Transit COVID-19 Updates

Stay Safe and Healthy on Transit
We are in this together - we can keep each other safe and healthy by following a few simple steps. Wear a mask or face covering, physically distance yourself from others, consider travelling during off-peak times and continue to follow AHS guidelines. Bus shields and LRT cabs provide excellent protection so Operators do not need to wear masks when in a shielded area. However, Operators and other public facing transit employees will wear masks when going into public areas.

Customers are encouraged to travel during off-peak hours. They should keep a safe physical distance from other customers and stay home if they have any cold or flu symptoms.

Regular Service Resumes August 30

Starting August 30, 2020, ETS will be resuming regular bus service levels. LRT will be extended back to regular end of service, which is approximately 1:30am, but will operate on reduced frequencies as a result of the Stadium LRT Station Redevelopment project.

Original routing will resume for community routes (bus routes 303 - 307, 312, 322, 323 and 340), as the 30 feet buses will be put back into service.

As Kindergarten to Grade 12 classes in schools resume in September, we will reintroduce school special buses so families have an affordable transportation option for junior and senior high school students to get to school. ETS is working with schools to time School Special bus routes to accommodate as many students as possible. This may result in route and time changes.

Routes that connect to post-secondary institutions have been cancelled until further notice (routes 54, 97, 98 and 399) due to post-secondary institutions shifting to distance learning.

Please note: the U-Pass program is suspended for the Fall session. Once institution timelines are finalized for the Winter session, we will share that information.

As transit service resumes, DATS late night service for essential health care workers will discontinue as of August 29.

Effective August 1, Route 747 to the airport will resume accepting travellers to/from the airport. It remains accessible for airport and area employees, shoppers and people commuting to/from Leduc.

Transit Service Information

General Service Adjustments

To protect the health of transit employees and customers, ETS made several adjustments to its routes and schedules to ensure physical distancing. ETS has made the following adjustments to help essential workers and other customers making essential trips:

Saturday Schedule Adjustments

Buses use enhanced Saturday schedules on weekdays and regular Saturday schedules on weekends until August 29. For up-to-date information, please check your bus route PDF schedule or plan your trip using the ETS Trip Planner.

Community Route Adjustments

Route 302 detouring away from Henwood Treatment Centre
Route 303 detouring away from private property, resulting in stop closures at Northgate Centre, Shepherd’s Care Centre, Mary A Finlay Manor, Casa Romana and Safeway Palisades Square/White Oaks Square
Route 305
Will no longer travel onto Westmount Centre property. Instead, the route will travel east on 114 Avenue then south on Groat Road. Also, the route will no longer travel onto Jasper Gates Square property. Please use Bus Stop 5495 (Stony Plain Road eastbound and 150 Street) or Bus Stop 5437 (149 Street Northbound and 100 Avenue) to access Jasper Gates Square.
Route 306 detouring to follow the path of Route 83 through Maple Ridge
Route 307 detouring from Gateway Manor, 104 Avenue and 65 Street (Fulton Place) and 94 Avenue and 82 Street (Holyrood).
Route 312 maintains current routing, but no longer goes into parking lots of Millennium Pavilion Seniors Lodge, St Michael's Long Term Care, and Londonderry Mall. Londonderry Village will need to use bus stop 7650 on 74 Street northbound at 138 Avenue
Route 322
Will no longer travel onto Bonnie Doon Mall property. Instead customers can use existing bus stops along 83 Street. In addition, the existing bus stop at Montgomery Place will be closed and residents will need to use Bus Stop 2585 on 95 Avenue and Donnell Road.
Route 340
Will no longer travel directly onto Millwoods Recreation Centre property. The nearest bus stops are now along 28 Avenue. For travel to or from South East Edmonton Seniors Association, Extendicare Holyrood or Golden Home, residents can use the bus stops on 85 Street between 93 Avenue and 98 Avenue.

Routes 126, 317, 318, 319 and 325 do not require a detour to operate with a larger bus.

Route 747 Suspended for all Travellers

As part of our COVID-19 safety response, Route 747 remains suspended only for airline travellers until further notice. Passengers with travel luggage will be denied boarding.

However, service remains in place for all other passengers, including but not limited to regional, airport, outlet mall, and area employees, as well as residents wishing to access shopping or commuting to and from Leduc. Buses are marked ‘Special’ instead of 747.

Route 594, 595 and 596 Update

ETS will not be operating two seasonal shuttles: Route 594 to the Edmonton Valley Zoo and the Route 596 to Hawrelak Park until further notice.

As a reminder to customers, due to ongoing renovations at Fort Edmonton Park, there will be no seasonal service on Route 595 this year.

General Late Night Service Adjustments

Before August 30, the last LRT service departure is 10pm and Late Night Owl bus service ends after midnight. All other routes are following their regular Saturday schedule. These adjustments better align with the travel needs of those customers making essential trips, while helping to further address safety, security, public health and cleanliness challenges.

