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FORMER HOUSTON OILERS FOOTBALL STAR TURNED MTA BUS DRIVER
BACK IN LIMELIGHT WITH APPEARANCE ON HISTORY CHANNEL SERIES 

            Former Houston Oilers wide receiver/running back Ed Tanner, who grew up in South Central Los Angeles and now drives MTA buses from Division 18 in the South Bay, will be featured on the History Channel series “Modern Marvels” Thursday, July 27, at 10 p.m in an episode dealing exclusively with buses.    

Past, present and future buses of all shapes and sizes and purposes is the focus of the show which also features two other MTA employees who discuss the latest “Smart” technologies being implemented on MTA buses, and the challenges of operating a large public transit system. 

            The episode, entitled: “Buses,” was produced by Sherman Oaks-based Actuality Productions, which has filmed 120 shows for “Modern Marvels” about such topics as Hoover Dam, the Statue of Liberty, the Golden Gate Bridge, Mount Rushmore and television.

            His appearance on the show marks the first time in nearly two decades that the personable Tanner, a Pasadena resident who attended Los Angeles City College and Kentucky State College, has received this much attention.

            “I definitely miss the excitement of the football field but I was fortunate to have found a job that is as challenging as dodging a 325 pound defender, is rewarding and fun,” said Tanner, engaged to be married later this year. “Most importantly, serving the public is very important and something I look forward to doing everyday.” 

“Buses” will spotlight a variety of buses  ¾ ranging from transit and school buses to former Oakland Raider’s coach John Madden’s “cruiser” and a 48,000 pound luxury liner with satellite TV and hot tubs  ¾  and show the different stages of building a bus from the ground up.   

The Los Angeles Department of Transportation’s Automated Traffic Surveillance and Control (ATSAC) ¾ an underground command center located beneath City Hall where the traffic signals of some of the busiest intersections in Los Angeles are monitored as well as the MTA’s new Metro Rapid buses ¾ “talking buses” and the benefits of compressed natural gas vehicles were among the many topics discussed.

“It was very fascinating. I learned a lot,” said Actuality Productions writer/producer Luke Ellis. “When the History Channel first requested the show, the subject did not seem that fascinating but as we got into it there was more information than we could possibly use on a one-hour show.” 

“The show is a behind-the-scenes look at the technology that is improving the transit system in Los Angeles. Ed Tanner provided an in-the-trenches perspective from someone who is actually working with these new systems. He was very congenial, just a very nice gentleman,” Ellis said.

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