Living in Dalian - BRT Bus

Life in the Fast Lane with BRT buses

In January 2008, three new bus rapid transit (BRT) systems opened in Dalian as part of a larger solution to ease urban traffic pressure and inprove life for the local residents.
The idea first appeared in 1999 in Kunming, then later Beijing opened the first ‘closed’ BRT system, but here the initial designs have been improved along with additional corridors, plus the use of wider station platforms, pre-board fare collection smart cards to speed up fare payment, improved passenger information with staff members who can help direct you and the introduction of a more modren fleet of high capacity BRT buses.

Dalian in terms of operational flexibility goes further than any other city’s in utilizing its corridors because they use four routes which operate both on and off the BRT corridors and this will provide the beginning of citywide coverage.

This BRT system has a 13.8 (km) corridor - of which about 10 km has either exclusive bus lanes or BRT-only lane markings

Two BRT bus sizes can run on the system, The 18 meter buses have 4-doors with only 39 seats but can provide ample standing capacity

The 12 meter bus have three doors, unlike the standard two-door configuration, which allows for quicker and easier boarding and alighting.
Both running units are manufactured by MAN in a joint venture with a company in Dandong, and are said to be of better in terms of quality and cost

Featuring environmentally friendly engines, a lowered floor for easy and safer boarding, and also the low-floor design enables the disabled to get on board easily and also shortens passengers' boarding time.
At the moment 64 buses are running with more scheduled later

BRT buses run faster than their conventional counterparts thanks to a signal priority control system,with traffic lights automatically turning to green when a bus is coming and remaining green as the bus passes by.

Its not all roses because of inadequate queuing space it means that when an 18m bus stops behind a 12m bus,passengers must alight in the space between the fence and platform
PLUS getting to the station/stops is hard work because some don’t have safe crossing areas