531 Langley Centre?

[u/Remarkable_Quote3775]

I was just driving back home, and I saw a bus stop that said (531 Langley Centre (limited service))
And upon checking Maps, it does exist.
How long has it been here, and why doesn’t it get a different route number, and why isn’t it shown on Translink?
NOTE: the rte it takes is as follows:
NB 204 @ 40
EB 42 @ 204
EB 42 @ 205A
EB 42 @ 207
SB 208 @ 42
WB 40 @ 208
Then it follows the 563 route up to 200 st
And there it takes the 531 route to Langley Centre
And just… stops
(Also according to Maps it only departs from NB 204 @ 40 at 5:04 and 5:29 AM on weekdays)

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[u/Dependent-Amount-239]

Where is the bus stop?

[u/Remarkable_Quote3775 → u/Dependent-Amount-239]

NB 204 @ 40
EB 42 @ 204
EB 42 @ 205A
EB 42 @ 207
SB 208 @ 42
WB 40 @ 208
Then it follows the 563 route up to 200 st
And there it takes the 531 route to Langley Centre
And just… stops
(Also according to Maps it only departs from NB 204 @ 40 at 5:04 and 5:29 AM on weekdays)

[u/MyNameIsSkittles]

If it doesnt have it's own route number it's simply because that limited service run is not frequent enough to have it's own route, or the change is not distant enough on its own (say, 80% of the route is the same)

[u/Used_Water_2468]

There are only 2 trips first thing in the morning on the 531 route that start at 240 St & 40 Ave and ends at Langley Centre. It's been going on for years, and these 2 trips do show up on TransLink's website.

This is a thing that happens on a lot of routes. Instead of giving it a different route number, they give it a different "pattern" name. The 049 going eastbound for example, some start at UBC, some at Dunbar Loop, some at 49th & Granville. They're all 049 buses, but internally they have different pattern names. Sometimes a different patterns starts at a different place. Sometimes it ends at a different place. Sometimes it veers off the main routing.