Bus

A
bus (contracted from
omnibus, with variants
multibus,
motorbus,
autobus, etc.) is a
motor vehicle that carries significantly more
passengers than an average
car or
van, but fewer than the average
rail transport. It is most commonly used in
public transport, but is also in use for
charter purposes, or through private ownership. Although the average bus carries between 30 and 100 passengers, some buses have a capacity of up to 300 passengers. The most common type is the
single-deck rigid bus, with
double-decker and
articulated buses carrying larger loads, and
midibuses and
minibuses carrying smaller loads.
Coaches are used for longer-distance services. Many types of buses, such as city transit buses and inter-city coaches, charge a fare. Other types, such as elementary or secondary
school buses or
shuttle buses within a post-secondary education campus, are free. In many jurisdictions,
bus drivers require a special
large vehicle licence above and beyond a regular
driving license.
Buses may be used for
scheduled bus transport,
scheduled coach transport,
school transport, private hire, or
tourism; promotional buses may be used for
political campaigns and others are privately operated for a wide range of purposes, including rock and pop band tour vehicles.
Horse-drawn buses were used from the 1820s, followed by
steam buses in the 1830s, and electric
trolleybuses in 1882. The first
internal combustion engine buses, or motor buses, were used in 1895. Recently, interest has been growing in
hybrid electric buses,
fuel cell buses, and
electric buses, as well as buses powered by
compressed natural gas or
biodiesel. As of the 2010s,
bus manufacturing is increasingly
globalised, with the same designs appearing around the world.
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