into hands-on laboratories as a highly mobile way to try to get students excited about science... “It’s a huge billboard telling people, ‘This is the future,’” said Skip Bollenbacher, head of the University of North Carolina’s biobus program ...

KIDS - USA - Kids left on buses a concern for parents

Provo,UT,USA -DAILY HERALD, by Elisabeth Nardi - January 06, 2005 -- Brandon Strain is the third special needs child left on an Alpine School District bus in the past 14 months... Brandon, a 5-year-old autistic boy from Pleasant Grove, was left alone on an empty school bus for more than four hours Tuesday.... He and his mother Rebecca Strain were recovering Wednesday, and Rebecca is hoping their ordeal will ensure that nothing like this ever happens again.

HERO - Man saves 50 buses from fire

Siyabuswa, South Africa - News24, by Zenzele Kuhlase 06/01/2005 -- An Mpumalanga security guard became a hero after he single-handedly saved a fleet of 50 buses from burning to ashes... Elias Nkosi, 29, had never driven a vehicle in his life but he managed to move the Putco-owned buses at Siyabuswa depot away from danger...

ECOLOGY - USA - Roaring Fork Transit buses burning diesel fuel mixed with Iowa soybeans

ASPEN,IO,USA - The Daily Sentinel,By MIKE McKIBBIN - January 01, 2005 — Passenger buses between Aspen and Rifle will use an alternative diesel fuel through at least next summer, thanks to a recently begun foundation and monetary donations.
The Roaring Fork Transit Authority began to use a 5 percent biodiesel fuel in November to see how it might affect its 85 to 90 buses, said ...

SALES - INDIA - PUNE MT promises 500 new buses, no hike in fares

PUNE,Mumbai,India - Times of India - DECEMBER 31, 2004 -- The Pune Municipal Transport (PMT) on Friday announced a New Year bonanza to its 5 lakh commuters -- 500 new buses and no hike in existing fares...

BRAZIL - VOLVO named bus of the year

GOTEBORG, Sweden - PRIMEZONE - Dec. 30, 2004 -- Volvo Buses' B12M chassis has been named the Brazilian bus of the year. The chassis is available as a bi-articulated bus, which, at 26.8 metres long, is the world's longest bus... The bus of the year prize is awarded by Autodata of Brazil...

OLD BUSES - AUSTRALIA - FORGET the trains, it's the buses that scare me

Sydney,New South Wales,Australia - Sydney Morning Herald (subscription) - December 31, 2004 -- Much has been made of our ailing rail network, but as a 16-year-old sentenced to riding the school bus, I can't help feeling that Sydney Buses is in desperate ... need of attention. Or, at the very least, a vicious commuter to champion a one-woman rally and demand reform before settling for a fare-free day ...

ECOLOGY - ITALY - SMOG: ROME in 2005, alternate plates & electric buses

Rome, Italy - Agenzia Giornalistica Italia/AGI - Dec. 30 2004 -- Alternate number plates will be banned every Thursday, besides the improvement of public transport with the introduction of electric buses, which will be the main measure adopted by Rome city council in 2005 to face up to the pollution emergency ...

6.1.05

TRAFFIC CONGESTIONS - IRELAND - Buses allowed to use hard shoulder on Dublin approach roads

Dublin,IRELAND -Breaking News -29/12/2004 -- The Government has reportedly approved a request from Bus Eireann that its vehicles be allowed to drive on hard shoulders to avoid traffic congestion ... figures presented to the Government had shown that gridlock was costing the company €20m every year...

AUSTRALIA - FREE BUSES for Darwin revellers

Darwin,Australia -ABC Online - 31/DEC/04 - The Northern Territory Government is providing free bus services in the Darwin area tonight to ensure New Year's Eve revellers do not drink and drive ... says selected buses will operate for free between 7:00pm today and 7:00am tomorrow ...




SALES - SINGAPORE - VOLVO Buses Secures Order for 150 Double-Deck Buses

Los Angeles,CA,USA -PrimeZone - 28 dec,2004 -- Volvo Buses has secured a contract to supply 150 double-deck buses to Singapore's largest public bus operator, SBS Transit...

