The Perley A. Thomas Car Works was reorganized as Thomas Built Buses, Inc., and became one of the three principal builders of large school buses in the United States by the end of the 20th century. It is still based in High Point, and is part of the Freightliner Group of DaimlerChrysler.
Interesting. Thanks for the information! Do you suppose they will ever build "light rail cars?
Have they even built buses used in regular transit service?
Hi Dave -
Depends how you qualify “regular transit service.” If for one of the big-city properties (NYCT, CTA or LACMTA), no. Coach USA has some Thomas-built low-floors that operate in Chicago on a Northern Trust Bank HQ-Data center shuttle, which takes them into Loop traffic, as well as past Union Station. I think that the Damlier-Chrysler ownership, which also controls Orion, tends to “steer” the big-city business that way, while Thomas-built buses are used for secondary demands.
Art
In the late 1960’s, the CTA operated a blue and white Thomas demonstrator bus under contract. Thomas was going after the small-city transit market and CTA was contracted to operate the bus on some lighter lines (primarily #111 111th-115th & #34 Riverdale) to obtain operating and maintenance data that Thomas could use in its sales pitch.
I know the MAX line in Las Vegas uses buses equipped with Alstom wheel-motors. These are I believe inside-out hysterises non-syncronous motors. Magnet Motor has equipped dual mode buses and many European airport people-mover buses with rotating magnet wheel motors. Are any in use on low-floors in the USA to your knowledge?