VIN Update - Diesel Cruisers

17001-17039 - HP014227-HP014265

17040-17104 - HP014268-HP014332

VINs of the new Diesel Buses

What is known so far:

So far all of the buses that have been delivered have been 45 foot buses denoted by P in the fourth digit of the VIN. If a bus is 40 foot, that will be an S. The lower case x will denote the check digit which is easily (?) computable for each bus within a group.

16000's are 2016 buses (VIN year code G)
16001 1M8PDMBA6GP14021 (NJT livery)
16002 1M8PDMBA5GP14060 (Academy livery)
I hear there are other 16000's

17000's are 2017 buses (VIN year code H)
17001-17023 1M8PDMBAxHP014227 through HP014249 (Coach USA Community)
17024-17028 no VINs yet (Coach USA Short Line)
17050 and 17053-17054 no VINs yet (Coach USA Suburban)
17063-17064 no VINs yet (Saddle River Tours - NOT Ameribus!, using the old style SRT livery. Really nice looking bus!)

The Bi-Annual Post?

Hello, it's been a few years, but I am back in the bus business.

For the past several days I have been trying to get Blogger to publish static pages. It does not seem to want to work, so it's entirely possible that I may be shutting down business here. I would really like to publish the roster data and pictures again, but a personal website does not seem to be the way to go any more. I shut down davemackey.com a few years ago due to lack of funds and minimal interest in the blogs I was hosting, finding social media to be a much better audience (and more targeted too).

I would love to start contributing my research (which is now spanning a 27-year period) to one of the several wikis that have sprung up. The cptdb.ca wiki seems to the the most likely candidate but I hear that only members can contribute data there. As I have records on nearly every bus that ran in the NJ Transit era, I would think that my research would be much welcomed, from both the standpoint of NJ Transit history as well as the histories of the companies involved.

That said, here are my gaps in knowledge:

1. Missing CONFIRMED front end (first 8 digits) VIN components from Flxible buses, mostly earlier models (the 870 non-rebuilds and Metro A and B models). I got a list of the rebuilds in the 2000 series (probably the work of Murray Kramer) a number of years ago and have used it to correct the listings on other wikis and websites that have perpetuated some errors in transcribing the data. Flxible VINs can be a bear with all the different codes for engines and body styles being the main sticking points. The complete 17-digit VINs on most of the other buses that have run for NJT have been verified, including all the Novas, MCI's, Eagles, Neoplans, Volvos and NABI units.

UPDATE: We have confirmed the 1000-1270 VINs as beginning with 1GF4AB6KxBD.... Still working on the others.

2. Those pesky DesignLine buses need to have their VINs matched up with the license numbers. I don't know which buses belong with which VINs and you can't really go in order with these, because production and delivery was so spotty. Copying my recent post on nyctransitforums....

Also, I have the 14 VINs for the DesignLine CNG buses... if anyone has old SAFER reports so we can match up the license plates to the VINS, that would be extra helpful.

The plates are: 7201-OYA6711 (I think this is CC665058), 7202-OYA5322, 7203-?, 7204-OYA6727, 7205-OYA6712, 7206-OYA6924, 7207-OYA6935, 7208-OYA6935, 7209-OYA6961 (VIN is confirmed from SAFER: DC665062), 7210-OYA6975, 7211-OYA6976, 7212-OYA6977, 7213-OYA7932, 7214-OYA7945. All these plates come up dry in AutoCheck and similar searches.

The unmatched VINs are: CC665054, 055, 057, 059, 060 (all 2012 buses), then DC665061, then 063-068 (the 2013 buses). All those VINs are confirmed as having vehicle history on AutoCheck so they have to be the NJT buses. I don't think DesignLine placed these anywhere else.

There was no 7215 for DesignLine. 

There is also no 7362 CNG MCI D4500CT.... so fix your wikis, gentlemen.

UPDATE: The DesignLine VINs are:

• 7201-7207: 1D9422CNxCC665054-665060
• 7208-7214: 1D9422CNxDC665061-665067
• The undelivered 7215 would have been 1D9422CN3DC665068

3. The high-1500 series Novas NJT got from Academy. I don't have any idea of original fleet numbers, and not all of those buses from the batch Academy got went over to NJT.

UPDATE: These buses are 2001 Nova Bus 82VN's. Academy's original fleet and VINs were:

• 1042-1048: 4RKENTFAx1R835281-835287
• 1049-1058: 4RKENTFAx1R835409-835418

We do have one positive match: Academy 1046 became NJT 1587.

We can track down VINs of current buses if we have their license plates so I'm willing to accept any such data in the form of comments to this post. This will help immensely with the deliveries of the new 17000-series cruisers underway. Thanks for reading!

What's Up, NJT?

