Reindeer Bus Fleet and Santa Train return for the holidays

Photo: TransLink

THIS holiday season, TransLink’s nine Reindeer Buses will once again be sleighing into service to spread holiday cheer and light up the streets of Metro Vancouver. The West Coast Express Santa Train is also back for the holidays after a short break due to the pandemic. 

The red-nosed Reindeer Buses will collect and deliver toys to families in need as part of the Toys for Tots program. The initiative, now in its 37th year, collects toys and cash donations from staff at Coast Mountain Bus Company depots and TransLink offices, and delivers them to the Lower Mainland Christmas Bureau. 

“Every year the Reindeer Buses light up our streets,” says TransLink CEO Kevin Quinn. “We encourage everyone to bring their festive spirit and play a role in making sure every child has a gift this holiday season.” 

Reindeer Bus Facts:

  • Over the years, 89,735 toys and over $53,000 have been donated
  • Each Reindeer Bus is named after a different reindeer guiding Santa’s sleigh
  • The routes the Reindeer Bus will travel vary each day based on scheduling by elves at each bus depot
  • The buses have been decorated by Santa’s elves at each bus depot

 

Customers who spot the Reindeer Buses are encouraged to upload a picture to social media, using #ReindeerBus. 

Customers who would like to donate to Toys for Tots can drop off unwrapped toys until December 14, at the following locations: 

  • TransLink Customer Service Centre inside Waterfront Station 
  • SkyTrain Customer Assistance Counter at Commercial–Broadway 
  • Leave them with SeaBus staff at the Lonsdale Quay SeaBus Terminal

The West Coast Express Santa Train returns this year on the weekend of December 3 and 4. Families can take the train for free in exchange for a new, unwrapped toy or cash donation made during those mornings. To learn more about the West Coast Express Santa Train schedule, visit translink.ca/schedule. 

Donations for the West Coast Express Santa Train will benefit the communities served by the West Coast Express. Beneficiaries include the Mission Christmas Bureau, the Maple Ridge Pitt Meadows Christmas Hamper Society, the Tri-Cities Share Society, and the Lower Mainland Christmas Bureau. 

No ride aboard a Reindeer Bus or West Coast Express Santa Train would be complete without a TransLink Ugly Sweater, which is making a return just in time for the transit-lover on your holiday gift list. Visit translinkstore.ca to buy or gift TransLink holiday merchandise.