Photo: Volvo

Volvo just showed off a bunch of new buses in Brazil, including a bi-articulating behemoth that’s nearly 100 feet long, and can carry up to 300 people, making it the biggest bus on earth according to Volvo.


At the FetransRio—a trade show devoted to public transportation—in Rio De Janeiro last week, Volvo Latin America launched the Gran Artic 300, an absolute monster at 98 feet and with a capacity of up to 300 souls (or about three times that of a regular padrón bus).

Photo: Volvo


President of Volvo Bus Latin America Fabiano Todeschini calls the new bus the “greatest coach in the world,” and with a beautiful chassis like this, he could be right:

Photo: Volvo

The Artic 300, developed in Brazil, isn’t the first bi-articulated bus from Volvo, as the company has used this type of architecture since the ‘90s. Still, the new model holds 30 more passengers than its predecessor, a fact that Idam Stival, coordinator of sales engineering at Volvo Bus Latin America, says “represents a gain in scale efficiency, fleet reduction and emission reduction.”

Photo: Volvo


So basically, the point of this Road Train Disguised As A Bus is to save operators money, and to reduce pollution, which all sounds well and good.

But the real question I want answered is: can I please just drive the bare chassis?