DART First State, a Division of Delaware Department of Transportation (DelDOT)

Delaware Area Regional Transit, or DART First State, is the primary provider of bus service within the state of Delaware. Operating under the Delaware Transit Corporation and DelDOT, DART First State also provides funding for SEPTA‘s Wilmington/Newark Line which operates into Delaware as well.

DART First State Divisions

DART First State has a few main hubs where most of the services connect. All buses operate from either the Wilmington Garage, which primarily has New Castle County Routes, and the Dover Garage, which is the main garage for the Dover area, and Rehobeth Beach.

DART First State Gillig Low Floor Plus Electric
DART First State Gillig Low Floor Plus Electric photo by MCMM Productions

DART First State New Castle County Bus Operations

Bus service operating in New Castle Comes out of the Wilmington Garage, located at 119 Lower Beach Street, Wilmington, Delaware, 19805. The New Castle county routes primarily serve Wilmington, Newark, and Christiana.

Here are some major transfer points within the system

DART First State Dover and Rehoboth Beach Bus Operations

Bus service operating through Dover and Rehoboth Beach operates out of the Dover Garage, located at 900 Public Safety Blvd, Dover, DE 19901. These routes primarily serve the southern portion of Delaware and provide access to the Delaware beaches.. Here are some major transfer points within the area.

  • Dover Transit Center for routes 101, 102, 104, 105, 107, 108, 109, 112, and express routes 301, 302, 303, and 307
  • Lewes Transit Center for routes 201, 204, 206, 207, and 208 and express routes 305 and 307, and Cape May-Lewes Ferry Shuttle

DART First State Bus Fleet Roster

DART First State’s bus roster primarily consists of Gillig Low Floor buses varying between 29 and 40 feet, as well as MCI forty-five foot coaches, and Proterra Electric buses. As of 2021, DART First State is also utilizing Gillig Low Floor electric buses.

YearMake/ModelPhotoEngineTransmissionNumbers
2008-
2009
Gillig
Low Floor ’29
Cummins ISLAllison B400R-6260-291
2009Gillig
Low Floor HEV ’35
Cummins ISBAllison EP-40161-167
2009Gillig
Low Floor Hybrid ’40
DART First State 142Cummins ISBAllison EP-40147
2009Motor Coach Industries
D4500CL
Caterpillar C13Allison B500R-6913
2010Gillig
Low Floor ’29
Cummins ISLAllison B400R-6301-328
2012Gillig
Low Floor ’40
HEV
Cumins ISBAllison H 40 EP151-157
2012Motor Coach Industries
D4500CT
Cummins ISXAllison B500R-6914-919
2014Gillig
Low Floor ’40
Cummins ISLAllison B400R6401-472
473, 474 (2015)
2015 Gillig
Low Floor ’29
Cummins ISLAllison B300R6601-606
2016-
2017
Motor Coach Industries
D4500CT
Cummins ISXAllison B500R6920, 921 (2016)
922, 923 (2017)
2017Ford E450/Coach & Equipment
Phoenix DRW
DART First State Ford 1777Ford E450 Chassis1775-1776
2017Gillig
Low Floor
Cummins ISLAllison B300R6125-128
2017-
2019
Gillig
Low Floor ’29
Cummins L9Allison B300R6607-610 (2017)
611-613 (2019)
2019-
2020
Proterra
Catalyst BE35
Electric BusEATON UQM HD220701-707 (2019)
706-714 (2020)
2020Gillig
Low Floor ’40
Cummins L9ZF Ecolife 6AP1400B501-522
2020Gillig
Low Floor ’29
Cummins L9ZF Ecolife 6AP1400B614-626
2020Proterra
Catalyst BE40
Electric Bus
UQM HD220
Eaton EEV-7202 715, 716
2021Gillig
Low Floor ’40
Cummins L9ZF Ecolife 6AP1400B21001-21021
2021Gillig
Low Floor PLUS ’40
Electric Bus717-720
2022Gillig
Low Floor ’29
Cummins L9ZF Ecolife 6AP1420B22001-22014
2022Gillig
Low Floor ’40
Cummins L9ZF Ecolife 6AP1420B22015-22030
2023Gillig
Low Floor Suburban ’40
Cummins L9 ZF Ecolife 6AP1420B23901-23904
2023Proterra
ZX5
Electric Bus
UQM HD220
Eaton 4 Speed EV721-732
DART First State Bus Fleet Roster


Last Update: June 6th, 2024