Board members of the Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority (GCRTA) on Tuesday unanimously approved spending $20.5 million on a fleet of 21 low-floor articulated coaches for its planned bus rapid transit (BRT) project. GCRTA’s $168 million BRT project involves a plan to rebuild Euclid Avenue with new bus-only lanes and 35 prepay stations along the route for fast boarding, according to a Plain Dealer report. Work on the project will start this fall, with completion slated for 2007. The buses, from New Flyer of America Inc., will be equipped with doors on both sides and feature hybrid-electric propulsion. In addition, the vehicles will offer 46 seats, two interior bike racks, and standing room capacity for 120 passengers. Of the $20.5 million total fleet cost, $2.8 million is earmarked for design, engineering and construction of a prototype to be put through local and federal tests before the 20 others are built, each costing about $850,000, said the newspaper.