Did you know? You can receive service bulletins by text message...
last updated 3/14/2024 4:21:00 PM
No weather-related bulletins have been issued.
In the event that we would have to suspend service for any reason, we will endeavour to provide at least 2 hours notice through our website, our text alert system, our social media channels and Ride Guide (722-9400).
last updated 7/13/2022 1:30:47 PM
Children under 12 ride free, but please note...
Effective September 5, 2022 children aged 9 to 11 will be required to present an mCard when boarding, or will have to pay cash fare to ride.
To receive your free mCard...
Visit our Customer Service Centre at 25 Messenger Drive and bring with you proof of age - a birth certificate along with one other piece of ID that matches the name on your birth certificate (MCP, school ID, etc). The child rider will have to attend so that we can take a current picture and print it on the mCard.
Once your eligibility to ride for free has been confirmed, we will provide you with a free mCard containing your photo that you can use to ride with Metrobus until you turn 12 years of age.
Customer Service Centre Hours
Weekdays - 7:30a to 7:00p
Weekends - 10:00a to 5:00p
Questions?
If you have any questions, please contact us at 722-9400.
last updated 4/12/2021 12:36:00 PM
A Transit Queue Jump lane is now operational at Freshwater Road and Stamps Lane. Please don't follow a bus through the intersection on the transit priority signal - doing so would be going through a red light! For more details, visit https://vimeo.com/535948409.
Please do not follow a bus through the intersection on the transit priority signal - doing so would be going through a red light.
last updated 1/10/2024 4:14:55 PM
Public transit ridership in the greater St. John’s area has not only exceeded pre-pandemic levels, but has reached a record high with close to five-million rides in 2023. The St. John’s Transportation Commission (Metrobus) recorded 4,759,834 rides in 2023 a thirty-five percent increase compared to 2022 and a forty-five percent increase compared to the last pre-pandemic year, 2019.
Increased investment in public transit, newcomers to the region along with a challenging economy are the primary reasons Metrobus believes the increases are occurring. In 2022, Metrobus introduced the “Zip Network” which provided additional weekday and Saturday service on Metrobus’ core routes 1, 2, 3 and 10, highlighted by 15 minute frequency during rush hours, making public transit a more attractive option for area residents.
“The introduction of more frequent service during a period of record inflation and high gas prices certainly gave residents more options when travelling around the region,” says Metrobus General Manager, Judy Powell. “The increased investment combined with new Canadians and international students have certainly contributed to ridership increases.”
Increased ridership also meant a substantial increase in revenue earned in 2023. Metrobus used the 2023 surplus to pay off all of its long-term debt, lowering the subsidy requirement from the City of St. John's for 2024 as debt servicing costs were eliminated. And while record public transit ridership is a win for everyone in the region with less private vehicles on the road along with the related environmental benefits, ridership increases this large come with significant challenges.
“An increase of five to ten percent annually is manageable from an operational perspective and can usually be handled with existing resources. A forty-five percent increase is very challenging - buses are extremely busy and we don’t have excess capacity to be able to adequately address hot spots”, says Powell. “It takes time to expand our fleet and hire more employees.”
To better understand the causes and changes to this ridership trend and to be able to efficiently allocate resources in the future, Metrobus has contracted with MQO Research to determine whether current levels and trends are likely to be sustained in coming years. The MQO findings will also provide information to allow Metrobus to update its long-term growth plan.
Results of the MQO study are expected within the first quarter of 2024. In the meantime, Metrobus is working with its regional partners to identify further opportunities to improve public transit service on the Northeast Avalon.
last updated 5/13/2022 4:24:24 PM
Starting on Monday, May 16th, residents of St. John's, Mount Pearl or Paradise aged 65 or older and receiving the Guaranteed Income Supplement (GIS) can visit Metrobus at 25 Messenger Drive and pickup a free bus pass.
To obtain your free bus pass:
Once your eligibility has been confirmed, we will give you a bus pass for unlimited use on any of our routes starting June 1, 2022.
Please note, your GIS Letter and identification are required to confirm your eligibility. If you do not have a copy of your (GIS) letter you can call Service Canada at 1-800-277-9914 for information on how to obtain a copy.
last updated 12/7/2021 9:15:00 AM
Today, St. John's City Council announced funding and improvements to public transportation in St. John's with the launch of Zip Network, which will improve offerings and increase frequency on multiple Metrobus routes starting in the new year.
The service improvements are part of a commitment by City Council to implement more frequent bus service. The budget for this improvement was originally approved in 2019, but implementation was put on hold due to pandemic restrictions.
