Buses

Model 614 Tour Bus
Model 614 Tour Bus, Yellowstone National Park, YELL 90072

Motorized vehicles completely replaced stagecoaches in the park by 1917. The stagecoach companies merged into the Yellowstone Park Transportation Company (YPTCo) and bought a fleet of yellow buses from the White Motor Company. This company also provided Glacier National Park’s signature red buses. Rather than the six-day trip around the park to different hotels that had been offered during the stagecoach era, YPTCo began operating day tours to individual locations. The yellow motorized day buses had canvas covers that could be rolled back for tourists to take in the breadth of the landscape. The bus drivers, or “gearjammers” as they were known, offered entertaining stories about the park and its features to visitors, using curved bullhorns to amplify their voices.

By the 1930s, YPTCo replaced the early yellow buses with newer models. By 1939, a total of 98 buses were in service, the largest fleet in operation in any national park. These buses were used for many years until they were decommissioned due to maintenance concerns. In the 1990s, several of the out-of-service yellow buses were revitalized with modern internal components sheathed in original 1936 chassis. Tourists can still take a concessionaire-guided tour on a renovated yellow bus today.

Last updated: June 10, 2024

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