TORONTO, Ont. — The Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) is showing off the first new bus it has taken delivery of since 1999 – a clean diesel, low-floor vehicle.

The TTC’s new bus is a low-floor Orion VII, which uses a clean diesel engine with a six-speed automatic transmission.

The commission has ordered a total of 220 Orion VIIs at a cost of $113 million. The buses, specially designed for disabled passengers, have a life expectancy of 18 years in the Toronto area.

The new Orions feature the latest technology to accommodate the needs of disabled passengers such as a low floor, high-visibility hand holds, and the best and most visible destination and route number signs available.

The new clean diesel engine in the Orion VII meets the latest emissions standards issued by the U.S. Enivronmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Environment Canada, including reduced Nitrogen Oxide emissions to support the requirements of the Kyoto Protocol.

The Transit Commission says this new bus is the first product designed to meet the criteria of the Common Bus Specification developed by several major North American transportation authorities in 1998 meetings that were led by the TTC.

“With improvements in the seating configuration and the latest in air conditioning and heating, these new buses will be very popular with customers – they’re enough to encourage anyone to leave their car at home,” says TTC Chair, Betty Disero.

The first of the Orion VIIs is being wheeled out to the media and TTC Commissioners at Toronto’s Nathan Phillips Square today.