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Parent | Transport Canberra & City Services |
---|---|
Commenced operation | 19 July 1926 |
Headquarters | Greenway |
Locale | Canberra |
Service type | Bus services |
Hubs | City Interchange |
Depots | 3 |
Fleet | 458 (December 2021) |
Annual ridership | 17.8 million (2015/16) |
Chief Operating Officer | Bren Burkevics |
Website | www |
ACTION (Australian Capital Territory Internal Omnibus Network) is a bus operator in Canberra, Australia, and is owned by the Government of the Australian Capital Territory.
On 19 July 1926, the Federal Capital Commission commenced operating public bus services between Eastlake (now Kingston) in the south and Ainslie in the north. [1]
The service was first known as Canberra City Omnibus Service, but it has had a number of names over the years, including Canberra City Bus Service, Canberra Omnibus Service and Canberra Bus Service. On 14 February 1977, it was renamed as the Australian Capital Territory Internal Omnibus Network, or ACTION for short. [1] [2]
In 1976, Canberra became the first city in Australia to operate articulated buses after the purchase of 25 MAN SG192s. [3] [4] In May 1982, ACTION commenced operating the Canberra Explorer in a joint venture with Murrays. [5]
As part of the move to ACT self-government, responsibility for ACTION passed from the Federal Government to the ACT Government in 1989. In 2001, ACTION became a statutory authority. [6]
In June 2018, the ACT Government released a proposal for changes to the bus network to coincide with the opening of the Light Rail which included a 7-day network with 10 rapid routes and an overhaul of the route numbers. [7] The proposed changes caused controversy due to changes to school services and the removal of all Xpresso services. [8] Public consultation for the proposal lasted between June and August 2018 and a modified proposal was released in October 2018. [9] [10] The starting date of the new bus network was pushed back to 29 April 2019 due to delays on the construction of the Light Rail. [11]
ACTION is a business unit of the Public Transport Division of Transport Canberra & City Services. Transport Canberra was formed on 1 July 2016 by combining the Public Transport Division and Capital Metro Agency to manage all public transport operations within the ACT. [12] [13] [14]
ACTION operates a 7-day network of bus routes including nine main routes and 48 local routes. [15]
Route R2 is a limited stop service between Fraser, Kippax, Belconnen, City, Parkes, Barton and Iron Knob Street, Fyshwick (at the Canberra Outlet Centre).
It operates at a 15-minute frequency on weekdays and it operates at a 30-minute frequency on weekends and public holidays. [16]
Route R3 is a limited stop service between Spence, Belconnen, City, Russell Offices and Canberra Airport.
It operates at a 15-minute frequency on weekdays and it operates at a 30-minute frequency on weekends and public holidays. [17]
Route R4 services provide a high-frequency link between Belconnen, City, Woden and Tuggeranong.
It operates at a 5 to 10-minute frequency on weekdays and it operates at a 15-minute frequency on weekends and public holidays. [18]
Route R5 is a high-frequency link between the City, Woden, Erindale Centre, Calwell Centre and Lanyon Marketplace.
It operates at a 15-minute frequency on weekdays and it operates at a 30-minute frequency on weekends and public holidays. [19]
Route R6 is a high-frequency link between the City, Parkes, Barton, Kingston, Manuka, Narrabundah, the Canberra Hospital and Woden.
It operates at a 15-minute frequency on weekdays and it operates at a 30-minute frequency on weekends and public holidays. [20]
Route R7 is an express link between the City, Cooleman Court and Chapman.
It operates at a 15-minute frequency on weekdays and it operates at a 30-minute frequency on weekends and public holidays. [21]
Route R8 is a direct main route between the Gungahlin Town Centre and the bus stations at Belconnen.
It operates at a 15-minute frequency on weekdays and it operates at a 30-minute frequency on weekends and public holidays. [22]
Route R9 is an east-west link between Belconnen, Canberra Stadium, Dickson and Watson.
