Somewhere in the industrial wilds of Quebec, a brand new TTC bendy bus is idling, waiting to make its debut on Toronto’s potholed streets.
At least, that appears to be the case, according to a photo posted to the Toronto Reddit page on Wednesday.
The photo is the first known image of one of the commission’s new sixty-foot articulated buses, also nicknamed “artics,” 153 of which are being purchased at a combined cost of $144,489,831.20.
The Reddit user who posted the photo didn’t provide the location where it was shot, but according to TTC spokesperson Brad Ross, it was snapped outside the Nova bus factory in St.-Eustache, Quebec where the vehicles are being tested.
The low-floor buses have a capacity of 112 riders (45 per cent greater than the TTC’s current buses during peak periods) and are expected to start entering service in 2014. Because they allow the commission to carry more passengers while employing fewer drivers, they’re expected to save the TTC roughly $9 million a year.
Ross says the TTC still doesn’t have a detailed service plan, but last year he told NOW that likely routes the bendy-buses will serve include the 29 Dufferin, 7 Bathurst, 116 Morningside, 25 Don Mills, 36 Finch West, and 85A Sheppard. Other candidates are the 199 Finch Rocket, 196 York U Rocket, and the 39 Finch East.
Unlike the new fleet of extra-long streetcars, Ross says the buses will not necessitate major changes to the TTC’s infrastructure. Slight modifications at some bus stops may be required, however.
