BR Greyhound Route Closures – CP

Source: The Canadian Press – Broadcast wire
Sep 1, 2017

VANCOUVER – Greyhound Canada says it’s applied to regulators in British Columbia to drop five routes — four of them in the north — as the company deals with plunging ridership.

Stuart Kendrick, a senior vice-president at Greyhound, says there’s been a 51-per-cent drop in passengers since 2010, and increased competition from publicly subsidized services such as B-C Transit hasn’t helped.

Routes that would be eliminated include a 718-kilometre run along Highway 16 — the so-called Highway of Tears — between Prince George and Prince Rupert.

The murders and disappearances of women along that highway sparked the launch of a subsidized route in June connecting Burns Lake, Prince George and Smithers, mirroring portions of the Greyhound route.

Tribal chief Terry Teegee of the Carrier Sekani First Nation says rural residents need reliable transportation between communities that are geographically spread out so subsidized services may have to be expanded.

The Passenger Transportation Board could call public consultations as part of its decision process on Greyhound’s application.

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(The Canadian Press)

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