List of bus rapid transit systems in the Americas
There are a number of bus rapid transit systems in the Americas, with some of their technical details listed below.
- The tables below are incomplete. Mouse-over column titles to see expansions of the abbreviations, or see the notes below.
1 Ded.: Dedicated Right-of-Way
2 Excl. hwy: Exclusive highway lanes
3 Excl. street: Exclusive on-street lanes
4 Excl. part: Part-time exclusive lanes
5 Bypass: No exclusive lanes but heavy intersection bypass lanes
6 Shoulder: Buses can use bus bypass shoulders in congestion
7 HOV: High-occupancy vehicle (carpool) lanes can be used
8 Ltd. stop: System includes limited stop/express routes (includes conventional bus lines)
9 Pre-pay: Payment is made before boarding
Canada[]
Region | System | Right-of-way | Priority features | Stations | Notes | ||||||||||||
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Busway1 | Median2 | Bus Lanes3 | Bypass2 | Timed Lanes5 | Shoulder6 | HOV Lanes7 | Ltd. Stops8 | TSP9 | Bus signals9 | Regular10 | Curbside11 | Median12 | Station13 | POP14 | |||
Brampton, Ontario | Züm | See note | ![]() |
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See note | Five routes. Median busways and stations owned by Viva Rapid Transit | |||||||||
Calgary, Alberta | MAX (Calgary) | ![]() |
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Regional Municipality of Durham, Ontario | Durham Region Transit Pulse | ![]() |
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Gatineau, Quebec | Rapibus | ![]() |
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Halifax Regional Municipality, Nova Scotia | MetroLink (Halifax) | ![]() |
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Kelowna, British Columbia | 97X Kelowna RapidBus | ![]() |
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Laval, Quebec | Société de transport de Laval | ![]() |
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Longueuil, Quebec | Réseau de transport de Longueuil | ![]() |
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Mississauga, Ontario | Mississauga Transitway | ![]() |
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Montreal, Quebec | Montreal bus rapid transit | ![]() |
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Ottawa, Ontario | Transitway (Ottawa) | ![]() |
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Toronto, Ontario | Toronto Transit Commission | ![]() |
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York University Busway; Opened November 2009. | |||||||||
Vancouver, British Columbia | RapidBus (TransLink) | ![]() |
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Waterloo Region, Ontario | Grand River Transit ION Bus | ![]() |
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Waterloo Region, Ontario | Grand River Transit iXpress | ![]() |
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Winnipeg, Manitoba | Winnipeg RT | ![]() |
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Regional Municipality of York, Ontario | Viva Rapid Transit | ![]() |
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Guatemala[]
Region/system | Rights-of-way | Ltd. stop8 |
Traffic light priority |
Pre- pay9 |
Notes | ||||||
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Ded.1 | Excl. hwy2 |
Excl. street3 |
Excl. part4 |
Bypass5 | Shoulder6 | HOV7 | |||||
Guatemala City: Transmetro |
Mexico[]
Region/system | Rights-of-way | Ltd. stop8 |
Traffic light priority |
Pre- pay9 |
Notes | ||||||
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Ded.1 | Excl. hwy2 |
Excl. street3 |
Excl. part4 |
Bypass5 | Shoulder6 | HOV7 | |||||
León: Optibús Optibus - Sistema Integrado de Transporte(SIT) |
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Mexico City: Metrobús |
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two-part Phase I under construction; Phase II planned | ||||||||
Guadalajara: Macrobús |
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two-part Phase I under construction; Phase II planned | ||||||||
Monterrey: Ecovía and Transmetro |
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two-part Phase I under construction; Phase II planned | ||||||||
Puebla: |
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two-part Phase I under construction | ||||||||
Tijuana: SITT |
