Dylan Sherlock says heB次元官网网址檚 lucky to live at the south end of the No. 4 bus route.
Just a few stops after he boards the morning bus headed to the University of Victoria, the bus reaches its capacity for riders leaving those who donB次元官网网址檛 share SherlockB次元官网网址檚 good fortune waiting at the curb.
B次元官网网址淎 lot of days, just one bus will pass over 100 people,B次元官网网址� said Sherlock, director of finance and operations for the UVic StudentsB次元官网网址� Society.
Between Sept. 1, 2011 and Jan. 31, 2012, transit drivers reported a total 29,296 pass ups, with the vast majority of that number (20,448) on routes servicing Camosun College and UVic. ThatB次元官网网址檚 all due to change April 1.
B.C. TransitB次元官网网址檚 includes the restoration of 7,000 service hours cut last year to save funds lost from declining ridership. Approximately 5,000 hours are slated for the No. 4, 14, 16, 21 and 26 routes leading to UVic and/or Camosun campuses.
B次元官网网址淲eB次元官网网址檙e ecstatic,B次元官网网址� said Sherlock. B次元官网网址淲e really feel like thereB次元官网网址檚 this forward momentum making the transit system better for riders.B次元官网网址�
Service hours were cut at a time when students were already concerned about late-night service, he added.
B次元官网网址淚ssues moved beyond extending transit hours for students towards, B次元官网网址極h my God I canB次元官网网址檛 even get on a bus to go to my class in the morning.B次元官网网址� It feels like once again weB次元官网网址檙e moving in the right direction.B次元官网网址�
While the restored hours are a big step in the right direction, student societies say more needs to be done to resolve transit issues affecting students.
B次元官网网址淲e need to remember that this still just brings us up to the level of service hours before those hours were cut,B次元官网网址� said Camosun College Student Society external executive Madeline Keller-MacLeod. B次元官网网址淎nd there were problems at that time as well.B次元官网网址�
The next step, Keller-MacLeod said, will include identifying key transit corridors and implementing bus priority and high occupancy vehicle lanes B次元官网网址� a challenge she put forward to the mayors of Saanich, Esquimalt, Sidney, Colwood and Victoria during the last Victoria Regional Transit Commission meeting.
B次元官网网址淵ou hook them while theyB次元官网网址檙e young,B次元官网网址� Sherlock said. B次元官网网址淵ou get people on the bus while theyB次元官网网址檙e going to university and itB次元官网网址檒l become a part of their culture about how they approach transportation B次元官网网址� On the flip side, if their experience is terrible, then studentsB次元官网网址� impressions of public transportation is going to be very different.B次元官网网址�
nnorth@saanichnews.com
