In Barbados public transportation is mainly provided by the buses of the Barbados Transport Board, mini-buses or route taxis also known as ZR Vans. Transport board buses are owned by the Government of Barbados while mini-buses and ZRs are privately owned.
Despite your destination or which type of transportation you choose to travel on, the fare remains the same value, which is Bds $2.00 for adults and $1.00 for children. Minibuses are yellow with long, blue horizontal stripes which makes them easy to identify. They have musical horns and some of them play music of different genres which incidentally is not allowed in Barbados.
ZR Vans are white with a single, horizontal, maroon strip running along the side. They too, carry musical horns and in some instances music, which is illegal in Barbados. On the ZR Vans, the route number is displayed on the front in a black circle. To know the destination of the ZR Vans, the sign is displayed on the bottom right hand side in front of the driver while on the mini-buses the sign is on the bottom left hand corner in the windshield.
Public Transportation Schedules
Mini-buses and ZR Vans do not have a set time to depart to their destinations throughout Barbados but the Transport Board buses each have an allocated time to depart. The bus schedule can be verified at the three (3) bus terminals on the island which are in Speightstown, St. Peter, Fairchild Street and Princess Alice in Bridgetown, St. Michael.
The destination of Transport Board buses are displayed above the front glass. Public transportation in Barbados usually runs from as early as 5:00 a.m. until midnight. These buses use an exact fare system which means change cannot be given as oppose to the ZRs and mini-buses which all have conductors who can give you the necessary change.
The choice of which way you choose to commute is totally up to you, just be sure to get the correct route or ask the conductor or driver if you are unsure of where your chosen method of transportation is going.
