In the wake of Greyhound Canada’s announcement that it will end passenger and freight bus services in Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba – and all but one route in B.C. – one of Surrey’s new civic slates is calling for local and provincial governments to fill the void with a new interurban transit service.
Calling Greyhound’s move a “shocking dereliction of duty,” a trio of Proudly Surrey council candidates say it is “in the interest of every B.C. community to see that our province remains connected.”
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“Government must step in,” Stuart Parker said in a news release Tuesday morning.
Greyhound Canada made its announcement Monday. It takes effect at the end of October.
Proudly Surrey’s release notes the slate’s platform already includes a new interurban transit service to U.S. communities such as Bellingham and Blaine, and support for commuter rail on the Burlington Northern and Southern BC Rail lines through Surrey.
“Many seniors and youth who are not able to drive, even if they can afford vehicles, live in and visit our community,” Parker said. “What had been a serious problem for these residents has just become a crisis with the end of Greyhound service.”
The release from Parker and fellow slate members Felix Kongyuy and Adam MacGillivray described Surrey as the logical place for a transit hub.
The group called on the incumbent Surrey First slate to “present a resolution in support of a shared provincial bus and rail network backed by regional districts, municipalities and the provincial transportation ministry,” at the UBCM Convention, set for Sept. 10-14 in Whistler.
The three candidates are drafting a resolution, the release notes.
“This should not be a partisan issue,” Parker said.