Gillig
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Bus manufacturing |
| Founded | 1890 in San Francisco, California, United States |
| Founder | Jacob Gillig |
| Headquarters | Livermore, California , United States |
Area served | North America |
| Products | Transit buses, formerly school buses |
Number of employees | Approximately 850 (2017) |
Gillig—originally known as Gillig Brothers—is a U.S.-based company specializing in the design and manufacture of buses. Its headquarters and production facilities are located in Livermore, California, situated within the East Bay area of the San Francisco Bay region. In terms of production volume, Gillig ranks as the second-largest manufacturer of transit buses across North America, following New Flyer. As of 2013, the company commanded an estimated 31 percent share of the heavy-duty transit bus market across the United States and Canada, measured by equivalent unit deliveries.
While Gillig's current focus lies on transit buses, the company built school buses from the 1930s through the 1990s. Alongside the now-defunct Crown Coach, it was among the dominant school bus manufacturers on the West Coast. During the 1960s and 1970s, Gillig also acted as a distributor for conventional-style buses produced by companies such as Superior Coach Company and Thomas Built Buses. After operating in Hayward, California for over eight decades, Gillig relocated its manufacturing operations to Livermore in 2017. The firm was initially established in San Francisco by the Gillig brothers.
1890–1930
Established in 1890 by Jacob Gillig—a carriage maker and upholsterer—Gillig holds the distinction of being North America's longest-standing bus manufacturer. Jacob opened his workshop in San Francisco, and in 1896 his son Leo joined as shop foreman, becoming a partner by 1900. Following the destruction of their shop in the 1906 San Francisco earthquake, the family rebuilt on a new site; Chester Gillig joined the business as bookkeeper during this period. Jacob Gillig passed away in 1907.
The company was renamed Leo Gillig Automobile Works and concentrated on producing custom vehicle bodies. In 1914, after constructing a three-story factory building, Leo and Chester reorganized under the name Gillig Brothers, initially specializing in bespoke bodies including early motor bus designs. It was only about twenty years later that full-scale bus manufacturing commenced.
In the 1910s, Gillig developed a patented removable hardtop designed to enhance weather protection for open touring cars. However, with closed automobile bodies becoming standard by the mid-1920s, this innovation lost relevance. To sustain operations, Gillig concentrated on its core business of body manufacturing, which remained its principal income source. Towards the end of the 1920s, the company briefly ventured into pleasure boat production and created a prototype heavy truck that never entered mass production.
1930–1950
Amidst the economic challenges of the Great Depression, Gillig Brothers aimed to secure consistent revenue streams. Although it had intermittently produced buses since 1914, it was in 1932 that Gillig designed its inaugural school bus body—a model that remained in production for six decades. By 1935, ambulance bodies were added to its portfolio, and it became the West Coast distributor for Superior Coach Company. In 1937, Gillig unveiled its first flat-front (transit-style) school bus.
By 1938, growing demand outpaced their San Francisco manufacturing capacity, leading to relocation to Hayward, California. In response to competition from Crown Supercoach in 1940, Gillig introduced the Transit Coach, a mid-engine school bus featuring an all-steel body powered by a Hall-Scott gasoline engine. During World War II, production of school buses was suspended while Gillig focused on building trailer buses for workers at defense plants.
Following the war’s end, Gillig resumed Transit Coach manufacturing and launched a rear-engine variant in 1948. The Transit Coach’s body underwent a redesign in 1950 to provide a more contemporary appearance.
1950–1980
Following Leo Gillig's passing, Chester Gillig retired in 1953, and leadership transitioned to Stanley Marx, who had previously led the sales department. In 1957, Gillig expanded its reach by purchasing Kenworth's Pacific bus division, securing approximately 70% of the market share in Northern California along with comparable strongholds in Washington, Oregon, and Nevada.
