Bus building plans on track.

Byline: Jeff Wright / The Register-Guard

The labor unrest has ended at the New Flyer bus-building factory in Winnipeg, Manitoba, and officials are breathing much easier at the Lane Transit District offices in Glenwood.

With a new contract in hand, workers in Winnipeg are to begin building six buses for LTD's EmX bus rapid transit system on July 6. The buses should arrive in late August or September.

That will give LTD plenty of time to test the buses, and train their drivers, prior to the official debut of the Franklin Boulevard EmX system in December, EmX manager Stefano Viggiano said. The route will carry riders along a four-mile stretch between LTD's downtown Eugene and Springfield stations.

This spring, LTD decided to buy a sixth bus - at a cost of $916,000 - after the district's board committed to a 10- rather than 12-minute frequency between buses.

That means four buses will be in service at the same time along the route, with the other two providing backup during maintenance.

The 60-foot-long, articulated buses feature hybrid-electric propulsion and wide doors on each side for boarding from both sides of median stations. The buses will arrive painted in three base colors, with LTD adding its distinctive EmX logo and "swirls."

New Flyer is making 26 of the prototype buses - the six for LTD and another 20 for the Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority.