During our latest trip to Loja, I visited the transportation office and the tourism office, begging for a complete map of the Loja city bus system.

Although the buses run along established routes at regular intervals, no complete map seems to exist outside of an Android app called SITU Loja, but since I have an iPhone I wasn’t able to test it.

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If you have an Android phone, try the SITU Loja app.

I decided to make my own map. Keith and I spent about 20 hours riding every bus in Loja from end to end in both directions while I ran a GPS tracker and took photos and notes.

What follows is a detailed description, including maps, of Loja’s entire bus system. I hope you find it useful.

Quick NavigationInteractive Loja City Bus System MapDOWNLOAD THE LOJA BUS SCHEDULEL-1: El Rosal – PitasL-2: Argelia – Sauces NorteL-4: Borja – Isidro AyoraL-5: Zamora Huayco – Colinas LojanasL-7: Punzara – MotupeL-8: Ciudad Victoria – CarigánL-10: Sauces Norte – ArgeliaL-11: Tierras Coloradas – BoloniaL-12: Sol de los Andes – El Paraíso

The Basics: How to Ride the Bus

Loja’s city buses cost $0.30 USD per ride as of early 2017.  Students, senior citizens and physically disabled patrons ride for $0.15.

You can board the bus at one of the designated bus stops, usually every two blocks along a route, and marked with a blue and white sign or an elevated platform.

One of Loja’s bus stops. Also look for blue and white signs with a bus icon on them, marked “PARADA.” (Photo credit: La Hora)

Board as quickly as you can and hang onto something so you don’t fall when the bus takes off (sometimes very abruptly), and find a seat or suitable place to stand. An assistant on the bus will come around and collect the money from the passengers at regular intervals. If you do not have exact change, the assistant will make change for you.

At some downtown area stops, passengers pay at a turnstile before boarding the bus. The cashier will hand you a small slip of paper with a bar code on it which you scan to go through the turnstile.

If you are transferring from one bus to another at one of these stops, you do not have to pay for the second ride if you stay inside the bus loading area.

Loja’s city buses cost $0.30 USD per ride as of early 2017.  Students, senior citizens and physically disabled patrons ride for $0.15.

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Some of the less popular routes will not have an assistant to collect your bus fare. If this is the case while you are riding, simply pay the bus driver before you get off. Exact change is appreciated so the driver can focus on driving instead of making change, but they will make change if you need it.

If you ride a bus all the way to the end of a line and stay on board, they expect you to pay the 30-cent fare again for the return trip. At one end of the line, the bus drivers take breaks, clean their buses, and do maintenance work while waiting their turn to resume the route. You will be kicked off the bus and can jump on another one leaving at the regularly scheduled interval.

Buses wait their turn during the break periods.

Summary of Loja’s Bus Routes

Loja has nine city bus routes: L-1, L-2, L-4, L-5, L-7, L-8, L-10, L-11, and L-12. (There is no L-3, L-6, or L-9 as of this writing.)  

Interactive Loja City Bus System Map

Zoom in for detail.  To see the various routes individually:  

1. Click on the slider icon next to the words “Loja City Bus Map” in the top left.  
2. Check or un-check the routes to show or hide them.

CLICK HERE to open up the Loja City Bus Map in its own page.

DOWNLOAD THE LOJA BUS SCHEDULE

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For a printable table summarizing Loja’s entire bus system, including the route numbers, end points, notable stops, frequency, and schedule, click the button below:

[thrive_2step id=’3625′]GET THE FREE SPREADSHEET[/thrive_2step]lorem ipsum dolor

L-1: El Rosal – Pitas

This route begins at El Rosal, a neighborhood in the southeastern part of Loja, and ends in Pitas in the northwestern part of Loja.

L-2: Argelia – Sauces Norte

This is the primary route running along Loja’s main north-south roads, from the Universidad Nacional de Loja to Sauces Norte.  You will likely ride this line the most unless you’re staying in an outlying neighborhood.

L-4: Borja – Isidro Ayora

This route sticks to the west side of town, beginning due west of the Terminal Terrestre (bus station) at Borja, traveling east to the bus station, then dropping south into the downtown area before winding up the hill to the west and south and ending up in Barrio Isidro Ayora.

L-5: Zamora Huayco – Colinas Lojanas

This is an east-west route that runs from the nice neighborhood of Zamora Huayco up the Zamora river on the east side of town, through the downtown area, down to the roundabout on Pio Jaramillo (near Supermaxi), then up through Barrio Daniel Alvarez to Barrio Colinas Lojanas high on the western side of Loja.

L-7: Punzara – Motupe

L-7 is a north-south route along the western side of town which roughly parallels the more popular L-2 route, except that it ventures farther south into Barrio Punzara. The route begins at Punzara in the south and runs north up to Motupe along the western side of town.

L-8: Ciudad Victoria – Carigán

Much like the L-4 route, the L-8 sticks to the west side of town. 

Route L-8 shares some downtown stations with the L-2 and L-11 buses, so if you ride to the “Plaza de la Independencia” station (downtown, where the pedestrian bridge crosses the street) and don’t go out through the turnstiles, you can transfer to one of the other buses without having to pay for bus fare a second time.  To ride a bus in the opposite direction, cross over on the pedestrian bridge. This will keep you inside the bus station.

The “Plaza de la Independencia” station. (Photo credit: El Universo)

L-10: Sauces Norte – Argelia

Just as Route L-7 parallels the L-2 to the west, Route L-10 parallels route L-2 to the east, and has the same beginning and end points of Sauces Norte and Argelia.

L-11: Tierras Coloradas – Bolonia

Route L-11 joins the L-4 and the L-8 on the west side of town. This route also shares some downtown stations with the L-2 and L-8 buses, so from the “Plaza de la Independencia” station you can transfer to one of the other buses without having to pay for bus fare a second time.

L-12: Sol de los Andes – El Paraíso

This is an interesting route. It starts in the scenic southwestern part of town and ends in a canyon next to the Jipiro River on the northeastern end of town.  

DOWNLOAD THE LOJA BUS SCHEDULE

​

For a printable table summarizing Loja’s entire bus system, including the route numbers, end points, notable stops, frequency, and schedule, click the button below:

[thrive_2step id=’3625′]GET THE FREE SPREADSHEET[/thrive_2step]lorem ipsum dolor

Want to learn more about the different neighborhoods in Loja, plus lists of things to see and do and tips for settling in if you’re thinking about moving to Loja? Pick up a copy of my book, Live Like a Local in Loja, and learn all about this city!

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Have you used the Loja bus system before?  Has anything changed since I was there?  Share your thoughts and updates in the comments below!​