Having transported more than 100k people over 30 years, Antarctica's Ivan the Terra Bus has retired
Published on Jul 05, 2025 at 1:01 PM (UTC+4)
by Claire Reid
Last updated on Jul 03, 2025 at 2:55 PM (UTC+4)
Edited by
Kate Bain
An all-terrain snow coach dubbed Ivan the Terra Bus has been retired after three decades of transporting people in the Antarctic.
The beefed-up bus carried more than 100,000 people during its working life.
It carried passengers between Antarctica’s McMurdo Station and the neighboring airfield.
After 30 years of service, Ivan has been retired and sent off to New Zealand.
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Ivan the Terra Bus had a long career in the Antarctica
As you probably know, a tough and unforgiving terrain like Antarctica needs a special vehicle, like these neat, but confusingly-named Arctic Trucks.
Or the 45 feet long, 12 feet wide Foremost Terra Bus that was nicknamed Ivan The Terra Bus.
The bus was brought out to Antarctica in the 1990s and soon became a familiar, and formidable, site for the brave explorers who ventured out there.
Ivan dwarfed other snow vehicles and was instantly recognizable thanks to its bold orange and white livery.
The bus has six wheels that run at a low pressure to help spread the incredible weight of the bus, around 54,000lbs and that’s without passengers.
Ivan could carry up to 54 at a time and did so many hundreds of thousands of times during its career.
The Terra Bus had a 300 horsepower engine and could hit a top speed of 20mph, after a bit of a warmup.
Built by Canada’s Foremost, Ivan the Terra Bus was designed to withstand not just seriously scary terrain, but also blizzard conditions, snow, ice, wind – you name it, Ivan faced it during its 30-year-long career.
But, of course, all good things must come to an end and earlier this year, it was revealed that Ivan the Terra Bus was to be retired.
Thankfully, the legendary bus isn’t destined for the scrap heap.
It has since been sent to Christchurch, New Zealand, where it’s rumored it could end up on display at the International Antarctic Centre.
It takes a special kind of vehicle to handle Antarctica
While Ivan the Terra Bus may have been one of the larger vehicles driving around Antarctica, it’s not the only one.
Iceland-based auto manufacturer Arctic Trucks, despite the name are specially designed to tackle Antarctica, not Arctic.
The company was created in the 1990s and builds cars perfect for an Antarctic mission facing off against the snow and ice, while battling shockingly freezing temperatures.
Arctic Trucks is the only company with approval to drive to the South Pole.
The company leads expeditions to the South Pole, but in order to do them, needs special permits from the UK Foreign Office.
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Claire Reid is a journalist who hails from the UK but is now living in New Zealand. She began her career after graduating with a degree in Journalism from Liverpool John Moore’s University and has more than a decade of experience, writing for both local newspapers and national news sites. Claire covers a wide variety of topics, with a special focus on cars, technology, planes, cryptocurrency, and luxury.
