Moving Toward Bus Standardization with Task Force 2.0

APTA’s Bus Manufacturing Task Force approved a second package of recommendations, Dec. 17, that will help move the bus industry toward more standardized vehicles. The Task Force, chaired by Randy Clarke, general manager and CEO, Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, and Michelle Allison, general manager, King County Metro, Seattle, WA, builds on reforms recommended in Dec. 2023 to improve bus manufacturer cash flow through the use of progress payments and inflation-adjusted pricing.

The Task Force found that deviations from the industry’s bus procurement template (the APTA Standard Bus Procurement Guidelines or “White Book”) and elective, agency‑specific customization drive higher costs, fragment supplier volumes, and trigger contractual disputes—ultimately increasing prices and extending lead times.

Task Force 2.0 focused on standardizing designs and commercial practices to support greater consistency across procurements, which can lead to economies in production and a stronger, more competitive supply chain. The Task Force recommendations will be incorporated into the White Book in early 2026. In addition, APTA member bus manufacturers will seek to include the recommendations into their configuration for a “standard” bus, which configuration FTA has used in the past in the scoring of competitive bus grants. APTA will engage in industry training on the new recommendations and seek FTA support for encouraging greater use of the White Book and the Task Force recommended changes in future discretionary bus programs.

Key recommendations include updated commercial terms and conditions; standardized inspection and acceptance criteria; new cybersecurity standards; and three sets of changes to encourage use of common, volume‑supported designs for bus windows, doors, and floor plans.

APTA plans to roll out these recommendations in 2026 through webinars and sessions at its conferences. Recently, APTA also completed the automation of the White Book, providing procurement officers complete RFP, contract, and technical specifications for use in new bus procurements.