By 1959, Gillig unveiled the Cummins C-Series Transit Coach, marking the first rear-engine school bus powered by a diesel engine. Although gasoline-powered models remained available, the C-Series dominated sales, accounting for more than three-quarters of total units sold within five years. The company further innovated in 1967 with the introduction of the DT16, which held the distinction of being the largest school bus ever manufactured in the United States, originally accommodating 97 passengers before its capacity was adjusted to 90 in 1977.
Stanley Marx stepped down in 1978, prompting the sale of the company to Herrick-Pacific Steel and a rebranding as Gillig Corporation. Concurrently, Gillig initiated construction of a new 117,000-square-foot manufacturing facility in Hayward, positioning it as the largest bus production plant on the West Coast. Seeking to broaden its product range, Gillig entered the transit bus sector during the mid-1970s. In 1976, it formed a partnership with West Germany’s Neoplan to build European-style transit buses equipped with propane-fueled engines; this collaboration lasted until 1979.
1980–2000
Building upon its alliance with Neoplan, Gillig introduced its first purpose-built transit bus, the Gillig Phantom, in 1980. Initially supported by California tax incentives and later sustained through competitive contract bids and a focus on smaller transit agencies, the Phantom became one of the longest-running transit bus models produced from 1980 through 2008. The company expanded its lineup in 1989 with the Gillig Spirit, a medium-duty transit bus featuring a shorter length.
Production of Transit Coach models ceased in 1982 after more than forty years. Although Gillig briefly re-entered the school bus market with a Phantom-based school bus launched in 1986, disappointing sales resulted in discontinuation by 1993.
Following an expansion of its Hayward facility in 1996, Gillig debuted its inaugural low-floor bus model known as the H2000LF. This design entered full production under the name Gillig Advantage in 1997. Initially intended for rental car shuttle services, the low-floor design gained traction as a complementary offering alongside the Phantom transit bus.
2000–present
Throughout the early 21st century, Gillig enhanced its vehicle portfolio by integrating alternative fuel and hybrid powertrain options into both Low Floor and Phantom models. In 2005, additional body styles such as BRT and Trolley Replica were introduced for the Low Floor series.
The production run of high-floor buses concluded in 2008 with the final Gillig Phantom rolling off the assembly line after nearly three decades of service amid declining demand for high-floor designs among transit operators.
On August 1, 2008, ownership transitioned when Gillig became part of Henry Crown’s CC Industries, Inc., maintaining operations under existing management leadership.
The company marked its 125th anniversary in 2015.
In May 2017, after more than eighty years at its Hayward location, Gillig shifted manufacturing operations to Livermore, California to accommodate increased production capacity and spatial requirements. The Livermore facility features a main building spanning approximately 600,000 square feet along with two additional structures measuring roughly 50,000 and 27,000 square feet respectively. While retaining a sizable warehouse near Hayward dedicated to parts distribution at around 500,000 square feet, Gillig divested most of its original factory property. The new Livermore site was projected to employ about 850 personnel.
In February 2024, Gerco—Gillig’s subsidiary—acquired selected assets from Lightning eMotors following that company’s bankruptcy proceedings in Loveland, Colorado. This acquisition included onboarding former Lightning engineers and establishing a dedicated powertrain engineering center focused on advancing electric vehicle technologies.
On April 24, 2024, Gillig revealed plans to collaborate with BAE Systems and Ballard Power Systems to produce hydrogen-electric buses, thereby expanding its portfolio of zero-emission transit vehicles.
Alternative fuels
Gillig ventured into producing a Phantom powered by liquefied natural gas (LNG) in 1992 as a cleaner emissions alternative, though this line was discontinued by 1998. Some of these LNG-powered Phantoms continue to operate shuttle routes at Los Angeles International Airport and Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport.
A diesel-electric hybrid version of the Phantom was introduced in 1996 and remained in production until 2006. Hybrid variants remain available in current model offerings.
In September 2011, Gillig debuted an alternative fuel BRT model utilizing compressed natural gas (CNG), marking their return to CNG buses since 1998. Long Beach Transit acquired a pilot unit in 2011 and subsequently placed an order for 63 additional buses in 2012.