RIDERS - CHINA - Eating on public transport debated

BEIJING,China -chinaview -Dec. 27 --... the Shenzhen Metro Corporation has recently published a series of rules and regulations for passengers ... Top of the list is a regulation prohibiting eating either on Metro trains or at stations. Offenders can be fined between 200 and 500 yuan (US$60) ... debate among city residents on whether eating should be allowed on public transport such as buses and taxis.
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2004-12/27/content_2384676.htm

TECHNOLOGY - USA - TIRED Metro buses may soon get design face-lift

TROY,Detroit,MI,USA -DetNews.com, By Amy Lee -27 DEC 2004 -- Sleeker, lighter and more fuel-efficient buses developed in Troy .... At 19,000 pounds, the bus is about 34 percent lighter... • One step in the rear of the bus vs. two steps on current designs... • Low floor design and dual wheelchair maneuverability to meet ...• 44 seats vs. 37 seats... • Lower operating costs due to less fuel consumption, an intelligent electrical system and a new system for repairs.

FUEL ANTERNATIVES - CHINA is eager to acquire and develop new fuels

BEIJING, China - Beijing Review,By YAN WEI -
With an increasing number of automobiles,... about 85 percent of China’s annual gasoline output is burned in car engines, which is also how 20 percent of the country’s annual diesel output is used up.... Compressed natural gas (CNG) and liquid petroleum gas (LPG) are two such alternatives... to Beijing Evening News, there are over 1,800 CNG buses and 42,000 LPG cabs in Beijing.
http://www.bjreview.com.cn/200450/Cover-200450(C).htm

AWARDS USA - Clean Cities, National Partner Award

Washington,USA - US Dpt. of Energy -- In recongnition of their outsanding contributions of the alternative fuels and vehicles industries, 10 organizations earned Clean Cities National Partner Awards, and induction in to the Clean Cities Hall of Fame...
http://www.eere.energy.gov/cleancities/pdfs/national_partner_awards.pdf

SAFETY - USA - ROLL'EM! Cameras on buses

New York,NY,USA -New York Daily News,By PETE DONOHUE -Dec 24 2004 --
Some Transit Authority buses have been rigged with concealed video cameras, a Metropolitan Transportation Authority spokesman confirmed yesterday... Transit officials are tight-lipped about security, but installing the cameras appears to be a move designed to prevent crimes, small and large...

CNG - INDIA - Delhi to have maximum CNG-run public vehicles in the world

NEW DELHI,INDIA -outlookindia. com -- Delhi will become the first city in the world to have the public transport system fully running on Compressed Natural Gas with the last batch of 600 diesel buses going off the roads from tomorrow.... The diesel buses will go off roads as per the Supreme Court order on phasing out ....
http://www.outlookindia.com/pti_news.asp?id=101074

GNG - Philippines - Cleaner, cheaper alternative

RP to field natural gas buses in 2004
Philippines -CyberDyaryo,By Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo -29 DEC 2004 --... the government has drawn up plans to field natural gas vehicles, first in Metro Manila, then in the provinces. According to the Department of Energy, plans are afoot to field 100 CNG-run buses by next year. The Philippine National Oil Co.-Exploration Corp. is also mulling the idea of CNG...
http://www.cyberdyaryo.com/features/f2003_1229_04.htm

CNG - IRAN - Strategy for use natural gas by transportations systems

Sharq,IRAN -Daily Newspaper,By Amir Hussein Mhadvai -- ... a comparison between the investment budget of two billion dollars and the six billion dollars worth of the transportation sector's annual consumption of gasoline and gas oil shows the reason for a strategy encouraging use of natural gas by the country's transportation system ...
http://www.netiran.com/?fn=artd(528)

CNG - INDONESIA - BUSES, taxis to run on CNG next year

Jakarta,Indonesia -Jakarta Post -22 DEC 2004 -- ... Kosasih said the decree would require all operators of public transportation
vehicles to gradually replace the vehicles: taxis, buses, and minivans to new ...


5.1.05

ARTICULATEDS - USA - Tailor-made for the commuter, bigger buses can whisk riders through the city

Albuquerque,NM,USA -Albuquerque Tribune -23 DEC 2004 -- The shiny red-and-white articulated buses started running every 10 minutes
Tuesday afternoon on a route - mostly along Central Avenue - between the Uptown ...

TECHNOLOGY - USA - GM brings hybrid buses to Albuquerque

London,UK -AWKnowledge (subscription)-23 dec 2004 --General Motors has delivered 12 hybrid buses to the city of Albuquerque in New Mexico. The buses are part of a service called the ‘Rapid Ride' system. ...


