Collins Bus Corporation, part of REV Group, has been the trusted name among commercial bus and Type A school bus manufacturers.
Whenever you see a yellow in the United States or in some parts of Europe, you’ll easily recognize that it is a school bus. In the late 1800s, buses were not available, and students were aided with a kid hack, which was a term used for some horse-drawn carriages. The kid hack had no protection from the weather, and students used to travel in those kid hacks.
The concept of the school car was given in the early 1890s by Wayne Works, a company based in Indiana, US. It was a horse-drawn wagon, but it had wooden seats and a roof, but sides remained open. In the 1930s, a school bus design was introduced, which is iconic and still being used today.
Different companies are operating in the United States that manufacture school buses for school transportation. In this article, we’ll talk about the top 7 school bus manufacturers in the US in terms of their annual estimated revenue. So, let’s begin!
The Lion Electric is a Canadian-based company founded in 2011 and has an office in Newtown, PA, while its headquarter is based in Saint-Jerome, Quebec. The company produces commercial vehicles, but the premium product of Lion Electric is a school bus. In the United States, the company earns an annual estimate of under $1 million, making it one of the biggest school bus manufacturers in the States.
The product line of the Lion Electric company includes electric school buses, semi-trucks, transit buses, and garbage trucks. The primary features of all the vehicles produced by the Lion Electric company are that they’re electric vehicles with zero-emission. All these features and products make the Lion Electric company one of the biggest bus manufacturers in the US.
Van-Con is a dedicated school bus manufacturer in the United States and has a headquarter in Middlesex, New Jersey. They are famous for producing the safest and structurally sound buses for schools in the US. The company manufacture both Type A and B school buses with a variety of safety features.
The school buses manufactured by Van-Con are equipped with wheelchair lifts for disabled students. The safety feature in Van-Con buses includes the emergency exit, switch panel, reflective decals, storage & electric panels, and optional child restraint seats. All these features make Van-Con one of the top school bus manufacturers in the US.
Alexander Dennis is a British company and has an office in Canyon Lake, California. The company is a predecessor to TransBus International and was founded in 2004. In the United States, the company has an annual estimated revenue of $6.07 million, making it one of the top bus manufacturing companies in the US.
Alexander Dennis manufactures a variety of buses and offers a wide range of products. The product range includes single deck buses, double-deck buses with two and three axles, and Plaxton coaches. The variety in their products makes them one of the biggest bus manufacturing companies.
Eldorado was founded in 1978, while National Coach company was founded in 1976; later on, these companies were taken over by Thor industries and now known as Eldorado National Kansas, Inc. The company is one of the top school bus and heavy vehicle manufacturers in the United States.
The headquarter of the company is based in Salina, Kansas, and it produces all types of buses for the transportation industry. The company produces school buses, recreational vehicles, transit buses, and shuttle buses. Some of the famous models of Eldorado National include Axess, Passport-HD, Enviro 500, and Aero Elite.
Collins Bus Corporation was founded in 1967 by Don Collins, and it is one of America’s oldest yellow bus manufacturing companies. The headquarter of the company is based in Hutchinson, Kansas. The first school bus manufactured by Collins was derived from a van, and it was the first company to produce a bus with a provision of a wheelchair lift.
Collins Bus Corporation offers a wide range of products for schools, including type A bus, daycare bus, multi-functional school activity bus, electric school bus, and low floor school bus. All these buses feature luxury and safety for the students commuting to and from the school.
Navistar is at number two in the United States for manufacturing vehicles, including school buses. The company was created in 1986, and it was a successor to a company named “international harvester.” The headquarter of Navistar international is based in Lisle, Illinois. Navistar international serves two primary markets in the United States, i.e., military and transportation.
The yellow buses manufactured by Navistar get around 26 million students to and from school and college. The company product lineup includes integrated vehicles such as CE series, BE series, and AE series. Navistar is also manufacturing all-new type A school buses as well.
REV Group is the biggest manufacturer of school buses, and it is based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The company was founded in 2010, and in a short time, they have become America’s leading vehicle manufacturer.
REV Group offers a wide variety of product range apart from school buses. Their product range includes all types of specialty vehicles such as ambulances, fire trucks, trucks, sweepers, cars, buses, and vehicles for the disabled & special people. The cars manufactured by the REV group are luxurious and heavy-duty.
The yellow buses symbolize education and school in the United States, and everyone, including a foreigner, knows that a yellow bus means a school bus. Different companies in the US manufacture school buses, but the companies mentioned here are the top 7 school bus manufacturing companies according to their revenues.
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| Rank | Company | Country |
|---|---|---|
| #1 |  Volkswagen |
Germany |
| #2 |  Toyota |
Japan |
| #3 |  Stellantis |
Netherlands |
| #4 |  Mercedes-Benz Group |
Germany |
| #5 |  Ford Motor |
United States |
| Rank | Company | Country |
|---|---|---|
| #1 |  Michelin |
France |
| #2 |  Bridgestone |
Japan |
| #3 |  Continental |
Germany |
| #4 |  Goodyear |
United States |
| #5 |  Sumitomo |
Japan |