It operates at a 15-minute frequency on weekdays and it operates at a 30-minute frequency on weekends and public holidays. [23]
Route R10 is a direct link between Denman Prospect and the City.
It operates at a 30-minute frequency on weekdays, weekends and public holidays. [24]
ACTION's regular weekday services operate either as feeder services to a single town centre or connect two or three town centres via suburban streets.
During weekends and public holidays, ACTION provides a reduced level of service with most suburban routes operating with an hourly or two-hourly frequency.
ACTION operates 3 weekday peak hour routes as an express service between outer suburbs of Tuggeranong and the City. These routes are numbered in the 100 series.
ACTION trialled a shuttle bus loop service from Canberra Airport to the Fairbairn Business Park on a three month trial basis. The service operated from 7am until 10am in the morning and again from 4pm until 7pm in the afternoon on weekdays. [25]
School services are provided by ACTION to schools and colleges throughout the ACT. These are numbered in the 1000 and 2000 series. [26]
ACTION also operates the special needs transport division which provides transport for school students with a disability. This division is operated using a dedicated fleet of wheelchair-accessible minibuses.
The Flexible bus service operates on weekdays to provide a free, basic bus service to passengers with limited access to normal public transport options. [27] Six services operate daily providing a pick up service in the morning from designated suburbs to shopping centres and hospitals, with return services operating in the afternoon.
These bus services are operated by the special needs transport minibuses.
There are four cash fare options on ACTION:
Concession tickets are available to school students, full-time tertiary students, seniors card holders and various government concession card holders. [28]
The pre-paid ticketing system operated by the ACT Government is known as MyWay. [29] It uses contactless smart cards with MIFARE-Technology onto which credit is loaded. Passengers are required to 'tag on' when boarding the bus and 'tag off' when exiting, at which point the appropriate fare is calculated and, if required, deducted from the stored value on the MyWay card.
The MyWay system uses Parkeon software and equipment including Wayfarer 200 consoles [30] and Axio card readers. [31] The system was built and installed by Parkeon's Australian distributor, Downer EDi. [32] Instead of being developed from scratch, MyWay was adapted from Transperth's SmartRider system which also uses Parkeon hardware and software. [33] [34]
As at February 2023, ACTION's route service fleet consisted of 459 buses. [35]
Chassis | Body | Type | Air con | ![]() | ![]() | Notes | Number in service | Image |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Renault PR100.2 | Ansair [36] | Step entrance rigid, Diesel | ✓ | Branded as Macks | 33 | ![]() | ||
Irisbus Agora | Custom Coaches CB60 [37] | Low-floor rigid, Euro II Diesel | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | Originally ordered by King Brothers | 18 | ![]() |
Scania L94UB | Custom Coaches CB60 [38] | Low-floor rigid, CNG | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | 54 | ![]() | |
MAN A69 18.310 HOCL-NL | Custom Coaches CB60 Evo II [39] | Low-floor rigid, CNG | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | 16 | ![]() | |
MAN A69 18.310 HOCL-R-NL | Custom Coaches CB60 Evo II | Low-floor rigid, Euro IV Diesel | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | 2 | ||
MAN A69 18.320 HOCL-NL/E5 | Custom Coaches CB60 Evo II [40] | Low-floor rigid, Euro V Diesel | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | 87 | ![]() | |
Scania K320UB 6x2*4 | Custom Coaches CB60 Evo II [41] | Low-floor rigid tri-axle (steerable-tag), Euro V Diesel | ✓ | ✓ | 26 | ![]() | ||
Scania K360UA 6x2/2 | Custom CB80 [42] | Low-floor articulated, Euro V/EEV Diesel | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | Fitted with bike racks in June 2017 [43] | 33 | ![]() |
Scania K320UB 4x2 | Custom CB80 | Low-floor rigid, Euro VI Diesel | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | 82 | ||