NJT learned nothing from its abortive purchase of Millennium transit buses a number of years ago (remember those?) After delivering a paltry number of coaches, Millennium went belly-up and NJT instead turned to the more stable NABI for its new transit fleet. I believe all those buses have now been delivered.

So flash forward a few years and NJT again is in the market for cruisers. Their MCI fleet is aging and the first target is the natural gas buses garaged at Howell. So, let's see.... hey, let's try this Design Line company, they have absolutely no track record in the United States... we'll give them a big order and see what they can do!

From their U.S. plant in Charlotte, NC, Design Line delivered exactly 14 buses - 7201-7214 - to NJT before going bankrupt last fall, and those 14 buses aren't running revenue service as far as I can see. NJT has now ordered about 85 new CNG cruiser buses from MCI, which should more than replace the 77 or so MCI 102D3's at Howell, in terms of both number of buses and passenger capacity (the new buses are 45 foot models). Delivery should begin in the summer. Meantime passengers can still enjoy the 7000 series buses for another few months. You can't say NJT doesn't get the most out of their buses. Witness those Flxibles that NJT kept online for almost 20 years! I think they still have some on their roster!

We are presently unable to update our static (non-blog) pages at this time due to computer software issues but soon we should have an updated roster. Bear with us.

New MCI Spotted

NJT adds on to its fleet of MCI D-series coaches for private carrier use. 8952, a 2012 MCI D4505, was spotted in Academy Lines livery over the weekend. It is not yet known how many coaches are in what is perhaps the last order from MCI before the new Designline coaches arrive.

Bus Service Mostly Restored

As of this morning, NJ Transit is now operating a full weekday schedule on many of its bus lines. All three light rail lines (Newark Subway, Hudson-Bergen and River LINE) are back in weekday service as well. There are service advisories on a couple of routes near the Willowbrook Mall in Wayne as there is still major flooding on Route 23, as well as many unannounced or unpublicized detours due to flooding, road closures, or power outages that are still bedeviling us after Irene's departure on Sunday.

Irene Shuts Down Buses

The entire NJ Transit bus and light rail system were shut down at 6:00 p.m. in preparation for Hurricane Irene, which blew through the state Sunday morning, leaving coastal and river basin flooding and downed trees in its wake. NJT's heavy rail was shut down earlier on Saturday.

The agency's goal is to have weekend-level service running by tomorrow, but a lot of that is dependent on getting buses through flood zones and places where fallen trees have blocked roadways.

New Buses Coming from NABI, Designline

NJ Transit will be replacing its 30-foot Nova Bus models with a new fleet of low-floor, 30-foot transit buses from NABI. The agency has also entered into an agreement with Designline, a company with roots in New Zealand but a plant in Charlotte, North Carolina, for a new fleet of CNG-fueled cruiser buses to replace the MCI CNG buses based at Howell Garage. The 30-foot NABI's will be online by the end of 2012; no word on the Designline buses just yet.

MORRIS COUNTY ROUTES TO BE TAKEN OVER BY NJ TRANSIT EFFECTIVE MONDAY, JUNE 6

The PABCO era in Morris County is over. NJ Transit has announced that the county's transit agency will be taken over by the newly-named NJT Morris beginning on Monday, June 6.

The six routes affected are 871, 872, 873, 874, 875, and 880. These six routes were created in October 2010 after a restructuring and renaming of the four existing MCM series routes.

PABCO had been running thirteen 30-foot Nova Bus RTS on the six routes; it's not known how many, if any, of the buses are salvageable. NJT is set to order 35-foot NABI transits to replace some of the 30-foot Novas. Reportedly NJT is also considering moving some 1994 Flxibles (in remarkably good shape for their age) over from Big Tree Garage.

Bergen Avenue IBOA

For the record, the Bergen Avenue IBOA ceased operations on March 12, 2011. The A&C Bus Company will now be running the route. As a stop gap, Montgomery and Westside received some mothballed Flxibles in the 1900 series to replace the Nova Buses that were pulled off the road.

Bergen Avenue's buses were Novas 1240-1244, 1523-1528, and 1530. None were deemed repairable by the NJDMV so they have been junked.

The IBOA (Independent Bus Owners Association) model is slowly disappearing into history. Montgomery and Westside is perhaps the only one left, out of a long line that as late as the 1990's included Lafayette and Greenville, Broadway, Central Ave. and some of the Newark independents which have since merged into Coach USA's transit operations.

We're Back... Again

Since we last spoke with you, there have been a number of changes to the NJT Roster. 250 new NABI suburbans have been delivered, thus making possible the long-overdue retirement of the Flxible Suburbans from 1989. Those buses hung around almost twice as long as the Eagle AE-20's delivered the same year, which were quickly shown the door in 2001.

Approximately the same number of NABI transits have been delivered, but that is just a fraction of an almost 900-bus order. We are still awaiting serial number information on these buses.

