Gillig Low Floor

The Gillig Low Floor (originally named Gillig H2000LF and also nicknamed Gillig Advantage) is a transit bus manufactured by the Gillig Corporation. The second low-floor bus introduced in the United States (after the New Flyer LF), the Low Floor has been produced since 1997. Originally produced alongside the Gillig Phantom as an expansion of the transit product range, the Low Floor has become the successor to the Phantom and the sole Gillig bus platform since 2008.

The Gillig Low Floor was assembled in Hayward, California, prior to the 2017 relocation of Gillig Corporation to Livermore, California.

Design history

The Gillig Low Floor began life in the mid-1990s as Gillig was approached by Hertz Corporation to develop a shuttle bus for its rental car parking lots at airports to replace its aging GMC RTS buses. Featuring a carpeted interior, luggage racks, and a central entry door, the primary design requirement of Hertz was a low-floor entry for those carrying luggage or with limited mobility. In 1996, the first buses for Hertz (named the Gillig H2000LF) entered production. Gillig would produce the H2000LF for Hertz through 2005, as the design was replaced by standard Gillig Low Floor buses.

Gillig introduced mid-entry bus in 1996. Hertz Corporation had the buses at Logan International Airport at Boston.

In 1997, Gillig modified the H2000LF design for transit bus use, replacing the central entry with dual entry doors. Renamed the Gillig Low Floor, the low-floor bus was marketed alongside the step-entrance Gillig Phantom.

During its production, the Low Floor has seen revisions to its body design. In 2002, the windshield was enlarged (with the use of a smaller destination sign) and the side windows were reduced in width. After 2003, the rear side split windows that were configured upside down were reconfigured to match the rest of the side windows; frameless windows later became an option (with or without split openings). In 2008, the glass of both entry doors was enlarged (distinguished by squared-off corners).

In 2008, a suburban configuration was added, identified externally by the lack of a rear entry door. In place of transit seating, the suburban configuration is equipped with forward-facing seating, internal luggage racks, onboard Wi-Fi, and other passenger-related options.

A battery-electric powertrain developed by Cummins was made available for the Low Floor Plus variant starting in 2019. The launch client for the Gillig/Cummins battery-electric bus was Big Blue Bus, serving Santa Monica, California. A battery-electric Low Floor (29') was tested at Altoona in 2018, using a drivetrain adapted from the BAE HybriDrive powertrain.

Overview

Of the two body configurations for low-floor buses, the Gillig Low Floor is a low-entry bus (the front ⅔–¾ of the interior is low-floor) with a low-step entry (nearly curb height) and integrated manual wheelchair ramp while the rear part of the interior is raised to provide sufficient space for the powertrain.

The Gillig Low Floor is produced in three body lengths in its standard transit bus configuration: , , and . Maximum seating capacity is 28 passengers for the 29-foot length (with seats over the front axle), 32 passengers for the 35-foot length, and 40 passengers for the 40-foot length. The turning radius of the Gillig Low Floor is (29 foot body), (35 foot body), and (40 foot body).

Powertrain

Currently (as of 2019 production), the Gillig Low Floor range is equipped with three engines: the Cummins B6.7 diesel, Cummins L9 diesel, and Cummins L9N compressed natural gas inline-six engines. Throughout its production, the Gillig Low Floor has featured a range of Cummins engines along with Caterpillar and Detroit Diesel engines. Depending on variant, the Gillig Low Floor is produced with a range of Allison, Voith, and ZF automatic transmissions.

Since 2004, the Gillig Low Floor has been available in a diesel-electric hybrid configuration with the Cummins ISB engine; hybrid models are identified by their roof-mounted battery pack. Hybrid models have been produced with Allison, BAE, and Voith series- and parallel-hybrid powertrains. The Gillig/Voith hybrid, branded DIWAhybrid, is a mild parallel hybrid system using Maxwell ultracapacitor on-board energy storage, and was tested to have an observed overall average fuel consumption of . The Gillig/BAE series hybrid had comparable fuel consumption, at (40') and (40', Manhattan and HD-UDDS driving cycles, respectively). The Gillig/Allison series/parallel hybrid was similar, at (40', Manhattan and HD-UDDS driving cycles).

A fully electric configuration was introduced in 2019, with serial production commencing in 2020; it was developed as a prototype at the request of Big Blue Bus, which had reduced an order of 20 CNG buses to 19 in order to test an all-electric powertrain system developed by Cummins (branded "Cummins Battery Electric System"). The buses use plug-in charging with a SAE J1772 Type 1 CCS connector, and an overhead pantograph ( SAE J3105–1) connection is available. As tested by the Bus Research and Testing Center in Altoona, a 40' battery-electric bus, with a gross capacity of 444 kW-hr (355 kW-hr usable) at 750 VDC, achieved a range of , depending on the driving cycle (Manhattan and EPA HD-UDDS, respectively; the Orange County cycle fell in between). Observed energy consumption was 3.04 kW-hr/mi (Manhattan), 2.27 kW-hr/mi (Orange County), and 2.09 kW-hr/mi (HD-UDDS). The Cummins TM4 traction motor had a rated output of .

