The Edmonton Transit Service (ETS) (previously known as Edmonton Transit System) is the public transit service owned and operated by the City of Edmonton in Alberta, Canada. It operates Edmonton's bus and light rail systems. In , the system had a ridership of , or about per weekday as of .
History Edmonton Transit Service began operations on 30 October 1908 as the Edmonton Radial Railway (ERR), and alternatively as the Edmonton Radial Tramway. Also in 1908, ERR acquired the Strathcona Radial Tramway Company Limited, and also began servicing the villages of North Edmonton and Calder. The transit service's name was changed to Edmonton Transportation Service in July 1946, but just a year later it was re-named to Edmonton Transit System. The service was re-named to Edmonton Transit Service in 2016.
Former systems Streetcars
The Edmonton Radial Railway (ERR) began operations in 1908, both in the City of Edmonton and the neighbouring City of Strathcona, with four streetcars serving of track. Over ten million riders used the system annually by 1912, and the city purchased 47 additional streetcars. The radial railway reached its peak in 1930, with six lines serving almost all parts of the city, and totaling of track. The city purchased five modern streetcars in 1930, which featured innovations such as steel bodies and leather seats; these were the last streetcars that Edmonton purchased. The city significantly neglected its streetcar system during the Great Depression, and it suffered from poor maintenance and outdated streetcars. In the late 1930s, Edmonton began to replace streetcar lines with electric trolleybus routes, supplemented by gas and diesel buses, instead of buying new streetcars and repairing or replacing the tracks and overhead lines that had deteriorated during the Depression.
The transition to buses was slowed significantly during the Second World War, and Edmonton had to build additional trackage for its streetcars to meet the spike in transit usage during the war. It was also forced to reintroduce conductors on busy routes, to help operators with selling tickets and issuing transfers; conductors were originally phased out in the 1930s, when streetcars were converted from double-ended to single-ended operations. The Edmonton Radial Railway was renamed to Edmonton Transportation Service in 1946, to signify the decline of Edmonton's streetcar network; it was renamed again just one year later, to Edmonton Transit System.
After some initial postwar hiccups, which necessitated even more streetcar tracks being built as late as 1946 to avoid service gaps, the transition to trolleybuses picked up steam. By 1949, only two streetcar routes remained in service: the Blue Route, and the Blue and White Route, which totalled in length. In its final configuration, the service went between a turning loop at 109 Street and 84 Avenue and another loop at 66 Street and 124 Avenue, via the High Level Bridge.
On 1 September 1951, Edmonton streetcar No.1 – the first streetcar ordered by Edmonton – performed a ceremonial 'last run' across the High Level Bridge while carrying special dignitaries; over 1000 spectators lined its route. Early the next morning, the dignitaries rode streetcar No. 52 back to the ETS Cromdale shop, which marked the final time that a streetcar was operated by ETS.
All of Edmonton's streetcars, except for No. 1, were stripped of their valuable materials like steel and electric wiring, and the bodies were sold for scrap. The Edmonton Radial Railway Society (ERRS) has recovered and restored three former Edmonton streetcars, and has another six awaiting restoration. Aside from the three which it recovered and restored, it also operates Edmonton No. 1, which sat outside in a city yard for over ten years before being restored by volunteers – many of whom who later founded the ERRS.
Trolley bus system
Trolley bus service in Edmonton started on 24 September 1939, operating on route 5 from 101 Street/Jasper Avenue to 95 Street/111 Avenue. By the end of October of that year, service had started on another route running to 99 Street/Whyte Avenue via the Low Level Bridge. In Edmonton, trolley buses were often referred to simply as "trolleys".
The trolley bus system used a mixture of Ohio Brass and K&M Elastic (Swiss) suspension for holding up the overhead wires.
The 47 vehicles remaining in use in 2008 were from an order of 100 manufactured in 1981–82 by Brown Boveri & Company (BBC), using bodies and chassis supplied to BBC by GM.
On 18 June 2008, city council voted 7 to 6 in favour of phasing out the trolley system between 2009 and 2010. However, city council decided in April 2009 that trolley bus service would be discontinued earlier than had been planned, in order to reduce the city's expected $35 million deficit that year. The last day of regular service was 2 May 2009.
In 2007, the city leased a low-floor model of trolley, for 11 months, from Coast Mountain Bus Company, Vancouver's bus operating company, for testing of possible benefits of low-floor trolleys over hybrid diesel buses. During its time in Edmonton the bus was numbered 6000, but was returned to its original #2242 when returned to Vancouver.
Service
ETS provides bus and light-rail transit services within the City of Edmonton limits, in addition to Spruce Grove and Beaumont. It also provides connections to Leduc Transit, St. Albert Transit (StAT), and Strathcona County Transit. ETS provides service to the Edmonton International Airport.
ETS uses the timed-transfer system, where suburban feeder routes run to a transit centre, and passengers can then transfer to a base route/LRT to the city centre or other major destinations. Some feeder routes provide direct express service to and from the city centre.
