Continued fallout from loss of STC

There continues to be collateral damage — further fallout — from the decision of the Saskatchewan government to eliminate the STC.

Global News in Calgary reported on June 10 that Greyhound had cancelled its Calgary-Saskatoon service. The article noted they had an interline service agreement with Alsask Bus Service and that they discontinued the service “due to the termination of the STC.” The article noted it was not Greyhound’s decision to end the service; it was due to the recent move by the Saskatchewan government.

The article also noted that two grandparents were going to come to Calgary from Saskatoon for their grandson’s second birthday party but when they went to book their tickets they found out the bus service had been cancelled.

The Saskatchewan government has displayed an appalling lack of competence in this decision, by compromising familial relationships, destroying a well-established infrastructure, and having absolutely no alternative in place.

They give as a reason the subsidy of the bus service. But this displays an equally appalling inconsistency of logic, as what about the subsidy for highways? In addition, how come Ontario can serve its sparsely populated area through the Crownowned Ontario Northland and Saskatchewan cannot do the same?

The STC service helped knit Saskatchewan together as a community. It was especially important to patients, the elderly, and indigenous peoples. A buzzword these days is ‘social conservatives.’ What about socially minded conservatives in the Saskatchewan Party? It’s probably an oxymoron.

Les Boehm, Toronto