The First Day of RapidBus in Vancouver

In January 2020, TransLink started service on 4 RapidBus routes. These routes include:
R1 King George Blvd (Newton Exchange // Guildford)
R3 Lougheed Highway (Haney Place // Coqutilam Station)
R4 41st Avenue (UBC // Joyce Station)
R5 Hastings Street (SFU // Burrard Station)
The routes are an upgrade over the existing B-Lines. More info can be found at new.translink.ca/projects/rap...
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480 tidbit:
The 480 is intended meant to be a direct route between Bridgeport Station and UBC. The only riders suffering from these cuts are those who come into Bridgeport Station via the Park and Ride and regional bus, those without a U-Pass, and those who need direct access to Granville Street. When coming in from Richmond Centre, riders technically still have to transfer twice. Frequency on the R4, in addition to new Canada Line trains, makes standing on a 480 seem redundant.
====Additional Sources:====
CPTDB Wiki article on R1: bit.ly/36zZ50q
CPTDB Wiki article on R3: bit.ly/300GpUT
CPTDB Wiki article on R4: bit.ly/36BupvF
CPTDB Wiki article on R5: bit.ly/2tHMABu
For business inquiries, my email is [e-mail]

[@DenisAgar]

Thank you for making this! Helpful to see it when I can't go to all corridors on opening day.

[@devonsatchell]

Woah the hybrids sounds great.

[@marksman1416]

Nice addition of the history of the routes

[@classicrockcafe]

There used to be a #1 bus, called Beach. I rode it once, but forget the route of that bus.

[@justinm.1]

1) @3:45 that explains why it’s so quiet when it’s at a bus stop lol (it’s nice that it doesn’t take a few seconds for it to start up again, like with cars and trucks that have that feature) 2) Would be interesting if they added some D60LFR’s onto the Rapidbus routes 👍🏼

[@jmstransit]

I believe a D60LFR made a brief appearance on the morning after this was filmed - it was quickly changed out by noon rolled around

[@kittybanana9389]

The r3 stops much less than the 701 does. 2 stops in Coq, 3 stops in poco, a stop in PM, and 3 stops in Maple.

[@ragellejean]

Correction: 2 in Coquitlam, 2 in PoCo. Also the R3 bypasses the longer route in Pitt Meadows and Maple Ridge taken by the 701 so, you’re right about that one.

[@lukehalmrast7366]

Wow has it really been over 4 years? I was still 13 when rapidbus launched and now I’m graduating high school in a month 😢

[@jmstransit]

Footage timestamps: R1 King George Blvd: 0:00 R3 Lougheed Highway: 2:37 R4 41st Avenue: 7:05 R5 Hastings Street: 4:43

[@justinm.1]

JMS Transit The bus that was on the R5 in this video (190...something), I wonder what letter it’ll have 😜

[@jmstransit]

@@justinm.1 Their (prefix) significance has greatly decreased compared to the early 2000s, and aren't worth following as precisely nowadays

[@Jayy-im2px]

I think you forgot R2 Park Royal to Phibbis Exchange.

[@jmstransit]

Hello, and thanks for watching! The R2 started on April 6, 2020 while the four other routes started on January 6, 2020. Hence, the R2 was still under construction at the time this was filmed.

[@madtrucker3757]

The big advantage to these articulated buses is increased passé capacity. Besides, they’re really cool . In some parts of Europe they run tri-articulated buses. Some are even double-decker.

[@AvgeekJoe]

Nice video!

[@ragellejean]

You’ve captured some amazing content for the opening day of service! Though I wonder why some buses still have the old exterior wrap.

[@jmstransit]

They're gradually being unwrapped. I expect some to stay on, though - gives the artic fleet some flexibility in case any of the yards is short on non-rapidbus artics

[@Jfkdjdjdmdnd]

They will be 100% unwrapped after the r2 is launched

[@ryguy3x]

I like them with the wrap

[@ryguy3x]

@@jmstransit i see unwrapped rapidbus units on the 145, 99 b line, and other non rapidbus routes

[@KennyCraft]

r5 runs on novas during snowfalls!

[@birchtree5884]

Captions aren’t available for this video tho

[@spicymoca_KFP]

bendy bois

[@crazygrape1907]

hey that’s me in the thumbnail!

[@mariachrzski18]

What bus will get riders to UBC from Arbutus after taking the Millennium Line extension?

[@jmstransit]

My bet is a truncated 99 - There's little reason to build an R9 half-RapidBus with no real-time info and no amenities. Begs the question: will students avoid the transfer at Arbutus by taking 49/R4?

[@chyanbongco]

They have chimes? 😦

[@ryguy3x]

The r2 started running

[@jmstransit]

..Of which I only have pictures at the moment. Extended coverage delayed due to COVID-19

[@oilwings]

Why the name change from B-line?

[@jmstransit]

There are multiple reasons as to why TransLink (TL) chose to change from the B-Line. The following is info gathered from multiple sources including planners and internet sources. buzzer.translink.ca/2019/07/introducing-a-new-member-to-the-translink-fleet-say-hello-to-rapidbus/ Your question actually highlights some of the different opinions around the rebranding. I'll list: 1) The B-Line was intended to be a rhyme to the 99 so as to brand the service as some sort of a premium. It's also ingenious because a "Bee Line" by definition is the most direct route between two points. Over time, this faded as the need for more "Rapid Transit" routes came about. 2) The introduction of 4 new Bus-Rapid-Transit routes in the 10-year investment plan presented the chance for TransLink to either re-brand or upgrade the B-Line brand. Critiques: 1) Some argue that such a change wasn't necessary as the name B-Line had already implied that the route was an express. However, this may not be obvious to tourists. 2) The 99 is a special case in and of itself. Since that bus is eventually being replaced by SkyTrain (albeit in 2 phases), TL had two choices: either keep the double branding, or convert everything but risk the brand dilution from not investing heavily into 99 B-Line upgrades since that corridor is going to become SkyTrain anyways. TL chose the former: to keep the double branding and present RapidBus as a more "branded" service with more premiums compared to B-Line. Eventually, the RapidBus brand was decided on as the numbering system was more straightforward and in one place should you need more than 10 lines co-existing at once (so R1 R2 R3 R4 R5 R6 R7 R-whatever). The link in the above comment also has more explanation on why the colour green was chosen. Co-incidentally, the current CEO Kevin Desmond was in charge of Seattle's King County Metro as they developed their bus-rapid-transit system, RapidRide. The key to all this is being able to perform these upgrades in the first place due to the availability of funding from all levels of government.

[@Jfkdjdjdmdnd]

I went on r1 and r5

[@TheStanleyPouch]

i always go and eat at uncle fatihs pizza i think its good pizza

[@jmstransit]

At the R1 southbound stop at Surrey Central? Yeah great value for one slice

[@MarksCar-rs1nm]

Alt. Title: “The First Day Of More Cute Buses in Vancouver”

[@mammottplays7888]

Future Rapid Bus Routes R6 22nd St Stn to Richmond Brighouse Stn Express R7 Burrard Stn to Horseshoe Bay Ferry Terminal Express

[@jmstransit]

Might wanna up your route numbers, R6 & R7 are already confirmed for future routes (Scott Road and Richmond respectively)

[@mammottplays7888]

@@jmstransit so it might be R8 and R9

[@jmstransit]

Actually yeah R7 is the Richmond-expo line connection R8 can be your horseshoe bay route, just gotta hope it happens

[@mammottplays7888]

@@jmstransit ok

[@innosam123]

There are no Closed Captions...

[@jmstransit]

So these are subtitles? I'm getting mixed results on the internet. Will keep in mind for future videos.