Transmilenio

TransMilenio is a bus rapid transit system that serves Bogotá, the capital of Colombia. The system opened to the public in December 2000, covering Av. Caracas and Calle 80. Other lines were added gradually over the next several years, and as of 2012, 12 lines totalling 112 km run throughout the city. It was inspired by Curitiba's Rede Integrada de Transporte . TransMilenio consists of several interconnected BRT lines, with raised floor stations in the center of a main avenue, or troncal. Passengers typically reach the stations via a bridge over the street. Usually four lanes down the center of the street are dedicated to bus traffic. There are express and local buses, the latter stopping at every station to pick up passengers. The outer lanes allow express buses to bypass buses stopped at a station. Users pay at the station entrance using a smart card, pass through a turnstile, and wait for buses inside the station, which is typically 5 m wide. The bus and station doors open simultaneously, and passengers board by simply walking across the threshold. The elevated station platform and the bus floor are at the same height. The buses are diesel-powered, purchased from such manufacturers as the Colombian-Brazilian company Marcopolo-Superior, German conglomerate Mercedes-Benz, and Swedish companies such as Volvo and Scania. The buses are articulated and have a capacity of 160 passengers. In May 2007, a new, larger bi-articulated bus, with capacity for 270 passengers, was presented to the public. TransMilenio buses are not equipped with transponders to give them priority at traffic signals; regret over this fact was voiced by the general manager of the system, Angelica Castro.As of October 2014 up to 1,500 buses were circulating on the trunk line system. An additional set of 410 regular buses, known as feeders , transport users from certain important stations to many different locations that the main route does not reach. Unlike the main TransMilenio buses, feeders operate without dedicated lanes, are not articulated and are green . There is no additional fare to use the feeder buses. Some main TransMilenio stations have bicycle parking facilities to facilitate cyclists using the system.
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