"We are pleased to offer this improved service to Metrobus riders," said Councillor Ian Froude, member of the St. John's Transportation Commission. "Council is committed to public transportation, and more frequent bus service on the core routes is something we know users are anxious to see implemented."
The Zip Network will offer improved service to Routes 1, 2, 3 and 10, beginning January 3, 2022.
Impacted Routes will see increased and consistent frequency throughout the day. Service will be available on these routes earlier in the morning and extending later in the day.
Zip Network Routes will offer:
15-minute frequency weekdays, from 7:30 to 8:30 a.m. and 3:30 to 5:30 p.m.
30-minute frequency weekdays from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. and from 5:30 to 8 p.m.
30-minute frequency on Saturdays, daytime until 6 p.m.
Funding of approximately $500,000 for 2022 is slated to be approved as part of the upcoming budget, to be presented to City Council on December 13, 2021.
"As we prepared for the upcoming budget, we heard through our public engagement processes the importance of public transit," explained Councillor Ron Ellsworth, council lead on Finance. "We believe this is a sound investment that demonstrates the City's strategic commitment to being a city that moves."
last updated 2/2/2021 3:25:00 PM
Click here to watch a video demonstrating how the queue jump works...
Please do not follow a bus through the intersection on the transit priority signal - doing so would be going through a red light.
New queue-jump technology lets buses bypass traffic
The intersection of Freshwater Road and Stamps Lane has been equipped with a transit queue jump - a white bar signal added to the top of the traffic light. Once activated, the signal allows buses travelling east on Freshwater Road toward Elizabeth Avenue, to jump ahead and proceed through the intersection before traffic waiting at the light gets the green signal. Essentially, the white bar acts as a green light for Metrobus only.
The queue jump is part of the overall Transit Priority system that was installed last year with funding under the Public Transit Infrastructure Fund. Every Metrobus is equipped with a unit that communicates with traffic signal equipment installed at a number of intersections throughout the city. In addition to queue jump technology, the equipment can either shorten the red light, or hold the green light for buses approaching certain intersections, meaning less time spent for buses waiting at intersections.
"Transit priority systems are in many cities and are of great benefit in improving schedule adherence and reliability, reducing greenhouse gas emissions and improving fuel performance of the fleet," says Metrobus General Manager, Judy Powell. "We look forward to the benefits this system provides to our Drivers in making it easier to maintain schedule."
There are sixteen intersections in the city equipped with transit priority technology; seven intersections are programmed to work at all times while the remaining nine are programmed to only activate when the bus is five or more minutes behind schedule.
last updated 3/20/2018 8:41:15 AM
The St. John's Transportation Commission (Metrobus) has accepted delivery of three new thirty-foot buses to replace three forty-foot models that are being retired later this month.
Fully wheelchair accessible and with seating for 24 passengers, the Vicinity Bus is one of the quietest on the market, both inside and out. The "close and seal" door design reduces noise on board and reduces air draft preserving heat within the bus during the colder months and keeps the cool air in during the summer months. The lighter and smaller thirty-foot design boasts improved fuel economy, resulting in 30 percent savings in fuel consumption, making public transit an even more environmentally-friendly option for residents of St. John's.
Judy Powell, General Manager of Metrobus, says the buses will be used on some feeder routes operated by Metrobus. "The Vicinity buses are an excellent fit for our service allowing us to efficiently service some of our less busy routes and realize significant savings in fuel costs," says Powell.
The three Vicinity buses, sold and supplied by Grande West Transportation in Aldergrove, BC, will be in service by the end of March. Photos and videos of the new thirty-foot Metrobuses can be viewed online at metrobus.com/Vicinity.
last updated 5/27/2016 2:35:47 PM
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE FROM ST. JOHN AMBULANCE
St. John's, May 26, 2016: St. John Ambulance will present life-saving awards to thirteen (13) Newfoundlanders and Labradorians for their acts of bravery at an Investiture and Life Saving Awards Ceremony today at 2:00 PM at the Anglican Cathedral in St. John's.
Receiving a Gold Life-Saving Award today for his courageous and prompt actions in assisting a fellow citizen is Metrobus driver Max Benson, who used first aid to save the life of a woman who was hit by a car in St. John's last August.
Receiving Silver Life-Saving Awards today are Mrs. Mary Lou Dill, formerly of Trepassey, NL who used CPR to save the life of a young boy in Orlando Florida, while vacationing with her husband; Acting Sergeant Joe Smyth, a member of the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary, who saved a Special Olympian athlete from choking in Corner Brook in February 2015; Mr. Gerard Bursey and Mr. Kelly Potts, who used CPR to save the life of a colleague at Oceanex Shipping Services in June 2015.
