Taichung City Bus

Taichung City Bus
臺中市公車
Route 150 (one of the Taichung New Express Bus routes) bus stop
Founded	1958
Locale	Taichung City, Taiwan
Operator	Taichung Bus, Fengyuan Bus, Renyeou Bus, Ubus, Central Taiwan Bus, Chang Hua Bus, Ho Hsin Bus, Southeast Bus, Chuan Hang Bus, Green Transit, Geya Bus, Miaoli Bus

Taichung City Bus (Chinese: 臺中市市區公車; pinyin: Táizhōng Shì Shìqūgōngchē or so called Chinese: 臺中市公車; pinyin: Táizhōng Shì Gōngchē) is managed by the Transportation Bureau, Taichung City Government in Taichung City, Taiwan. This includes bus routes 1–290 which are operated by different bus companies: Taichung Bus (台中客運), Fengyuan Bus (豐原客運), Renyeou Bus (仁友客運), United Bus (Ubus) (統聯客運), Central Taiwan Bus (中台灣客運), Chuan Hang Bus (全航客運), Ho Hsin Bus (和欣客運), Southeast Bus (東南客運), Chang Hua Bus (彰化客運), Green Transit (豐榮客運), Geya Bus (巨業交通), Miaoli Bus (苗栗客運) and Nantou Bus (南投客運).

History

new made mix bus stop

United Bus Route 75

Taichung Bus Route 132

Fengyuan Bus Route 253

Geya Bus Route 68

Renyeou Bus Route 105

Chuan Hang Bus Route 58

Chang Hua Bus Route 52

Green Transit Route 40

Southeast Bus Route 98

Taichung Bus was established in 1958, commissioned by the Taichung Municipal Government to operate high capacity bus services. Renyou Bus was established in 1976 and became the second bus operator of the network. For some 25 years, the network are run by only these two companies. In order to widen the bus service network, the City Government let more bus companies operate since 2002. The number of operators have come to 13 since September 2014.

before 2002

1 January 1958: The first Taichung City Bus operator, Taichung Bus was established.
18 February 1958: Taichung City Bus begins operations.
31 December 1976: Renyou Bus was established and joined the network.

2002-2005

1 August 2002: Phase 1 of the high capacity bus network (now route 71,72,73,75,77,79) were open.
1 August 2003: All buses started to charge by the sections divided, and each section cost 13NTD.
15 October 2003: Taichung Bus Company experienced a 22-day employers' strike.
1 February 2004: Phase 2 of the high capacity bus network (now route 33,60,68,70,81,89) were open. Geya Bus, established in 1974, joined the network with Route 68.
20 March 2004: Chuan Hang Bus joined the network and started running Route 5, part of phase 2.
4 August 2004: Taichung E card system is launched.
16 August 2004: Taichung E card applies for Taichung downtown bus routes.
23 August 2004: Route 83 were open.
1 November 2004: Route 66, part of phase 2, were open.
17 May 2005: Taichung E Cards are issued to students residing in Taichung City, from Grade 4 Elementary to senior classes.
1 June 2005: Taichung E Card holders were offered free rides on downtown buses for one month. All buses started to charge by the mileage instead of the sections.
1 July 2005: Taichung E Card availability extend to 10 operators.
1 September 2005: Route 105 and 145 run by Taichung Bus Company was combined and renumbered Route 9.
21 November 2005: As Taiwan High Speed Rail begin operating, Taichung Bus started running Route 69, and United Buses started running Route 85.

2006-2010

26 June 2006: Route 34 of Taichung Bus Company were cancelled and Roue 6, 10, and 38 of Renyou Bus were cancelled.
1 January 2007: Route 2, 11, 42 and 89 of Renyou Bus ended operating.
1 May 2007: Route 89 were restored by Renyou Bus.
10 January 2008: Route 61 of Renyou Bus ended operating.
1 July 2008: Route 102 was renumbered Route 82. Route 61 were restored by United Bus.
1 November 2008: Taichung Bus quit running Route 66. Renyeou Bus ran the route temporarily, and Taichung Bus later restored the running.
10 November 2008: Route 103, 108, and 136 of Taichung Bus ended running.
1 January 2009: Chang Hua Bus joined the network and started running Route 99.
10 March 2009: Aloha Bus joined the network and started running Route 18.
18 May 2009: Geya Bus started Route 67. Chang Hua Bus started Route 51; Taichung Bus started Route 54 and 57; United bus started Route 52, 53, 55, 56, and shared 57 with Taichung Bus.
1 January 2010: Fengyuan Bus joined the network with succeeding Route 51; Chang Hua Bus succeeded Route 52; Route 57 were cancelled; Chuan Hang Bus started Route 58.
1 July 2010: Taichung Bus started Route 28.

