West Vancouver Blue Bus Explained

West Vancouver Blue Bus
Founded:1912
Headquarters:221 Lloyd Avenue, North Vancouver
Service Area:West Vancouver, North Vancouver, Vancouver, Lions Bay
Routes:12
Fleet:62
Website:Blue Bus
Parent:West Vancouver

West Vancouver Blue Bus, formally West Vancouver Municipal Transit, was founded in 1912 and is one of the oldest continuously operated municipal systems in North America.[1] The company operates as a sub-contractor to TransLink, Metro Vancouver's regional transportation authority.[2]

Routes

See also: List of bus routes in Metro Vancouver. As of April 2020, Blue Bus operates the following 12 routes, serving the cities of West Vancouver, North Vancouver, Vancouver and the Village of Lions Bay:

All buses are designated "Fare Paid Zones", which means passengers are required by law to have a valid fare while on board the bus. Failing to pay the fare or not having a valid fare while on board the bus could result in the passenger being fined $173 and/or removed from the bus. Fare inspections are conducted by Transit Security Officers and members from the South Coast British Columbia Transportation Authority Police Service.

Active fleet

All active West Vancouver Blue Bus vehicles are owned by TransLink. West Vancouver Blue Bus owned their own buses until August 2019.

ModelYearPictureManufacturerModelFleetNotes
2007Nova BusLFS701–706 (6)
2009Nova BusLFS901–909 (9)
  • 909 struck a fire hydrant at 15th St and Chesterfield Ave on March 27, 2016[3]
2012/2016New Flyer IndustriesXD401201–1217, 1601–1614 (31)
2017/2018/2019Chevrolet/ArbocG4500/SOM28G17501–17505, 18501–18509, 19501–19502 (16)

Numbering

West Vancouver buses are numbered by production year and unit number. For example, bus number 1201 would be produced in 2012, and the first unit received from that order. Exceptions to this are buses built before 1991 and Community Shuttles built before 2013. Since 2017, Community Shuttles follow the standard TransLink numbering system, adding a "5" in between the year and unit number to denote its place in TransLink's Community Shuttle "500" series.

Retired/Transferred fleet

YearPictureManufacturerModelFleet (Qty.)Notes
1961TDH-451761 (1)
1991New Flyer IndustriesD60912–914 (3)
1992Orion Bus IndustriesOrion I921–929 (9)
1995New Flyer IndustriesD40LF951–959, 961–968 (17)
1996New Flyer IndustriesD40LF971 (1)
1998NovaBusLFS981 (1)
1999New Flyer IndustriesD40LF990–998 (9)
2005General MotorsGMC C5500 Community ShuttleS200–S201, S261 (3)
2007New Flyer IndustriesD60LFR712–714 (3)
2008Nova BusLFS801–803 (3)

References

  1. Web site: West Vancouver Municipal Transit – CPTDB Wiki . cptdb.ca. 2019-01-14.
  2. Web site: Blue Bus District of West Vancouver. 2021-04-11. www.westvancouver.ca.
  3. News: Mercedes and bus collision ends in waterworks . Richter . Brent . North Shore News. 2017-11-25.

External links