Most cities have an efficient city bus system within the city centre, and Bandar Seri Begawan isn’t an exception despite most if not all locals owning cars. The Brunei-Muara Public Bus Circle Line is the most frequent bus service in Bandar Seri Begawan with an average 30 minutes interval operating on both clockwise and anti-clockwise loops around the city, on Circle Line Service 01C and 01A respectively. To try out this circular bus service, I waited just outside BSB Bus Terminal for the first Circle Line bus to appear, which took me a surprising grand total of 1 minute of waiting. The bus was on Circle Line Service 01C, so I headed for my clockwise bus joyride to tour Bandar Seri Begawan downtown efficiently.
I got a perfect front seat as the bus was completely full when I boarded, so the conductress gave me her seat. Perfect spot for sightseeing from the Brunei-Muara Public Bus.
Departing from BSB Bus Terminal.
Passing by Kianggeh Market.
Passing by Teng Yun Temple.
Passing by the Main Post Office on Jalan Elizabeth 2.
Waiting for the traffic light to change at the Memorial Clock.
My white ticket sold by the conductress. Tickets on the Brunei-Muara Public Buses cost B$1 (S$1) regardless of bus service or distance travelled.
Passing by Taman Haji Sir Muda Omar Ali Saifuddien.
Passing by the Ministry of Home Affairs building.
Passing by the Brunei History Centre.
Passing by the Royal Regalia Museum.
Passing by the Syariah Court. The strict laws in Brunei make the city really safe to walk around without any worry of crime.
Heading on to the Edinburgh Bridge.
Crossing the Edinburgh Bridge over Sungai Kedayan.
Passing by the Supreme Court.
Turning right towards Raja Isteri Pengiran Anak Saleha Hospital or RIPAS Hospital.
Taking a small service road beside the main Lebuhraya Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah.
Crossing over Lebuhraya Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah.
Heading inside the RIPAS Hospital area.
A bus stop pole in the RIPAS Hospital area.
Heading on out.
Passing by Jame’ Asr Hassanil Bolkiah Mosque.
There is a RIPAS Hospital Shuttle Bus Service linking the big car park around Jame’ Asr Hassanil Bolkiah Mosque to RIPAS Hospital.
Taking a left turn out of RIPAS Hospital.
Joining the jam while approaching Beribi Roundabout or Kiarong Roundabout or Gadong Roundabout, lots of names found online but basically the biggest roundabout in Brunei.
The many exits out of the Beribi / Kiarong / Gadong Roundabout.
Traffic lights control the entry into the roundabout.
Finally in the roundabout.
Traffic lights control the traffic of vehicles currently in the roundabout as well.
Taking the exit towards Gadong.
Making a u-turn to take the small road into Gadong.
Passing by Gadong Wet Market.
Passing by Gadong Night Market.
Crossing over Sungai Menglait.
Arriving at The Mall Gadong.
Here, all passengers alighted except for me.
After new passengers have boarded, the bus continued to wait for a while before moving off, probably to follow the timetable.
Passing by McDonald’s Gadong.
Heading on straight.
Passing by Gadong Centerpoint.
Interesting to see Gong Cha in Jawi.
Making a brief stop at Gadong Centerpoint and The Centrepoint Hotel.
Heading out of the Gadong shopping area.
Heading on Jalan Gadong.
Suspiciously familiar prepare to stop lights.
Making a brief stop outside Gadong Complex.
Continuing down Jalan Gadong.
Crossing over Sungai Kedayan.
The conductress came around again to sell tickets for the second half of the loop, so I guess this circular bus service operates in 2 legs for tickets.
Turning back to Bandar.
I wouldn’t want to be under this traffic light.
Continuing straight.
Passing by a sheltered bus stop on Jalan Simpang.
Passing by Terrace Hotel.
Passing by Radisson Hotel Brunei Darussalam.
There’s quite an impressive overhead bridge linking Radisson Hotel Brunei Darussalam to the open air car park opposite.
Passing by the Youth Centre.
Passing by Pavo Point.
Passing by Kianggeh Market.
Turning into BSB Bus Terminal on the road beside Hassanal Bolkiah Theatre.
Entering BSB Bus Terminal.
Turning into the Circle Line bus bay.
The circular journey around downtown Bandar Seri Begawan took 45 minutes.
Looking back at my blue Circle Line bus.
The destination plate of the Circle Line.
The bus bay for Circle Line Service 01C.
The route map of Circle Line Service 01C.
The service information of Circle Line Service 01C. Buses operate from 6.00am to 5.00pm every 30 minutes.
Overall, a rather cheap bus tour around downtown Bandar Seri Begawan which is excellent for tourists. You don’t need an expensive hop-on hop-off tour bus when the public bus does its job well at a nominal fare of B$1 (S$1), and Brunei certainly does this well with the Circle Line. I just wish that this popular bus route will be extended to run till night though.