Optima Bus, LLC, formerly Chance Coach Inc., was a brand of small transit buses manufactured by North American Bus Industries. It was established in 1976 in Wichita, Kansas.
It was originally the trolley-replica and conventional bus production business of Chance Industries, Inc. In 1998, Chance Coach, Inc. was sold to American Capital Strategies, which rebranded the company as Optima Bus Corporation in 2003. American Capital subsequently sold Optima to North American Bus Industries, who closed the Kansas assembly plant on August 8, 2007, with production moved to their existing plant in Anniston, Alabama. Optima Bus was owned by North American Bus Industries, Inc. until 2010 when NABI discontinued the production of its Optima and Blue Bird brand commercial bus products.
Models
- Opus: under or under low-floor bus; designed in collaboration with Northern Irish manufacturer Wrightbus' international Expotech division
- Opus ISE Series Hybrid: hybrid version of the Opus. It utilizes ISE-Siemens ThunderVolt hybrid technology built around Siemens ELFA motors, generators and inverters.
- American Heritage Streetcar AH-28 - trolley-style body on bus chassis
The RT-52 was used in the Wiki Wiki Shuttle route at Honolulu International Airport. The first wiki site, called WikiWikiWeb, was named by its programmer, Ward Cunningham, after this line of buses. The buses were also purchased by Pace, primarily for use in Niles, Illinois; all have now been retired, with the last one running service routes in May 2007.
- Sunliner: an open-air towed tram used at various parks and zoos in the United States and Canada
References
External links