Scania K320UB 4x2 | Bustech VST | Low-floor rigid, Euro VI Diesel | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | [44] | 71 | ![]() |
Scania K360UA 6x2/2 | Volgren Optimus | Low-floor articulated, Euro VI/EEV Diesel | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | 11 | ![]() | |
Scania K320UB 4x2 | Volgren Optimus | Low-floor rigid, Euro VI Diesel | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | 20 | ![]() | |
Hino Poncho | Low-floor midibus, Euro V Diesel | ✓ | ✓ | Only operates on route 903 | 2 | |||
Yutong ZK6131HG1 | Yutong E12 | Low-floor rigid, Battery electric | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | 12 | ![]() | |
Bicycle racks have been fitted to the front of 94% of the buses in the fleet. Each rack can hold two bicycles. Passengers may load a bicycle onto the rack for free, but must pay a regular fare to travel on the bus. [45]
Apart from buses with all over advertising or special designs, ACTION's fleet sport either a blue, orange and white (Renault buses) or a green, orange and white livery (all other buses). In December 2016, a predominantly blue livery was introduced. [46] [47]
ACTION's Special Needs Transport division operates a fleet of eighteen Mitsubishi Fuso Rosa minibuses. These buses are white in colour and do not operate on route services.
ACTION also operate Toyota Hiace Commuter and Hyundai iMax vans which can be used to transport passengers, Hino Dutro trucks used by mechanics to attend broken down buses and a single Mack tow truck.
ACTION's heritage fleet consists of a 1949 AEC Regal III [48] and a 1961 AEC Reliance.
Until the mid-1970s, purchases mainly comprised heavyweight British built AEC and Leyland chassis before a switch was made to European chassis. In 1972, the first Volvo B58s were purchased. These were followed by MAN SL200s from 1975, articulated MAN SG192s from 1976, Mercedes-Benz O305s from 1981, articulated O305Gs from 1982, Renault PR100.2s from 1986, articulated Renault PR180.2s from 1988 and Renault PR100.3s from 1994. The Renaults were badged as Macks although they carried the Renault diamond badge. [49]
Although primarily purchasing new buses, ACTION has on occasions purchased and hired second-hand buses. With industrial action in England causing a shortage of both chassis and parts at a time Canberra was undergoing phenomenal growth, in February 1974, 12 Leyland OPS2/1s were hired from the Public Transport Commission. [50] [51] [52] [53] In June 1974 the entire 10 bus fleet of Bedford, Ford and Thornycroft buses of recently ceased operator Bowden's Bus Service of Tamarama was purchased. [54] A number of Bedfords and Fords were purchased from dealer's stock. [55]
In 1997, 25 Wright Crusader bodied Dennis Darts were imported from Northern Ireland. [56] [57]
In 2001, 17 former North & Western Bus Lines Hino RG197Ks were leased from Sydney Buses for a short period. [58] [59] In February 2004, 20 Custom Coaches bodied Irisbus Agoras built for, but not delivered to King Brothers entered service.
Fleet livery was originally fawn with a yellow stripe. This was replaced by the 1960s by a coffee body with arctic green window area and red stripe. In 1973, a yellow body with arctic green window surrounds and light blue stripe livery was introduced. [60] [61] This was replaced in 2004 by the current white, green and orange livery.
Initially buses were registered in the C#### series. By the 1960s, buses were registered as ZIB### in the Commonwealth of Australia series. In May 1989, the fleet was reregistered onto ACT Government BUS### plates. [62] [63]
ACTION operates three depots:
ACTION operates seven bus stations, which act as hubs for the districts of Canberra. [70]
City Interchange is located on East Row, Mort Street and Alinga Street. Limited local access is permitted on Mort and Alinga Streets, while East Row is a bus-only street. Since April 2019, several major routes stop in the part of Aligna Street to the west of Northbourne Avenue, but it continued to be open to traffic until 26 July 2019. Woden and Tuggeranong Interchange are off street stations which permit access only to buses, essential traffic and emergency vehicles.
