Transport collectif 27 January 2022

The not-so-secret bus code

Have you ever noticed other numbers on the bus beside the route number? Whether you’re boarding a bus on route 42 or 151, you’ll always find a series of four numbers indicated outside and inside the vehicle. 

These numbers are a code that can identify the buses. The code is used in all sorts of operations: assigning a bus to a driver for the day, tracking vehicles on the network in real time, listing where buses are parked in the garage and which buses need to undergo a technical inspection or repairs.

The code comprises two sets of information: 

• the year the bus was acquired
• its commissioning rank or order

So the code is not so secret now!  For example, “1204” means the 4th bus commissioned in 2012 while “2119” means the 19th bus in 2021.

There is, however, a minor exception with the 10 electric buses. They were acquired in 2020, but had to be differentiated from the hybrid buses purchased that same year. We assigned a rank number starting from 50 to simplify identification, so they include buses 2051 to 2060.

Another interesting detail: all the buses starting from 1401 are hybrid, meaning they are powered by an electric system run by a diesel engine. Prior to that date, biodiesel fuel was the standard.

Now you’ll have a new pastime if you finished your reading and the battery on your cellphone runs out during the bus ride: you can identify various types of buses and their age. Have fun!