2011

1 January: United Bus started Route 50; Ho Hsin Bus secceeded Route 54; Fengyuan Bus adpated 13 highway bus lines to City Bus Route 206, 207, 208, 212, 213, 215, 217, 225, 226, 258, 257, 267, 268 and succeeded Route 55; Renyeou Bus adapted two highway bus lines to City Bus Route 105 and 125.
14 February: Route 9, 83, and 88 each added a vice-line. Taichung Bus adapted 7 highway bus lines to City Bus Route 100, 101, 106, 107, 131, 132, and 146.
1 May: The vice-line of Route 88 and 9 was renumbered Route 57 and 6.
1 June: Fengyuan Bus adapted 7 highway bus lines to City Bus Route 280, 285, 286, 289, 270, 271, 276, and started Route 277; United Bus started Route 59. Each operators updated the electronic ticket sensors to be available for four sorts of cards.
28 June: Taichung Bus started Route 115.
29 August: Fengyuan Bus started Route 90, 91, 92, 235; Taichung Bus started Route 93. Route 90, 91, 92, 93 did not charge.
1 September: Sectioned bus of Route 83 was renumbered Route 86, and the vice-line of Route 83 was renumbered Route 87.
1 November: Southeast Bus joined the network started Route 7.
28 November: Highway bus line 6115 was adapted to City Bus Route 115.
1 December: Fengyuam Bus adapted 4 highway bus lines to City Bus Route 229, 230, 231, 232, and started Route 228.
5 December: Route 22 of Renyou Bus were cancelled.

2012

1 January: Taichung Bus adapted 3 highway bus lines to City Bus Route 142, 147, and 163.
1 March: Route 54 was succeeded by Taichung Bus.
1 July: United Bus and Fengyuan Bus began running new Route 63 together. Fengyuan Bus adapted 11 highway bus lines to Route 209, 218, 221, 222, 223, 227, 256, 257, 260, 261, and 262.
1 August: Route Blue 1 (BL1), The first shuttle bus for BRT Blue Line, started operation.
30 August: United Bus started Route 3.
3 September: Southeast Bus joined the network and started Route 98.
20 September: Geya Bus adapted one highway bus line to Route 175.
1 October: Green Transit joined the network and started Route 127; Fengyuan Bus adapted 13 highway bus lines to Route 170, 171, 172, 173, 182, 183, 185, 186, 210, 211, 216, 219, and 266.
7 October: Route 67 was succeeded by Southeast Bus.
31 October: Chuan Hang Bus Started Route 199.
1 December: Taichung Bus adapted one highway bus line to Route 128.
10 December: Miaoli Bus adapted one highway bus line to Route 181 and joined the network.
27 December: Central Taiwan Bus joined the network and started Route 95.

2013

1 January: Route 100 added a vice-line. Taichung Bus adapted 2 highway bus lines to Route 102 and 108. Fengyuan Bus adapted 26 highway bus lines to Route 200, 202, 203, 220, 236, 237, 238, 239, 250, 251, 252, 253, 263, 265, 269, 272, 273, 275, 278, 279, 281, 282, 283, 288, 290, and 291.
16 January: Geya Bus adapted 3 highway bus lines to Route 176, 177, and 180.
1 February: United Bus started Route 23. Route 173 and 172 were combined to be Route 172. Route 210 added a vice-line.
1 March: United Bus succeeded Route 18 from Aloha Bus, and Aloha bus left the network then. Fengyuan Bus adapted 2 highway bus lines to Route 240 and 264. United Bus adapted 1 highway bus line to Route 159. Ho Hsin Bus joined the network the second time and moved 2 highway bus lines to Route 160 and 161.
18 March: Geya Bus adapted 4 highway bus lines to Route 164, 165, 166, and 167.
1 April: Route 14 added a vice-line.
10 April: Central Taiwan Bus started Route 150 and 162.
17 April: Suffering financial situations, Renyou Bus could not afford running all of its 15 routes any longer. Transportation Bureau immediately made 11 routes succeeded by Taichung Bus, Fengyuan Bus, Chang Hua Bus, Chuan Hang Bus, Fengrong Bus temporarily, to keep the buses running on time and to protect the rights of those passengers.
29 April: The 11 routes were released by Renyou Bus.
1 June: Central Taiwan Bus succeeded Route 1, 20, 25, 31, 37, and 125; Green Transit succeeded Route 40, 48 and 89; Taichung Bus succeeded Route 29 and 72. Renyeou Bus kept running Route 21, 30, 45, and 105.
1 July: Central Taiwan Bus started Route 151; Fengyuan Bus started Route 153 and its vice-line.
8 July: Route 90, 91, 92, and 93 started to charge.
1 August: Central Taiwan Bus started Route 155.
30 August: Central Taiwan Bus started Route 152; Taichung Bus started Route 154. Southeast Bus started Route 17. Central Taiwan Bus succeeded Route 281 and 282 from Fengyuan Bus, Route 283 combined with 282; Taichung Bus succeeded Route 290 from Fengyuan Bus.
16 October: Route 291 was cancelled.
29 November: Route 12 started operating.