On October 9, 2017, Gillig collaborated with Cummins to develop a battery-electric bus leveraging Cummins technology. The partnership revealed a new all-electric bus based on the Gillig Low Floor platform on May 16, 2019, equipped with a traction motor delivering peak power and torque figures of . This model boasts an estimated driving range of approximately , supported by a 444 kW-hr battery pack and an energy consumption rate of 2.3 kW-hr per mile. The initial vehicle was delivered to Big Blue Bus, serving Santa Monica, California, in May 2020, having entered service earlier on August 19, 2019.
Trolleybuses
Although Gillig has not manufactured fully assembled electric trolleybuses, it has supplied body-chassis shells for other manufacturers to complete. Between 2001 and 2002, the company delivered 100 Phantom body-chassis shells to King County Metro Transit. These shells were nearly finished with interiors but lacked propulsion systems. King County Metro refurbished propulsion units from its retired 1979 AM General trolley coaches through Alstom and installed them into the new Gillig bodies, adding Kiepe-operated fiberglass trolley poles operated pneumatically.
From 2014 through 2020, Gillig teamed up with Kiepe to produce dual-mode trolleybuses for the Greater Dayton Regional Transit Authority. Four BRTPlus body-chassis shells were supplied for prototype development—two battery-electric models and two equipped with diesel generators for operation off-wire. After successful trials, Dayton placed an order for 41 production battery-electric trolleybuses from the collaboration, which were delivered between 2019 and 2020.
Products
| Gillig transit buses (Current) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Model name | Production | Configuration | Length | Notes |
| Gillig Low Floor
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1996–present | Low-floor transit bus | 29, 35, 40 ft (8.8, 10.7, 12.2 m) |
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| Gillig Low Floor Plus
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2017–present | Low-floor transit bus | 29, 35, 40 ft (8.8, 10.7, 12.2 m) |
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| Gillig BRT | 2005–present | Low-floor transit bus | 29, 35, 40 ft (8.8, 10.7, 12.2 m) |
|
| Gillig BRT Plus | 2011–present | Low-floor transit bus | 29, 35, 40 ft (8.8, 10.7, 12.2 m) |
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| Gillig Low Floor Trolley | 2005–present | Low-floor transit bus | 29, 35, 40 ft (8.8, 10.7, 12.2 m) |
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| Gillig transit buses (discontinued) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gillig Phantom | 1980–2008 | High-floor transit bus | 30, 35, 40 ft (9.1, 10.7, 12.2 m) |
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| Gillig Spirit | mid-late 1980s | High-floor transit bus | 28 feet (8.5 m) | Positioned as a medium-duty cost-effective alternative to the Phantom model. |
| Gillig-Neoplan | 1977–1979 | High floor transit bus | 30, 35 feet (9.1, 10.7 m) |
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| 1940–1982 | School Bus | 28–40 feet (8.5–12.2 m) |
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| c.1940–1981 | School bus | Various lengths (up to 40 feet) | A Transit Coach derivative adapted for customer-supplied truck chassis; production was limited following Gillig's role as distributor for other manufacturers such as Superior Coach Company and Thomas Built Buses. The last model produced around 1981 was an International S-1800 chassis variant. |
| 1986–1993 | Rear-engine school bus | 37, 40[convert: needs unit name] |
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VIN
Gillig utilizes the following vehicle identification number (VIN) format:
| VIN digit | ||||||||||||||||
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| 1–3 | 4 | 5 | 6–7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12–17 | ||||||||
| Manufacturer Identifier | Model or Series | Vehicle Length | Engine Type | Brake System | Check Digit | Year of Model | Assembly Plant | Sequential Serial Number | ||||||||
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Template:Col-beginTemplate:Col-break
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Conforms to FMVSS Part 565.4 (Check Digit) |
Conforms to FMVSS Part 565.4 (Model Year) |
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