Ebus making changes to its schedule

Three weeks after Greyhound pulled out of Western Canada, one of the new companies taking its place has had to make changes to all of its routes, while another has yet to hit the road.

Edmonton-based Ebus has been up and running since Oct. 31, the day Greyhound ceased service.

Ebus operates passenger routes from Kelowna to Vancouver, Kelowna to Kamloops and Kamloops to Vancouver.

The biggest challenge so far has been scheduling, said John Stepovy, director of business development.

After two weeks in business, the company changed all its route schedules.

The main complaint customers have had is that buses are late, so Ebus changed its arrival and departure times to be more accurate.

“If we’re 20 minutes late leaving because there was trafÀc in Richmond and maybe an additional Àve-minute delay in Abbotsford, that adds up by the time you get to Kamloops or Kelowna,” said Stepovy.

One of the major changes was scrapping the Richmond stop because of low demand.

Ebus currently stops at Kelowna's airport, and the company is working on Ànding a more central location in town, as well as a stop in West Kelowna.

Overall, the Àrst couple weeks of business have been fairly good, said Stepovy.

“Over the long weekend, there was a lot of people travelling . . . . other days, less so,” he said. “I think more or less it’s fair to say it’s been in line with our expectations, but there’s certainly work to be done to grow a sustainable, steady ridership.”

Merritt Shuttle was approved to offer bus service in the province on Oct. 19, but the private company is not yet in business. One of the proposed routes is from Merritt to Kelowna. The Passenger Transportation Board ordered Merritt Shuttle to have buses on the road by Nov. 21, but the company says it won't meet that deadline.

Gene Field, director of operations of Merritt Shuttle, said he is waiting to hear back about funding from the federal government.

Transport Minister Marc Garneau announced last month the federal government was providing two years of funding to provinces to Àll gaps left by Greyhound.

Field said he is hoping for enough money to buy the Merritt Shuttle buses.

“We’ve got some buses in line already, it’s a matter of getting some money together,” he said.

“Once we get some funding, we can get the buses and get them on the road right away.”

Field said he is applying for an extension from the board pending the funding.

“We’re hoping to be up and running by Dec. 1,” he said. “I don’t think they will have an issue giving us an extension, because they know how vital our service is to the communities that we’re going to be servicing.”

Even before launching, the response from the community has been incredible, said Field.

“We’re a little overwhelmed by the response that we’ve been getting,” he said.

“They’re saying how much they need the service and how happy they are that they can now get home for Christmas and visit their families. It’s very encouraging.”

Merritt Shuttle plans to use former Greyhound depots in some communities such as Cache Creek and 100 Mile House.

A location has not been set for Kelowna yet, but it could possibly be Orchard Park mall or the hospital, said Field.

Along with passenger bus service, Merritt Shuttle is also planning to get into the cargo business.