FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – Ann Arbor, MI
FAAC’s engineers and installers have had a busy spring filling orders for new and upgraded transit driver
training simulators from agencies across the country.

New driving simulators are headed to:
• TAPS in Sherman, Texas;
• LYNX in Orlando, Florida;
• MTA in Nashville;
• Capital Area Transit in Raleigh, North Carolina;
• RGRTA in Rochester, New York, and
• MTA in Houston, Texas.

“Each of these projects was the right training solution for the customer, and as only FAAC can do, we
custom-designed solutions and were able to meet specific requirements,” said David Bouwkamp, FAAC’s
Executive Director of Commercial Business Development. “Personally, it is rewarding that longtime
customers such as RGRTA and Houston have come back to us to upgrade the simulators we delivered
years ago. That means they clearly see the value of simulation training and have a thriving program they
want to maintain for years into the future.”

TAPS, a regional transit center servicing several counties around Sherman, Texas, is taking delivery of
the MB-2000 flagship transit simulator. This custom simulator features a cutaway paratransit cab that will
create a higher level of student ‘buy-in’ when operating the simulator. The MB-2000 comes with nine
separate viewing screens for an almost wraparound view of the synthetic driving world. Two real mirrors
(the only company providing real mirrors for positive training) enable students to maneuver around in
their seat for different viewing angles.

“The look and feel of the simulator is amazingly real,” said Josh Walker, TAPS Director of Safety,
Security, and IT. “Drivers will be able to experience a faithful reproduction of road experiences that will
allow them to be better prepared when they are operating in the real world environment.”

LYNX also is receiving the flagship MB-2000. LYNX’s Stephen Berry, Manager of Organizational
Development and Training, said the agency did its due diligence before choosing FAAC.

“We looked at all of the competitors and matched their products to our training objectives and felt your
product was the best fit for us,” Berry said. “We are anticipating going into a second unit in the future if
our growth continues. We want LYNX to be as prepared for the future and as technologically advanced as
possible.”

The staff at RGRTA is well aware of the benefits simulation brings to their training department. RGRTA
has worked with a FAAC simulator since 2007. Their original simulator did not have real mirrors and
RGRTA Senior Project Manager Kirk Bethel said that was a priority for the upgrade.

RGRTA is developing a large transit center in the downtown area of the city with capability to handle 100
buses per hour. Their upgraded FAAC simulator comes with a custom-designed virtual replica of that
center so that operators can practice maneuvering through it before it comes online.

“The simulator equipment is spot on and it has increased the confidence of our Operators so that when
they start live training, it will be much safer and more effective for them,” Bethel said. “We will be using
it heavily in the next several months as we look forward to opening our new Downtown Transit Center in
November.”

Similarly, instructors at Capital Area Transit already are logging impressive student throughput numbers.

“For 2014 we have a safety campaign we are running and part of our campaign is doing 20 hours of
refresher for all bus operators, said General Manager Scott McClellan. “Four of those hours are going to
be in the simulator. Every bus operator we have is going to go through the basic maneuvers and
techniques in the simulator to drill that stuff home.”

There are many reasons to bring driver training simulators into an agency, but the key benefit remains the
same: building better, more professional transit operators.

For more information on FAAC’s transit products and services, contact Clayne Woodbury at 734-761-
5836 or visit the website at faac.wpengine.com.

The TAPS custom paratransit simulator system being developed by FAAC engineers.