Greyhound gets nod to cut routes in face of losses, less passengers
Greyhound Canada will be allowed eliminate or reduce routes in northern British Columbia, the Interior and Vancouver Island after financial losses and a steep drop in passengers.
But B.C.’s transportation minister says the company is gutting an essential service.
On Wednesday, B.C.’s Passenger Transportation Board approved Greyhound’s application to cut and reduce routes after the company cited millions of dollars in losses due to declining ridership.
The board says in a written decision that passenger demand for the service has declined 46 per cent since 2010. It says routes that were once profitable are no longer providing enough revenue for the company, which receives no subsidies and has lost $70 million over the last six years.
Greyhound vice-president Stuart Kendrick says five routes in northern B.C. will be cut June 1. No date has been set to abandon the Victoria-to-Nanaimo route, though 14 days’ notice will be issued. Service in the Interior will be slashed. He says the company regrets the changes.
“We’ve been challenged in the last several years to maintain a viable service and have had the opportunity to communicate that to the minister,” Kendrick said. “Most of these corridors are under 10 people a trip, so it’s not sustainable long term.”
The cuts include routes along B.C.’s so-called Highway of Tears, between Prince George and Prince Rupert; Prince George to Valemont at the Alberta border, Dawson Creek to Prince George and Dawson Creek to Whitehorse.
At least 18 women have gone missing or have been murdered along the Highway of Tears; several of the missing were last seen hitchhiking on the route. The provincial government recently launched bus service in the area.
Kendrick said Greyhound has pushed municipal and provincial governments to consider a “community connectivity fund” to provide needed service.
Transportation Minister Claire Trevena says people rely on Greyhound’s long-haul, inter-city service to get to and from major cities. “Eliminating and reducing service along rural and remote routes will leave people vulnerable, particularly Indigenous communities, women, seniors, children and those living with disabilities,” she said in a statement.