Method to the Madness: WMATA Bus Numbering
NOTE: This article was first published on the forums at www.btco.net in about 2003 by Neil Greenberg. It is published here without permission because of its value; unfortunately, we have been unable to track down and contact Mr. Greenberg. If you are or you know this person, please contact info@dctransit.info. Content after the 2003 Neoplans added by Tristan Cunningham.
Confused about WMATA's bus numbering system? There's method to the madness.
WMATA's Bus Fleet Numbering
WMATA's bus fleet numbers are definitely daunting at first, but if you look deep into it, there is a lot of historical logic to the way Metrobuses are numbered.
First, you have to come to terms with the fact that NONE of them* are year-numbered; I'll explain why in a moment. (*DC Transit GMs excluded; read on...).
Second, when WMATA started purchasing and numbering its own buses in 1973, they also inherited several private fleets of buses which came with numbering systems all their own.
The year is 1973. WMATA wants to class all inherited buses by source. Since three of four of the private companies they took over used three-digit numbers, they just assigned each of those companies a number (1, 2 or 3) and slapped that number in front of the existing fleet numbers. So AB&W #458 became WMATA #1458; WV&M #592 became WMATA #2592; WMA Transit #833 becomes WMATA #3833. The exception is DC Transit buses, which already had four-digit numbers based on year. When they went to work for WMATA, those all kept their 6300, 6400, 6500, 6600, 6700, and 6800-series numbers.
So thus far, we have buses in the 1000s, 2000s, 3000s, and 6000s - and these are just the inherited buses. Now, WMATA is about to make its first major purchase of new buses - the notorious AM Generals of 1974. Where to number them? Sure, they could have worked them into an existing series, but they wanted a numerical distinction between new buses and inherited buses. The 5000s would have worked, but that would not have left much room for successive large orders. The 7000s it was - and thus began the short-lived WMATA trend of breaking into a new thousand-series for each new type of bus: AM Generals were numbered 7000-7499 and 7500-7619.
Next up for WMATA, Flxibles. As did the AM Generals, these buses enjoyed their own thousand series (at least until 1986). The same basic type of bus came in several orders, hence a few gaps in the series. In general, the WMATA Flxible New Looks purchased between 1976 and 1978 are in the 8000-8600 range, with the exception being the suburban units, 101-112.
Order number three: 1979 GMC RTSes. Though there was plenty of space left in either the 7000 or 8000 range, WMATA continued its trend and numbered this order in the 9000s: 9001-9115.
At roughly the same time, WMATA took delivery of its first articulated buses. They did the same thing as with other orders, but dipped down to the 5000 range: AMG/MAN artics 5001-5043. They seemed pretty sure that they would not buy enough artics to fill this entire thousand series, so they did not worry about running over into the 6000s. Interestingly, WMATA later used the 5000s as the unofficial range for all "non-standard" buses - with exceptions, of course.
Ten years into its bus buying career, WMATA received 75 Neoplans in 1983. Having buses numbered as low as 1001 and as high as 9115 and everything in between, WMATA halved its thousands habit and jumped up only 500 from the last order, numbering the Neoplans 9501-9575. Contemporaries of the Neoplans were the 1983 MAN artics, which fit aptly into the 5100 series.
Welcome to 1986. WMATA is about to take the first of many, many Flxible Metros. Crap. No more open numbers now than three years ago. The decision is made: it's time to start fitting buses into existing series. The 1000s, 2000s, 3000s had long been marked for inherited buses. The 5000s was quickly becoming the place for artics. The 6000s were still busy with the DC Transit New Looks and anything that started with a 7 was stigmatized thanks to the awful AM Generals. Alas, the new buses this time were Flxibles, albeit different from the 8000-8661 Flxibles, so WMATA chose the 8700s and up for its first Flxible Metros. This continued quite nicely until they reached the upper 8900s. They simply jumped over the RTSes and continued numbering Flxibles in the 9200s, 9300s, and 9400s (notice that by 1990, they were getting stingy with the numbers - the 9400 series alone contained three different types of buses: 9400-9413 are 40102-6C-1s, 9421-9463 were 40096-6C-1s, and 9481-9498 are 35102-6C-1s). Notice that WMATA also economized numbers during this time by setting off the second half of artic series for two odd orders of 30-foot buses: Gillig Phantoms 5080-5099 and Flxible Metros 5151-5185.