In 2026, ETS was announced as the operator of the Valley Line, replacing TransEd Partners. The transition will take around two years.
Routes LRT
ETS operates a 37.4 km light rail system composed of 29 stations in three lines. The Capital Line runs roughly north–south, between Clareview station in northeast Edmonton and the Century Park station on the south side, with a mix of tunnels and at-grade track. Six stations are underground, while the remaining nine are at-grade with surface road crossings. The Metro Line shares track with the Capital Line in some sections, and services the central and north-central area of the city. The Valley Line, which opened on 4 November 2023, runs from Mill Woods in the southeast to 102 Street and 102 Avenue in the downtown core. the Metro Line is being extended to the community of Blatchford, while the Valley Line is being extended west to the community of Lewis Farms.
ETS operates three different models of light rail vehicles (LRV): The Siemens–Duewag U2, which started service when the original line opened in 1978; the Siemens SD-160, which began operation in 2008; and the Bombardier/Alstom Flexity Freedom, which is exclusively used on the Valley Line.
Bus
A redesigned bus network that affected almost every Edmonton Transit bus route began on 25 April 2021. This redesigned bus network was originally scheduled to be implemented on 30 August 2020, but was postponed until 25 April 2021, as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, to save approximately $3.7 million and defer tax increases for residents.
The City of Edmonton began completely redesigning its bus route network in 2017, with the aim of making it run more efficiently. Two rounds of public consultations were held at various locations around the city, and online surveys collected feedback from riders. The public engagements identified that transit riders would rather have to walk further to get to higher frequency routes, opposed to more routes operating less frequently. The city released a final draft of the new bus system in 2018, which cut back on routes with low ridership, and increased frequency in high traffic areas. After the redesign, all routes were renumbered to make the system easier to navigate. New signage and materials was created to assist in wayfinding. No change to fares has been announced, but the Manager of ETS has stated that ETS could switch to a distance-based system, where fees are based on how far a rider travels.
Late Night Owl Service
Night service began on 6 September 2015, on routes 1, 4, 8, 9, and 512. Upon launch of the 2021 Bus network redesign, Owl routes are as follows: 2, 4, 8, 9, and 511. These buses operate on 30-minute headways until approximately 3:30 or 4am. Morning service then resumes around 5am. 2-OWL acts as a late night replacement for northern sections of the Capital Line (operating after the LRT shuts down for the night) from Clareview to Downtown. 9-OWL acts as a late night replacement for southern sections of the Capital Line. Route 511 replaced 510X in September 2022, and acts as a late night replacement of the Valley Line.
Transit centres
Transit centres in Edmonton serve as hubs which allow people to transfer bus routes or onto the LRT system. These hubs typically have a heated shelter, and have multiple bus bays to accommodate many buses at a time.
Abbottsfield Transit Centre Belvedere Transit Centre Capilano Transit Centre Castle Downs Transit Centre Century Park Transit Centre Clareview Transit Centre Coliseum Transit Centre Davies Transit Centre Eaux Claires Transit Centre Government Centre Transit Centre Heritage Valley Transit Centre Jasper Place Transit Centre Kingsway/Royal Alex Transit Centre Leger Transit Centre Lewis Farms Transit Centre Meadows Transit Centre Mill Woods Transit Centre Northgate Transit Centre South Campus/Fort Edmonton Park Transit Centre Southgate Transit Centre Stadium Transit Centre University Transit Centre West Edmonton Mall Transit Centre Westmount Transit Centre
Bus fleet ETS operates an entire fleet of accessible low floor buses, which have been progressively introduced into the system since 1993. These include the 859 New Flyer D40LF/D40LFR/XD40/XHE40, 33 New Flyer D60LF/D60LFR/XD60 articulated models, 60 40-foot Proterra ZX5 models, and 49 Grande West Vicinity B30A models.
Hybrid and electric buses
The City of Edmonton embarked on an eight-month evaluation of 13 clean-diesel and hybrid buses (and a new trolley bus) in 2008. Edmonton Transit's first two diesel electric hybrid buses went into service in December 2006. The unique design and colour scheme of the two Orion low-floor buses were chosen to enable them to 'stand out' from the rest of the ETS fleet. The buses were part of an extensive test of hybrid technology that Edmonton Transit and the University of Alberta conducted over a year. Bus reliability, performance, maintenance costs, fuel efficiency, noise generation and environmental impact were monitored and evaluated in all weather and road conditions. As well, customers were surveyed about their travel experience. Ultimately, the hybrid buses recorded fuel savings of only 10%–20% (in contrast to the 35% touted in the internal ads). In addition, the ISE-New Flyer hybrids (6003 and 6004) were out of service so much that they could not be included in the evaluation.
As of fall 2009, only the two Orion hybrids were in service. New Flyer/ISE hybrids 6003 and 6004 were since converted to diesel buses as of 2011. New Flyer/Allison 6002 was revamped with new features and technology to become the ETS Platinum Bus, also referred to as the "Painted Lady".