As well, recognized by His Excellency, the Governor General of Canada, and presented by the Lieutenant Governor, the Honourable Frank F. Fagan, CM, ONL, MBA for their contribution to the goals of The Order, Mr. Garry Stamp and Mr. Ken Reid will be invested as Serving Members in The Order of St. John.
For a complete list of citizens to be recognized by St. John Ambulance for their contributions, as well as details of their acts of bravery, visit www.sja.ca.
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last updated 11/29/2015 8:46:59 AM
A Driver with the St. John's Transportation Commission has been recognized for the role he played in saving the life of a young woman who was hit by a vehicle when attempting to cross Water Street in St. John's this past August.
Metrobus Transit Operator, Max Benson, received a National Heroism Award this morning during a ceremony held during the Canadian Urban Transportation Association's Annual Conference in Montreal. To be considered for the award, an individual within the public transit industry must perform a heroic act; one in which no full measure of responsibility exists between the award recipient and the endangered party, and the recipient must go above and beyond the call of duty.
Benson had been employed with Metrobus for less than three years on the night of August 1 when he witnessed a young woman being struck by an eastbound van on Water Street. The victim came to rest beneath the tailpipe of a car that had recently been parked, about ten feet in front of Benson's bus. Benson immediately radioed to a Transit Supervisor to call 911 before grabbing the on-board first aid kit and exiting the bus to tend to the victim.
The victim lay unconscious with a very weak pulse from a head wound when Benson arrived at her side; he immediately compressed the wound and the victim's pulse became stronger. Benson then used his other hand to protect the victim's face from coming into contact with the hot muffler, causing him to suffer second-degree burns on the back of his hand. When the police, fire trucks and ambulance arrived, they immediately removed the young woman from the scene and transported her to the hospital.
"It's just an incredible story of heroism," says Metrobus General Manager, Judy Powell. "We're all proud of Max and we're thrilled that the Canadian Urban Transportation Association has recognized what Max did on that night in August."
last updated 9/27/2013 10:45:45 AM
Caesars, Citi, Walgreens and Hertz Among Winners of the 4th Annual COLLOQUY Loyalty Awards
International winners include Coles, ANZ Banking Group, Air Miles UAE and St. John's Transportation Commission
DALLAS (Sept. 24, 2013) - Caesars Entertainment won the 2013 Master of Enterprise Loyalty Award at the 4th Annual COLLOQUY Loyalty Awards, becoming the first loyalty innovator to claim the competition's coveted prize two years in a row.
The Master of Enterprise Loyalty Award recognizes the company that most successfully has built long-lasting customer loyalty through strategies across its whole organization and has evolved to become truly customer-centric.
Among the other 2013 COLLOQUY Loyalty Award winners are some of the most recognized names in U.S. and global loyalty, including Citi, Walgreens and Hertz.
Two of the global competition's international winners hail from Australia, Coles and ANZ Banking Group. The other international winners are from the United Arab Emirates, Air Miles, and Canada, St. John's Transportation Commission.
The COLLOQUY Loyalty Awards took place today at the 11th Annual COLLOQUY Loyalty Summit in Dallas. COLLOQUY, a publishing, education and research division of LoyaltyOne, launched the awards in 2010 to recognize the most innovative loyalty initiatives in the industry.
"The COLLOQUY Loyalty Awards confer the highest honor on companies that are unwavering in their efforts to put the customer at the center of all efforts," said COLLOQUY Editor-at-Large Dennis Armbruster.
'The innovations demonstrated in these winning strategies operated by these industry leaders, reflect the very best of efforts among global marketers to personalize and enhance the customer experience with every relevant communication and at every opportunity for interaction."
A printed summary of all the 2013 award winners is available for download at awards.colloquy.com. To view a recording of the event after September 25, visit awards.colloquy.com.
About the 2013 COLLOQUY Loyalty Award Winners:
Caesars Entertainment -- Master of Enterprise Loyalty
Caesars Entertainment, for its Total Rewards program. Caesars focused for the past year on personalizing customer experiences, online and on property, across every touch point. A real-time casino marketing initiative, in which an executive host is notified any time a guest interacts with a Caesars associate, increased customer value up to 30% per visit. In just four months, newly implemented, tier-related bonuses inspired Total Rewards VIPs to achieve elite status 20% faster.
