CBW often features images of buses decorated for Christmas but Vancouver public transport operator TransLink goes one step further, and for 2020 increased its fleet of ‘Reindeer Buses’ to nine vehicles in place of the usual one to spread festive cheer all over Metro Vancouver. The buses were even given appropriate names: named Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donner, Blitzen, and of course Rudolph.
“We can all agree that it’s been a pretty tough year,” said TransLink CEO Kevin Desmond. “If there was ever a time to boost our Reindeer Bus fleet, it’s certainly now. We want to spread smiles and holiday cheer to street corners all over the region, and this is a fun way to do it.”
TransLink’s Reindeer Bus is part of a 35-year initiative known as Toys for Tots. Each year, toys and cash donations from staff at TransLink bus depots and offices are delivered from the Reindeer Bus to the Lower Mainland Christmas Bureau to be distributed to low-income families. In 2019, nearly 3,000 toys and over $2,000 were donated, taking the total in 34 years to 84,776 toys and $48,449.05.
