Today, June 15, 2009, NovaBus, St. Francois-du-Lac, Quebec, Canada, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Volvo Bus Corporation, cuts the ribbon and officially inaugurates its third production facility in Banker Road Industrial Park, Plattsburgh, NY.
The company broke ground on the plant last spring and officials say the plant will be completely up and running by fall.
NovaBus employs more than 900 people in North America, and operates two plants in Canada in addition to the new 14,000-square-foot factory and test track opening today in New York state. The company already employs 172 in Plattsburgh, building LFS transit buses for two transit authorities in British Columbia that will help transport visitors to the 2010 Winter Olympics. NovaBus will soon hire about 300 local workers for jobs paying between $12 and $18 per hour.
MTA NYC orders 90 units from the new facility
The company has already received an order from New York City Metropolitan Transit Authority for 90 LFS articulated buses built at the Plattsburgh facility with delivery scheduled for the first half of 2010. The order follows a six-week in-revenue service run of one of the 62-ft articulated buses on New York City Transit routes in the Bronx and Manhattan.
The stainless steel bus frames are made in Quebec and shipped by truck to the Plattsburgh facility. Assembly work is done at each of 17 workstations in the new plant. The buses also undergo systems tests, as well as road and water tests in Plattsburgh.
The stainless steel bus frames are made in Quebec and shipped by truck to the Plattsburgh facility. Assembly work is done at each of 17 workstations in the new plant. The buses also undergo systems tests, as well as road and water tests in Plattsburgh.
The MTA's New York City Transit has a fleet of more than 4,500 buses that cover 249 routes in the five boroughs of New York City. It carries an estimated 2.3 million passengers on an average weekday.