New Flyer wins first ever order from Pace for 75 Xcelsior® buses to revitalize Chicagoland transit service

ST. CLOUD, MN, Aug. 12, 2019 /CNW/ - (TSX: NFI) New Flyer of America Inc. ("New Flyer"), a subsidiary of NFI Group Inc. ("NFI"), one of the world's leading independent global bus manufacturers, today announced a new contract for 75 clean-diesel, forty-foot Xcelsior^® heavy-duty transit buses for Pace Suburban Bus ("Pace").  

The new fleet will replace older buses currently in operation, while growing Pace's service footprint to support its Vision 2020 strategic plan which outlines a more efficient long-range network that is convenient and easy for passengers to understand.

"Public transit plays a critical role in developing smart mobility solutions for growing cities, and as the backbone of Chicago's suburbs, Pace is establishing the foundation for mobility to more than 8 million residents," said Chris Stoddart, President, New Flyer. "As part of its network and service expansion, we are thrilled to support Pace with its first ever order for New Flyer's safe, reliable, and fully accessible Xcelsior transit buses that will significantly improve the passenger experience."

"We are delighted to modernize our fleet with new Xcelsior buses from New Flyer," said Rocky Donahue, Pace's Executive Director. "These clean-diesel buses use ultra-low sulfur fuel with a four-step filtration process to remove harmful emissions from the exhaust, adding to our inventory of emission-reducing buses. These vehicles support our mission to be a good steward of the environment."

Pace is the suburban bus division and regional paratransit provider of the Regional Transportation Authority in the Chicago metropolitan area, covering six counties over 3,400 square miles and providing over 35 million passenger trips per year. Pace's family of public transportation services includes vanpool, rideshare matching, community-based transportation programs, and also recently expanded with Pulse, Pace's new rapid transit network. Pace, an industry leader, was named a 2019 Clean Fuels Champion by Chicago Area Clean Cities (CACC), a nonprofit coalition dedicated to promoting clean-vehicles and clean-air solutions for transportation.

Pace also operates nearly 40 over-the-road coaches from Motor Coach Industries, another NFI subsidiary.

New Flyer has been leading innovation in transit for nearly 90 years. In 2017, it opened the Vehicle Innovation Center, the first and only innovation lab of its kind dedicated to advancing bus and coach technology, and in 2018 became the first bus manufacturer in the world to sign on to the Shared Mobility Principles for Livable Cities. It is the only provider of full suite bus solutions in North America, offering transit buses, motor coaches, and low-floor cutaway buses.

About NFI

With over 8,900 team members operating from more than 50 facilities across ten countries, NFI is a leading independent global bus manufacturer providing a comprehensive suite of mass transportation solutions under brands: New Flyer^® (heavy-duty transit buses), Alexander Dennis Limited (single and double-deck buses), Plaxton (motor coaches), MCI^® (motor coaches), ARBOC^® (low-floor cutaway and medium-duty buses), and NFI Parts™. NFI buses and motor coaches incorporate the widest range of drive systems available including: clean diesel, natural gas, diesel-electric hybrid, and zero-emission electric (trolley, battery, and fuel cell).  In total, NFI now supports over 105,000 buses and coaches currently in service around the world. NFI common shares are traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol NFI. News and information are available at www.nfigroup.com, www.newflyer.com, www.mcicoach.com, www.arbocsv.com, www.alexander-dennis.com, and www.nfi.parts. 

About New Flyer

New Flyer is North America's heavy-duty transit bus leader and offers the most advanced product line under the Xcelsior^® and Xcelsior CHARGE™ brands. It also offers infrastructure development through New Flyer Infrastructure Solutions™, a service dedicated to providing safe, sustainable, and reliable charging and mobility solutions. New Flyer actively supports over 41,000 heavy-duty transit buses (New Flyer, NABI, and Orion) currently in service, of which 7,300 are powered by electric motors and battery propulsion and 1,600 are zero-emission. Further information is available at www.newflyer.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release may contain forward-looking statements relating to expected future events and financial and operating results of NFI Group that involve risks and uncertainties. Although the forward-looking statements contained in this press release are based upon what management believes to be reasonable assumptions, investors cannot be assured that actual results will be consistent with these forward-looking statements, and the differences may be material. Actual results may differ materially from management expectations as projected in such forward-looking statements for a variety of reasons, including market and general economic conditions and economic conditions of and funding availability for customers to purchase buses and to purchase parts or services, customers may not exercise options to purchase additional buses, the ability of customers to suspend or terminate contracts for convenience and the other risks and uncertainties discussed in the materials filed with the Canadian securities regulatory authorities and available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. Due to the potential impact of these factors, the NFI Group disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, unless required by applicable law.      

SOURCE New Flyer of America Inc.

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