The Volvo B9S was an articulated bus chassis constructed by Volvo Buses between 2002 and 2011. It was available as a low-entry bus (the B9SALE), a wholly low-floor bus (the B9SALF), and an integral bus bodied by Volvo (the 7500 or 8500).
The B9S was successful in few countries. It has been commercialized in Sweden, where it has been in use in the urban systems of Stockholm, Östergötland, Umeå and Gothenburg, being used there as a rapid transit buses; in Chile where it was a part of the biggest purchase order for Volvo buses: 1,159 articulated units entrusted for the urban system of Santiago; and in Brazil to be used in urban system of Sao Paulo by rapid transit corridors, in articulated and bi-articulated versions. Production of the B9S ceased in Europe in 2011 due to poor profitability, with Volvo offering the existing Volvo B9LA as a successor, which is rear-engined and used the same engine as in final generation of B9S.
The B9S was launched in 2002 to replace the Volvo B7L, although production of the latter continued nonetheless. It was intended to replicate the success of the Volvo B10MA and Volvo B12MA in the past. So in this way, the new chassis was conceived initially as a mid-engined articulated bus, with low floor at least in 40 percent of his length and using an engine of less than 10 liters of displacement, taking advantage of the fact that Volvo had launched at that time a new 9,4 liter engine used in the FM truck series, appearing as alternative against models such as the Van-Hool AG300 and AGG300 that were using 12 liter engines. Placing a vertical engine in the centre of the front-most section of the articulated bus allows to avoid a wider useless space and to free up space in the back and create an even weight distribution throughout the bus favoring better on-road capabilities. Unlike the B10MA/B12MA that came before it, however, the B9S has a step-free entrance and is fully accessible to wheelchairs.
Initially made on the plant of Volvo Buses in Borås, Sweden, it was offering in two versions: as Low Entry named B9SLEA, and as entirely Low Floor called B9SALF, offering in a front-most section wheelbase of 6.4 meters and bodied by Säffle, as a complete Volvo 7500 bus. The units made up to 2005 used the Volvo D9A engine with 340 bhp, later to that year they used the Volvo D9B engine with 360 bhp in order to achieve the Euro 4 and Euro 5 emissions rules. In year 2005 the production of this platform was extended to Volvo Buses' factory in Curitiba, Brazil, with external bodyworks to answer to the order of purchase of 1,159 B9SALF articulated units to be part of the urban system of Santiago of Chile, which involved to a modification of the front-most section to 5 meters, in order to avoid problems of maneuverability in narrow streets. From this year this platform is offered for the South American market, being entrusted later near 100 additional articulated units for Chile and 100 bi-articulated units for Brazil, between the year 2007 and 2010.
Volvo Buses is a subsidiary and a business area of the Swedish vehicle maker Volvo, which became an independent division in 1968. It is based in Gothenburg.
An articulated bus, also referred to as a bendybus, tandem bus, vestibule bus, wiggle wagon, stretch bus, or an accordion bus, is an articulated vehicle used in public transportation. It is usually a single-decker, and comprises two or more rigid sections linked by a pivoting joint (articulation) enclosed by protective bellows inside and outside and a cover plate on the floor. This allows a longer legal length than rigid-bodied buses, and hence a higher passenger capacity (94–120), while still allowing the bus to maneuver adequately.
The Volvo B9TL is a low-floor double-decker bus built by Volvo from 2002 until 2018. It superseded the Volvo Super Olympian and the Volvo B7TL. The 2-axle version has been superseded by the Volvo B5TL in 2014 and the 3-axle version has been superseded by the Volvo B8L in 2018.
A low-floor bus is a bus or trolleybus that has no steps between the ground and the floor of the bus at one or more entrances, and low floor for part or all of the passenger cabin. A bus with a partial low floor may also be referred to as a low-entry bus or seldomly a flat-floor bus in some locations.
The Volvo B7RLE is a low-entry single-deck bus chassis manufactured by Volvo. It was superseded by the Volvo B8RLE in 2013.
The Volvo B7L is a fully low floor single-decker bus, double-decker bus and articulated bus chassis with a rear engine mounted vertically on the left of the rear overhang. It was built as a replacement for the Volvo B10L, and the Volvo Olympian. It was used as both a single-decker bus and a double-decker bus chassis largely in Continental Europe.
Mercedes-Benz has been producing buses since 1895 in Mannheim in Germany. Since 1995 Mercedes-Benz buses and coaches is a brand of EvoBus GmbH, a wholly owned subsidiary of Daimler Truck.
