Rollsigns from Gray Line Tours
Chicago, Illinois
This mylar destination sign (left)
was removed from retired May
1980 built MCI MC-5 Challenger
#403. It has 29 exposures total.
This sign appears to be the only
one to occupy this bus. It has a
print tag but the tag doesn't have
the print date within it (seen here).


MCI-CHICAGO SIGHTSEEING
P.O. P-6481
TRANSIGN
In March 1910, a young restaurateur by the name of Louis Bush refurbished an old Mack Truck chassis, painted it blue and gray and
began offering sightseeing tours around the city of Washington, D.C. Little did he know, his earnest endeavors would help establish the
world’s leading sightseeing tour company, known today as Gray Line. By 1926, Gray Line had expanded to other booming cities including
New York, Chicago, Detroit, New Orleans, Los Angeles, San Francisco, as well as internationally to Toronto and Havana. With peacetime
following World War II, Harry J. Dooley, a former Gray Line employee, acquired the company and helped re-establish Gray Line Chicago.
Dooley soon became president of Gray Line and is today considered the father of the sightseeing industry. With the advent of jet travel
and increased gateways in the late 40’s and early 50’s, Dooley expanded Gray Line’s market throughout the United States and established
Gray Line companies in Canada, Mexico, Hawaii and Puerto Rico. The sudden popularity growth in motorcoach sightseeing helped position
Gray Line as the leader in the sightseeing industry for decades to follow. Now part of the Aries Charter Transportation family, Gray Line
Chicago provides sightseeing tours to Chicago’s top tourist attractions. Arranging Chicago transportation for more than two decades,
Aries Charter is a leader among Chicago bus organizations with customers receiving attentive and custom tailored service, from
scheduling charter bus rentals to local experts in Chicago transportation providing sightseeing tours for all groups and events.
Gray Line Chicago, also a family owned and operated business, looked to Aries to take the helm and continue its legacy forward.
Still offering a variety of tour options, Gray Line Chicago remains a leading operator for sightseeing tours and attractions.
This mylar destination sign (right)
was removed from retired June
1997 built MCI 102-DL3 bus
#704-45L. It is dated April 29, 1997,
making it the only sign to occupy
this bus. It has 32 exposures.
Its sign tag is shown here.


MCI-CHICAGO SIGHTSEEING
P.O.NO.P132498
D34510-MA FRONT
4/29/97 TRANSIGN
Retired Gray Line Sightseeing - Chicago June 1997 built MCI 102-DL3
bus #704-45L, still displaying the rollsign shown to the right, is seen
as it was found in a Chicago area scrap yard on November 27, 2023.
Retired Gray Line Sightseeing - Chicago May 1980 built MCI MC-5
Challenger #403, still displaying the rollsign shown to the left, is seen
as it was found in a Chicago area scrap yard on November 27, 2023.
It appears signs made for Gray Line
Sightseeing - Chicago had the same
readings for a few consecutive years.
The February 5, 1999 sign shown
above was the same as the one to
the right except for the sign tag, and
this one didn't have the white line-up
lines on its right side.