That 8000-Series Show: A Neoplan Farewell

Early in 2002.... The end of an era is near. The last of the 8000-series Neoplan AN440 buses are rolling off their final few months in service for SEPTA. All of the remaining 8000's are based out of Comly depot at the time this video was shot in 2002. This video covers a couple of intersections along Cottman Avenue, focusing on the routes where they were most operated in their final days. It also marks the last time I ever got any 8000-series Neoplan buses on video. On a personal note... the final bus seen in this video (8763) would also turn out to be the last 8000-series bus I would ever get to ride three months later, on Route 70, before they all were withdrawn from service. By the start of the summer, only the 3000-series Neoplan buses would remain, and the oldest of them would be phased out over the next three years, with the last survivors hanging on until 2007.