Rapid Transit Series

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Rapid Transit Series
RTS-06 model with narrow front door
Overview
Manufacturer	GMC Truck and Coach Division (1977–1987) Motor Coach Industries (TMC) (1987–1995) Nova Bus (1995–2003) Millennium Transit Services (2006–2012)
Production	1977–2003, 2006–2012
Assembly	Pontiac, Michigan (1977–1987) Roswell, New Mexico (1987–2003, 2006–2012) Saint-Eustache, Quebec (1997–2003) Niskayuna, New York (1996–2003)
Designer	Michael Lathers[1]
Body and chassis
Class	City bus
Doors	1 door or 2 doors
Floor type	Step entrance (RTS Legend and Express)/Semi low-floor (RTS Extreme)
Powertrain
Engine	Detroit Diesel, Cummins, or Caterpillar engines
Transmission	Allison or ZF transmissions
Dimensions
Wheelbase	178 in (4.52 m), 238 in (6.05 m), or 298 in (7.57 m)
Length	30 ft (9.14 m), 35 ft (10.67 m), or 40 ft (12.19 m)
Width	96 in (2.44 m) or 102 in (2.59 m)
Height	119 in (3.02 m) (over roof-hatches; rooftop A/C, hybrid drive, or CNG options added to height)
Chronology
Predecessor	GM New Look Classic (in Canada)
Successor	Nova Bus LF Series (when it was discontinued in 2003)

The Rapid Transit Series (RTS) city bus is a long-running series of transit buses that was originally manufactured by GMC Truck and Coach Division during 1977, in Pontiac, Michigan. First produced in 1977, the RTS was GMC's offering of an Advanced Design Bus design (the other entry was the Grumman 870 by competitor Flxible) and is the descendant of GMC's prototype for the U.S. Department of Transportation's Transbus project. The RTS is notable for its then-futuristic styling featuring automobile-like curved body and window panels; the Advanced Design Buses were meant to be^{[by whom?]} an interim solution between the high-floor transit buses that preceded them, such as the GMC New Look (which had a curved windshield, but flat side glass and body panels), and modern low-floor buses that would facilitate passenger boarding and accessibility. Most current buses are now made by specialized coach manufacturers with flat sides and windows.

Production of the RTS transitioned from GM to Motor Coach Industries (under its Transportation Manufacturing Corporation subsidiary in Roswell, New Mexico) in 1987, moved to NovaBus in 1994, and finally moved to Millennium Transit Services (MTS) in 2003. Production ceased with the closing of MTS in 2009.

The RTS was offered in 30-foot (9.14 m)-, 35-foot (10.67 m)-, and 40-foot (12.19 m)-long models and was built using a modular design that allowed the same parts to be used for all three lengths, the longest of which could seat up to 47 passengers. It was originally powered by either 6- or 8-cylinder versions of Detroit Diesel's Series 71 two-stroke diesel engine channeled through an Allison V730 or ZF 5HP-500 transmission. Later models could be powered by a 6-cylinder Series 92, or the 4-cylinder Series 50 engines.