The Mack ADS-1 “Bus of Tomorrow”

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The Mack ADS-1 “Bus of Tomorrow” (also known as the “Dream Bus”) was based on a design created by Russian-American Count Alexis de Sakhnoffsky, a leading industrial designer and automotive stylist who had done design work for Cord, Auburn, Packard and later White Motor Truck (the 1937 Labatt’s Streamliners). He also designed the Tucker 48 with Preston Tucker.

First exhibited in the fall of 1956 at the American Transit Association convention in St. Louis, the modern Mack ADS-1 prototype was built on the company’s C-49-DT city bus platform and fitted with Mack “Air-Glide” air suspension.

Low entry/exit height and a wide aisle permitted faster passenger flow for reduced stop times while providing greatly improved accessibility to passengers with physical disabilities.

Oversized side and overhead windows took city bus design to a new level, providing passengers with a comfortable, airy riding environment and unsurpassed panoramic view.

The Mack ADS-1 was eventually sold and put into service with Schenectady Transportation Corporation in New York where it operated in revenue service along Route 5 between Schenectady and Albany as unit #700.

Interestingly, the charter division of Schenectady Transportation Corporation, Nationwide Tours, also operated the Mack MV620 Greyhound Lines prototype and two Mack 97-D coaches in revenue service.

Later, Schenectady Transportation Corporation sold the Mack MV620 Greyhound Lines prototype and Mack ADS-1 prototype to ABC Bus Lines of Providence, Rhode Island. They referred to the ADS-1 as the “World’s Fair Mack”.

It appears that George Kistler Jr. of Allentown, Pa., a fire protection equipment distributor, approached ABC Bus Lines in 1968 to purchase both the Mack MV620 Greyhound Lines prototype and Mack ADS-1 “Bus of Tomorrow”. However, the final deal was only for the MV620-D, which was later used by Kistler for client entertainment and company transportation until Mack repurchased the coach in 1970.

Had Kistler acquired the Mack ADS-1, it would have avoided a fiery fate. In 1971, there was a catastrophic fire at ABC’s North Attleboro, Massachusetts garage. The temperature of the fire was so extreme that fire trucks were literally melting and had to pull back. Fortunately the Mack MV620 Greyhound prototype was not in the fire, however the futuristic one-of-a-kind Mack ADS-1 was.

In addition, two Mack 97-D inter-city coaches formerly operated by Nationwide Tours were lost in the fire.

ABC Bus Lines later operated a third Mack 97-D, which was purchased from Peninsula Transit (Pentran), formerly Citizens Rapid Transit, in Hampton, Virginia.

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Bus of Tomorrow Features Comfort

The Milwaukee Sentinel / November 23, 1956

The 50-passenger 40-foot Mack ADS-1 “Bus of Tomorrow” incorporates a variety of new features inside and out. Visible from the exterior are escape-type side picture windows and standee visibility- the largest ever produced for a bus – and a center-dip wrap-around windshield.

Interior features include an integrated air conditioning system, specially designed foam rubber seats with more generous width and higher backs, crash padding throughout, and a rear lounge designed for “move-to-the-rear” passenger appeal. The lounge has an illuminated Lucite mural that with both longitudinal and transverse seating produces an informal atmosphere.

The bus, built in Mack’s bus research laboratory in Allentown, Pa., may be put into regular production because of the enthusiasm with which it has been received.

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