Low-floor buses

Early bus lifts were slow and hard to use. Older people who couldn’t climb steps easily also needed low-floor kneeling buses that were closer to the ground. In the 1970s, the federal government had a program called TransBus to encourage bus makers to adopt new standards. The bus makers said it wasn’t possible, but eventually found a solution.

A bearded man in a wheelchair rides a mechanical wheelchair lift on the side of an MTA bus on a city street.

Date: c. 1980s

Image Description: A color photograph of a bearded man wearing glasses, a light dress shirt, a striped tie, and tan trousers seated in a manual wheelchair on an elevated bus lift platform. He holds onto a vertical handrail inside the doorway of a white-and-blue bus marked with a blue International Symbol of Access decal while being lowered or raised at curbside along a city street lined with tall buildings.

Source: Eastern Paralyzed Veterans Association (EPVA) Collection

Disability activist Denise McQuade in a wheelchair using a mechanical bus lift to board or exit a bus.

Date: c. 1980s

Image Description: A black-and-white photograph viewed from the street looking directly into the doorway of an accessible bus as Denise McQuade rides the wheelchair lift. She has dark shoulder-length hair with bangs, wears a dark leather jacket and patterned scarf, and rests her hands on a dark handbag in her lap while seated in a manual wheelchair on the lift platform. Instructional plaques and folded seats are visible inside the bus interior behind her. Denise McQuade worked for the MTA after her bus protest in 1981.

Source: Eastern Paralyzed Veterans Association (EPVA) Collection

Exterior view of a "New Flyer Low Floor" test bus parked at a curb with its front-door access ramp deployed onto the sidewalk.

Date: c. 1980s

Image Description: A sepia-toned black-and-white photograph of the exterior of a low-floor bus parked along a tree-lined street, with a fold-out ramp extended from the open front doorway onto the sidewalk. The bus destination sign reads “6 TEST BUS,” and cursive lettering along the roofline reads “New Flyer Low Floor Driving Innovation.” Through the large side window behind the front wheel, a woman in a wheelchair and two standing men are visible inside the bus cabin.

Source: Eastern Paralyzed Veterans Association (EPVA) Collection

Previous item

Next item