SALES - BANGLADESH - NAVANA launches luxury buses

Bangladesh -The New Nation -Dec 23, 2004 -- The Navana Group, a leading automobile importer, yesterday launched luxury Hino Super Buses in the country... The Hino RM-2 model of Japanese buses, introduced first ever in the country...


INVESTMENTS - EXPANDING Arriva ahead of expectations

London,England,UK -Financial Times -17 DEC 2004 -- ... company said. Arriva runs buses and trains in Denmark and the Netherlands and buses in Italy, Portugal, Spain and Sweden. It said ...

TRANSPORT FREE - AUSTRALIA - NYE revellers ride free

Melbourne,Victoria,Australia -Melbourne Herald Sun -17/12/2004 - ... Up to 300,000 people are expected to take up the free travel offer,
courtesy of Online bank ING Direct, on all trains, buses and trams on
the city and ...

TECHNOLOGY - USA - IDAHO school district sells buses via eBay

Boise,ID,USA -KTVB - DEC 17 2004 -- ... District business manager Michelle Deluna says buyers of four buses last year came from Idaho, Alaska and Canada. The district uses ...


SALES - INDIA - AMC to hire 300 CNG buses

Ahmedabad,India -Ahmedabad Newsline,Express News Service -December 17,2004 -- AFTER deciding to purchase 100 CNG buses for the
city, the Municipal Standing Committee plans to procure another 300 buses on lease ...

TECHNOLOGY - USA - SUNLINE makes history with hydrogen bus

Innovative power system expected to reduce hazardous emissions by 99.9%
Palm Springs,CA,USA -The Desert Sun,By Brian Joseph -December 17th, 2004 -- The valley’s bus system made history Thursday ferrying passengers on the nation’s only hydrogen-electric hybrid bus... It accelerates from a dead stop faster than SunLine's other buses and it does so without the bouncing and jerking typical of a bus ride... The H2 Power bus, which produces virtually no emissions, was immediately put into service following its unveiling Thursday morning, making it the first hydrogen-electric vehicle in the United States to transport customers.


FREE RIDE - UK - For kids on the buses

Coventry,UK -ic Coventry -- ... is introducing a special Yuletide package where two children accompanied by a fare-paying adult will be able to travel free on its buses from December 23 until ...


PRODUCTION - EUROPE - GM cutting 2,000 jobs at plant in Ruesselsheim

BERLIN,Germany -Associated Press -December 15, 2004 -- Some 2,000 jobs will be cut at the main plant of General Motors Corp.'s Adam Opel AG unit in Ruesselsheim over the next two years,... The cuts come as part of the automaker's plans announced in October to slash as many as 12,000 positions in the next two years in Europe, most of them in Germany, in order to cut excess ...
http://www.detnews.com/2004/autosinsider/0412/16/autos-34225.htm

TECHNOLOGY - GERMAN fuel cell industry calls for political boost

FRANKFURT,Germany -Reuters -December 15, 2004 -- A group of major German companies called on Tuesday for government support to help the country compete internationally in fuel cell development and production... Germany's newly founded fuel cell alliance BZB, which represents around 300 firms, including car maker Daimler Chrysler, utility RWE and Siemens, said Germany could soon open production lines ...
http://www.detnews.com/2004/autosinsider/0412/16/autos-34229.htm

PRODUCTION USA - Chrysler dangles more buyouts

The automaker aims to cut 5,000 skilled trades jobs by 2007 to better compete.
The Detroit News,By Brett Clanton -December 15, 2004 -- DaimlerChrysler AG's Chrysler Group is offering early retirement packages to factory electricians, pipe fitters and other highly paid skilled trades workers as part of an agreement with the United Auto Workers union to cut 5,000 of the high-paying jobs by 2007... The automaker also is extending buyout offers to other hourly and salaried employees...
http://www.detnews.com/2004/autosinsider/0412/16/A01-34121.htm

CHINA - Intellectual property may theft a crime

BEIJING,China -Reuters/By Scott Hillis -December 16, 2004 -- China is to make it easier to fight intellectual property right crimes, a move that may ease U.S. concerns over rampant copying of movies, software and other goods that Washington says costs businesses billions of dollars a year.... "By promulgating and enforcing a new judicial interpretation, what was once a minor intellectual property infringement may soon be a crime," the China Daily quoted an official with the Supreme People's Court...
http://www.detnews.com/2004/autosinsider/0412/16/autos-35252.htm