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United States[]
California | |||||||||||
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Region/system | Rights-of-way | Ltd. stop8 |
Traffic light priority |
Pre- pay9 |
Notes | ||||||
Ded.1 | Excl. hwy2 |
Excl. street3 |
Excl. part4 |
Bypass5 | Shoulder6 | HOV7 | |||||
Livermore, Pleasanton, Dublin, California:
Tri-Valley Rapid |
X | X | X | X | The Rapid has two routes, is operated by Wheels, and provides all day 15 minute service to core cities/areas of the Tri Valley | ||||||
Los Angeles, California: El Monte Busway |
X | X | X | HOV 3+ lane on freeway and on separate right of way, has three rail-like stations | |||||||
Los Angeles, California: Metro G Line |
X | X | X | busway in old railroad corridor with at-grade crossings | |||||||
Los Angeles, California: Harbor Transitway |
X | X | X | X | innermost lanes on freeway – HOV 2+, have rail-like stations and portions of route separate from freeway running elevated, and on-street bus lanes in Downtown Los Angeles used by Harbor Transitway routes | ||||||
Los Angeles, California: Metro Rapid |
X | X | X | Only exclusive lanes are a 1.5-mile (2.4 km) section of Wilshire Boulevard in West Los Angeles | |||||||
Oakland, San Leandro: Tempo |
X | X | X | includes NextBus dynamic message signs, dedicated lanes and median platforms between 20th Street and San Leandro | |||||||
Oakland, Berkeley, Albany, El Cerrito, Richmond: AC Transit Rapid Bus 72R |
X | X | X | includes NextBus dynamic message signs | |||||||
San Bernardino, California: San Bernardino Express (sbX) |
X | X | X | X | dedicated lanes from Baseline (Just north of Downtown) to Hospitality Lane. | ||||||
San Diego, California: MTS Rapid |
X | MTS Rapid lines including Park Boulevard Busway for Mid-City Rapid and two dedicated center-of-freeway bus stations within I-15 at El Cajon Blvd and University Avenue. | |||||||||
San Francisco: Geary Bus Rapid Transit and Van Ness Bus Rapid Transit |
X | X | X | Both projects under construction. Upgrades existing bus lines with dedicated on-street lanes for portions of the routes. Traffic signal priority is already deployed in the system. | |||||||
San Francisco, San Rafael, Novato, and Sonoma County: Golden Gate Transit Route 101[1] |
X | X | Route operates as a complement to local Route 80. Operates effective June 15, 2009 as a weekday-only service, and it will use the HOV lanes along U.S. Highway 101 in Marin County between San Francisco and Santa Rosa. | ||||||||
San Jose, California: Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority: Rapid 522 |
X | X | |||||||||
Stockton, California: San Joaquin Regional Transit District (RTD) |
X | X | X | BRT Express service operates along a four-mile corridor through Stockton to the Downtown Transit Center. |
Colorado | |||||||||||
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Region/system | Rights-of-way | Ltd. stop8 |
Traffic light priority |
Pre- pay9 |
Notes | ||||||
Ded.1 | Excl. hwy2 |
Excl. street3 |
Excl. part4 |
Bypass5 | Shoulder6 | HOV7 | |||||
Denver: Regional Transportation District |
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Flatiron Flyer: Contested as being bus rapid transit | ||||||
Fort Collins: Transfort |
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MAX: Opened May 10, 2014 with free service until August 23, 2014. | ||||
Roaring Fork Valley: RFTA |
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See note | VelociRFTA: Opened September 3, 2013 as the first rural bus rapid transit line in the United States. Ticket vending machines are available at certain stations. |
Connecticut | |||||||||||
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Region/system | Rights-of-way | Ltd. stop8 |
Traffic light priority |
Pre- pay9 |
Notes | ||||||
Ded.1 | Excl. hwy2 |
Excl. street3 |
Excl. part4 |
Bypass5 | Shoulder6 | HOV7 | |||||
New Britain-Hartford: CTtransit |
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CTfastrak: Premiered March 28, 2015. |
Florida | |||||||||||
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Region/system | Rights-of-way | Ltd. stop8 |
Traffic light priority |
Pre- pay9 |
Notes | ||||||
Ded.1 | Excl. hwy2 |
Excl. street3 |
Excl. part4 |
Bypass5 | Shoulder6 | HOV7 | |||||
Jacksonville: JTA |
