Transport Canberra promised to increase bus services during peak times. Photo: James Coleman.
An additional 94 buses will be running around Canberra today (April 28) to mark the start of what Transport Canberra describes as a “new and improved” timetable.
There are now shorter wait times between buses on key Rapid routes during the morning and afternoon weekday peaks.
Many of the school bus routes have also been adjusted to better align with the bell times of schools across the ACT.
These include Ainslie School, Canberra Girls Grammar School, Canberra Grammar School, Marist College, St Mary MacKillop College, Telopea Park School, Trinity Christian School, and more.
The government says the new timetable was developed based on feedback from the schools and the community – and makes good on a 2024 election promise by ACT Labor.
“We’ve heard from the community that some buses are full on certain routes and we’ve responded by increasing frequency on these routes to meet demand,” Transport Minister Chris Steel said earlier this month.
It also coincides with the opening of the new Woden bus depot, with the first buses rolling out of the facility on Parramatta Street, Phillip, this morning.
“Integrating the new Woden bus depot into the network will help improve the efficiency and reliability of Transport Canberra services as buses servicing the Woden region will no longer need to make their way from bus depots in Belconnen and Tuggeranong,” the ACT Government said in a statement.
The depot can house and charge up to 100 electric buses, featuring rooftop solar panels to offset charging and operational costs.
There are also 12 service bays, a panel shop, a tyre-changing bay, and specialist bus maintenance facilities, as well as new amenities to support around 250 staff.
Mr Steel said the 60 electric buses currently on Canberra’s roads will now be based there and charged overnight.
“There are 24 chargers around the depot, and each of those chargers can charge four buses at once, which provides capacity and capability that many other cities around Australia simply don’t have,” he said.
Minister for Transport Chris Steel cutting the ribbon for the new Woden bus depot. Photo: Ian Bushnell.
The Public Transport Association of Canberra (PTCBR) has described the new timetable as a “positive first step” towards delivering the improvements promised last year.
“It’s especially great to see the network efficiencies gained by opening the Woden bus depot being invested into new and improved services right across the city, with a strong focus on Canberra’s western growth areas,” chair Ryan Hemsley told Region.
“PTCBR eagerly anticipates further details on Transport Canberra’s upcoming Bus Frequency Improvement Plan, including when and how it will deliver frequent and reliable bus services, seven days a week.”
Before the October 2024 election, ACT Labor also promised to increase the frequency of Sunday’s bus services to hourly during the day; however, this hasn’t happened yet.
Changes to the timetable include:
Weekdays
- Additional Rapid 2 services between Belconnen and the city, including 10 extra services in the AM peak and four extra services in the PM peak
- Additional Rapid 4 services between Woden and the city, including four extra services in the AM peak and three extra services in the PM peak
- Additional Rapid 10 services between Molonglo and the city, including three extra services in the AM peak and extending 15-minute frequency all day
- Additional Rapid 3 late-night frequency from the Canberra Airport
- Additional route 47 services between Molonglo and Belconnen, including six extra trips across the AM and PM peaks
- Additional route 66 services between Woden and Molonglo.
Weekends
- Additional Saturday route 47 services between Molonglo and Belconnen, including one extra service in the morning and two extra services in the afternoon
- An additional Saturday route 46 service between Kippax and Belconnen in the afternoon.
Schools
- Additional services and refined routes that provide better coverage to surrounding suburbs
- Some services have been adjusted to better align with bell times, based on feedback from the school community.
More information is available at Transport Canberra.
