[IMAGE]MCI-CNG-Windfarm-CommuterCoach-May-26-2011-2.jpg[/IMAGE] Last week, the City of Los Angeles Department of Transportation (LADOT) signed a contract for 84 CNG-powered Motor Coach Industries (MCI) Commuter Coaches.

Each 40-foot coach will be wheelchair-lift equipped and features MCI’s Cummins ISL G 8.9 liter, 320hp engine, which meets 2010 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and California Air Resources Board (CARB) standards.

The CNG coaches will be the first MCI models in LADOT’s fleet. The order includes an option for 11 additional coaches after deliveries begin in the third quarter. 

Each of the new LADOT coaches will seat 49 passengers on the city’s Commuter Express system that connects outlying suburban districts with Downtown Los Angeles and other employment centers, including Century City, Westwood, LAX, El Segundo, Pasadena, Glendale, Burbank and Encino.

The MCI CNG-equipped Commuter Coaches will replace a majority of the 94 older, heavy-duty diesel buses that now carry Commuter Express passengers. 

Features on the new MCI Commuter Coaches include plush upholstered forward facing seats, individual overhead reading lights and personal airflow controls and performance features, such as an advanced multiplexing system for simplified diagnostics, a driver-centric dash for easy interfacing and a SmartWave tire pressure monitoring system.

LADOT is using Federal Transit Administration grants for 70 percent of the funding for the replacement of its old Commuter Express buses, which are among LADOT’s oldest equipment on the road. The total value of the 84 MCI bus order is $59.2 million.