Following a 13 percent overall spike in last year’s school bus body production data as reported by the small and large school bus manufacturers, the manufacturing segment of the industry continued to rise during the 2005-06 school year over the previous two years. Anyway you cut it, the just-concluded school year saw the largest total number of school buses — 47,915 vehicles — manufactured in the past decade.

As indicated in the School Transportation News 13th annual School Bus Production survey for the 12-month production year of Nov. 1, 2005 through Oct. 31, 2006, school bus manufacturers and the supplier industry as a whole had a reason to cheer. A direct corollary can be drawn between the number of school buses produced and market demand. Keep in mind that the annual STN Bus Production Survey does not track sales figures, which are typically kept by the nearly 300 school bus distributors across North America, it only tracks production data.

Though not a scientific tally, survey results wove a somewhat surprising tale, something school bus professionals are becoming quite used to encountering annually in this editorial space.

Type A small bus production (including both Type A-1 and Type A-2) jumped to 9,422 units, a 25 percent gain over a year ago.

Type C conventional-style and production saw the greatest numerical growth, jumping to 27,723, an increase of 3,138 units or 12.7 percent gain over a year ago.

Type D transit-style production saw 8,505 buses built, an increase of 789 units or 10.2 percent over a year ago.

On the fly, an increase of approximately 2,200 school buses were manufactured during the 2005-06 school year for a total of 47,915 vehicles compared to 45,690 one year ago. That equates to 4.6 percent upward swing. Data also shows a whopping increase of 17.2 percent in the number of buses produced during 2005-06 over the 2003-04 school year two years ago, which produced a total of 39,669 school buses.

The figures take on added significance especially when the ink had barely dried on statements from the large bus manufacturers — Blue Bird, IC Corp and Thomas Built Buses — that production was way up due to a large number of pre-buys against the EPA 2007 diesel engine requirements. Then again, as past surveys have shown, the minutia sheds even more light on the bigger picture.

While Type D transit numbers fell 9.8 percent, or by 765 units, Type C buses saw a more than 9.5 percent jump! The percentages remain similar, but there are typically three times as many Type C school buses manufactured as Type D buses. Indeed, with 30,641 conventional yellow buses coming off the manufacturing lines, up from 27,723 in 2004-05, that makes the just-concluded 2005-06 school year the largest Type C production year in the century-long history of conventional school bus manufacturing!

The difference in overall numbers was largely made on the small bus side, which encountered a 9.2 percent production decrease. Type A bus production fell by 813 units from 2004-05 figures but was still up 14.4 percent, or more than 1,200 units, from the nearly 7,400 produced in 2003-04.

There are other tangibles, such as a recession in the reported — again, an important distinction to make — number of multi-function school activity buses produced. The reported number stood at about 3,000. Due to some confusion in the wording of the STN survey, it was difficult to determine the exact number of MFSABs manufactured last year. MFSABs can be a Type A, Type C or Type D bus built to federal school bus rollover and crashworthiness standards, but they are devoid of flashing lights, crossing control swing arms, side stops arms, and other exterior safety equipment because they do not engage in regular route transportation. Then there is the absence of quantifiable reported data for buses ordered by the General Services Administration BARB program for military-based schools both in domestically and abroad.

Still, all things considered, the industry appears to be marching full steam ahead.

Source: Reprinted from School Transportation News Buyer's Guide, January 2006.
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