NDP government offers commitment to protecting reliable transportation in Northern communities

BC Transportation Minister
Claire Trevena has weighed
in on the move by  Greyhound
Canada to seek an
end to its Northern BC service

The Province of British Columbia has expanded on their response to the application by Greyhound bus lines to cease their northern route operations if approved by the Passenger Transportation Board.

Transportation and Infrastructure Minister Claire Trevena released a statement on Tuesday, expressing concern over the potential loss of service and offering a bit more detail on how the government plans to keep watch on the issue as the PTB process moves forward.

“As an independent body, the Passenger Transportation Board is required to consider this application and render their decision based on the service needs of these communities, as well as the viability of Greyhound’s business along the route. We will follow this application closely and look forward to the Passenger Transportation Board’s review and its final decision. 

While we await the decision of the board, we will work with local governments to explore all options to support affordable transportation in Northern B.C., including examining how other jurisdictions have successfully preserved rural bus services."

The Minister also observed that the provincial government will be working with affected communities to seek out reliable transportation options that will help those communities grow and thrive.

North Coast MLA Jennifer Rice relayed the statement through her online constituency website

You can read the full statement from the Minister here

As we've noted over the course of the last week, the reaction across Northwest is building following the announcement by Greyhound of their plans, you can review some of our notes below:

Grass roots campaign launched to push for Transportation options for Highway 16 corridor
Transition Society takes lead in North Coast push back on Greyhound application
MLA Rice disappointed, awaiting more info on Greyhound cuts; No comment yet from Prince Rupert Mayor, Council
Greyhound to seek end to Northern British Columbia routes
Concerns raised over potential cut to Prince Rupert Greyhound Service

A wider overview of the regional news flow on the issue can be found here.

For more items related to MLA Rice's work in Victoria see our Legislature archive page here, we also have further items of note on politics both Federal and provincial available on our political portal D'Arcy McGee.