BC Transit says it is working hard to adapt its service to meet the growing needs of West Shore residents.
But Colwood resident Lisa McGregor said itB次元官网网址檚 still not enough.
When concerns were originally expressed about the locations of the two new high schools in the Sooke School District, she said, parents were promised there would be an adequate number of both types of buses for students and staff. ThatB次元官网网址檚 something she said hasnB次元官网网址檛 happened yet.
McGregor, a mother of three, is tired of her eldest daughter being late for school at Belmont due to being passed up by full BC Transit buses.
B次元官网网址淚t takes her almost two hours to get to school and most of the time she ends up walking,B次元官网网址� she said.
McGregorB次元官网网址檚 15-year-old is up at 6:30 every morning to be at the bus stop on Sooke Road by 7:30. But her daughter is often left standing near the intersection of Sooke and Kelly roads as full buses drive past.
B次元官网网址淗alf the time they donB次元官网网址檛 even stop,B次元官网网址� McGregor said. B次元官网网址淚 think itB次元官网网址檚 ridiculous.B次元官网网址�
If she can, sheB次元官网网址檒l catch a bus on Sooke Road then attempt to transfer at the Langford Exchange on Station Avenue. But often she is also left standing there, McGregor said, as buses to the Westhills area are too full to accept more passengers.
B次元官网网址淚f she can, sheB次元官网网址檒l jump on the trolley B次元官网网址� usually she ends up walking.B次元官网网址�
The problem, according to BC Transit media and public relations advisor Mike Russell, is B次元官网网址渙ver the last few years the Victoria Regional Transit Commission has had to balance the needs of the community as a whole while having little to no service expansion hours.B次元官网网址�
With the opening of the new Royal Bay secondary in Colwood and the new Belmont secondary in Langford last fall, BC Transit did not have the ability to expand services, Russell said, but altered routes 52 and 59 to serve Royal Bay bell times.
He explained that every additional trip or route used to service the new schools means reduced service hours on another route.
That is whatB次元官网网址檚 causing challenges with route 54, which services Happy Valley, Sooke and Glen Lake roads. At this point, he said, they do not have the ability to take from another route to increase service in this area.
There are a few different bus routes that travel Sooke Road en route to the Langford Exchange, which McGregorB次元官网网址檚 daughter could take, but she said a number of them use smaller buses, which have lower capacity and are also often full.
Russell said BC Transit puts full-size buses, when available, on select trips to meet demand and that some have been added to route 52 since January. That route is one of the most popular in the area for children traveling to area schools.
With a seven year old in elementary school and a four year old in preschool, McGregor said itB次元官网网址檚 difficult to drive all three of her children because their start times vary. As for the option of having her daughter ride a school bus to Belmont in the morning, she said it wasnB次元官网网址檛 much cheaper than taking Transit. She added that a BC Transit pass, for which she pays $45 a month, also offers her daughter more travel flexibility after school and on weekends.
McGregor would like to see that money used to add more or bigger buses to routes before and after school.
BC Transit has been monitoring concerns from parents since the start of the school year, Russell said, and has addressed a considerable number.
When asked if students being chronically late due to bus delays was a problem for the District, a spokesperson said it was not and may only be impacting a handful of students at the two local high schools.
katie@goldstreamgazette.com
