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B.C. bus service applications to be fast-tracked after Greyhound pullout

GreyhoundBԪַs departure leaves few options for small communities
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B.C. Transportation Minister Claire Trevena (Black Press)

The B.C. Passenger Transportation Board will move applications BԪַto the front of the lineBԪַ encourage inter-city bus companies to pick up routes that Greyhound Canada leaves behind at the end of October.

An BԪַurgent public need processBԪַ is available for rural or remote corridors, where applicants donBԪַt have to publish the required notice to be considered, said Catharine Read, chair of the board, in a statement Wednesday.

Transportation Minister Claire Trevena said Tuesday she expects BԪַnimble and quickBԪַ response from smaller bus services to fill in the gap left by GreyhoundBԪַs departure.

The application procedure is explained on the boardBԪַs

Trevena said the solution would not be an expansion of B.C. Transit services.

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Greyhound Canada announced last week it is shutting down all service from northern Ontario west. It had earlier stopped routes in northern B.C. and on Vancouver Island.

BC TransitBԪַs service on Highway 16 to replace Greyhound service that ended in June is a pilot project for that region only, and private services are being sought to take up the other areas, Trevena said.

The last Greyhound bus pulled out of Terrace on June 1 with a single passenger on board, symbolizing the struggle of long-haul bus service in parts of the province. B.C.BԪַs Passenger Transportation Board approved cancelling seven B.C. routes that Greyhound said had accumulated losses of $70 million in the past six years.

B.C. Bus North began interim service on June 4, with two round trips a week between Prince Rupert and Prince George, Prince George and Valemount and Prince George to Dawson Creek and Fort St. John.





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