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Midibus

Single-decker bus between 8 and 11 metres in length

Wikipedia contributorsAdapted for Fathomly · View authors
3 min read
Source updated March 14, 2026
Image credit is listed at the end of this article.

A midibus is a classification of single-decker minibuses which are generally larger than a traditional minibus but smaller than a full-size single decker and can be anywhere between 8 metres (26 ft 3 in) and 11 metres (36 ft 1 in) long. While used in many parts of the world, the midibus is perhaps most common in the United Kingdom, where operators have found them more economical, and to have a sufficient number of seats compared to full size single-decker buses.

Midibuses are often designed to be lightweight to save on diesel fuel (e.g. smaller wheels than on larger buses), making them not as durable as heavier 'full size' buses. Some midibuses, such as the Scania OmniTown, are heavier and therefore more durable. In some places such as Hong Kong, some bus routes have to be served by midibuses due to the winding roads along such routes.

01United States designs

The term "midibus" is not in common use in the United States; such smaller and lighter-duty buses are not used for public transit there except in some very specialized instances. For example, Muni in San Francisco operates both 30-foot (9.1 m) and 40-foot (12 m) versions of the Orion VII transit bus to serve routes that include some of the steeper and curvier hills.

In charter / tour roles, there is indeed a gap between the minibus (12-28 seats) and the touring coach (47-50 seats). Several shuttle bus companies such as Goshen Coach and Crystal have manufactured rear-engined vehicles with 30-35 seats, but no generic term has ever been applied to them. They are usually lumped together with smaller "minibuses", and called "minibus" or "shuttle bus". The only other alternative was to import a "short" (two-axle) version of European touring coaches, known often as "baby coaches", around 35 feet (10.7 m) long and equipped with some 30-32 seats. These include the TEMSA TS 30/TS 35 and the MCI J3500.

In the 2000s, some manufacturers introduced mid-sized bus models based on large truck frames.

Early version of a midibus, the Bedford JJL
Early version of a midibus, the Bedford JJL
Two Optare Solo midibuses
Two Optare Solo midibuses

02Models

A Hino Rainbow midibus
A Hino Rainbow midibus
Watch videos about MidibusExplainers and documentaries on YouTube (opens in a new tab)

Sources and credits

This article is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Midibus”, written by its contributors and licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Fathomly has changed the layout, removed citation markers, navigation and maintenance notices, and adjusted punctuation. This adapted version is shared under the same license. For references, see the original article.

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Minibus

A minibus, microbus, minicoach, or short bus is a passenger-carrying motor vehicle that is designed to carry more people than a multi-purpose vehicle or minivan, but fewer people than a full-size bus. In the United Kingdom, the word "minibus" is used to describe any full-sized passenger-carrying van or panel truck.

List of buses

Year refers to the first year introduced. A range of years is the period the bus was manufactured.