Belconnen Town Centre is serviced by two bus stations located along Cohen Street: Cohen Street Bus Station (located outside the Belconnen Bus Depot near the intersection with Josephson Street, opened in May 2009) [74] [75] and Belconnen Community Bus Station (located between Benjamin Way and Emu Bank, at the site of the former Belconnen Interchange, opened in November 2010). [76] In addition, a major stop is located outside Westfield Belconnen, near the intersection of Cohen and Lathlain Streets. All bus routes travelling to or through Belconnen Town Centre service all three locations. Additional stops are located on Emu Bank and Eastern Valley Way which are serviced by most routes which travel through Belconnen Town Centre. [77]
Bus shelters installed at stops include what is referred to as a "concrete bunker" which were first installed in May 1975. [78] More modern shelters include glass-sided Adshel shelters (both with and without advertising) which were first installed in 2007 [79] and CAM (Community Asset Management NZ Limited) shelters which were first installed in 2012. [80]
Belconnen is a district in the Australian Capital Territory in Australia. The district is subdivided into 27 divisions (suburbs), sections and blocks. As at the 2021 census, the district had a population of 106,061 people; and was the most populous district within the Australian Capital Territory (ACT).
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The Canberra Institute of Technology (CIT) is a vocational education provider with five campuses located in Canberra, Australian Capital Territory. CIT is the largest Technical and Further Education (TAFE) provider in the Australian Capital Territory. Qualifications offered by CIT range from certificate to degree level. CIT has campuses across Canberra, located in Bruce, Reid, and Fyshwick. CIT also has two learning centres in Tuggeranong Town Centre and Gungahlin, which are primarily for students studying via flexible or distance learning. CIT provides a wide range of education and training courses that focus on practical skills and formal, technical qualifications.
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Jamison Centre is a large shopping centre located in Belconnen's eastern suburb of Macquarie, Australian Capital Territory. Comprising two indoor/outdoor complexes and a range of standalone stores and facilities, the centre is anchored by Coles and Aldi stores. Other notable facilities are the Jamison branch of the Canberra Southern Cross Club and the Big Splash Water Park.
Wanniassa is a suburb in Australia's capital, Canberra: more specifically, in the city's southern district of Tuggeranong. The suburb takes its name from a pastoral property granted to Thomas McQuoid in 1835, which he named after Wanayasa in Purwakarta Regency, West Java, Indonesia, where McQuoid had previously owned property. Streets are named after Victorian state politicians and the suburb was gazetted on 21 May 1974.
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Gungahlin Drive Extension (GDE) is a motorway grade road, located in the Belconnen district of Canberra, Australia. It is 8.3 kilometres long and extended the previously existing Gungahlin Drive from the Barton Highway in the district of Gungahlin to the Glenloch Interchange to connect with the Tuggeranong Parkway, Parkes Way, and William Hovell Drive. Early in the planning stages, the GDE was to instead be designated the John Dedman Parkway.
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Transport in Canberra is provided by private cars, buses, taxis and light rail, while rail, air, and long-distance coach services operate for travel beyond Canberra. A vast road network also plays a major role in transport within and beyond the city.
Route R4 is a main cross-city bus route in Canberra, Australia operated by ACTION between Belconnen, City, Woden Town Centre and Tuggeranong.
Woden Interchange was located in Woden Town Centre, Canberra, Australia, adjacent to Westfield Woden. It was served by ACTION and CDC Canberra services.
Tuggeranong Interchange is located in Tuggeranong Town Centre, Canberra. All services are operated by ACTION. It consists of 7 platforms and provides connections between bus routes servicing the District of Tuggeranong. The bus station is located next to South.Point Tuggeranong on a section of Pitman St between Holwell and Anketell Streets which is closed to regular vehicular traffic.
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