The Story of the Only Ikarus Double-Decker City Bus Ever Built [Hungarian Bus History]

Ikarus, world famous for its easily identifiable buses, has built countless models, and its 200-series type buses had over 200,000 produced. But, all of them were single-decker. EXCEPT for one. In 1968, Mávaut - a large public transport company in Hungary, decided to build a double-decker bus from two existing Ikarus buses. The model they chose was the 556, and two were selected to be converted. The unique bus came to be known as "Bikarus." With lots of fanfare, the hope for a big fleet of double-deckers on the streets of Budapest soon vanished. The bus was generally too tall to fit under tram wires and overpasses. The bus was soon taken out of service, and sent to the city of Pecs, where it served until 1976. It was used at another location sporadically until 1982. For years, the bus, which was not scrapped, layed decaying in an outdoor bus depot. It was bought by an enthusiast with the hopes of restoring it. After several resales, Volanbusz purchased it and it was finally restored to its former glory and is fully operational. See and hear the story of the Bikarus, the only Ikarus double-decker bus ever built! #bus #buses #ikarus #busmanufacturing #busmanufacturer #busmania #busmaniacommunity #vehicledesign #vehiclevideos #automotivehistory #automotivedesign #hungary #budapest