page_title: Ion rapid transit
section_title: Route
hierarchical_section_title: Ion rapid transit / Route
caption_attribution_description: English: ION transit electrification work near University of Waterloo campus.
context_page_description: Ion, stylized as ION, is an integrated public transportation network in the Regional Municipality of Waterloo in Ontario, Canada. It is operated by Keolis and is part of the Grand River Transit system, partially replacing GRT's Route 200 iXpress bus service. The section of Route 200 serving Cambridge has been renamed "Ion Bus". The first phase commenced operations on June 21, 2019, between the north end of Waterloo and the south end of Kitchener. A future extension of light rail to the downtown Galt area of Cambridge is planned but construction may not begin on that line until 2025.
  In 2009, an Environmental Assessment began to create a proposal of electrically-powered light rail transit through Kitchener and Waterloo, and adapted bus rapid transit from Kitchener to Cambridge. On June 24, 2009, Regional Council voted to approve the project, subject to funding from higher levels of government, which was in turn approved by council on June 15, 2011. This was followed by a community building strategy to guide development, identify key destinations, and strengthen regional connections.
context_section_description: The route approved by Regional Council travels in a mix of on-road and off-road (in various existing rights-of-way) configurations.  On December 2, 2017, the Kitchener-Waterloo Record reported the local economy had already been stimulated through the construction of new buildings near the route, in both Kitchener–Waterloo and Cambridge.
caption: Electrification work near University of Waterloo campus in April 2016
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