BC Transit
Not to be confused with Broome County Transit, from New York State.
BC Transit is a provincial government corporation that provides planning, marketing, fleet and funding support for all transit services in BC, except for the Metro Vancouver region. Its headquarters is located at 520 Gorge Road East, Victoria B.C.
History
- Pre-1961 - Transit service in Vancouver and Victoria is operated by the privately-owned BC Electric Railway.
- 1961 - BC Electric Company purchased by the Province. Transit service continues to operate as a subsidiary of BC Hydro.
- 1973 - Province establishes the Bureau of Transit Services to co-ordinate transit systems across the Province, including the purchase of buses. BC Hydro continues as the operator of transit in Vancouver and Victoria.[1]
- 1979 - Bureau of Transit Services is replaced by the Urban Transit Authority, which has planning responsibility for 13 systems across the Province.
- 1979[1]/1980[2] - Operations of systems in Vancouver and Victoria are shifted to the Metro Transit Operating Company.
- 1983 - UTA and MTOC are combined into a new corporation known as BC Transit.
- 1991 - The first conventional low floor buses to operate in North America are delivered.
- 1999 - Responsibility of planning for Vancouver Regional Transit System is transferred to the Greater Vancouver Transportation Authority, with operations under Coast Mountain Bus Company.
- 2000 - The first double decker buses in transit service in North America enter service in Victoria.
- 2005 - The first production hybrid buses in Canada are delivered to Kelowna.
- 2010 - The largest hydrogen fuel cell bus fleet in the world is operated in Whistler.
- 2014 - Regional District of Nanaimo takes delivery of BC Transit's first buses fuelled by CNG.
- 2015 - Kamloops takes delivery of buses fueled by CNG.
- 2017 - Whistler takes delivery of buses fueled by CNG.
- 2018 - Select communities begin the roll out of NextRide: Nanaimo, Comox Valley, Squamish, Whistler, Kamloops, Kelowna.
- 2019 - The last of first generation of NextRide system goes live in Victoria
- 2020 - Victoria takes delivery of buses fueled by CNG.
- 2021 - Central Fraser Valley takes delivery of buses fueled by CNG.
- 2022 - NextRide is rolled out in an additional 19 transit systems
Current projects
NextRide 1.0
In 2018, the initial phase of NextRide introduced smart bus technology on buses in seven systems: Nanaimo, Comox Valley, Squamish, Whistler, Kamloops, Kelowna, and Victoria[3]. Buses equipped with NextRide feature automated next stop announcments along with a visual next stop display. Passengers can also see real-time departure information and track buses using the NextRide website. The rollout of this phase was completed in 2019.
NextRide 2.0
BCTransit announced the second phase of NextRide in January 2022, bringing the technology to an additional 19 systems[4]. Like the first phase, buses in these systems are receiving next stop displays and announcements. Unlike the first phase, these systems are not currently available on the NextRide website, but 3rd party transit apps are still able to provide bus locations. As part of this phase, routes in some systems were renumbered to avoid conflicts with other nearby systems[5][6][7]. The timeline for this phase is:
January 2022
February 2022
March 2022
- Central Fraser Valley, Chilliwick, Agassiz-Harrison & Hope (Fraser Valley Region)
April 2022
- Vernon and Shuswap (North Okanagan Region)
- Powell River
- Sunshine Coast
May 2022
June 2022
- Dawson Creek
- Fort St, John
- Prince George
- Kitimat, Skeena Region and Terrace
- Prince Rupert / Port Edward
- Cranbrook, Kimberley, Elk Valley, and Columbia Valley (East Kootenay Region)
- Creston Valley
- West Kootenay
Operations
The delivery of transit service in most systems is under contract to private operators. BC Transit operates the conventional system in Victoria while HandyDART service is under contract. Three regions operate their own transit systems: Powell River, Regional District of Nanaimo, and Sunshine Coast. City of Nelson operates conventional buses on routes 1-10 and 99 in West Kootenay Transit System while the rest of the system is under contract to private operators.
Current roster
Conventional
Community Buses & HandyDART
Theses units can be either community shuttle, HandyDart, or both depends on the transit systems needs for units.
On order
Conventional
Fleet number(s) | Thumbnail | Year | Manufacturer | Model | Engine | Transmission | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
9543-9550 | 2021 | Alexander Dennis | Enviro500 | Cummins L9 | Voith D864.6 |
Retired roster
Conventional fleet
Community Shuttles & HandyDART
Vancouver Trolley Bus Fleet (1980-1999)
Fleet number | Thumbnail | Year | Manufacturer | Model | Engine | Controls | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2101-2186 | 1949 | CC&F/Brill | T48 | GE 1213PA1 |
|||
2201-2288 | 1949 | CC&F/Brill | T48 | GE 1213PA1 |
|||
2289-2290 | 1949 | CC&F/Brill | T48 | GE 1213PA1 |
| ||
2301-2354 | 1950 | CC&F/Brill | T48 | GE 1213PA1 |
|||
2355-2356 | 1950 | CC&F/Brill | T48A | GE 1213PA1 |
|||
2357-2371 | 1951 | CC&F/Brill | T48A | GE 1213PA1 |
|||
2401-2416 | 1954 | CC&F/Brill | T48A | GE 1213PA1 |
|||
2601-2650 | 1975-76 | Flyer | E800 | GE 1213PA1 |
|||
2701-2799 2801-2899 2901-2947 |
1982-83 | Flyer | E901A/E902 | Westinghouse |
|
Leased/demonstrator roster
Fleet number(s) | Thumbnail | Year | Manufacturer | Model | Engine | Transmission/Power Delivery System | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
7100-7111 | 2000-2003 | Prevost | LeMirage XL-II | Detroit Diesel Series 60 | Allison B500R |
| |
7112 | Oct. 2009 | Prevost | X3-45 |
| |||
7113 | Prevost | H3-45 |
| ||||
7114 | Prevost | H3-45 |
| ||||
7115-7129 | 1996-1998 | Nova Bus | LFS | Cummins C8.3 | Allison B400R |
| |
7130 | 2009 | Yaxing | JS6830GHDP | Cummins ISB 220 | ZF HP504C |
| |
7132 | 2013 | NFI | MD35 | Cummins ISB6.7 | Allison B300R | ||
7133 | IC Bus/Champion | AC/Defender | International MaxxForce 7 | Allison 1000 | |||
9092 | 2016 | BYD | K9 | BYD TYC90A 180 kW | BYD FADMD7315 Lithium iron phosphate batteries |
| |
9601 | 2008 | NFI | H40LFR | Siemens ELFA 85 kW | Ballard HD6 150 kW fuel cell |
|
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Translink Governance Review, Appendix 1 - Translink Governance History, published March 2013.
- ↑ Our History, BC Transit, retrieved 2019/12/13.
- ↑ NextRide Frequently Asked Questions bctransit.com, retrieved 04-24-2018
- ↑ NextRide bctransit.com, retrieved 01-13-2022
- ↑ Route Renumbering in Chilliwack Transit System bctransit.com, retrieved 06-02-2022
- ↑ Route Renumbering in Shuswap Regional Transit System bctransit.com, retrieved 06-02-2022
- ↑ Route Renumbering in East Kootenay Transit Systems bctransit.com, retrieved 06-02-2022
- ↑ https://www.bclocalnews.com/news/blaze-destroys-transit-bus/