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See note | First Coast Flyer: Some stations are equipped with ticket vending machines. | |||||
Miami-Dade: Metrobus |
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South Dade Transitway: Constructed in 1997 by the Florida Department of Transportation.[2] | ||||||
Orlando: LYNX |
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LYMMO: The Orange Line has exclusive lanes for 100% of its route. |
Illinois | |||||||||||
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Region/system | Rights-of-way | Ltd. stop8 |
Traffic light priority |
Pre- pay9 |
Notes | ||||||
Ded.1 | Excl. hwy2 |
Excl. street3 |
Excl. part4 |
Bypass5 | Shoulder6 | HOV7 | |||||
Chicago, Illinois: McCormick Place Busway |
X | X | X | Dedicated route between downtown and McCormick Place Convention Center along the side of active railroad for the use of charter buses for conventions. Planned expansion of BRT around the city that will include dedicated rights-of-way, traffic light priority, and limited stops.[citation needed] | |||||||
Chicago, Illinois: Jeffery Jump (J14) |
X | X | X | Limited stop/express service between South Chicago and the Loop (downtown). First implementation of BRT/"BRT lite" as a prototype for later projects such as Loop Link (below).[3] | |||||||
Chicago, Illinois: |
X | X | X | Dedicated lanes along Madison and in the Loop (downtown) For multiple routes, including the J14 BRT service. Uses stations with raised platforms and slated to include prepaid boarding in the future. Opened for service on 20 December 2015.[4] | |||||||
Suburban Chicago: Pace I-90 Express | X | X | On-highway express bus between Rosemont and Elgin. Features "flex lanes" and train station-like stops. |
Indiana | |||||||||||
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Region/system | Rights-of-way | Ltd. stop8 |
Traffic light priority |
Pre- pay9 |
Notes | ||||||
Ded.1 | Excl. hwy2 |
Excl. street3 |
Excl. part4 |
Bypass5 | Shoulder6 | HOV7 | |||||
Indianapolis, Indiana: IndyGo |
X | X | X | X | Phase 1 (Red Line) is scheduled to open by Late Summer 2019. Future expansion of BRT includes the Purple Line (scheduled to open in 2021) to connect the city of Lawrence, Indiana to Downtown Indianapolis; and the Blue Line (scheduled to open in late 2022) to connect the town of Cumberland, Indiana and the east side of Indianapolis, including Irvington, to Downtown Indianapolis as well as to the far west side, including Indianapolis International Airport and vicinity. | ||||||
Northwest Indiana: Broadway Metro Express | X | X | X |
Massachusetts | |||||||||||
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Region/system | Rights-of-way | Ltd. stop8 |
Traffic light priority |
Pre- pay9 |
Notes | ||||||
Ded.1 | Excl. hwy2 |
Excl. street3 |
Excl. part4 |
Bypass5 | Shoulder6 | HOV7 | |||||
Boston: MBTA |
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See note | Silver Line: Off-board fare collection is only present at three underground stations, front-door boarding required at all other stops. Trips from Logan Airport are free. |
Michigan | |||||||||||
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Region/system | Rights-of-way | Ltd. stop8 |
Traffic light priority |
Pre- pay9 |
Notes | ||||||
Ded.1 | Excl. hwy2 |
Excl. street3 |
Excl. part4 |
Bypass5 | Shoulder6 | HOV7 | |||||
Grand Rapids: The Rapid |
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Silver Line and Laker Line: Opened August 25, 2014 and August 24, 2020 respectively. |
Minnesota | |||||||||||
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Region/system | Rights-of-way | Ltd. stop8 |
Traffic light priority |
Pre- pay9 |
Notes | ||||||
Ded.1 | Excl. hwy2 |
Excl. street3 |
Excl. part4 |
Bypass5 | Shoulder6 | HOV7 | |||||
Minneapolis-St. Paul: Metro Transit |
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METRO A Line and C Line; five more lines are either in advanced planning or construction stages. | |||||
Minneapolis-St. Paul: Minnesota Valley Transit Authority |
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See note | METRO Red Line: Terminal stations have off-board ticket machines, while at smaller stations fares are collected on board with all-door boarding. | |||||||
Minneapolis-St. Paul: University of Minnesota Campus Shuttle |
