Drivers in Coquitlam will soon see double-decker buses on the freeway.
But they won’t be stopping anywhere in the city — at least, not anytime soon.
Starting in January, the two-level buses will run along Highway 1 on Route 555 from Langley’s Carvolth Exchange, through Coquitlam to Lougheed Station, a hub at the border with Burnaby that’s used by many Tri-City transit riders.
Last year, according to TransLink, Metro Vancouver's transportation authority, Route 555 had more than one million boardings.
The roll-out of the Route 555 double-deckers will follow launches in Surrey, Delta and Richmond, which will see the stacked vehicles as early as October for Route 301 (Newton Exchange/Richmond-Brighouse) and Route 602 (Bridgeport/Tsawwassen).
The use of the buses, which are used also by BC Transit in Victoria, comes after a four-month pilot project for TransLink. They will replace the older highway coaches and provide nearly double the number of seats plus plug-in USB charging outlets and accessibility features.
Another 25 double-deckers will be added to TransLink’s fleet by fall 2020 to increase capacity on popular routes. TransLink spokesperson Lida Paslar told The Tri-City News, "We haven’t decided where they will go yet as it’s based on ridership levels."
Meanwhile, until Labour Day, transit users in Metro Vancouver can hop on one of the double-decker buses at the TransLink display at The Fair at the PNE.
The exhibit also includes a RapidBus, a blue and green articulated bus that’s expected to be operating on Lougheed Highway in January 2020, linking Maple Ridge with the Coquitlam Central station.
JANIS CLEUGH/THE TRI-CITY NEWS
The RapidBus will stop twice in Port Coquitlam (at Ottawa and Shaughnessy streets) as well as at Westwood Street in Coquitlam before the City Centre terminus. It’s scheduled to run every 10 minutes during rush hours and every 15 minutes during the off-hours and on the weekends, from 5 a.m. to midnight.