Last Nightly LRT Departures

Century Park - last train departing Northbound at 10:10pm, arriving at Clareview at 10:45pm
Clareview - last train departing Southbound at 10:10pm, arriving at Century Park at 10:45pm
NAIT - last train departing Southbound at 10:03pm, arriving at Health Sciences at 10:23pm

Last Nightly Departures for Late Night Owl Service

Route 1 - Leaves West Edmonton Mall Transit Centre at 12:13am; leaves Capilano Transit Centre at 12:30am
Route 4 - Leaves Lewis Farms Transit Centre at 12:17am; leaves Capilano Transit Centre at 12:21am
Route 8 - Leaves Abbottsfield Transit Centre at 12:04am; leaves Mill Woods Transit Centre at 11:56pm
Route 9 - Leaves Southgate Transit Centre at 12:30am; leaves Eaux Claires Transit Centre at 12:22am
Route 512 - Cancelled

The indoor waiting areas at some LRT Stations (Kingsway, NAIT, MacEwan) and transit centres (Capilano, Castle Downs, Government Centre, Jasper Place, the stop outside the Telus building on Jasper Avenue and 100 Street) are now closed at 10pm.

The indoor waiting areas at the following Transit Centres (Meadows, Leger, Belvedere, Kingsway, Claireview East, Claireview West, Lewis Farms, South Campus, Westmount, Jasper Place, Millgate, Eaux Claire, Northgate, Southgate, West Edmonton Mall, Century Park, Millwoods) are closed at midnight. Service is still available.

Trip Planning

Customers can view scheduled and real-time trip information in the ETS trip planning tools and third-party tools. They reflect the enhanced Saturday service on weekdays and regular Saturday service on weekends.

For customers who do not have access to online trip planning tools, Saturday schedules are in route brochures on buses or online. For enhanced Saturday service offered on weekdays during morning and afternoon peak periods, see the frequency table.

Health and Safety Information

Stay Safe and Healthy

We are in this together - we can help keep each other safe and healthy by following a few simple steps. Wear a mask or face covering on transit, physically distance yourself from others, travel during off-peak times if able, and continue to follow AHS guidelines.

Effective August 1, 2020, wearing a mask or face covering will be mandatory indoors in the publicly accessible areas of all City-owned and operated buildings, facilities, amenities and attractions, including transit, transit centres and LRT platforms. Our focus will be on educating passengers on the importance of wearing a mask or face covering when using public transit or in public areas or facilities where physical distancing is not possible
- Bus shields and LRT cabs create separation and reduce potential COVID-19 transmission, so bus and LRT operators aren’t required to wear masks when in the shielded area. However, Operators and other public facing transit employees will wear masks when going into public areas.
- Given that DATS provides door-to-door trips and often requires close (less than two metres distance) physical contact (moving, securing or repositioning the client), DATS operators are required to wear masks when assisting and driving customers.
We are continuing our daily enhanced cleaning and disinfecting on buses, LRT, DATS vehicles, transit centres, LRT stations, as well as high-touch areas
We continue to use a new disinfecting agent applied daily with an electrostatic sprayer to all ETS vehicles before they go into service. The disinfectant is known to kill COVID-19, and is approved by Health Canada. An electrostatic sprayer is also used on high-touch areas at LRT stations and transit centres
The adjusted service schedule for buses and trains allows for more frequent and thorough cleaning and disinfecting of transit vehicles

Tips to Stay Safe and Healthy on Transit

Wear a mask or face covering - Wear a mask or face covering while using public transit or in other locations where physical distancing is not possible. Wearing a mask helps keep our community safe.

Please make sure you properly dispose of your used masks and/or gloves into a waste bin. If one is not available, store your used materials in a plastic bag until they can be disposed of properly.
Stay home if you are not feeling well - If you are sick, please stay home.
Practice healthy hygiene - Do not touch your face, and cough or sneeze into a tissue or your elbow. Clean and sanitize your hands as soon as possible before and after a trip on public transit. Thoroughly wash your hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds, especially if you have come into contact with commonly-touched surfaces, including fare machines, poles, railings, seats, doors, windows, and buttons. Consider keeping a pocket-sized bottle of hand sanitizer with you at all times.
Avoid rush hour - Travel during off-peak times, if able, when there are fewer people. Rush hour for ETS is 6 - 9am and 3 - 6pm.
Allow for extra travel time - Wait for the next bus or train if the current one is too full. Also, some service levels have been adjusted due to the change in demand, so double check the schedule or use a real-time trip planning tool such as Transit or Google Map.
Let other customers exit the vehicle first - Whether on buses or trains, let customers exit the vehicle first before boarding.
Maintain physical distance if possible - Although physical distancing will not always be possible, spread out as much as possible when inside a bus, train or at loading areas. Family members, or a caregiver, can sit together.
Talk less and quietly onboard transit - Alberta Health indicates that microdroplets are released whenever someone speaks, especially when talking loudly or yelling.
Be patient, respect other customers and operators, and pay your fare - We are all in this together. Thank you for doing your part to help flatten the curve and continuing to support public transit.

For More Information

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