the Ikarus 180 was discontinued in 1973 when its successor, the Ikarus 280 was released. In the mid-1960s, AC Transit in California pioneered the American use of a modern articulated bus, operating the experimental commuter coach "XMC 77" (based on Continental Trailways' Bus & Car Co. Super Golden Eagle model) on some of its transbay lines. The XMC-77, which AC Transit dubbed the "Freeway Train", was originally built in 1958, purchased by the District in October 1965, and made its debut run for Line N on 14 March 1966; passengers on the inaugural run were presented with special souvenir tickets. XMC-77 was later exhibited to the public at various locations in the East Bay and the Transbay Terminal. It offered seats for 77 passengers (finished in brown and orange) and an observation lounge, complete with a card table to seat a quartet. The long coach stood high and was powered by a Cummins engine with an output of . Engineering for the XMC-77 was carried out by the local firm of DeLeuw Cather & Co. In the United States, articulated buses were imported from Europe and deployed in the late 1970s and early 1980s. During this time, rising operating costs led to public takeovers of transit systems, and the pressure to reduce labor (driver) costs in turn meant transporting more passengers in a single vehicle. King County Metro and Caltrans led a Pooled Purchase Consortium, formed in 1976, which later awarded a contract to the AM General/MAN joint venture responsible for assembling MAN SG 220 (from Germany) articulated buses in America. Contemporaneously, Crown entered an agreement with Ikarus to produce the Crown-Ikarus 286, coupling American-made powertrains with the Hungarian Ikarus 280 chassis. Articulated buses have also been used in Australia, Austria (Gräf & Stift), Italy, Germany (Gaubschat, Emmelmann, Göppel, Duewag, Vetter), Canada (LFS Articulated), Hungary (Ikarus), Poland (Jelcz AP02), Romania (DAC 117 UD). The first modern British "bendy buses" (as they are referred to in the UK and Canada) were built by Leyland-DAB and used in the city of Sheffield in the 1980s. They were subsequently withdrawn from service because they proved to be expensive to maintain. Advantages and disadvantages Advantages The main benefits of an articulated bus over the double-decker bus are rapid simultaneous boarding and disembarkation through more and larger doors, somewhat larger passenger capacity (94–120 versus 80−155), increased stability arising from a lower centre of gravity, smaller