EDMONTON TRANSIT SYSTEM
2000 Overland ELF 125 / Ford E-450 diesel #s 80-91 (ex. Calgary Transit)  

In July 2005, ETS took delivery of all 12 of Calgary Transit's ELF buses. It is rumored that Calgary sold the ELFs because they weren't very well liked there and had been made surplus by a delivery of Crestlines. The reason for purchasing them remains unknown, however ETS was having a para transit bus shortage at the time. It could have been that time lines on new buses wouldn't have allowed for delivery for the fall signup (when a lot of service is being added and often requires additional para transit buses). They probably ended up getting a good deal on the buses as well. #8502 (ETS #80), the lone 1996 unit with no destination signs, was originally powered by CNG but was rebuilt as a conventional diesel later in its life (similar to ETS #54). This bus never ran in service with ETS however. A number of these units, in original condition complete with Calgary Transit livery, ran as demonstrators on the route 304 in August 2005. After the test results were in, the first batch of buses rebuilt and placed into service with ETS included units 8503, 8504, 8508, and 8511 - renumbered as ETS 91, 81, 85, and 88, respectively. While #s 81, 85, and 88 seemed to be servicable, #91 quickly gained a reputation for being the most unreliable ELF in the fleet. Ironically #91 was retired around the same time as original ETS 1997 ELF #60, both having suffered fatal front end collisions in 2007. Because of these premature retirements, ETS was forced to rebuild two additional ex-CT units for the sake of maintaining the number of available para transit buses: #s 8505 and 8513 as ETS #s 82 and 90. These two units, along with #s 81, 85, and 88 ran in service for several years until the final retirement of the ELFs in mid 2013. The rest of the ex-CT units, #s 8506, 8507, 8509, 8510, and 8512 (which would have become ETS #s 83, 84, 86, 87, and 89, respectively) were used for parts. Regarding the actual specs of the buses, they were very similar to the ETS 2001 units with the exception of the interiors, bumpers, and destination signs. These buses featured blue cushioned vinyl seating and black rubber front bumpers, as well as higher-resolution Balios destination signs (including rear signs, as per CT spec). Various parts were swapped between these units and the original ETS units over the years, making for some interesting combinations of features. For instance, after being heavily damaged in a front end collision in mid 2007, ETS 2001 ELF #76 ended up with the entire front end off of ex-CT 8509. ELF #90 holds the distinction of being the only ELF to have had three different front bumpers over the course of its life with ETS; first it had a CT-style black rubber bumper, then it had a plain black strip of sheet metal, then it finally received a chrome metal bumper off of an original ETS unit. Towards the final days of ELF service, ETS became even more creative with substitute parts. Some units even featured fuel doors fashioned out of GMC-style fluted aluminum siding (silversides)!