Fairfax Connector

Fairfax Connector is a public bus service provided by Fairfax County, Virginia, United States, and is managed by the county government. The bus system provides service within Fairfax County, and connects to Metrobus, Metrorail stations, Virginia Railway Express, and other local bus systems. Fairfax Connector serves most Fairfax Metrorail Stations, the city of Alexandria, the city of Fairfax, the Washington Dulles International Airport, and the Pentagon Metrorail station. In, the system had a ridership of, or about per weekday as of.
Fairfax Connector, or simply "The Connector", is operated under contract by Transdev, and is the third largest bus fleet in the D.C. area. The Connector provides a fixed-route bus service within Fairfax County on 93 routes and carries about nine million passengers annually. The Connector's goals is to supplement the regional rail and bus service provided by the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, providing reliable local bus service, and to improves the safety of the community of Fairfax County.

History

1980s

The first buses rolled out in September 1985 as a lower-cost alternative to the Metrobus service of the regional Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority. The original routes connected the southern part of the county to the Huntington Metro station which borders Alexandria. This area continues to be the core of the system, and is noted for the number of residents in the Richmond Highway area who use the service at all times of the day. It had 10 routes, and many routes serves through Huntington Station. These first 10 routes were previously served by Metrobus. In 1988, The Connector began to operate express routes, to connect to Pentagon station. It also expanded through the southeastern portion of Fairfax.

1990s

In 1990, The Connector took over the operation of the RIBS. Service continues to provide through the southern portion of Alexandria, when Van Dorn Street station opened in 1991. In 1994, the service was extended to the high-technology industrial areas of suburban Reston and Herndon, located between Washington, D.C., and Washington Dulles International Airport. Along State Route 267, express buses carry commuters from free park-and-ride lots to the Washington Metro system. In 1999, the Herndon-Monroe Park & Ride and the Tysons Westpark Transit Station opened, extending its operation within the county.

2000s

After having many buses running on pure diesel, The Connector ordered buses that run on Ultra-Low Sulfur Diesel fuel in 2002. These bus upgrades can retrofit the fleet with Green Diesel technology, so the county can go environmentally friendly. More bus stations continues to increase, with the opening of the Lorton Park-and-Ride in 2003, and the Gambrill Road Park-and-Ride in 2005. The Connector began installing the SmarTrip Fare Card technology, so that passengers can pay their fare using WMATA's SmarTrip. In June 2009, service was transitioned from the Metrobus 2W, 12-, and 20-series routes to the Connector in the Centreville, Chantilly, and Oakton areas along I-66 and near Vienna/Fairfax-GMU Station.
On July 1, 2009, MV Transportation took over from Veolia Transport as the operator.

2010s

Major changes began in 2010, when the Reston East Park-and-Ride closed to make way for the Silver Line construction. After the Silver Line opened in 2014, The Connector modified its service, by providing three circulator routes within Tysons Corner, as well as new service to McLean. Many routes were modified, so The Connector can give access to its riders to transfer within the Silver Line and other portions within the County. On July 1, 2019, Transdev commenced a five-year contract to operate the network with an option to extend for a further 10 years. As previously mentioned, Transdev had previously operated The Connector until July 1, 2009.
On December 5, 2019, Fairfax Connector worker went on a strike against Transdev affecting 30,000 riders with all routes operating on Sunday service. The strike joins 130 employees at Metrobus's Cinder Bed garage who went on strike against Transdev on October 24, 2019.

2020s

On February 22, 2024, Fairfax Connector employees went on strike against Transdev affecting service. 401/402 was operating very limited service, but eventually all routes were suspended. As of March 8, 2024, all routes have returned to their regular schedules.
The New Flyer Xcelsior XD40 buses, numbered in the 7900s and being delivered in 2024, are equipped with USB charging ports.

Fares

As of July 1, 2024, the base fares for the Connector is as follows $2.25 on local routes; $4.80 on express routes ; $0.55 on Routes 350, 423, and 427; and $5.00 on Route 480. Fares are paid in cash, or WMATA issued SmarTrip card.

Routes

, the Fairfax Connector bus system consists of 95 routes. The following are the route numbers and names that make up the Fairfax Connector bus system.

Former routes

These routes have been served by Fairfax Connector at one point but have since been discontinued due to either low ridership, duplication of another route, simplification to other routes, or combined into another route. However some routes would be reincarnated into new routes for Fairfax Connector.

Fleet

Fairfax Connector operates a fleet consisting of Diesel, Hybrid, and Electric buses produced by Orion Bus Industries, New Flyer and Gillig. The Fairfax Connector fleet roster consists of the following buses:

Image	Builder and model	Model year	Length	Numbers	Engine	Transmission	Vehicles in service	Fuel type	Notes
	DaimlerChrysler North America Orion VII Next Generation	2008		9770–9795	Cummins ISL EPA 2007	Allison World B400R6	7 Units Active.	Diesel
	New Flyer Low Floor Restyled D40LFR	2009		9600–9613	Cummins ISL EPA 2007	Allison World B400R6	1 Unit Active.	Diesel
	New Flyer Low Floor Restyled D40LFR	2010		9614–9644	Cummins ISL EPA 2007	Allison World B400R6	5 Units Active.	Diesel
	New Flyer Xcelsior XD40	2011		9645–9675	Cummins ISL9 EPA 2010	Allison World B400R6	29 Units Active.	Diesel
	New Flyer Xcelsior XD40	2011		7701–7737	Cummins ISL9 EPA 2010	Allison World B400R6	35 Units Active.	Diesel
	New Flyer Xcelsior XD40	2012		7738–7753, 7755–7758	Cummins ISL9 EPA 2010	Allison World B400R6	21 Units Active.	Diesel
	Daimler Commercial Buses Orion VII EPA10 BRT	2012		3082–3087	Cummins ISB6.7 EPA 2010	BAE Systems HybriDrive SDS200 Hybrid System	2 Units Active.	Hybrid
	New Flyer Xcelsior XD35	2012		9676–9690	Cummins ISL9 EPA 2010,2013	Allison World B400R6	15 Units Active.	Diesel
	New Flyer Xcelsior XD40	2013		7759–7777	Cummins ISL9 EPA 2010,2013	Allison World B400R6	19 Units Active.	Diesel
	New Flyer Xcelsior XD35	2014		7778–7794	Cummins ISL9 EPA 2010,2013	Allison World B400R6	15 Units Active.	Diesel	7794 retired due to caught fire in July 4th, 2025 on I-66 doing Route 672. 7783 was involved in an accident on Route 267, while deadheading.
	New Flyer Xcelsior XD40	2015		7795–7799	Cummins ISL9 EPA 2010,2013	Allison World B400R6	5 Units Active.	Diesel
	New Flyer Xcelsior XD35	2015		7800–7811	Cummins ISL9 EPA 2010,2013	Allison World B400R6	12 Units Active.	Diesel
	New Flyer Xcelsior XD40	2017		1730–1739	Cummins L9 EPA 2017,2020,2021	Allison World B400R6	10 Units Active.	Diesel
	New Flyer Xcelsior XD40	2018		7812–7815	Cummins L9 EPA 2017,2020,2021	Allison World B400R6	4 Units Active.	Diesel
	New Flyer Xcelsior XD35	2018		7816–7825	Cummins L9 EPA 2017,2020,2021	Allison World B400R6	10 Units Active.	Diesel
	New Flyer Xcelsior XD40	2019		7826–7829	Cummins L9 EPA 2017,2020,2021	Allison World B400R6	4 Units Active.	Diesel
	New Flyer Xcelsior XD40	2020		7830–7840	Cummins L9 EPA 2017,2020,2021	Allison World B400R6	11 Units Active.	Diesel
	New Flyer Xcelsior XD40	2021		7841–7868	Cummins L9 EPA 2017,2020,2021	Allison World B400R6	28 Units Active.	Diesel
	New Flyer Xcelsior XD40	2022		7869–7876	Cummins L9 EPA 2017,2020,2021	Allison World B400R6	8 Units Active.	Diesel
	New Flyer Xcelsior XD35	2022		7877–7892	Cummins L9 EPA 2017,2020,2021	Allison World B400R6	16 Units Active.	Diesel
	New Flyer Xcelsior CHARGE NG XE40	2022		1000–1007	Siemens ELFA3	Direct Drive	8 Units Active.	Battery electric
	New Flyer Xcelsior XD40	2023		7893–7904	Cummins L9 EPA 2021	Allison World B400R6	12 Units Active.	Diesel
	New Flyer Xcelsior CHARGE NG XE40	2023		1008–1009	Siemens ELFA3	Direct Drive	1 Unit Active.	Battery electric
	New Flyer Xcelsior CHARGE NG XE35	2023		1010–1011	Siemens ELFA3	Direct Drive	2 Units Active.	Battery electric
	New Flyer Xcelsior XD40	2024		7905–7950	Cummins L9 EPA 2024	Allison World B400R6	46 Units Active.	Diesel
	Gillig Low Floor	2024		7951–7960	Cummins L9 EPA 2024	Allison World B300R6	10 Units Active.	Diesel
	Gillig Low Floor	2025		7961–7972	Cummins L9 EPA 2024	Allison World B300R6	12 Units Active.	Diesel	Entered Service in November 10, 2025. Replacing the Remaining Orion VII NG buses. 7961-7972 Built & Delivered. They feature the Luminator Smart Series III Amber Orange Signs.
	New FlyerXcelsior XDE40	2025-2026		3000-3011	Cummins B6.7 EPA 2024	Allison eGen Flex H 40 Max	12 Units In Delivery.	Hybrid	These are the first Diesel-Electric Hybrid buses bought brand new for Fairfax. FCDOT announced that they secured more than $50 million in federal funding from the FTA to bring 60 low emission, diesel-electric hybrid buses. 48 & 12 buses.
	New FlyerXcelsior XDE35	2025-2026		3012-3059	Cummins B6.7 EPA 2024	Allison eGen Flex H 40 Max	Awaiting delivery soon.	Hybrid	These are the first Diesel-Electric Hybrid buses bought brand new for Fairfax. FCDOT announced that they secured more than $50 million in federal funding from the FTA to bring 60 low emission, diesel-electric hybrid buses. 48 & 12 buses.