If you go to the Fleet Roster page, you will see links to the four fleet snapshots we've done, the most recent being from this month, detailing each bus' location by number.

Two Years Later...

And there are still some 3000-series Flxibles in South Jersey, at least. NABI's are in delivery, cruisers are a fairly stable fleet now. We'll try to get our roster updated. Greetings from New Jersey.

Check Out The (FINALLY!) New Bus Schedule Design!

NJ Transit has debuted a dynamic, colorful new schedule design for its bus schedules after almost 20 years with the same exact graphics which were very serviceable but we have all grown tired of. The new schedule has debuted on Rt 25, which is also the route of the new "Go Bus".

Rt 25 Schedule as of 4/5/2008

Revisions To Roster, Garage List, and 2007 Bus-By-Bus Roster Now Available!

The elves have been staying up late. Our Roster has some new additions to it, as does our Garage Listing and the piece de resistance of this update, our 2007 Fleet Summary. Thanks to R.K. for the information.

Here Come The NABI's!

The first two production NABI units for the massive NJT order of over 1150 buses have arrived. The two buses - and it's not quite clear if they're transits or suburbans - are numbered 5201 and 5202.

67 More Cruisers For NJT

NJT has ordered another 67 cruisers from MCI. The new buses are 2008 D4500 models, 57 passenger capacity, and will be numbered 7121-7187, immediately after the 20 MCI 102DL3 buses NJT acquired used from MCI Coach Sales & Leasing.

Don't Junk Those Flxibles Just Yet!

Yes, I know sometimes we're a little lax in getting this site updated sometimes. As I was on my way down to the parade in Wildwood today, I got a phone tip that NJT was going to run into some trouble with its recent order from Millennium Transit LLC. Seems Millennium is running into some problems and has had to shut down its plant. No production transits have come forth, and the few suburbans that have been delivered aren't going into service yet until Millennium fixes some electrical problems.

This is why you're still seeing almost 20-year-old Flxibles in the 3000 and 3500 series still on the road!

UPDATE: I've been informed that NJT is going to order additional buses from NABI to replace the last of the Flxibles, including the 1994 transits and 1989 and 1994 suburbans. As Millennium is no longer an entity, it's very unlikely the few suburbans that have been delivered (from what I understand they're at Newton Avenue) will ever see service.

NABI Sends Dallas Bus To NJ As Demo

The demo has arrived for the NABI buses, and it's a four-year-old suburban bus from the fleet of DART. We will be getting more information on the bus, which is 5722 in the DART fleet. NJT has placed a large order with NABI, which will eventually replace the entire transit fleet, starting with the few remaining 1989 Flxibles.

NJT ORDERS 1100+ BUSES FROM NABI

Buses, To Be Camera-Equipped, To Eventually Replace Almost Entire Transit Fleet

In a move that was announced on the day NJ Transit also informed commuters they're soon going to have to pony up 10% more to ride its buses and trains, Bus Operations announced the purchase of 200 new transit buses a year for the next six years from North American Bus Industries.

The buses are all going to be equipped with security cameras. These buses will replace, in order, the remaining Flxibles on the NJT roster, then the 2600-series Nova Bus, then the 1999-2000 Nova Bus fleet. By the time the purchases are completed in 2013, the NJT bus fleet will be the NABI transits, the MCI cruisers, the Neoplan artics, and a handful of Milennium Transit suburbans. And then it will be time to begin thinking about new cruisers again...

Millennium Demos Arrive

The first two RTS buses from Millennium Transit Services LLC have arrived on NJ Transit property, which are the demo buses for an order of 289 that will replace the 1989 3000- and 3500-series Flxibles, at present the oldest buses in the NJT fleet.

According to longtime NJT observer Jim Skelton, the transit demo carries the number 4101, and the suburban demo is 4201. These buses have now been added to our roster. No word as to where these buses will fit into the current NJT numbering plan. My guess is that they'll start the transits from 2801 and the suburbans from 3801.

Millennium Transit LLC acquired the assets and intellectual property of Nova Bus, last manufacturer of the venerable RTS bus design pioneered by General Motors in the 1970's, in 2003.

Site Updates: We rarely tweak our Roster pages since they're so static, but I found a small glitch in the 1982-1984 6100-series MCI pages: buses 6398 and 6399 were grouped into a larger bunch of buses that were originally owned by the Port Authority. The two buses were originally assigned to Coachways in southern New Jersey and were never owned by PA NY/NJ (as were 6502-6561), so the buses did not have PA prefixes on their numbers; that's now been fixed. (6398 met a premature end, while 6399 was eventually absorbed into the Academy Lines fleet.) We've also added the serials completing the 53-bus order of MCI D4500's numbered 9001-9053.