Blue Bird to reveal redesigned Type Ds

MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Blue Bird will unveil its 2014 All American forward-engine and rear-engine school buses at the National Association for Pupil Transportation (NAPT) trade show here next week.

The trade show will be held at the Memphis Cook Convention Center on Oct. 23 and 24.

Blue Bird officials said that the All Americans were redesigned with students, drivers, service technicians and transportation directors in mind, and they include a significant number of new features requested by customers.

“Blue Bird’s All American line has been an industry staple since its introduction in 1948, and to this day it holds the No. 1 sales position in the Type D segment,” said Phil Horlock, president and CEO of Blue Bird Corp. “While developing the All Americans, we spent significant time focusing on customer-led product improvements to ensure these buses would strengthen our leadership position in the Type D segment.”

Company officials said that features include superior fuel efficiency, turning radius, driver visibility and paint warranty. Also on board are a new passenger window design with “ultra-smooth operation” and enhanced serviceability.

The All Americans meet the Colorado racking rollover specification in their standard configuration, rather than as an option, which Blue Bird said highlights the strength of the core All American bus design. The cockpit has been redesigned to comfortably fit virtually any body size. The ergonomics are similar to those of the Blue Bird Vision, so drivers can transfer between the Vision and All American product lines without having to learn a new cockpit layout.

The new All Americans also share many body parts with the Blue Bird Vision, resulting in a reduction in parts and service complexity.

The All American forward- and rear-engine buses will be on display in the Blue Bird booth at the NAPT trade show. Also on display will be the Blue Bird Micro Bird and the Blue Bird Propane-Powered Vision, along with a calculator kiosk in which show attendees can input their fleet usage information to calculate how much money they could save by converting to Blue Bird’s propane-powered buses.

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