PRODUCTION - JAPAN - Fire halts production at 2 Mazda plants in Japan

TOKYO,JAPAN -Reuters -December 16,2004 -- A fire halted production at two of Mazda Motor Corp.'s four Japanese plants although one later came back on-line, the company said on Thursday, adding to problems in an industry already hit by a steel shortage... The fire broke out on Wednesday night near a painting line at the company's Ujina No.1 plant in Hiroshima, western Japan, burning for about seven hours before ...
http://www.detnews.com/2004/autosinsider/0412/16/autos-35254.htm

SALES - DAIMLERCHRYSLER reports strong sales in commercial vehicles

Detroit,MI,USA-DetNews.com/Associated Press-16 DEC 2004 -- BERLIN -DaimlerChrysler's commercial vehicles division sold nearly 30 percent more trucks and buses through November 2004 than all of last year, the German ...By the end of November, the company sold more than 643,000 trucks and buses, compared to 501,000 for all of 2003, boosted by a strong rise in global truck markets as well as the ...

MARKET - USA - THOMAS Built Buses gains market share

Greensboro,NC,USA-Greensboro News Record-16 DEC 2004 -- Thomas Built Buses has increased its share of the US and Canadian school bus markets by 6 percent to 39 percent during the past six years ...


MARKET - USA - THOMAS Built Buses gains market share

Greensboro,NC,USA-Greensboro News Record-16 DEC 2004 -- Thomas Built Buses has increased its share of the US and Canadian school bus markets by 6 percent to 39 percent during the past six years ...


DIVORCE - FIAT: "Lacking foundation "Economy's" advances"

Torino,ITALY-AGI- 4 JAN 2005 -- "Draft of journalistic deductions completely lacking in foundation". Thus Fiat has answered, officially, to the news of "Economy" (magazine), ....
http://www.agi.it/news.pl?doc=200501041841-1188-ROM-ECO-A-&page=0&id=agionline.economia

DIVORCE - GM will pay 850-900 mls dollars to FIAT

Milan,ITALY-AGI- 4JAN 2005 -- "It'll be of 850-900 million dollars the price that General Motors will pay to the Lingotto in order not to load Fiat Car. Therefore, a divorce little oneroso of the previewed one for the House of Detroit, ...."
http://www.agi.it/news.pl?doc=200501041748-1173-ROM-ECO-A-

SALES 2004 - ITALY - CARS TOTALLED 2,258,861 IN 2004; + 0.53 PCT

Bologna,Italy-AGI-Jan.5 2005 -- Car sales in 2004 totalled 2,258,861 that's a 0.53 pct increase compared to 2003. That's what the survey centre Promotor reported, which considers the figure "relevant". In December sales went up by 5.22 pct (+149,900 units compared to December 2003)....
http://www.agi.it/english/news.pl?doc=200501051445-1086-RT1-CRO-0-NF30

SALES - ITALY - 'ZERO KM' CARS DOWN

Rome,Italy - AGI - Jan.5 2005 -- The so-called 'zero km' models are no longer boosting car sales: over the past three years, their percentage on overall car sales dropped from 7 pct in 2002 (152,000), to 6.3 pct in 2003 (147,000) to 5 pct in 2004 (115,000...
http://www.agi.it/english/news.pl?doc=200501051620-1107-RT1-CRO-0-NF30

HISTORY - ITALY - TURIN: OFF WITH TRAMS ON WITH BUSES

Turin,Italy - Agenzia Giornalistica Italia/AGI - Dec.16 2004 -- Turin's "Sassi-Superga" tram station will host an exhibition on the history of metropolitan transport in Turin, from the days of engine driven chariots (during the 20s) to current methane and electric powered buses....


CANADA - Iqaluit drops buses -- taxis are cheaper

IQALUIT,Nunavut,CANADA - UPI - Dec. 15 2004 -- City bus service will shut down in Iqaluit, the capital of Canada's northern Nunavut territory, as it works out cheaper to pay riders to use taxis.... An average of 28 people ride the bus each day, which works out to a cost to the city of about $17 per user per ride before the $2 fare is deducted....
http://www.menafn.com/qn_news_story.asp?StoryId=CqB_e0eidy2fUywrHlwj1C3nLCNzPy2u




AUSTRALIA invests in hydrogen buses

London,UK - AWKnowledge (subscription)-- ... government will contribute A$67m (US$50.97m) over three years to a national programme for hydrogen fuel depots and purchase up to 90 hydrogen
fuel cell buses. ...