Citi -- Loyalty Innovation in Financial Services (North America)
Citi, for its ThankYou Merchandise Rewards Transformation Initiative. Citi ThankYou set out to create a best-in-class retail experience with the ultimate goal of increasing customer engagement and satisfaction with merchandise rewards. A new "shopping" like experience focused on three pillars: curate, showcase and communicate. The enriched online shop enhanced ThankYou's program value to members and partners. Visitors spent 17% more time on the site, daily orders increased 32% year over year, and merchandise redemptions rose 47%.
ANZ Banking Group-- Loyalty Innovation in Financial Services (International)
ANZ Banking Group, Australia, for its Points Expiry Campaign. ANZ set out on a retention and engagement campaign to bolster its ANZ Rewards program. It applied an innovative surprise and delight approach to reengage inactive members. The campaign achieved an overall 45% response rate, which was 225% above target.
Walgreens -- Innovation in Loyalty Marketing (North America)
Walgreens, for its Balance Rewards program. Walgreens aimed to build a best-in-class loyalty program founded on ease, value and wellness. The program, offering members points for health-related activities, also had to be relevant, innovative and enterprise-wide. Launched in September 2012, Balance Rewards counted 72 million members by the end of May 2013. During May, sales increased 4.3% over the same month in 2012 and there was an average basket size increase of 4.7% year over year.
Air Miles -- Innovation in Loyalty Marketing (International)
Air Miles, an Aimia Company, United Arab Emirates, for its A Rewarding 2013 Experience Campaign. The campaign goal was to inspire consumers to spend more during the UAE's traditionally slow mid-September to mid-October period. Triple miles, a drawing and a radio contest produced a 360% return on investment. Consumers spent more than $110 million at eight participating merchants, a 49% increase over the previous year.
Coles -- Loyalty Innovation in Retail (Global)
Coles, Australia, for its flybuys Relaunch Initiative. Coles committed to revitalizing flybuys, once Australia's largest shopping rewards program. Coles ripped up the rule book by increasing members' earnings to one point for every dollar they spend, eliminating expiration dates for active members and adding new partners, among other enhancements and promotions. Results featured a 12-fold return on investment. Active cardholders increased 47% to 6.9 million, and year-over-year visits to the flybuys website more than doubled.
St. John's Transportation Commission -- Loyalty Innovation in Other Industries (Global)
St. John's Transportation Commission, Canada, for its Metrobus-AIR MILES Partnership. Six years after the launch of Canada's first earn-per-ride program, Metrobus wanted to make inroads to new markets. Metrobus and the AIR MILES Reward Program launched a multi-channel communications strategy featuring an offer of one reward mile for every two taps of a passenger's Metrobus m-card. The campaign succeeded in filling the aisles, recording a 6% gain in 2012 ridership. Online m-card purchases rose 54% from 2011 and m-card use rose 10%. Additionally, 44% of Metrobus riders opted to earn AIR MILES reward miles instead of m-Points in the first year.
Hertz -- Loyalty Innovation in Travel/Hospitality (Global)
The Hertz Corporation, for Gold Plus Rewards. Hertz customers were confused about the company's multiple loyalty programs. So Hertz created a seamless, global customer experience that harnessed the power of a single program. Gold Plus Rewards, featuring new services and benefits, launched with the support of a multi-faceted, multi-channel global promotional campaign. Program enrollment increased by 99%, with a significant number of members upgrading to the new program. Members electing to earn points on rental transactions increased 178% within a year.
For more information about the COLLOQUY Loyalty Awards visit awards.colloquy.com.
About COLLOQUY
COLLOQUY is a publishing, education and research practice that brings together more than 50,000 loyalty practitioners from around the world. The go-to resource for loyalty intelligence since 1990, COLLOQUY engages and educates loyalty marketers with its magazine, weekly e-newsletter, and timely and comprehensive loyalty-marketing website, colloquy.com. COLLOQUY delivers industry-leading loyalty benchmarking reports and educational workshops, webinars and speeches. The COLLOQUY Summit is the premiere annual loyalty event where innovative loyalty strategies worldwide are recognized with the COLLOQUY Loyalty Awards. Advertising, sponsorship and publishing opportunities are available via the COLLOQUY Network, a global partnership of loyalty service providers. COLLOQUY is an independently operated division of LoyaltyOne. To learn more, visit www.colloquy.com.
last updated 8/2/2013 7:10:22 AM
The St. John's Transportation Commission has been recognized with three national awards for excellence in marketing.
