“It’s a capital city — right? — with no transportation,” Mr. Marques said. “It doesn’t make sense.”

That morning, the first passenger was Jordan Angnetsiaq, 35, who rode the bus daily from his home in Apex, the most distant neighborhood from central Iqaluit, to his government job downtown. The fare, five Canadian dollars, or $3.50, was about half the price of cabs, which charge a flat fare of nine Canadian dollars and 75 cents per person, per ride, or $6.85.

“Even in winter, I walked pretty much every day,” Mr. Angnetsiaq said, adding that the three-mile walk took him about an hour, each way. “Only when my knee felt really sore, I took the taxi a couple of times,” added Mr. Angnetsiaq, who had anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction surgery five years ago.

At a stop, Mr. Marques popped on board. He had succeeded in sliding the battery tray back into the bus and driven it over.

“We’re just changing buses,” Mr. Marques told Mr. Angnetsiaq, still the only passenger.

“I don’t need to pay again?” Mr. Angnetsiaq asked.

Reassured that he didn’t, he relaxed in the more comfortable, coach-style bus bought off eBay. His sister, another regular, didn’t get on this morning. In fact, many Inuit were away on the land this time of the year, in keeping with their timeless practice of fishing and hunting amid the melting ice.