REPPLY - USA - EXECUTIVE Ron Sims' statement on hybrid buses

Seattle,WA,USA - King County (press release)- Dec. 13, 2004 -- "Last summer, King County Metro began taking delivery of the first of 213 hybrid buses in order to protect and improve the environment and the air we breathe. The decision to purchase these clean-air buses was a good decision .... Today's story in the Seattle Post-Intelligencer indicates we are "disappointed" with the performance of these hybrid buses. That is not true... Given the decline in the Puget Sound's air quality and growing reliance on public transportation to help reduce traffic congestion, King County made the decision to be a leader in new cutting-edge technology to greatly reduce pollution-causing emissions....

ECOLOGY ECONOMY ? - USA - DIESEL buses best RTD choice

Denver,CO,USA - Denver Post - December 14, 2004 -- Taxpayers would have to pay $89 million more in initial outlays to put those CNG vehicles on the road,... A CNG fleet would more than double pollutants in two of the four categories regulated by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency....The current "clean diesel" is fairly low in sulphur but is only an interim fuel. While it is much cleaner than the higher-sulphur fuels it replaced, federal regulations require new ultra-low sulphur fuels in mid-2006.... Thus, by the end of 2006, the new diesels will be much cleaner than their CNG rivals in hydrocarbon, carbon monoxide and particulate matter emissions, and basically tied in nitrous oxides. As a bonus, federal tests show the diesel buses are slightly quieter than their natural gas rivals.


TRANSPORT - S.AFRICA - One Person, One Car Will Be Choice of Many Until Bus, Taxi Services Improve

Lobby groups point out flaws in government's plan to encourage public transport
Johannesburg,S.Africa - AllAfrica.com,Business Day,by Khulu Phasiwe, January 4, 2005 -- GOVERNMENT's proposed plan to lure private motorists out of their cars and onto public transport has been met with a mixed reaction, with calls for an immediate overhaul of the "bad" bus and taxi services in SA's major urban areas... The viability of the plan will largely depend on the ability of the public transport sector to transform and shed its image as being unsafe, unreliable and inconvenient...
http://allafrica.com/stories/200501040877.html

TRANSPORT - S. AFRICA - DRIVERS May Face Rush-Hour Taxes

Johannesburg,- AllAfrica.com, by Brendan Boyle - December 13, 2004
- ... For those who do use public transport, the strong preference is for taxis and not trains or buses.... However, commuters will come under a lot of pressure to share transport. Options on the table include: a Los Angeles-style "diamond lane" open only to cars carrying at least two people; a London-style congestion tax on cars entering cities; and revenue-generating urban toll roads.... Similar plans would follow for Cape Town, Durban and Pretoria.


ADVERTISING - and GM DOIT !!

General Motors owed a refund from the P-I
I hope you will offer General Motors at least a partial refund on its full-page ad touting the great fuel economy of hybrid buses since you used a banner headline on page one to report exactly the opposite (Monday)- John Whittaker - Vashon


GM should spend its ad budget elsewhere
I find it quite ironic that General Motors had a full-page advertisement in the Monday issue of the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, the same issue that discussed the new hybrid bus fuel efficiency issues ("Hybrid buses' fuel economy promises don't materialize," front page, same day).

Poor planning or coincidence, it had this reader laughing at how the claims made in the ad were discredited by the article. Perhaps GM could put its advertising budget toward more useful things, such as developing a viable alternative fuel (biodiesel) that truly would help the environment. - Colin Walker - Renton

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/opinion/203718_ltrs15.html

FUEL ECONOMY - USA - HYBRID promises don't materialize

Older models have gotten better mpg
Seattle,WA,USA - Seattle Post Intelligencer,By JANE HADLEY - 13 DEC 2004 - .... Expensive new hybrid diesel-electric buses, that were portrayed by King County Metro as "green" heroes that would use up to 40 percent less fuel than existing buses, have fallen far short of that promise.... In fact, at times, the New Flyer hybrid articulated buses have gotten worse mileage than the often-maligned 1989 dual-mode Breda buses they are replacing... Yet the hybrid buses cost $200,000 more each than a conventional articulated diesel bus.... Metro's articulated hybrid buses were getting 3.75 miles a gallon in September.... The disappointing results are a far cry from the rosy predictions made by officials....
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/transportation/203509_metro13.html


4.1.05

ECOLOGY - USA, CALIF. air board ends voluntary emission program for trucks, buses

Waste News - Akron,OH,USA - Dec. 13 2004 - -- California regulators voted Dec. 9 to end a voluntary program and force owners of nearly 60,000 heavy-duty trucks, school buses and diesel-powered motor homes to upgrade computer software to reduce engine emissions.