2014

1 January: Route 151 added a vice-line.
10 February: Route 97 started operation.
1 March: Route 155 added a vice-line.
28 March: Route 156 started operation.
26 June: Route BL2, one of the BRT Blue Line Shuttle Route, started operation.
1 July: Route 95 added a vice-line. Route 214 started operation. Vice-line of Route 90 was cancelled, and Route 259, 268 were also cancelled.
15 July: Route 111 started operation.
20 July: Route 287 started operation.
28 July: 10 Shuttle Routes for BRT Blue Line which are BL1, BL3, BL5, BL6, BL7, BL9, BL10, BL11, BL12, BL13 started operation. Route 87, 106, 146, 147 ended operation.
1 August: Route 283 started operation.
1 September: Route 157 and Route 39 started operation. Route 221, 230, 231 ended operation.
1 October: Route 133 started operation.
1 November: Route 123 started operation.

2015

15 January: Route 281 added a vice-line.
1 April: Route 115 was cancelled.

Operators

Taichung Bus, Taichung Bus Company, Ltd., was established on 18 February 1958 as the first company to operate Taichung City Bus. Its present names has been used since 1980. It operates 46 routes of Taichung City Bus, remaining the most essential in downtown Taichung.^[1]

Fengyuan Bus, Fengyuan Bus Transportation Co., Ltd., was established on 22 October 1945. Transportation in eastern Taichung have been dependent on Fengyuan Bus for tens of years. It operates 79 routes of Taichung City Bus, mainly connecting Fengyuan District with other districts of Taichung City.^[2]

Ubus, United Bus Company Ltd., was established on 6 September 1989 as the second freeway bus operator in Taiwan at that time. It first operates only freeway bus routes, but started running Taichung City Bus in 2002. At the present, it operates 21 routes of Taichung City Bus. It also runs route 705 in Taoyuan City and 15 routes in Kaohsiung City. In late 2012, United Bus started a subcompany, Central Taiwan Bus, which operates 14 routes of the network.^[3]

Renyou Bus, established on 31 December 1976, operates only 5 routes of Taichung City Bus after suffering its financial problems in April 2013.^[4]

Geya Bus, Geya Bus Transportation Co., Ltd., was established in 7 March 1974. It operates 16 routes of Taichung City Bus, being the main bus company in coastal Taichung.^[5]

Chuan Hang Bus operates 8 routes of Taichung City Bus, and also runs highway bus route 6268 between Puli and Taichung.^[6]

Southeast Bus joined the network on 1 November 2011, running Route 7, 17, 67, 97, and 98.^[7]

Green Transit joined the network on 1 October 2012, running Route 40, 48, 89, and 127.^[8]

Chang Hua Bus joined the network on 1 January 2009, running Route 52 and 99.^[9]

Ho Hsin Bus joined the network the second time on 1 March 2013, running Route 160 and 161.^[10]

Mioali Bus joined the network on 10 December 2012, running merely Route 181.^[11]

Nantou Bus joined the network on 1 September 2014, running merely Route 39.^[12]

Fares

The fares are calculated by mileage per ride. The basic fare is NT$20 for 8 km, and the extended fare is about NT$2.4 per km and round to the nearest integer.

From 1 June 2011 to 31 December 2014, taking buses whose route numbers are under 300 with any of four sorts of cards (including EasyCard (悠遊卡), Taiwan Easy Go (台灣通, formerly Taichung E Card), I Pass (高捷一卡通), and ETC Card (遠東E通卡)) could benefit from a free ride below 8 kilometers.^[13]