Recalls for 1987 Gmc Rts

st_asaph posted a photo:

As an inveterate transport buff, I soon pointed my camera at the local buses on this first visit to St. Pete, recording two vehicles of Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority. The location is the corner of 4th Street and 1st Avenue N in downtown St. Pete, close to Williams Square - at the time the hub of PSTAs operations in the city. The lead vehicle is PSTA 1220, a GMC RTS (Rapid Transit Series) - the successor to GMCs famed New Look (or Fishbowl) design that was once ubiquitous in nearly every North American city. GMC Truck & Bus Division introduced the RTS in 1977. PSTAs 1220 was a 40-ft long example of the type: the bus behind is the shorter 35-ft version.

Sales of the RTS were below expectation, which prompted the General Motors parent to exit the transit bus sector in 1987. RTS manufacturing rights went through several subsequent changes of ownership, the type being produced until as late as 2012, by which time other manufacturers had gained market dominance. PSTA was one of many transit authorities that chose Gillig for its bus requirements, while others placed orders with New Flyer or Orion.

While PSTAs GMC RTS buses have long departed from the Sunshine City scene, the backdrop remains unchanged today. The famous open-air Post Office of 1916 behind the buses remains in business, while the onetime Princess Martha Hotel is today a retirement home.

September 1985
Yashica FR-1 camera
Kodak Ektachrome 100 film.