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See note | U of M Transitway: At-grade crossings on the busway have flashing stop signs, with two priority traffic lights in Saint Paul. Surface streets in Minneapolis are not equipped with signal priority. Although it is a free service and anyone may board, students pay a fee to cover operating costs. |
Missouri | |||||||||||
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Region/system | Rights-of-way | Ltd. stop8 |
Traffic light priority |
Pre- pay9 |
Notes | ||||||
Ded.1 | Excl. hwy2 |
Excl. street3 |
Excl. part4 |
Bypass5 | Shoulder6 | HOV7 | |||||
Kansas City, Missouri: Metro Area Express (MAX) |
X | X | X |
Nevada | |||||||||||
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Region/system | Rights-of-way | Ltd. stop8 |
Traffic light priority |
Pre- pay9 |
Notes | ||||||
Ded.1 | Excl. hwy2 |
Excl. street3 |
Excl. part4 |
Bypass5 | Shoulder6 | HOV7 | |||||
Las Vegas, Nevada: Metropolitan Area Express (MAX) |
X | X | X | X | |||||||
Reno, Nevada: RTC RAPID[5] |
X | X | green lights extended for oncoming bus |
New Mexico | |||||||||||
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Region/system | Rights-of-way | Ltd. stop8 |
Traffic light priority |
Pre- pay9 |
Notes | ||||||
Ded.1 | Excl. hwy2 |
Excl. street3 |
Excl. part4 |
Bypass5 | Shoulder6 | HOV7 | |||||
Albuquerque: ABQ RIDE |
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Albuquerque Rapid Transit |
New York | |||||||||||
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Region/system | Rights-of-way | Ltd. stop8 |
Traffic light priority |
Pre- pay9 |
Notes | ||||||
Ded.1 | Excl. hwy2 |
Excl. street3 |
Excl. part4 |
Bypass5 | Shoulder6 | HOV7 | |||||
Albany, New York: CDTA BusPlus |
X | X | CDTA Route 905 along NYS Route 5 between downtown Albany and downtown Schenectady, began service April 2011 | ||||||||
New York, New York: MTA Regional Bus (New York City Bus) |
X | X | X | X | Select Bus Service: Dedicated lanes along several streets. Requires payment before boarding. 20 routes currently in service. |
Ohio | |||||||||||
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Region/system | Rights-of-way | Ltd. stop8 |
Traffic light priority |
Pre- pay9 |
Notes | ||||||
Ded.1 | Excl. hwy2 |
Excl. street3 |
Excl. part4 |
Bypass5 | Shoulder6 | HOV7 | |||||
Cincinnati, Ohio: Southwest Ohio Regional Transit Authority Metro, Metro*PLUS |
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Limited stop service with upgraded stops and new stations with real time information at major stops | |||||||||
Columbus, Ohio: CMAX |
See note | ![]() |
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Limited stop service with upgraded stops and new stations with real time information at major stops. Part-time exclusive lanes on High Street. Signal priority on Cleveland Avenue during rush hour. | |||||||
Cleveland, Ohio: HealthLine |
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See note | ![]() |
Dedicated lanes from Public Square to East Cleveland. Traffic signal priority discontinued. |
Oregon | |||||||||||
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Region/system | Rights-of-way | Ltd. stop8 |
Traffic light priority |
Pre- pay9 |
Notes | ||||||
Ded.1 | Excl. hwy2 |
Excl. street3 |
Excl. part4 |
Bypass5 | Shoulder6 | HOV7 | |||||
Eugene, Oregon: Emerald Express (EmX) |
X | X | X | X |
Pennsylvania | |||||||||||
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Region/system | Rights-of-way | Ltd. stop8 |
Traffic light priority |
Pre- pay9 |
Notes | ||||||
Ded.1 | Excl. hwy2 |
Excl. street3 |
Excl. part4 |
Bypass5 | Shoulder6 | HOV7 | |||||
Upper Darby to Ardmore, Pennsylvania: Ardmore Busway |
X | converted Red Arrow trolley right-of-way, private SEPTA bus road for the 'Route 103' bus to Ardmore from 69th Street Terminal | |||||||||
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania: Martin Luther King Jr. East Busway, South Busway, and West Busway |
X |
Rhode Island | |||||||||||
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Region/system | Rights-of-way | Ltd. stop8 |
Traffic light priority |
Pre- pay9 |
Notes | ||||||
Ded.1 | Excl. hwy2 |
Excl. street3 |
Excl. part4 |
Bypass5 | Shoulder6 | HOV7 | |||||
Providence, Rhode Island: East Side Bus Tunnel |
