The Honourable John Baird, P.C., M.P.
Minister of Transport, Infrastructure and Communities
Place de Ville, Tower C, 29th Floor
330 Sparks Street
Ottawa, ON
K1A 0N5
Dear Minister Baird,
As you know Greyhound Canada has been cutting back service to rural communities across Canada. We have certainly felt the effect here in southern British Columbia.
On January 17th, 2010 the bus schedule was amended from two buses arriving and departing daily for destinations east and west to one bus daily. Another bus is added three days per week. That leaves four days with limited bus service to and from our communities.
Given the fact that senior levels of government have been directly involved in funding transportation infrastructure in our country, I would like to ask you to consider the possibility of doing the same for rural bus service. We are told by Greyhound that many rural bus lines are not profitable and, as a result, services need to be scaled back.
The federal government in partnership with provincial governments has helped fund transport projects in major cities such as Vancouver. Via Rail is another example of federal government involvement in transportation for the benefit of rail passengers.
I believe that it would be logical for our federal government to explore the possibility of a partnership with Greyhound and other bus lines to ensure that adequate bus service is maintained between communities in rural Canada.
A strong network of public transportation assists in making rural communities attractive places to live.
Sincerely,
Alex Atamanenko, M.P.
BC Southern Interior
Tags: bus