August 10, 2022: Due to ongoing supply chain issues affecting the bus manufacturing industry, the planned Sedona Shuttle Connect Microtransit service will be delayed until early to mid-2023 or beyond.
The vehicles for this service were originally ordered last December, and at that time city staff was notified by the vehicle manufacturer that we could expect up to a six-month lead time for the delivery of the 2021 models due to supply chain delays.
In May, staff was notified that the manufacturer is no longer producing that model of vehicle and sold the manufacturing rights to another company. Staff was initially told that the purchasing entity would continue manufacturing the product for the transit market, however, no definitive information was made available on when the new firm would resume manufacturing that model of vehicle.
At present, all of the 2022 chassis(s) for this class of vehicle have been sold. City staff is currently reviewing other models; however, any new vehicle orders will be built on a 2023 chassis, which will not be delivered until early to mid 2023.
The city is anxious to begin this new mode of service and will continue to explore its options to deploy the planned Sedona Shuttle Connect Microtransit service as soon as possible.