Private company

ACTION

Bus operator in Canberra, Australia

ACTION (Australian Capital Territory Internal Omnibus Network) is a bus operator in Canberra, Australia, owned by the Government of the Australian Capital Territory.² It is headquartered in Greenway.¹ It is part of Transport Canberra & City Services.¹ Wikipedia text CC BY-SA 4.0

Last updated Oct 21, 2026.

Overview

1926Founded¹

HeadquartersGreenway¹
Websitewww.action.act.gov.au

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ACTION (Australian Capital Territory Internal Omnibus Network) is a bus operator in Canberra, Australia, owned by the Government of the Australian Capital Territory.²

The story

On 19 July 1926, the Federal Capital Commission commenced operating public bus services between Kingston in the south and Ainslie in the north.

The service was first known as Canberra City Omnibus Service, but it has had a number of names over the years, including Canberra City Bus Service, Canberra Omnibus Service and Canberra Bus Service. On 14 February 1977, it was renamed as the Australian Capital Territory Internal Omnibus Network, or ACTION for short.

In 1976, Canberra became the first city in Australia to operate articulated buses after the purchase of 25 MAN SG192s. In May 1982, ACTION commenced operating the Canberra Explorer in a joint venture with Murrays.

As part of the move to ACT self-government, responsibility for ACTION passed from the Federal Government to the Government of the Australian Capital Territory in 1989. In 2001, ACTION became a statutory authority.

Network 2019

In June 2018, the Government of the Australian Capital Territory released a proposal for changes to the bus network to coincide with the opening of the Light Rail which included a 7-day network with 10 rapid routes and an overhaul of the route numbers. The proposed changes caused controversy due to changes to school services and the removal of all Xpresso services. Public consultation for the proposal lasted between June and August 2018 and a modified proposal was released in October 2018. The starting date of the new bus network was pushed back to 29 April 2019 due to delays on the construction of the Light Rail.

From Wikipedia’s article on ACTION, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.³

Products and brands

Regular route services

ACTION's regular weekday services operate either as feeder services to a single town centre or connect two or three town centres via suburban streets.

During weekends and public holidays, ACTION provides a reduced level of service with most suburban routes operating with an hourly or two-hourly frequency.

Other peak services

ACTION operates three weekday peak hour routes as an express service between outer suburbs of Tuggeranong and City Interchange. These routes are numbered in the 100 series.

ACTION trialled a shuttle bus loop service from Canberra Airport to the Fairbairn Business Park on a three month trial basis. The service operated from 7am until 10am in the morning and again from 4pm until 7pm in the afternoon on weekdays.

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School services

School services are provided by ACTION to schools and colleges throughout the ACT. These are numbered in the 1000 and 2000 series.

Flexible bus service

The Flexible bus service operates on weekdays to provide a free, basic bus service to passengers with limited access to normal public transport options. Six services operate daily providing a pick up service in the morning from designated suburbs to shopping centres and hospitals, with return services operating in the afternoon.

These bus services are operated by the special needs transport minibuses.

Fleet

As at June 2026, ACTION's route service fleet consisted of 454 buses.

Bicycle racks have been fitted to the front of 94% of the buses in the fleet. Each rack can hold two bicycles. Passengers may load a bicycle onto the rack for free, but must pay a regular fare to travel on the bus.

Apart from buses with all over advertising or special designs, ACTION's fleet sport either a blue, orange and white (Renault buses) or a green, orange and white livery (all other buses). In December 2016, a predominantly blue livery was introduced.

ACTION's Special Needs Transport division operates a fleet of eighteen Mitsubishi Fuso Rosa minibuses. These buses are white in colour and do not operate on route services.

ACTION also operate Toyota Hiace Commuter and Hyundai iMax vans which can be used to transport passengers, Hino Dutro trucks used by mechanics to attend broken down buses and a single Mack tow truck.

ACTION's heritage fleet consists of a 1949 AEC Regal III and a 1961 AEC Reliance.

History

Until the mid-1970s, purchases mainly comprised heavyweight British built AEC and Leyland chassis before a switch was made to European chassis. In 1972, the first Volvo B58s were purchased. These were followed by MAN SL200s from 1975, articulated MAN SG192s from 1976, Mercedes-Benz O305s from 1981, articulated O305Gs from 1982, Renault PR100.2s from 1986, articulated Renault PR180.2s from 1988 and Renault PR100.3s from 1994. The Renaults were badged as Macks although they carried the Renault diamond badge. Around 1976, the first of the new MAN buses were being tested in Germany.

Although primarily purchasing new buses, ACTION has on occasions purchased and hired second-hand buses. With industrial action in England causing a shortage of both chassis and parts at a time Canberra was undergoing phenomenal growth, in February 1974, 12 Leyland OPS2/1s were hired from the Public Transport Commission. In June 1974 the entire 10 bus fleet of Bedford, Ford and Thornycroft buses of recently ceased operator Bowden's Bus Service of Tamarama was purchased. A number of Bedfords and Fords were purchased from dealer's stock.

In 1997, 25 Wright Crusader bodied Dennis Darts were imported from Northern Ireland.

In 2001, 17 former North & Western Bus Lines Hino RG197Ks were leased from Sydney Buses for a short period. In February 2004, 20 Custom Coaches bodied Irisbus Agoras built for, but not delivered to King Brothers entered service.

Livery

Fleet livery was originally fawn with a yellow stripe. This was replaced by the 1960s by a coffee body with arctic green window area and red stripe. In 1973, a yellow body with arctic green window surrounds and light blue stripe livery was introduced. This was replaced in 2004 a white, green and orange livery.

Registrations

Initially buses were registered in the C#### series. By the 1960s, buses were registered as ZIB### in the Commonwealth of Australia series. In May 1989, the fleet was reregistered onto ACT Government BUS### plates.