ARBOC introduces Spirit of Equess

ARBOC Specialty Vehicles (“ARBOC”), a U.S. subsidiary of New Flyer Industries Inc. (“NFI Group”), the largest transit bus and motor coach manufacturer and parts distributor in North America, introduced a new product to the low floor transit industry.

The Spirit of Equess “Equess” is a medium-duty rail product with all the benefits of a mid-size vehicle and many capabilities of a heavy-duty bus. On a purpose-built ARBOC Specialty Vehicles chassis, the Equess utilizes a Cummins engine, Allison transmission, and ZF axles.

The launch of this new transportation solution began at the 2017 American Public Transportation Association (APTA) Expo in Atlanta, Georgia, on October 9th where it was very well received by numerous transit agencies.  “We are excited to fulfill the industry’s needs with such an innovative, versatile vehicle,” stated Don Roberts, President of ARBOC.  The response was overwhelming and we are anxious to get the Spirit of Equess into service.”

Following the initial unveiling at APTA, the Spirit of Equess was delivered to Altoona for a 10 year/350,000 mile test that is required for federally-funded transit vehicles.

About NFI Group

NFI Group and its subsidiaries comprise the largest bus and motor coach manufacturer and parts distributor in North America, with 32 fabrication, manufacturing, distribution, and service centers located across Canada and the United States and employing nearly 6,000 team members.

NFI Group provides a comprehensive suite of mass transportation solutions under several brands: New Flyer® (heavy-duty transit buses), ARBOC® (low-floor cutaway and medium-duty buses), MCI® (motor coaches), and NFI Parts™ (bus and coach parts, support, and service). NFI Group’s vehicles incorporate the widest range of drive systems available ranging from clean diesel, natural gas, diesel-electric hybrid, trolley-electric, battery-electric, and fuel cell electric.

  • New Flyer is North America’s heavy-duty transit bus leader and offers the most advanced product line under the Xcelsior® and Xcelsior CHARGE™ brands. New Flyer actively supports over 44,000 heavy-duty transit buses (New Flyer, NABI, and Orion) currently in service, of which 7,300 are powered by electric motors and battery propulsion and 1,600 are zero-emission.
  • ARBOC is North America’s low-floor, body-on-chassis (“cutaway”) bus leader serving transit, paratransit, and shuttle applications. With more than 2,500 buses in service, ARBOC leads the low-floor cutaway bus market providing unsurpassed passenger accessibility and comfort over traditional high-floor cutaway vehicles. ARBOC also offers a medium-duty bus for transit and shuttle applications.
  • Motor Coach Industries is North America’s motor coach leader offering the J-Series, the industry’s best-selling intercity coach for 11 consecutive years, and the D-Series, the industry’s best-selling motor coach line in North American history. MCI actively supports over 28,000 coaches currently in service.
  • NFI Parts is North America’s most comprehensive parts organization, providing replacement parts, technical publications, training, service, and support for NFI Group’s bus and motor coach product lines.

Further information is available at www.newflyer.com, www.arbocsv.com, and www.mcicoach.com. The common shares of NFI Group are traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol NFI.