SPRINT

SPRINT is a rapid transit system branded by the Human Transit Corporation (HTC) which operates subway and bus rapid transit in the City of Torbury in the Free State of Torbury. SPRINT is one of the four branded rapid transit services operated by the HTC, and has regular marketing functions. SPRINT is not an acronym, despite of its letters being capitalized. The actual reason behind the capitalization is unknown, but is believed to make a distinction from the regular bus routes. When first launched, it is revealed that SPRINT is supposed to carry its literal meaning, implying bringing passengers between their destinations at a rapid speed, as if one's sprinting in a race.

SPRINT operates two subway lines: Blue Line and Green Line; and three bus rapid transit lines: SPRINT Winter, SPRINT Spring, and SPRINT Autumn.

History

SPRINT was first planned in 1969. At this time, HTC Route 2 was running over capacity. With eight branches running, serving the same corridor with 38 buses running during rush hours, most of the time the buses are packed with passengers. It was not rare to see hundreds of passengers being stranded along the Main St. corridor during rush hours. As such, the Government of the Free State of Torbury proposes a meeting with Human Transit Corporation and other interested public transport operators, the public transit agency of the free state, to discuss possible resolution method.

The planning advisors of the City of Torbury came up with an idea of branded express bus service, running with different buses of different appearance, serving only limited stops, along dedicated bus lanes, as well as running at a high frequency (proposed every 5 minutes during rush hours). Originally, the bid to operate This gave birth to the first bus rapid transit system in the world (though some considered Rede Integrada de Transporte, implemented in Curitiba, Brazil in 1974, as the first in the world).

In 1970, SPRINT was financially approved by HTC, and SPRINT became a division under HTC.

In 1971 - 1973, the first phrase of SPRINT was ready to be rolled out. 15 mHz Long Buses were purchased, and SPRINT stations along Horizontal Axis Avenue and Main Street Torbury were constructed.

On April 2, 1975, the first line of SPRINT, Spring Line was first launched, followed by the launch of the second line of SPRINT, Winter Line three months later on July 1, 1975. Initially, the routes ran alongside with mixed traffic, and therefore the speed of the system was not meeting expectations held by the public, with riderships resulting to be disappointing. Beginning January 1, 1977, Spring Line was tested to run along an underground dedicated busway between Torbury Centre Terminal and Torbury Appingham Terminal, which drastically improved runtime of the route, making SPRINT more attractive to riders. A massive ridership migration from the conventional bus route HTC Route 2 occurred through 1977 and 1978, proving SPRINT to be a success on a dedicated bus lane.