Rollsigns from Tucson, AZ
Front Sign Tag (Left):

CITY OF TUCSON
P.O.NO.6623-FRONTS
FOR AM.FLX. & GM.
STENCIL ON BOTTOM ONLY
   TRANSIGN
Transit in Tucson began with horse-drawn streetcars. In 1905 the Tucson Rapid Transit Company (TRT) bought the existing horse-drawn
streetcar transit system, and by 1906, began an electric streetcar system, ending  a 25-year era of animal-powered public transit in
Tucson. By the mid 1920s the existing streetcar system was not  keeping pace with the needs of a growing town so TRT added two bus
routes. In that same time period, transit pioneer Roy Laos, began the Occidental Bus Line with one bus. This provided a critical service to
Tucson's south-side. His company expanded rapidly over time. In 1931, TRT ended all streetcar service and replaced them with gas
powered buses. In 1936, a third bus operator, Mountain View Bus Line, was established as demand for bus service grew, but their
operations were short lived, as they struggled to survive. They were bought out by TRT in 1941. Operations on both TRT and Occidental
Bus Line skyrocketed due to gas-rationing during World War II. In 1945, seven million passengers were carried by the two companies.
Further growth followed the war, and the bus service continued to expand with larger, more modern buses. This included introducing
diesel powered buses in 1951, gradually replacing all gasoline-powered buses. Ridership however, began a steady decline in the 1950s
and the first half of the 1960s due to labor strikes and increasing competition from the automobile industry, dropping as low as 63% from
the high in 1945. To combat the decline, The City of Tucson purchased Tucson Rapid Transit (TRT) in 1969, and ridership grew
dramatically. 65 new buses were purchased with the aid of federal grants. The frequency and length of existing routes were increased and
new routes were added. In 1975, the system's name "Sun Tran" was adopted after they ran a contest in the local newspaper to pick the
system's new name. Meanwhile,  Roy Laos' bus company operating on the south and west sides of Tucson, was having trouble keeping
pace with the new expansion of the city system. The public in these parts of town wanted additional service the company could not provide.
In 1975, Sun Tran purchased the company, and Tucson finally had a single public transit system. The 1980s and 1990s saw several
expansions added to the system, including building several transit centers to ease congestion, including the Roy Laos transit center in the
south end and two others in 1987, the Ronstadt Transit Center in downtown Tucson in 1991, and the Tohono Tadai Transit Center in the
northwest, the latter being the first transit center in Arizona designed under the Americans with Disability Act (ADA) guidelines. Fleet
innovations were also introduced in the 1990s and 2000s, including a new Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) fuelling station adjacent to
Sun Tran, and purchasing their first CNG powered buses in 1991, introducing electronic fare boxes in 1996 and later upgrading them with
Passenger Electronic Revenue Collector units, allowing Sun Tran to replace conventional paper transfers with magnetic strip transfers and
passes in 1999, Also that year, Sun Tran introduced its Automated Vehicle Location (AVL) bus tracking system, and on-board video
surveillance systems in 2001 to enhance safety. On July 25, 2014, Tucson introduced the Sun Link streetcar, reintroducing streetcars to
Tucson after 83 years, Construction began in March 2012 and was substantially completed in just over 19 months. The 3.9-mile route
connects restaurants, shops, and entertainment venues at Main Gate Square, 4th Avenue, Downtown, and Mercado San Agustin and
educational and medical facilities at the University of Arizona. From 2015 to 2016, Sun Tran and the City of Tucson established the
Frequent Transit Network, a system of 11 routes that run every 15 minutes or less between 6 a.m. and 6 p.m. on weekdays. The system
today is managed by RATP Dev North America with a bus fleet comprised entirely of environmentally considerate transit vehicles.
Side Sign Tag (Above):

CITY OF TUCSON
P.O.NO.6623-FRONTS
FOR AM.FLX. & GM.
STENCIL ON BOTTOM ONLY
 TRANSIGN
These two mylar rollsigns are a set. According to the sign tag, the front rollsign (left) was designed for their GM New Look, Flxible New Look
and AM General buses. The sign has no print date, but has the same original exposures as the side sign shown. The first four exposures
and the "16 ORACLE - TUCSON MALL" exposures were hand painted and added at a later time. The sign has 119 exposures, including
the blank areas. According to the sign tag, the side sign (right) was designed for their AM General buses equipped with motorized side
sign boxes. It is dated April 29, 1981 and has 115 exposures including the blank areas. Their respective sign tags are shown below.

These two rollsigns were donated to Rollsign Gallery from the late John McDonnell through his will.