Parents left ‘scrambling’ following Greyhound service cancellations
Posted July 9, 2018 10:03 pm.
Last Updated July 9, 2018 10:33 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) – Some B.C. parents are speaking out after Greyhound Canada announced it would be cancelling all but one route in the province.
Dino Patro who lives in Maple Ridge is calling the situation “ridiculous.” He says the bus service offered by the company was the only affordable way for his 13-year-old to visit his mom, who lives in West Kelowna.
“This cancellation for both of us is going to cost us considerably more in the sense of unless we’re driving him, we’re flying him.”
He said driving him to and from West Kelowna is not a viable option, and neither if flying as it’s too expensive.
“There are very limited options in terms of moving around the province and it seems ridiculous that we are left with just those two options,” Patro said.
Jaime Ellis said he’s also scrambling to find solutions. He said his daughter goes to school in Kamloops and uses Greyhound to visit.
And he said she’s not the only one who will be affected by the service cancellation, noting a lot of her school friends have family in the Lower Mainland.
“I don’t know how we’re going to get her down here,” Ellis said. “Looking at flights, the cost of flights from Kamloops to here is ridiculous.”
He said flights cost about $240 versus $50-75 per bus ticket.
“To me, somebody needs to step in and I think it should be mandatory that there is a service in place and it’s got to be a reasonably priced service.”
Greyhound defends the move
Greyhound’s regional vice-president for Western Canada said the decision was not an easy one.
“This is certainly significant and it’s something that we regret having to make this decision,” said Peter Hamel.
He said there’s always a chance service could come back but notes they need help to stay afloat. Hamel said they’ve suggested the creation of a Connecting Communities Fund.
“It’s something that is a requirement to help private sector carriers be sustainable in these regions because there’s no private sector company that without some sort of assistance will be viable within these regions.”
Even though the company did not give the provincial government notice of the closure date, Hamel said the news shouldn’t come as a surprise.
“This is a message that we have communicated on numerous occasions.”
The changes are taking place at the end of October.
-With files from Kayla Butler