Here come the first Orions in 1992. WMATA kept going, and jumped right over the occupied 9500-series and put the Orion Vs 9601-9660. The 1993 and 1994 Flxible orders followed suit; 9701-9785 and 9801-9835 (really intended to be 9801-9910, but the order was cut in third due to funding problems).
Now, it's 1995, and the final Flxible order is coming in. By now, we're looking at fleet numbers ranging from 1001-9835 - with the notable exception of the long neglected 4000 range. Finally, after decades of looking the 4000s over, WMATA bit and christened it as the "new bus" series: 1995 Flxible Metro Es 4000-4103.
The 1997-98 Orion order kept right on going, 4200-4412. I suppose they did not want to use the upper half of the 5300 series for 30-foot buses before any artics were there, so the 30-foot Orion Vs assumed a most random spot in the 3900s, and the Orion IIs took the 3700s. WMATA begins to tinker with the 3000s here knowing that the inherited buses are about to become a thing of the past; it will no longer be necessary to reserve three entire thousand series for them.
The 2000 Orion VIs are NOT AT ALL year-numbered. WMATA simply broke back into the 200s after retiring the last of the inherited New Looks in the 2000s. It was looking like they wanted to designate the 2000 range for the low-floor buses, but the 2000 Orion Vs are curiously numbered 2100-2231. I think they should have been 4500-4631.
The next few orders make total sense numberswise; New Flyers are 2300-2399 7 2401-2464, right behind the Orion Vs, the Neoplan AN460s continue with the 5000 artic series, and 40' Orion VII 25-26-2700s come right behind the New Flyers. Four SLF230s for City of Falls Church GEORGE were numbered 3951-3954 - a departure from WMATA's tradition of adding at least a little space between different fleets. A supplement to the Orion VII order, along the lines of 35 baby Orion VIIs, were added to the beginning of the 3000-series, now vacated of any inherited equipment - 3001-3035.
Now it's 2006. and WMATA is receiving the very first of its fleet of hybrid electric buses. The last new bus series, 2000, had unofficially become the CNG series, 3000s had become the short bus series, 4000-4412 were still running strong, 5000s were for articulateds, 7000 was still apparently a cursed series, and there were still lots of buses in the 9000s. That left 1000s, 6000s, 7000s, and 8000s open, and WMATA settled on the 6000s for their brand new bus type. Hybrid-electric buses would find a home to themselves, starting with New Flyer DE40LFs 6001-6039 and DE40LFRs 6040-6050. Or so we thought.
That same year, New Flyer D40LFR clean diesel buses arrived on the scene - numbered 6101 to 6217. So much for the hybrid-only series.
Wait, nevermind - 2009 DE42LFA BRT buses have begun arriving, numbered 6301-6461, making the 6000s really the New Flyer series, right? Nope, that doesn't work either - WMATA reverted to the "fuel type series" numbering when C40LFRs arrived in 2007, numbered behind the 2700s - 2801-2825.
That all leaves one final question: what's the number of the first bus of a new order, xxx0 or xxx1? The answer to this question is far less clear and systematic.
True to WMATA form, the answer to that question has jumped around over time.
- AM Generals and the first Flxible New Looks started at 7000 and 8000
- The second New Looks started at 8201 and this continued on all orders through 1986
- The first Metro-B became #8700...
- 8950 was the last of a new series to start with a zero until Gillig Phantom #5080 arrived, then 30' Metro-B #5150.
- The trend changed back again with the arrival of 9301 starting the 1990 Metro-Bs, and continued through the Metro-Es.
- Guess what? They changed it again, this time with Orion V #s 4200, 3900 and 2100, and Orion VI #2000 (curiously, Ikaruses started at 5201 right in the middle of a xxx0 era).
- Orion IIs started at 3701
- New Flyers started at 2300 (but not 2400!)...
- And every subsequent order began with xxx1.