In the United States, articulated buses were imported from Europe and deployed in the late 1970s and early 1980s. During this time, rising operating costs led to public takeovers of transit systems, and the pressure to reduce labor (driver) costs in turn meant transporting more passengers in a single vehicle. King County Metro and Caltrans led a Pooled Purchase Consortium, formed in 1976, which later awarded a contract to the AM General/M.A.N. joint venture responsible for assembling MAN SG 220 (from Germany) articulated buses in America.[1][8] Contemporaneously, Crown entered an agreement with Ikarus to produce the Crown-Ikarus 286, coupling American-made powertrains with the Hungarian Ikarus 280 chassis.[2][9]