At its monthly board meeting on May 9, 2012, the Chicago Transit Board approved the purchase of up to 100 new 60-foot articulated buses from New Flyer of America, Inc. The $80 million deal was a reassignment of options from a contract with New Flyer originally executed by Seattle’s King County Metro.
The order contains a mix of 67 “clean-diesel” and 33 hybrid diesel-electric articulated buses. The new buses is allowing the CTA to begin replacement of its 40-foot Nova bus fleet, which have begun to reach end of life.
The buses will be a mix of D60LFRs and DE60LFRs, New Flyer’s “restyled” bus model. While fairly similar to CTA’s existing fleet of DE60LFs, the LFR models feature a more curved front end design. In addition, CTA’s DE60LFR models feature roof fins to better conceal the roof-mounted equipment and provide a more streamlined appearance.
Delivery commenced in November 2012 and will be completed in 2013. The buses began operating in revenue service on December 17, 2012.
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