Unitrans 4507-4508

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4508 parked on Hutchinson Drive in front of Surge II (photo taken in the early-mid 1990s)
4508 parked on Hutchinson Drive in front of Surge II (photo taken in the early-mid 1990s)
Interior of 4508, parked at the Unitrans garage (photo taken in the early-mid 1990s)
Interior of 4508, parked at the Unitrans garage (photo taken in the early-mid 1990s)
4508 parked somewhere in the outer campus of UC Davis (photo taken June, 1996)
4508 parked somewhere in the outer campus of UC Davis (photo taken June, 1996)

Unitrans 4507 & 4508 were two ex-Sacramento Regional Transit District, General Motors "old-look" buses operated in regular service by Unitrans in Davis, California. Originally, they were part of a fleet of 30 identical buses built between 1956 and 1958 that operated in Sacramento, CA. While at Unitrans, they were commonly referred to as the "prison buses" due to their smaller sized windows, even though they were never used as such. Having been sold, they are no longer part of the Unitrans fleet.

4507 was purchased and restored by the Pacific Bus Museum in Fremont, CA. It is now Niles Coach Lines #128 and is used for historic bus tours which operate in conjunction with the Niles Canyon Railway.

[edit] Technical specifications

Manufacturer: General Motors Corporation, Truck & Coach Division

Model: TDH-4512 "old-look"

Date built: October, 1958 (4507), September or October, 1958 (4508)

Engine: Detroit Diesel 6-71 diesel with an Allison VH 2-speed automatic transmission.

Length: 35 feet

Width: 8 feet

Seating capacity: 45

Original operator: Sacramento Transit Authority (until 1973), Sacramento Regional Transit District (after 1973)

Original fleet number: 128

Date acquired by Unitrans: Late 1970s/early 1980s

Current status: 4507 was retired and sold in 1997 to the Pacific Bus Museum, 4508 was retired and sold between 1997 and 1999 to a private party in Placerville, CA.

[edit] References

  • Stauss, Ed (1988). The Bus World Encyclopedia of Buses, Woodland Hills, CA: Stauss Publications. ISBN 0-9619830-0-0
  • McKane, John H. & Squier, Gerald L. (2006). Welcome Aboard the GM New Look Bus, Hudson, WI: Iconografix. ISBN 1-58388-167-0

[edit] External links