All three awards were related to Metrobus' implementation of a national loyalty program, AIR MILES, making Metrobus the first public transit agency in the world to award the loyalty points on a per ride basis. The innovative partnership helped Metrobus achieve a six per cent ridership increase from the program's inception in May of 2012 to the end of the year.
The first award was presented to Metrobus during the Canadian Urban Transit Association Annual Conference held in St. John's in June, and was in recognition of an exceptional development and implementation of marketing and communications initiatives pertaining to advertising, internal and external corporate communications and public relations.
The other two awards were presented in Toronto at the annual Air Miles Marketing Excellence awards; one award in the Community & Sustainability category and the other in the New Sponsor Launch category.
Metrobus General Manager says all employees should be proud of the national attention. "It takes a real team effort to implement a national loyalty program and be able to achieve the success we have achieved," says Powell. "We look forward to continuing our relationship with the Air Miles program which provides our customers with an exceptional reward for choosing to ride public transit in St. John's."
last updated 5/2/2012 10:07:11 PM
Newfoundland Labrador Liquor Corporation to Offer Additional Incentive In June to Encourage "Responsible Riding"
(ST. JOHNS, May 2, 2012) For the residents and visitors in St. Johns, the Metrobus system provides a reliable and environmentally responsible way to navigate the city and, starting on May 2, Metrobus will also become the first transit authority anywhere in the world to reward its passengers with consumer loyalty points for every bus ride. Through a new and unique partnership with the AIR MILES Reward Program, riders in St. Johns will be able earn reward miles every time they take the bus on any route in the city, with a simple tap of their m-‐Cards. Riders can find out more and learn how to take advantage of this offer on www.metrobus.com.
"We are excited to be launching such an innovative partnership with the most popular loyalty program in the country," says Judy Powell, General Manager of Metrobus Transit. "Public transit provides opportunities, options and choices for people from all walks of life, giving them easy access and freedom to the things they need in everyday life and by adding such a powerful and versatile reward offering, we are supporting an even more meaningful shift toward responsible behavior among the residents of St. Johns."
"This is a truly groundbreaking initiative for us and for the public transit industry," says Andreas Souvaliotis, President of AIR MILES for Social Change. "Our mission is to continue to harness the remarkable popularity of our loyalty program in order to inspire and reward socially responsible choices on a mass scale, across the entire country."
NLC Adds a Second Layer of Social Responsibility by Offering Double Miles for Rides on Weekend Evenings
Encouraging responsible behaviour has always been a core mission of the Newfoundland Labrador Liquor Corporation (NLC) and, starting on June 2, the liquor retailer will join into the Metrobus/AIR MILES initiative by doubling the reward miles for riders travelling between 7:00 p.m. until 'last ride,' every Friday and Saturday.
"Whether out on the town or visiting friends, we are proud to be rewarding our fellow citizens for responsible behavior and to be contributing to our societys fight against drinking and driving," says
NLC President & CEO, Steve Winter. "Making the smart and responsible choice to take the bus instead of driving on a weekend evening has just become twice as rewarding."

For more information on how you can connect your AIR MILES Collector account to your m-‐Card, please visit www.metrobus.com.
About Metrobus Transit
The St. Johns Transportation Commission, operating as Metrobus Transit, has been providing public transit services in St. Johns, NL, since 1958. Metrobus Transit operates 19 fixed-‐transit routes and services more than three million rides annually.
About the AIR MILES Reward Program
Founded in 1992, the AIR MILES Reward Program is Canadas premier coalition loyalty program with more than 10 million active Collector accounts, representing approximately two-‐thirds of all Canadian households. The AIR MILES Reward Program allows Collectors to earn reward miles simply by doing their everyday shopping at more than 220 leading brand-‐name Sponsors, representing thousands of retail and service locations across Canada and leading global brands online. The AIR MILES Reward Program also allows Collectors to indulge in more than 1200 leisure, entertainment, merchandise, travel and a range of accredited, environmentally-‐friendly lifestyle rewards. With AIR MILES Cash, Collectors can also have the flexibility to instantly redeem their AIR MILES reward miles in-‐store towards many everyday and high value purchases like gas, grocery, drug store items and home improvement purchases at participating Sponsors.
About Newfoundland Labrador Liquor Corporation
The Newfoundland Labrador Liquor Corporation (NLC) is a provincial crown corporation in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada responsible for managing the importation, sale and distribution of beverage alcohol within the province. NLC operates 24 Corporate Liquor Stores, services 118 Liquor Express agency operated locations and distributes to more than 1,700 licensees.
