Bus Festival

Bus 1263 was part of Fifth Avenue Coach’s “1200 series”—a fleet of 100 Yellow Coach “Z-type” buses manufactured in 1931. This series included two slightly different chassis models, the 602 and 632, and three body styles: open-top (40 buses), semi-enclosed (4 buses), and fully enclosed (56 buses). Bus 1263 was one of the 52 enclosed model 602 buses in the order.

The 1200-series buses were among the last front-engine double-deck buses built by Yellow Coach. In 1936, the Fifth Avenue Coach Company introduced a new rear-engine, a more streamlined design. Bus 1263 remained in Manhattan passenger service until 1947, and the company phased out all double-decker operations by 1953.

Known lovingly as “Betsy,” Bus 1263 is one of the oldest in our vintage fleet.

Manufactured by General Motors, Bus 3100 was the first air-conditioned bus in the United States. Originally built as an experimental model (TDH-5106), it was purchased by the Fifth Avenue Coach Company about a year after production. Between 1958 and 1968, it served Fifth Avenue on the M4 and M5 routes in Manhattan.

Bus 3100 features innovations introduced in the 1950s, including a push-type rear exit door, wrap-around seating in the rear, soft cushioned seats, and fluorescent lighting.

Built in 1969 by the Flxible Corporation, Bus 4727 (Model 1110D51) marked a shift from the long-standing tradition of operating only GMC buses in the Bronx. The Manhattan and Bronx Surface Transit Operating Authority (MaBSTOA) purchased these Flxible 111-CCD51 models for their ability to handle the borough’s steep hills, and they proved to be dependable workhorses. Their success led to additional contracts with Flxible in the years that followed. In 1987, when new buses arrived with duplicate fleet numbers, the original 4000-series buses (including No. 4727) were renumbered into the 7000 series.

Today, Bus 4727 has been restored to its iconic 1970s blue/blue livery.

Bus 5227 entered service in 1971 as part of the General Motors “New Look” fleet. In 1984-85, 350 of these buses were sent to the Blitz Corporation in Chicago for a complete overhaul and rebuild. Upon their return to New York City—renumbered in the 5000-series—they became known as “Blitz Buses.”

These updated buses featured hard, blue lengthwise seating and were the last model in the NYCT fleet not equipped with a wheelchair lift. Bus 5227 was retired from service in 1995.

This bus was the first model to sport a two-tone green exterior with a contrasting stripe, and was also the first type of bus in New York City equipped with sliding windows, fiberglass seats, and rear door safety exits. This innovative system substituted two panel doors for the accordion-type rear doors and interfaced with the bus braking system. Bus #9098 is an “old look” bus, which has been likened to a PCC streetcar, or a loaf of sandwich bread.

This 50-ton wrecker built by Miller Industries is one of the newest road operations vehicles in the fleet.  It is equipped with an under-lift, which has an operable reach of 129” reach, LED lights, a flat screen color monitor, reverse camera and a composite heavy duty tow truck body construction.  It went into service in September 17, 2025 and operates out of Casey Stengel Depot in Queens.