About the Bus Research and Testing Center

The Larson Transportation Institute's Bus Research and Testing Center, located in Altoona, Pennsylvania, was established in 1989 with funding provided by the Federal Transit Administration. The facility houses four bus maintenance and test bays and is fully equipped to perform heavy vehicle maintenance, repair, and testing as mandated under 49, CFR Part 665. 

The Altoona facility also houses the administrative and accounting operations of the Bus Research and Testing Program. The staff at the Center is responsible for program operations associated with testing new model buses as required by federal law. 

Test track operations are conducted in Bellefonte, PA.   

Currently, the Center tests buses for safety, structural integrity, durability, performance, maintainability, noise, and fuel/energy economy/range. In accordance with federal legislation the Center tests brake performance, bus emissions, and buses using alternative fuels. Facilities for testing and repairing vehicles that use hydrogen gasoline, diesel fuel, compressed natural gas, liquefied natural gas, methanol/ethanol, propane, and battery-powered electricity have been in place since 1997. 
 
In 2011, the Center was accredited for ISO/IEC-17025 by the American Association for Laboratory Accreditation (A2LA).