York Region Transit route 301 'Markham Express'

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

Basic
Route 301 serves mainly McCowan Rd., Raymerville Dr., Parkway Ave., and Larkin Ave.

This route has 1 branch:
 * 301 Mount Joy GO Station - Finch Terminal (Weekday rush hours only, directional)

This route serves the Mount Joy, Greensborough, and Markham Village communities. It provides service to Finch in the morning and to Mount Joy 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.

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.

A major realignment of the express routes occurred in July 2012. Service was removed from Highway 7 and Kennedy (replaced by new route 304), and service was rerouted so PM service followed the reverse routing of the AM. Service was also extended from 16th and Fincham north to Mount Joy GO Station via Williamson Rd. Route 301 was also reduced from 8 to 3 trips each direction.

Route 301 was declared fully accessible in December 2012.

Due to operational concerns with the Snider Drive railway crossing, route 301 was diverted away from Snider Drive on March 31, 2014.

Vehicles
Route 301 is primarily a 40ft route, and uses New Flyer D40LF/D40LFR, New Flyer XD40, or Orion V.