Grand River Transit

[the_conestoga_guy]

I don't recall hearing about this, but midsize buses have been added to the fleet. They'll first appear on the Chicopee route.

https://twitter.com/GRT_ROW/status/1487068948017266690

I never understood this, I wouldn't think they'd have much lower cost of operation, maintenance and depreciation should be basically the same, operator is the same, maybe it uses a little less fuel, and less land to store.

I'm not sure what the benefit is, since there's also a significant logistics cost of managing multiple sizes of bus.

Not to sound overly optimistic about KW's Vision Zero plans, but would the tighter turning radius that these shorter buses can make allow the Region to modify some residential intersections with tighter corners/shorter crossing distances? 

The operational costs of these buses is likely similar to the standard buses. But if the capital cost is less, than the savings should allow for some extra buses if larger orders are made. This video from RM Transit has stuck with me, specifically the idea of having different buses be "different tools in the tool chest." 

Also, I hope that these buses are outfitted with bike racks. The bus in the promo photo doesn't have one.