Gillig partnered with Kiepe Electric to build 45 "NexGen" trolleybuses for the Greater Dayton Regional Transit Authority (RTA); Gillig was responsible for the chassis, based on the Low Floor BRT/CNG, and Kiepe supplied the traction motor, battery, and trolley pole equipment. The contract was awarded by RTA in 2013 and the resulting buses featured "in-motion charging", using the trolley wires to charge an on-board battery that provided an off-wire range of up to . This meant that buses could detour around stalled traffic and the system could be expanded without installing more overhead wire; to facilitate off-wire operation, the driver could move the poles up and down without leaving their seat. Four prototypes were supplied in 2014: two used diesel engines to operate off-wire, while the other two used storage batteries. The remaining 41 would be equipped with storage batteries; the prototypes would be tested for more than five years before the first of the 41 regular production models arrived in August 2019. The final bus was delivered in 2021.

Variants

Gillig also manufactures four models of buses based on the Low Floor chassis: the Low Floor Plus, Low Floor BRT, the Low Floor BRTPlus, and the Low Floor Trolley. All have the same engine and transmission options as the standard Low Floor.

Gillig BRT

The Gillig BRT is a restyled version of the Low Floor with different front and rear fascias. It wears a more futuristic look than the standard model. It is available in the same lengths as the standard Low Floor model, although the front fascia adds roughly an extra foot of length to the bus. Instead of sealed-beam headlights, the Gillig BRT has projector headlights. The layout for the headlights was changed slightly in 2009. The Gillig BRT is available with CNG, Diesel and Diesel-Electric Hybrid drivetrains. The first of BRTs of this version went to LeeTran in Lee County, Florida.

The design of the BRT allows for some degree of customization by the purchaser. Some BRTs have been ordered with the same rear end as the standard Low Floor model. Although the BRT can be ordered without the frameless side windows, most BRTs are equipped with them. A one-piece windshield is another popular option for the BRT.

Gillig BRT Plus

The Gillig BRT Plus is a variant of the BRT which features a streamlined fuel tank & A/C above the roof. The Plus made its debut in 2011 with Long Beach Transit #1201, which is also the first Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) BRT produced. The BRTPlus is available with CNG, Diesel and Diesel-Electric Hybrid drivetrains. A BRTPlus trolleybus order for the Dayton RTA's trolleybus system used Vossloh Kiepe propulsion and trolley poles.

Gillig Low Floor Plus

The newest variant of the Gilig Low Floor. Introduced in 2017, the Low Floor Plus is more mildly restyled compared to the Gillig BRT and BRTPlus. The Low Floor Plus features the headlights of the BRT and streamlined roof fairings similar to the BRTPlus, but keeps the windshield and rear end cap with the traditional Low Floor model. This version made its debut in 2018 with the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA).

Gillig Trolley Replica

The Gillig Trolley is a trolley-replica bus produced in collaboration with Cable Car Classics of Healdsburg, California. It is available in , , and lengths. The vintage-style trolley appearance package exterior features include frameless bonded side windows, maintenance-free wood-like trim, ornate gold pinstriping, custom window and body graphic decals, roof cupola, functional solid brass bell, cow catcher, roof perimeter LED ropelights, and front center brass trolley lamp. The interior has solid American white oak seats, optional seat cushions, leather hand straps, brass handrails, stop request pull ropes, wood trim, and woodgrain wall panels and floor covering. In addition to conventional diesel, the Gillig Trolley is available with optional power trains, including Allison hybrid-electric, all-electric, and CNG.

See also

* Gillig Phantom – Predecessor of the Gillig Low Floor
* Gillig Corporation – Manufacturer of the Gillig Low Floor
* List of buses

Competitors:
* NABI LFW
* Neoplan AN440L
* New Flyer Low Floor
* Nova Bus LF Series
* Orion VII
* Grande West Vicinity

References

External links

Gillig Corporation
''gillig.com'', Retrieved on 2009-9-11

''Gillig Low Floor'', Retrieved on 2009-9-12

''Gillig Hybrid'', Retrieved on 2009-9-12

''Gillig Trolley Replica'', Retrieved on 2009-9-11

''Gillig BRT'', Retrieved on 2009-9-11

{{Gillig products

Buses of the United States
Low Floor
Hybrid electric buses
Low-floor buses
Single-deck buses
Vehicles introduced in 1996