Monday March 27, 2023 | LANGFORD, BC
by Mary P Brooke | Island Social Trends
BC Transit had already announced the April 10 launch of the flagship Blink RapidBus line between the West Shore and Downtown Victoria. That initial West Shore Rapid Bus Service announcement was on February 15.
But now there’s also a contest!
And a few more details.
Adding Route 95:
As part of this launch, the Route 95 West Shore-Downtown line is being added and the Route 50 Langford/Downtown is being discontinued. Route 95 will travel along the same route with fewer stops.
There will be further service level improvements on the new 95 West Shore-Downtown line. Riders will see a bus arrive every 7 to 8 minutes during peak travel times, and a minimum of every 15 minutes at any Blink RapidBus stop between 7 am and 10 pm Monday – Saturday and 8am-10pm on Sundays.
The new Route 95 will provide 21 more additional weekday trips than the existing Route 50 (a 12% increase), 11 additional trips on Saturdays (up 8%), and 20 more trips on Sundays (18% increase).
The new Route 95 will stop at fewer bus stops than the Route 50, which means more time travelling and less time at bus stops, so customers will need to check if their closest stop is a Blink RapidBus stop.
Recycling bus stops:
The bus stops that will no longer be served by the Route 95 will continue to serve other routes in the West Shore and Downtown.
However, one stop pair in the West Shore is being discontinued (see attached map).
Signage has been placed at bus stops outlining the changes, and customers are encouraged to find more information on the BC Transit Blink info page.
“None of the bus stop removals associated with the RapidBus implementation were made lightly and were made based on a combined assessment of passenger boardings, stop spacing and feedback from the Local Government Partners in the West Shore,” says BC Transit.
Blink is the name:
The most notable change aside from the route changing from the 50 to the 95 is the new Blink RapidBus branding. Customers will know they’re at a Blink RapidBus stop if they see the newly branded orange signage. Over time, customers will notice that larger, branded RapidBus stations like the stop at Douglas and Cloverdale in Victoria will be installed along the West Shore-Downtown route.
Sooke-specific improvements:
As a result of the new Blink RapidBus from Langford to Downtown, some changes were made to the Route 61 Sooke to improve service frequency and create efficiencies where possible.
Overall the Route 61 will have significant all-day service improvements, however, during non-peak travel times, customers will be required to transfer to the Route 95 at the Langford Exchange if their destination is Downtown Victoria. Customers with a DayPASS can easily transfer and customers without a DayPASS will need to pay the fare for the transfer.
Priority lanes:
The implementation of Blink RapidBus builds on recent bus priority lane investments along Douglas Street and the Trans-Canada Highway, which saved 20 minutes for customers in peak morning and afternoon commute periods.
Further improvements to infrastructure between Goldstream Avenue and the Trans-Canada Highway in Colwood and View Royal are being planned to make the 95 Blink RapidBus even faster.
Outperforming personal vehicle speed:
The vision for Blink RapidBus is to deliver transit service that outperforms the personal automobile in speed, comfort and reliability. The goal of RapidBus is to connect areas with the highest travel demands in the region using a combination of corridor treatments, branded services, and improved station amenities.
Promo prize:
As part of the Blink RapidBus launch a promotional prize contest (running March 27 to April 14, 2023) is being held for customers in the Victoria region. Prize contest entry can be done on the Blink RapidBus info page.
Winners will be selected on Monday, April 17, 2023, and notified via email. Winners must be able to pick up their prize from the BC Transit head office (520 Gorge Road E). Contest open to Victoria residents. See the official contest rules for more details.
Grand Prize (x1)
- Beats headphones
- Fitbit Inspire 3
- BC Transit bike
- Disposible camera
- Yeti travel cup
- BC Transit bus pass
- Burt’s Bees chapstick
- Ping pong balls
- BC Transit sunglasses & swag!
Prize Pack (x5)
- Orange bucket hat
- Disposable camera
- Yeti travel cup
- BC Transit bus pass
- Burt’s Bees chapstick
- Ping pong balls
- BC Transit sunglasses & BC Transit swag!
===== RELATED:
West Shore-Downtown RapidBus service launches in April (Feb 15, 2023)
COVID disrupts BC Transit services (Jan 27, 2022)
BC Transit drives forward during COVID-19 (April 24, 2020)
NextRide website & app launched by BC Transit (July 28, 2019)
West shore commute highlighted in 118-bus announcement (July 18, 2019)
South island transportation strategy will come with funds (Jan 31, 2019)
==== ABOUT ISLAND SOCIAL TRENDS:
Island Social Trends is a long-standing publication in the west shore of South Vancouver Island (fourth in a series that began with MapleLine Magazine 2008-2010, Sooke Voice News 2011-2013, and West Shore Voice News 2014-2020, which then emerged as Island Social Trends in mid-2020).
Island Social Trends editor is Mary P Brooke, B.Sc., Cert PR. She is a long-time journalist, delivering news through a socioeconomic lens.
IslandSocialTrends.ca covers news of the Greater Victoria area and south Vancouver Island, with insights on BC and national issues.
Ms Brooke has consistently covered progressive politics on Vancouver Island including a focus on food security for the South Vancouver Island region. She has presented detailed coverage of the SD62 School Board and its committees since 2014.
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