History
Buses are an intrinsic part of everyday life, and play an important part in the social fabric of many countries. Many urban public transportation systems rely on bus services. The largest single city bus fleet in North America is in New York City.
Bus services can fit into several broad classes. Local transit buses provide public transit within a city or one or more counties, usually for trips of only a few kilometers. Intercity, interstate or interprovincial buses provide transit between cities, towns, rural areas and places usually tens or hundreds of kilometers away. They generally provide fewer bus stops than local bus routes do. Trailways Transportation System is an example of US interstate bus systems. Some local transit systems offer bus lines to nearby cities or towns served by another transit agency. Intercity bus services have become an important travel connection to smaller towns and rural areas that do not have airports or train service.
Some public transit bus systems offer express bus service in addition to local bus lines. Local lines provide frequent stops along a route, sometimes two or more per kilometer, while express lines make fewer stops and more speed along that route. For example, an express bus line may provide speedier service between a local airport and the downtown area of a nearby city.
Shuttle bus service provide transit service between two destinations, such as an airport and city center. Shuttle bus services are often provided by colleges, airports, shopping areas, companies, and amusement destinations. Tour bus service shows tourists notable sights by bus. City tour buses often simply pass by the sites while a tour guide describes them. Longer distance tour coaches generally allow passengers to disembark at specific points of interest. Some tourist buses are decorated to resemble pre-PCC streetcars in order to attract tourists or for other appearance purposes. A similar phenomenon is Duck Tours, which uses amphibious DUKWs converted into buses/cruise boats for tour purposes.
School bus service provides transit to and from school for students. Some private schools use school buses only for field trips or sports events. Some school systems, such as the San Francisco public school system, do not operate their own school bus system but instead rely on the local public transit bus system to provide transportation for the system.
Charter bus operators, provide buses with properly licensed bus drivers for hire.

Types of bus service
Different kinds of hardware are made for short and long distances, and special types for special purposes.

Commuter Bus (a.k.a. Local transit bus or City bus) usually have two axles (duallies on the drive axle), and two doors (one front, one mid-rear), allowing efficient internal traffic flow. Their seats are usually fixed and limited, leaving room for standing passengers. Having no need for a luggage compartment, many have low floor design, further easing entry and exit. Double-decker buses, guided buses, articulated buses or extra-long triple-axled buses are often used on urban routes with heavy passenger loads. An articulated bus is sometimes called a bendy bus.
School buses are similar; though often lighter, they have only one passenger door, seats more closely spaced, and no standing room. North American versions are based on truck chassis, and must meet special USDOT standards.
Electric buses:

• A Kneeling bus is a bus equipped with an accessibility feature that lowers the entrance of the bus to curb-side-level, so that a person in a wheelchair may smoothly board the bus. These buses are often equipped with lifts that help the disabled get on the bus' raised platform.
  
  
  
  
  • Trolleybuses and other electric buses are similar in appearance and function to commuter buses, but powered by an electric motor supplied by overhead power cables rather than by an onboard internal combustion engine. They are not to be confused with buses that are decorated to look like turn-of-the-20th-century streetcars and which sometimes go by the name of "trolleys".
    Parking lot trams are a specialized form of bus, found in the parking lots of amusement parks such as Disneyland. Those vehicles consist of an engine-car or motor-car (which may or may not be passenger-carrying) chained up to a passenger-carrying trailer or number of trailers, thus making a kind of road train.
    Motorcoaches, also known as intercity coaches, are heavier, with usually three axles, one passenger door and no standing room. Seats are usually soft and able to recline. The floor is high, allowing large under-floor luggage compartments. There is usually a small carry-on luggage rack within the passenger cabin, as well. Besides their use for intercity transportation, motorcoaches are used for long-distance airport shuttle service, local touring and charters for large groups, and so on. They have seats for 47 to 62 passengers. In the US, due to road restrictions, the maximum width of the bus is 102 inches, and the length is 40 ft or 45 ft.
    Tour coaches, especially cross-country touring coaches, are often equipped with a lavatory, video system, PA system, and other amenities appropriate for hours of comfortable travel.
    Short-distance tour buses are simpler, having a PA system and sometimes a video system. Some retired double-deckers and specialty vehicles are used in the local tour bus business.
    Minibuses are one size up from large passenger vans, and seat up to 25 passengers. Some may include a small space for luggage. Usually derived from heavy-duty small truck platforms such as cutaway van chassis, minibuses are often used for short-distance shuttles, city tours, and local charters. Many are wheelchair-lift equipped and used in paratransit capacities.
    Midibuses, or mid-sized buses, are larger than minibuses, but smaller than motorcoaches, thus seating between 26 and 47. They can be front- or rear-engined, and have a variety of designs depending on specific needs. For example, they may be used to transport airport passengers between the terminal and distant parking lots; such vehicles may sacrifice seats for interior luggage space. The truck-based ones, such as the ABC M1000 can pack in enough seats to rival a motorcoach, but lack the luggage space and other amenities. However, they are also much cheaper. See also
    
    This article incorporates text from the Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition, a publication now in the public domain.