York Region Transit route 302 'Unionville Express'

302 Unionville Express is an express route operated by YRT in Markham and Toronto, ON.

Basic
Route 302 mainly serves Apple Creek Blvd., John Button Blvd., Hollingham Rd., and Carlton Rd.

This route has 1 branch:
 * 302 Main St. Unionville - Finch Terminal (Weekday rush hours only, directional)

This route serves the Buttonville and Unionville communities. It provides service to Finch in the morning and to Unionville in the afternoon.

History
Markham Transit started operating a similar unnumbered route (simply 'Markham Express') in 1999, when Highway 407 first opened. It meant a faster trip from the Markham area was available along this route to the subway. A 'premium fare' was charged, usually $0.25 more than a regular fare (now $0.50 more). Markham Transit also purchased a number of D40S (Surburban) buses from GO Transit to use on these routes.

AM buses operate from Highway 7 and Town Centre Blvd. along the large loop, clockwise, back to Highway 7, where it heads down to the 407. PM buses come from the 407, and also operate the loop clockwise, ending at Warden and Highway 7. This looping arrangement is unique, and only route 360 had a similar uni-directional looping arrangement.

When YRT took over operations from Markham Transit in 2001, it numbered these routes in the 3xx series, and expanded service. The premium fare remained, to pay for the tolls to use the 407. YRT purchased 6 Orion V buses for exclusive use on the express series routes in 2003, to replace the ex-Markham D40S express buses. These buses (301-306) had a special 'Express' sticker on them, and have surburban-style seating. However, unlike the D40S buses, the 3xx buses also operated on other 'local' routes, causing some to question the 'Express' stickers on their sides. They have since been removed.

The PM routing was modified sometime in 2008 to operate via Clegg Rd. instead of Cedarland Dr. due to a barrier set up preventing left turns from northbound Warden Ave. to westbound Cedarland Dr.

Route 302 was declared fully accessible in December 2012.

In order to accommodate vivaNext construction along South Town Centre Blvd., route 302 was modified on January 27, 2014 to serve Warden Ave. and Highway 7 to Town Centre Blvd.

It should be noted that the latest route navigator does not show either the 2008 or 2014 route changes.

Vehicles
Route 302 is primarily a 40ft route, and uses New Flyer D40LF/D40LFR, New Flyer XD40, or Orion V.