Red Metropolitana de Movilidad is a public transport system that serves Santiago, the capital of Chile. It is considered the most ambitious transport reform undertaken by a developing country according to the World Resources Institute.
The Volvo B58 was a mid-engined bus chassis manufactured by Volvo in Sweden from 1966 until early 1982. It was succeeded by the B10M.
The Volvo B10M was a mid-engined city bus and coach chassis manufactured by Volvo between 1978 and 2003. It succeeded the B58 and was equipped with the same 9.6-litre horizontally mounted Volvo diesel engine mounted under the floor behind the front axle. An articulated version under the model name Volvo B10MA was also offered, as was a semi-integral version known as the C10M, with the engine in the middle of the chassis.
The Volvo B10BLE was a rear-engined low-entry single-decker bus chassis manufactured by Volvo in Sweden between 1993 and 2004. The first prototypes were built in 1992, but mass production started in 1993, only a year after the high-floor B10B. It was popular in Australia, Scandinavia and the United Kingdom. It had the engine mounted on the rear overhang of the bus. It became the successor of the city bus version of the B10B and was used as a base for single-decker buses worldwide. The B10BLE was available in diesel powered format, and later in a compressed natural gas powered format with the fuel tanks on the roof of the bus. Its low-floor design was widely promoted by Volvo when it was first launched, on the basis of added convenience to the passengers, and the increase in transport efficiency due to the low-floor design.
A bi-articulated bus or double-articulated bus and sometimes train-bus is a type of high-capacity articulated bus with an extra axle and a second articulation joint, as well as extended length. Bi-articulated buses tend to be employed in high-frequency core routes or bus rapid transit schemes rather than in conventional bus routes.
The Wright Eclipse is a low-floor single-deck bus body that was built by Wrightbus between 1999 and 2019. The second-generation Eclipse 2 was launched in 2008, followed by the third-generation Eclipse 3 in 2015. The Eclipse, and its sister design the Solar, were named for a solar eclipse which was visible in the UK in 1999, the year of its introduction.
Bus manufacturing, a sector of the automotive industry, manufactures buses and coaches.
The Volvo B5LH is a low-floor hybrid electric bus chassis for both single-decker buses and double-decker buses manufactured by Volvo since 2008. It is the basis for Volvo's integral 7700 Hybrid full low floor city bus and its successor, the 7900 Hybrid from 2011. In 2008, pre-production batches of both types of chassis were manufactured. Serial production started in June 2010. From 2013 it is also available as an articulated bus chassis. First entering service in London, the B5LH is the only current double decker type in service in the United Kingdom that uses a parallel hybrid drive system.
MAN Truck & Bus SE is a subsidiary of Traton, and one of the leading international providers of commercial vehicles. Headquartered in Munich, Germany, MAN Truck & Bus produces vans in the range from 3.0 to 5.5 t gvw, trucks in the range from 7.49 to 44 t gvw, heavy goods vehicles up to 250 t road train gvw, bus-chassis, coaches, interurban coaches, and city buses. MAN Truck & Bus also produces diesel and natural-gas engines. The MAN acronym originally stood for Maschinenfabrik Augsburg-Nürnberg AG, formerly MAN AG.
The Volvo B10 was a front-engined bus chassis built in the 1930s, but may also refer to different 9.6-litre engined bus chassis from Volvo Buses:
The Volvo B9L was a fully low-floor single-decker bus chassis constructed by Volvo Buses from 2005 until 2013, replacing the Volvo B7L and Volvo B10L. An articulated model, known as the Volvo B9LA, is also available. It was superseded by the Volvo B5LH in Europe.
The Volvo B8RLE is a 7.7-litre-engined low-entry bus chassis manufactured by Volvo since 2013 for Euro VI markets. It was designed as a replacement for the B7RLE and the B9RLE. The right-hand drive version was launched in November 2014.
The Volvo 8500 was an aluminium body single-deck city/intercity bus manufactured by Volvo between 2001 and 2011. It was available with medium floor as two-axle, tri-axle (B12M) and the articulated 8500A (B12MA). As the low-entry Volvo 8700LE as two-axle, tri-axle (B12BLE) and the articulate 8500LEA (B9SALE). From 2005 it was also available as the fully low floor Volvo 7500, which even came in a bi-articulated version. In the early years, the 8500LE was available with CNG on the B10BLE chassis. Later, CNG was only available on the 7500.
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