Voters approve a 0.3 percent sales tax for a county-wide bus system, leading to the creation of the Clark County Public Transportation Benefit Area.
1980
C-TRAN officially begins service; Dave Ashcraft is the new transit agency’s interim director.
1981
Construction begins on C-TRAN’s main administrative, operations and maintenance facility on Northeast 65th Avenue in Vancouver.
Les White becomes C-TRAN Executive Director/CEO.
Total ridership (C-TRAN's first full year of operation): 1,216,114
1982
The C-TRAN facilities on Northeast 65th Avenue are completed and dedicated.
1983
The Seventh Street Transit Center opens in downtown Vancouver.
1984
The Evergreen Transit Center opens in east Vancouver.
C-TRAN offers Sunday bus service for the first time.
The Americans with Disabilities Act becomes federal law.
Total rideship: 2,285,944
1990
C-TRAN celebrates 10 years in operation.
1991
Voters reject a sales tax proposal that would have extended the Portland area’s light rail system to Clark County.
Total ridership: 5,285,944
1995
Les White leaves C-TRAN; Keith Parker is named Executive Director/CEO.
1998
Washington state voters repeal the motor vehicle excise tax, or MVET. The measure, Initiative-695, leads to a $12 million annual cut to C-TRAN, slashing 40 percent of C-TRAN’s yearly operating budget.
C-TRAN brings its paratransit service, C-VAN, in-house to be fully operated by C-TRAN staff.
1999
C-TRAN eliminates 80 positions and cuts service levels after losing state funding as a result of I-695.
The C-TRAN Board of Directors approves selling advertising on buses for the first time in the agency’s history.
Keith Parker leaves C-TRAN; Lynne Griffith is named Executive Director/CEO.
Fisher’s Landing Transit Center opens in east Vancouver.
Total ridership: 6,793,646
2000
Voters defeat a proposed sales tax increase of 0.3 percent to fund public transportation.
2004
C-TRAN reduces its boundaries from county-wide to cover only the boundaries of Vancouver, Camas, Washougal, Battle Ground, Ridgefield, La Center and Yacolt, plus the urban growth boundary around Vancouver.
Voters approve a sales tax increase of 0.2 percent in a special election, boosting C-TRAN’s funding and preventing major service cuts.
Total ridership: 5,812,417
2005
Lynne Griffith leaves C-TRAN; Jeff Hamm is named Executive Director/CEO effective January 1, 2007.
C-TRAN celebrates 25 years in operation.
2006
The 99th Street Transit Center opens as part of a larger service adjustment.
The Seventh Street Transit Center closes.
2007
C-TRAN implements a new logo and brand.
Hybrid diesel-electric buses are added to the C-TRAN fleet for the first time.
2008
The C-TRAN Board of Directors adopts the C-TRAN 2030 plan.
Total ridership: 6,552,570
2010
Voters approve a sales tax increase of 0.2 percent, putting C-TRAN on firm financial footing and preventing service cuts.
2011
Voters reject a proposed sales tax increase to fund C-TRAN’s share of light rail operating costs in Vancouver.
Salmon Creek Park & Ride reopens in a new location.
2012
The C-TRAN Board of Directors approves using existing reserve funds to pay for the local share of its bus rapid transit project; a federal grant pays for the majority of the project cost.
2014
Construction begins on The Vine, a bus rapid transit line serving Vancouver’s Fourth Plain corridor between downtown and the Vancouver Mall.
The C-TRAN board adopts a new composition, updating how each jurisdiction in the system is represented on the 10-member body.
Total ridership: 6,174,506
2015
The Vine begins service, officially launching the first bus rapid transit system in the Portland-Vancouver region.
Jeff Hamm retires; Shawn M. Donaghy is named Chief Executive Officer.
2017
Hop Fastpass, a regional electronic fare system shared by C-TRAN, TriMet and the Portland Streetcar, goes live.
C-TRAN discontinues advertising on its buses.
2017
C-TRAN begins planning its second bus rapid transit line, the Mill Plain BRT Project.
Hybrid diesel-electric buses now comprise more than half of C-TRAN’s fixed route fleet.
2018
C-TRAN is named Mid-Sized Transit System of the Year by the American Public Transportation Association.
C-TRAN receives a Green Business Certification through the Clark County Green Business program.
The new C-TRAN Administrative office on Northeast 51st Circle opens.
2019
The global COVID-19 pandemic prompts a series of operational changes to keep riders and employees safe throughout the year. Transit ridership drops dramatically across the United States; C-TRAN’s ridership decline is less severe.
The northbound span of the Interstate Bridge closes for nine days as part of a trunnion replacement project.
2020
C-TRAN celebrates 40 years in operation.
Construction begins on the second branch of The Vine, serving Vancouver’s Mill Plain corridor.
2021
C-TRAN is named North American Transit System of the Year by APTA for the second time.
The Current, a new on-demand transit service, launches.