York Region Transit
York Region Transit is the public transit operator in York Region, Ontario, Canada. Its headquarters are in Richmond Hill, at 50 High Tech Road. The system was founded on January 1, 2001, through the merger of four transit systems namely Markham Transit, Vaughan Transit, Richmond Hill Transit and Newmarket Transit.
YRT operates 65 full-time rush hour and limited routes, 35 school services, and six Viva bus rapid transit routes. Five contracted Toronto Transit Commission bus routes run within York Region's boundaries.
Some YRT routes operate within the City of Toronto; these buses generally run to and from TTC subway stations. YRT northbound buses are allowed to pick up passengers south of Steeles Avenue if they are heading into York Region. YRT buses heading to a TTC subway station can similarly drop off passengers at designated stops south of Steeles Avenue but are not permitted to pick up passengers from these stops. As the majority of passengers are assumed to be transferring to and from TTC services, no extra fare is charged for riders boarding or disembarking YRT buses within Toronto.
Ridership
In the fourth quarter of 2022, average weekday ridership was approximately 64,800 on buses and 1,200 on MobilityPlus, a service for people with disabilities. 22.8 million riders used YRT in 2016, a 1.4% increase over 2015.History
Prior to the inauguration of YRT in 2001, public transit in York Region was delivered by a patchwork of various operators in some of the lower-tier municipalities, with some cross-boundary services in more heavily urbanized areas. Most of the cross-boundary service was either GO Transit running "city"-type bus routes or the present TTC-contracted routes coming north from Metropolitan Toronto or later Toronto. Gray Coach also provided some medium-distance commuter services.Former inter-municipal services
Stagecoaches or omnibuses ran along Yonge Street to hotels in Richmond Hill from York beginning in the 1820s. The Metropolitan Street Railway ran electric interurban streetcars on Yonge Street as far north as Keswick from 1897 to 1930. Publicly owned North Yonge Railways provided interurban service on Yonge Street from 1930 to 1948.From 1948 to 1977, the Toronto Transit Commission ran the North Yonge 59 bus route on Yonge. Other contracted TTC routes later followed on many other streets continuing from Metro Toronto. The North Yonge bus was replaced by GO Transit–operated Yonge C and B bus routes, with C providing local suburban bus service to Richmond Hill, and B providing service all the way to Newmarket until being replaced in turn by Viva Blue in 2010. Another local C route, starting in 1972, ran on Bayview Avenue as far as Richmond Hill.
Former local services
Before the 1970s, several private and public transit operators provided local transit services around York Region communities: These services were later replaced by the following municipally managed transit systems, with the earlier operators continuing to operate the new systems in some cases.Markham Transit
Markham Transit was created in 1973 and operated by Travelways and Miller Transit Limited after 1984 on behalf of the then–Town of Markham.Richmond Hill Transit
Richmond Hill Transit was created in 1960 to provide public transit service in Richmond Hill. It was initially operated by Trailways of Canada Limited, then Travelways starting in 1976 and Laidlaw in the 1980s.Vaughan Transit
Vaughan Transit operated from 1973 until the merger into YRT. Before the creation of Vaughan Transit, transit service was provided to the community of Woodbridge by the TTC-operated 93 Woodbridge bus between 1954 and 1975. Prior to that, various private operators provided a similar service, starting in 1925. Even earlier, an interurban line served Woodbridge between 1913 and 1926.Newmarket Transit
Newmarket Transit began sometime in the early 1970s as a contracted service from the town. Previously service was provide first by Newmarket Bus Lines circa 1948, renamed Newmarket Town Bus circa 1958, which ran to 1967.Aurora
Aurora Transit began operations in 1973, replacing Aurora Bus lines, which operated starting in the 1960s. Like Newmarket, Aurora was much smaller in size and population than other southern York Region municipalities, which benefited from connections to GO Transit and the TTC. Aurora Transit provided feeder service to GO Transit's commuter trains and buses as well as community bus service to town's major destinations.A fare arrangement between Aurora Transit and GO Transit allowed passengers to use Aurora Transit tickets on GO Transit's "Route B" buses that provided local service on Yonge Street, provided the entire trip was within Aurora's town limits. Passengers travelling to the neighbouring Oak Ridges or Newmarket could still use Aurora Transit tickets with a cash supplement.
On August 30, 1998, Aurora Transit restructured its services into a single route with service in the southern part of the town provided by Richmond Hill Transit. At the same time, Newmarket Transit route 77/11 was extended south on Bayview Avenue to connect with Aurora Transit's only route at Bayview Shopping Centre. Aurora Transit ended its operations on September 4, 1999, when the transit service in the town was transferred to Newmarket Transit. The latter became part of the York Region Transit on January 1, 2001, when the four regional transit systems were merged.
Creation of YRT
YRT was created by the regional government in 2001 by amalgamating the four municipal transit authorities in the region as increasing urbanization made separate municipal transit agencies impractical. Viva was inaugurated in 2005.In mid-2006, the YRT logo was modified to bear closer resemblance to the Viva logo and, by the end of the year, most of the YRT fleet and bus stop signs had their looks changed to bear the new colours.
Operations
Transit services in York Region are divided into four divisions and are provided by private operators under contract.Viva BRT Division
The bus rapid transit division operates the six Viva Rapid Transit bus routes and uses the 196-bus garage near Leslie Street and 16th Avenue in Richmond Hill. In 2015, TOK Transit began a seven-year contract, replacing Veolia Transportation as operator.North Division
The North Division includes several bus routes in Newmarket, Aurora, King Township, East Gwillimbury and Georgina. TOK Transit also operates this division and is under contract until April 30, 2021.Southeast Division
The Southeast Division includes routes in Markham, Richmond Hill, and Stouffville. It is operated by Miller Transit who are under contract until October 2023.Southwest Division
Transdev Canada is under contract of this division until August 1, 2021.Bus rapid transit
In response to escalating congestion on the region's roads, York Region's transit plan included a provision for a bus rapid transit system along the Yonge Street and Highway 7 arterial corridors. This service, known as Viva, was launched in September 2005.Fares
Fares for riding YRT can be paid by cash, Presto card, or the mobile Presto E-Tickets app. Customers can also pay the equivalent of the YRT adult cash fare prices via contactless credit or debit card. YRT discontinued the sale and use of monthly passes from January 2024 onwards. They were replaced by a monthly fare capping system only available on the Presto card., YRT fares are as follows:
| Fare category | Presto card and Presto e-ticket | Single-ride cash fare, credit and debit card |
| Adults | $4.12 | $4.50 |
| Youth | $3.19 | $4.50 |
| Child or senior | $2.52 | $4.50 |
Other fares:
| Fare category | Price |
| Ride to GO fare integration discount | Free |
Two separate methods of payments are used by transit routes serving York Region:
- "Pay as you board" on conventional YRT and TTC-operated bus routes.
- "Proof of payment" basis on all Viva routes
Paper POP tickets and transfers are not issued to Presto, credit and debit card holders users since these payment methods act as POP. Time-based fares and transfers allow for unlimited travel within York Region on a single fare for two hours, including transfers to and from Brampton Transit, Züm, as well as TTC-operated bus routes in York Region.
Since February 26, 2024, under the One Fare Program, a Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area –wide fare integration policy, passengers paying by Presto card, credit card or debit card are eligible for free transfers between YRT and the TTC subway and bus routes in the City Of Toronto within 2 hours of initial fare payment. However, customers paying by other means are not eligible for the One Fare program and are still required to pay an additional fare when transferring between YRT and the TTC subway and when crossing Steeles on a TTC bus in either direction.