CHINA - Beijing buses come clean

Beijing,China - China Daily - 2004-12-13 -- Source from Beijing Municipal Committee of Communication says Beijing will upgrade all its public buses to environmental-friendly ones by the year 2008. Liu Xiaoming, an official from the committee, says the city has a total of 18,000 public buses, many of which have been used for ten years....

INJURIES - AUSTRALIA - 1100 claims paid out

Australia - NEWS.com.au, by Chris Pippos - 12/DEC/2004 -- PASSENGERS and crash victims have been paid $20 million in compensation following incidents involving Adelaide buses since the system was privatised.... About half the 1100 claims paid since 2000 involved "non-crash events", such as passengers being injured after a bus stopped or turned suddenly.... The Transport Workers Union says injuries could have been avoided if timetables gave drivers more time to meet tight route deadlines.

RIDERS - USA - MORE people riding city buses

Muncie,IN,USA - Muncie Star Press, By RICK YENCER - December 11, 2004 -- High gasoline prices coupled with free rides have resulted in a record number of people riding Muncie buses this year....

OIL - CHINA's state oil company could get Yukos stake

MOSCOW, RUSIA - CBC Business News - 30 Dec 2004 -- China's state oil company could be offered a 20 per cent stake in the recently auctioned main production unit of former Russian oil giant Yukos .... said the China National Petroleum Corp. could be offered a one-fifth share in a new Russian state company that would be created to control the Yuganskneftegaz unit .... There had been speculation that the unit would become part of Russia's state-controlled natural gas company, Gazprom.

SALES - Global auto sales hit record high

TORONTO, CANADA - CBC Business News - 30 Dec 2004 -- Global auto sales climbed to a record high this year and will post a further moderate gain in 2005, .... Higher oil prices failed to dampen demand as sales volumes advanced by three per cent.... New vehicle purchases in Asia, excluding Japan, continue to advance at a double-digit pace and are expected to exceed 10 million units next year.... When full-year figures are tallied for 2004, China is expected to show sales of 2.3 million units, surpassing both Italy and France and making it the fourth largest car market in the world.

SALES - CHINA - Export cars to U.S.

The cars would be the first made in China to sell in the United States
NEW YORK, USA - CBC Business News - 03 Jan 2005 - A government-owned Chinese automaker founded in 1997 has signed a deal with a privately held New York company to sell Chinese-made cars to Americans in 2007.... Chery Automobile Co., one of the fastest growing companies in the fledgling Chinese auto industry, is teaming up with Visionary Vehicles of New York, which has backing from investment banking firm Allen & Co.

ECOLOGY - CANADA - CLEAN buses pass cold weather test

Edmonton,Alberta,Canada - CBC Edmonton - 10/DEC/2004 -- ... Buses in the US already use the system, but Rick Paul, of the EdmontonTransit Service, wondered if the two-part technology would withstand -40C weather. ...

SALES - INDIA - KSRTC to add 600 buses to its fleet

Thiruvananthapuram,Chennai,Tamil Nadu,India - Sun Network - Dec 10 2004 -- The Transport Minister, said that Kerala State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) would add 600 buses to its fleet next year. Of these, 150 buses would be operated as new service in Thiruvananthapuram city (Ananthapuri Fast) .... the Corporation also had plans to start 100 new limited stop ordinary services and 25 air-conditioned express services.


UK - HOLES - THESE ones are a hole lot worse

Edinburgh,Scotland,UK - The Scotsman - 9/12/2004 -- DISGRACE: A five-metre long monster of a pothole which measures nine-inches deep. James Swany says that it is "the biggest pothole in the Capital" and "is just waiting for people to fall into it." .... It's in the bus lay-by and the buses used to be able to drive over it. "But now it's so deep ...

EUROPE - FARCICAL policy of deregulation of buses

Glasgow,Scotland,UK - The Herald - 9/DEC/2004 -- ... Europe. Their detailed report went into reams of analysis and noted, in particular, that nowhere else had deregulated local buses. ...

