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 are 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 27 transit systems
Current projects
NextRide
NextRide is a smart bus technology that provides automated next stop announcements and visual next stop displays on buses, real time location of specific vehicles and/or trips on routes and enables real-time departure information, surrnetly through UMO, as well as 3rd party apps and websites . Along with providing useful information to bus passengers, NextRide can give better insight to transit planners about how well buses are staying on schedule. The first generation of NextRide (often referred to as NextRide 1.0) was introduced in Nanaimo, Comox Valley, Squamish, Whistler, Kamloops, Kelowna in 2018, and Victoria in 2019. Following the success of this trial period, a second generation of NextRide (often referred to as NextRide 2.0) was installed in an additional 27 transit systems throughout 2022[3]. As a result of the installation, routes in some systems were renumbered to prevent conflicts with other nearby systems in cases where the data feeds were combined[4][5][6]. Unlike NextRide 1.0, version 2.0 does not currently have a dedicated website for seeing real-time bus positions and departure times, but 3rd party options are still available.
As of March 2024 42 systems are on the next ride system. The original browser based next ride web page was discontinued in Jan 2024, but BC Transit reports it is working on a replacement web page. [7].
Umo
UMO is a digital bus fare payment system that allows passengers to pay for single fares, day or monthly passes, currently using either a reloadable smart card or a new mobile app[8]. Additional payment methods will be added in a second phase including credit card, debit card, and mobile mobile wallet. The UMO app also provides some trip planning and schedule capabilities. After numerous delays to rollout, testing of UMO began in Victoria in Spring 2023, and was officially launched on August 23, 2023. [9]
As of June 27 2024 these systems are operating UMO:[10]
- Agassiz-Harrison
- Campbell River
- Central Fraser Valley
- Chilliwack
- Comox Valley Regional
- Cowichan Valley Regional
- Cranbrook
- Dawson Creek
- Fort St. John
- Hope
- Kamloops
- Kelowna Regional
- Kitimat
- Pemberton Valley
- Port Alberni
- Port Edward
- Powell River Regional
- Prince George
- Prince Rupert
- Quesnel
- Regional District of Nanaimo
- Skeena Regional
- South Okanagan-Similkameen
- Squamish
- Sunshine Coast
- Terrace Regional
- Vernon Regional
- West Kootenay
- Victoria Regional
- Whistler
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1254-1261 | 2024 | NFI | XN40 | Total of 8 units for delivery in 2024 | |||
| (33 units) | 2025-26 | NFI | XE40 | Total of 33 units for delivery in 2025 and 2026.[11] | |||
| (33 units) | 2025-26 | Nova Bus | LFSe+ | Total of 33 units for delivery in 2025 and 2026.[12] | |||
| (29 units) | 2025 | Alexander Dennis | Enviro500 | Total of 29 units for delivery in 2025 .[13] |
HandyDART and Community
| Fleet number(s) | Thumbnail | Year | Manufacturer | Model | Engine | Transmission | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2896-2976 | 2024 | Chevrolet ARBOC |
4500 SOF 27 |
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 |
|
| 9093 | 
|
2022 | Proterra | ZX5 |
| ||
| 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 FAQ bctransit.com, retrieved 02-19-2023
- ↑ 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.bctransit.com/nextride-faq] retrieved March 15, 2024
- ↑ UMO bctrasit.com, retrieved 02-19-2023
- ↑ BC Transit launches UMO in Victoria Regional Transit System BC Transit, published August 23, 2023
- ↑ UMO UMO information page, retrieved June 27, 2024
- ↑ [1], NFI press release retrieved May 28, 2024.
- ↑ [2], Novabus press release, retrieved May 28, 2024.
- ↑ [3], Alexander Dennis press release retrieved May 28, 2024.
- ↑ https://www.bclocalnews.com/news/blaze-destroys-transit-bus/
- ↑ Electric buses coming to Victoria bctransit.com, retrieved 08-20-2022
