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BC transit is the provincial crown agency charged with coordinating
the delivery of public transportation throughout British Columbia
(outside the Greater Vancouver Regional District).
The corporation's mandate, as set out in the BC
Transit Act, is:
"to plan, acquire, construct or cause to be constructed public
passenger transportation systems and rail systems that support
regional growth strategies, official community plans, and
the economic development of transit service areas", [and]
"to provide for the maintenance and operation of those systems".
Responsibility for public transportation in the Lower Mainland
was transferred to the Greater Vancouver Transportation Authority
(TransLink) in 1999. BC Transit manages and operates the Victoria
Regional Transit System, and plans, funds, manages, markets,
and contracts for transit systems in more than 50 British Columbia
local governments in the Municipal Systems Program.
Transit Types
The three types of transit service offered are: conventional,
paratransit and custom.
The Conventional transit serves the general population
in urban settings using mid-sized, large or double deck buses
- mostly fully accessible and low-floor - with fixed routes
and fixed schedules. Recent conventional transit innovations
have ranged from Community Bus to Bus Rapid Transit. Custom
transit serves those who cannot use conventional transit
because of a disability, using vans and minibuses for dial-a-ride,
door-to-door handyDART service and through contracted Taxi Supplement
and Taxi Saver (discounted coupon) programs. In small town,
rural and suburban areas Paratransit offers flexible
routing and schedules for passengers using minibuses, taxis
and vans.
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