The biggest news from 2023 was the addition of 12 Yutong battery electric buses to the fleet. But here’s our full review of what happened during the year –
January
- Start of year fleet count: 459 buses
- 23 – QCity Transit rebrand as CDC Canberra, with modified routes and timetables
- 23 – Bus 693 involved in major collision on Drakeford Drive
- 25 – Bus 800 (Yutong ZK6131HG1/E12 – electric bus) enters service
- 29 – Woden Interchange closes
- 30 – Network ’23 commences, including Temporary Woden Interchange and relocation of services to Rimmer St from City West.
- New buses in service: 800, 808
- Buses withdrawn: 974 (December), 975
February
- Six permanent ABB vehicle chargers installed at Tuggeranong Depot to enable electric bus charging
- 13 – Demolition of Woden Interchange commences
- Multicultural festival weekend: CDC perform additional shuttles
- 27 – NEC Australia announced as successful tenderer for “MyWay+”, replacing MyWay ticket system and NXTBUS RPTIS
- 28 – Fairbairn shuttle service (Route 904) ends
- New buses in service: 722, 809, 811
- Buses withdrawn: 956; 217-499 returns to Flexible Bus fleet
March
- New buses in service: 802, 806, 807, 810
- Buses withdrawn: 969, 970, 973, 977, 978, 981
April
- 12 – Bus 804, the last of the 12 Yutong electric buses enters service.
- New buses in service: 723, 724, 801, 803, 804, 805
- Buses withdrawn: 929, 943, 961, 971, 972; new training bus: 976
May
- 31 – Contract for purchase of 90 battery electric buses awarded to Vehicle Dealers International (Yutong).
- New buses in service: 725
- Buses withdrawn: 955
June
- 27 – ACT Budget includes $17.3m over four years for employment of additional bus operators
- New buses in service: 726, 727
- Buses withdrawn: 952; new training buses: 930, 962
July
- Work commences on pavement repairs at Belconnen Community Interchange
- Buses withdrawn: 935, 939
August
- New buses in service: 728
- Buses withdrawn: 938
September
- CDC operate Floriade shuttle services with additional services on weekends from bus interchanges at Belconnen, Woden and Tuggeranong
- Scania R580 tow truck delivered
- New buses in service: 729
October
- 9 – Modified weekday timetable commences with more inter-peak services.
- Bus 730 becomes the 100th Scania K320UB 4×2 based at Belconnen Depot.
- 24 – Transport Minister Chris Steel informs the Legislative Assembly that the remaining 17 Scania K320UB buses will be delivered by early 2024, with 9 expected between October and December. [However, no further Scania deliveries were received for the remainder of 2023.]
- 25 – Bus 748, the first of four Custom Denning Element 2s, is delivered
- 27 – pavement repair work at Belconnen Interchange completed
- Minister Steel announces that MyWay+ is expected to be rolled out by the second half of 2024; in early 2024, several buses will be fitted out to demonstrate the new system.
- New buses in service: 730
- Buses withdrawn: 927
November
- Two ABBs chargers installed at Belconnen Depot in preparation for Custom Denning electric buses.
- 13 – A system update resulted in many buses not having working MyWay systems for up to 24 hours
- 27 – Pack the Bus commenced for 2023: Bus 721 receives temporary AOA wrap
December
- 7 – Contract for Light Rail Stage 2A finalised: total cost $577m, with work to commence late 2024
- 26 – Tram 011 involved in collision with Mitsubishi Lancer at Randwick Road intersection
- 31 – for New Year’s Eve, additional late night rapid buses operate (since Sunday timetable usually ends at 10pm) with shuttle buses operated by CDC
- End of year fleet count: 455 buses
Timeline sources include Media Releases, Facebook posts and ACT Bus resources. To let us know if we missed something important or made a mistake, click on Contact Us (below).
This page was last updated on 9 March 2024