X | converted trolley tunnel, built 1912, used solely by four bus lines and one rubber-tired "trolley" line, running under College Hill and the Rhode Island School of Design |
Texas | |||||||||||
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Region/system | Rights-of-way | Ltd. stop8 |
Traffic light priority |
Pre- pay9 |
Notes | ||||||
Ded.1 | Excl. hwy2 |
Excl. street3 |
Excl. part4 |
Bypass5 | Shoulder6 | HOV7 | |||||
Austin, TX: Capital Metro MetroRapid | X | X | X | MetroRapid began service in 2014, with 89 stations combined for Routes 801&803, with new stations being added in late 2018. Has dedicated bus lanes through downtown. | |||||||
Dallas, Texas: DART |
X | X | |||||||||
El Paso, Texas: Sun Metro Brio |
X | X | X | X | 8.6 mile Mesa Corridor began operating in Fall of 2014, 14.5 mile Alameda Corridor is under construction and expected to open by Fall 2018, 10.2 Dyer Corridor is under construction and expected to open by December 2018, 16.8 mile Montana Corridor is in the design phase and expected to open by early 2020. | ||||||
Houston, Texas: (HOV system) |
X | X | reversible HOV lanes in 6 corridors with direct ramps to park-and-ride lots, transit centers and Downtown streets. Frequent express bus service using dedicated fleet. | ||||||||
Houston, Texas: METRORapid Silver Line |
X | X | X | X |
Virginia | |||||||||||
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Region/system | Rights-of-way | Ltd. stop8 |
Traffic light priority |
Pre- pay9 |
Notes | ||||||
Ded.1 | Excl. hwy2 |
Excl. street3 |
Excl. part4 |
Bypass5 | Shoulder6 | HOV7 | |||||
Alexandria, VA: Metroway |
X | X | X | X | Phase I Service began in fall of 2014. Portion of the route uses dedicated lanes in median of U.S. Route 1 Replaced WMATA 9S Route. Phase II opened in April 2016. | ||||||
Richmond, Virginia: GRTC Pulse [1] | X | X | X | X | X | BRT system to commence construction in late 2015/early 2016; construction estimated to be completed by 2018 |
Washington | |||||||||||
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Region/system | Rights-of-way | Ltd. stop8 |
Traffic light priority |
Pre- pay9 |
Notes | ||||||
Ded.1 | Excl. hwy2 |
Excl. street3 |
Excl. part4 |
Bypass5 | Shoulder6 | HOV7 | |||||
Seattle: SODO Busway |
X | 1.5 mile surface busway connecting in from the south to Downtown Seattle Transit Tunnel | |||||||||
Seattle: Sound Transit Express |
X | X | Extensive HOV lane running with dedicated center-of-freeway bus stations at Mountlake Terrace Freeway Station, Yarrow Point Freeway Station, Evergreen Point Freeway Station, Rainier Station. Dedicated bus flyovers from freeway to transit center (or freeway integrated transit centers) at Federal Way, Bellevue, Lynnwood, Ash Way, Totem Lake, Eastgate, Mercer Island, Montlake, South Everett. Business Access-Transit lanes along most of SR-522 Seattle to Bothell. | ||||||||
Snohomish County: Swift |
X | X | X | X | X | Shadowed by local route 101; connection to RapidRide E Line | |||||
Vancouver: The Vine |
X | X | X | ||||||||
Bellingham: WTA Go Lines |
X | 15 minute service is offered during most of the day, every weekday. On some of the Go Lines, frequent service consists of a combination of several routes that run on the same corridor. |
See also[]
Notes[]
- ^ New Route 101 Express
- ^ "South Miami-Dade Busway". Miami-Dade County. Archived from the original on 1 March 2006. Retrieved 29 September 2020.
- ^ "Jeffery Jump". Chicago Transit Authority. Retrieved 2016-01-10.
- ^ "Loop Link". Chicago Transit Authority. Retrieved 2016-01-10.
- ^ "RTC RAPID". RTC. Retrieved 14 September 2016.
1 Ded.: Dedicated busway or tunnel
2 Excl. hwy: Exclusive highway lanes
3 Excl. street: Exclusive on-street lanes
4 Excl. part: Part-time exclusive lanes
5 Bypass: No exclusive lanes but heavy intersection bypass lanes
6 Shoulder: Buses can use hard shoulders in congestion
7 HOV: High-occupancy vehicle (carpool) lanes can be used (common)
8 Ltd. stop: System includes limited stop/express routes (includes conventional bus lines, common)
9 Pre-pay: Payment is made before boarding
External links[]
- Recapturing Global Leadership in Bus Rapid Transit - A Survey of Select U.S. Cities (available for download in pdf) Institute for Transportation & Development Policy (May 2011)
- Bus rapid transit in Canada
- Bus rapid transit in the United States