SAFETY - USA - IN a bind over seat belts

Sacramento,CA,USA - Sacramento Bee, 8/DEC/2004 -- ... Jorge's concerns. On July 1, California will become the first state to require lap-shoulder belts on all new school buses. That ...

INVESTMENT - CANADA - NOW Laidlaw can focus on buses

Canada - National Post - 8/DEC /2004 -- ... Onex Partners LP private equity fund, Laidlaw chief executive KevinBenson has steered the company toward a more straightforward strategy of focusing on buses....

SALES - USED Israeli buses end up in Iraq

Jerusalem,Israel - Jerusalem Post, By DAN GERSTENFELD - 8 DEC 2004 -- Some 150 decade-old buses from Israel were sold to Iraq in recent months, general manager of Shasha Tours & Transportation Udi Shasha told ...

UK - PROFIT BUSES jumped 22% in the six months

BOOMING buses lift Stagecoach
London,England,UK - This is London, by Jim Armitage/Evening Standard - 8 DEC 2004 -- LONDON commuters have helped fuel surging profits at Stagecoach despite the impact of a rampant oil price on its buses. ... Revenue from London buses jumped 22% in the six months to 31 October, driven by Mayor Ken Livingstone's campaign to get more of them on the streets.

ECOLOGY - INDONESIA - BUSWAY buses to use natural gas

Jakarta,Indonesia - Jakarta Post - 8/DEC/2004 -- The city administration plans to turn to compressed natural gas (CNG) to fuel its buses for the busway project in an effort to help reduce air pollution ...

INDIA - H.Court directs govt to issue instructions

Mumbai,India - Times of India - 7 DEC 2004 -- ... Court directed the state government to issue necessary instructions to field officers to check public and private transport buses periodically to ...As per the rule, the lowest step for any entrance or exit of the buses, other than for emergency exit, should not be more than 40 cm or less than 25 cm from the ground when the vehicle is empty.

UK - VEHICLE FAILINGS: FIRST Bus Co., is accused

Edinburgh,Scotland,UK - The Scotsman - 7 DEC 2004 -- FIRST Bus was today accused of failing to properly maintain its fleet of coaches operating in the Lothians. Traffic Commissioner Joan Aitken was told of a catalogue of failings discovered by officials inspecting the firm's buses in the region, including faulty...

SINGAPORE - TOUR buses modified to take more cheap diesel

Singapore,Singapore - CHINA PRESS, Electric New Paper - - 7 DEC 2004 -- Their fuel tanks were modified to take in four times more diesel - from the usual 300 litres to 1,200 litres.... that the authorities are still investigating. Adding: 'We don't know if the drivers knew that the buses had modified fuel tanks.'.

3.1.05

UK - BUSES to Run on Greener Fuel

Edinburgh,Scotland,UK - The Scotsman, By Peter Woodman - Mon 6 Dec 2004 -- Emission levels are to be reduced on thousands of buses by the introduction of a special “green” fuel additive. Called Envirox, the additive is being rolled out across Stagecoach’s entire UK bus fleet of 7,000 vehicles. The innovative product has been shown to cut fuel consumption by more than 5%, with a corresponding decrease in vehicles’ emissions.



TIRES - SMARTIRE Products Included on New Flyer Buses for Chicago Transit

RICHMOND, BC, Dec. 6 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- SmarTire Systems Inc., announced today that its tire pressure monitoring systems (TPMS) will be included on new buses that have been awarded by the Chicago Transit Authority to New Flyer Industries, ...., is the largest manufacturer of transit buses in North America. The new buses will be fitted with ... new controller area network ... chassis mounted receiver and commercial high pressure sensors. The ... system provides tire pressure and temperature information while the bus is in motion or stationary and provides the driver with an early warning of a tire related problem.... can be installed as standard equipment on new buses or retrofitted to existing buses.

WHY not try shuttle buses?

Poverty differs
Wilmington,NC,USA - Wilmington Morning Star - December 04. 2004 -- ..... support increasing money going to the local bus transit system.... Bus travel needs to be touted for all citizens, not just the elderly or poor.... Park-and-ride buses can turn into quite the socialization spots, too.(My mother and stepfather met on a park-and-ride bus in Southern California).... Lastly, don't forget: tourists appreciate a well-run and well-connected bus service. ...