Transit systems essential to life in Alberta

By Gillian Slade on April 19, 2018.

gslade@medicinehatnews.com  @MHNGillianSlade

It’s a conundrum — how to provide public transit for those who have no alternative means of getting about or want to reduce emissions and make the system economically viable.

The Alberta government is highly supportive of public transit in general and is well aware that it is more cost- effective in larger centres with higher density living, said Brian Mason, minister of Alberta Transport.

“We are also aware that there’s an aging population, including in smaller centres and rural areas, that may not necessarily have access to a car but still have to get to medical appointments, shopping … to visit their family and so on,” said Mason.

Greyhound has been connecting small communities with buses for more than 80 years. The geographic area it covers has not changed much but the frequency of its service has, said Stuart Kendrick, senior vice president Greyhound Canada.

In the last 20 years or so there has been a population decline in rural areas and most people now have a vehicle of their own or can rely on someone who has, said Kendrick.

However, the demand for a transport service between Medicine Hat and Calgary has been increasing, according to local operators.

Prairie Sprinter began offering service once a day in 2012 and quickly had to increase it to two a day. The rate of growth has been surprising, said owner/partner Isabel Hansen.

J&L Shuttle began providing the same service even earlier and also operates two small buses daily to and from Calgary. It also has a service from Lethbridge to Calgary and is considering reintroducing service from Medicine Hat to Lethbridge, said owner Sam Sayegh.

Both operators pick people up at their homes and take them to key destinations in Calgary. On the return to Medicine Hat they are dropped off at their home address.

Those using the service have a considerable range in age.

Hansen says most customers are predominantly between the ages of 20 and 50, but there are also older people and even children travelling back and forth to spend time with a family member.

Sayegh says his company transports many older people.

“The convenience of coming to their door and helping them with their suitcases is a big factor,” said Sayegh. “Then you help them on the bus and they feel a sense of security.”

Some seniors who may still drive and own a vehicle choose not to drive long distances, said Sayegh.

This is often noticeable depending on the season. Some may drive themselves in summer but inwinter choose not to drive, said Hansen.

So why do people take a shuttle to Calgary? The only way to get an idea of the purpose of the trip is from the drop-off locations, and the two services say the most popular destinations arethe airport, various hospitals, shopping malls and Greyhound and Red Arrow North bus depots.

This is not definitive though. A friend or family member may be picking the person up at the hospital or a mall rather than it being an indication of the purpose of the trip, said Hansen. Some people are picked up at Greyhound in Calgary to return to Medicine Hat because of the convenience of time, she said.

There may be another reason why this service to Calgary has been growing. Hansen says there is a “personal connection” established with those who regularly use the service.

A high percentage of Greyhound’s passengers are between the ages of 18 and 24 and then also seniors, said Kendrick.

Greyhound’s main corridor in Alberta is Calgary, Edmonton and Fort McMurray. The volume of passengers fluctuates depending on how the oil sands are performing, said Kendrick.

Greyhound has been seeing a downward trend of people in small communities using the service.

“Any private carrier who doesn’t get subsidized is having a very hard time in keeping the service levels for the demand but it is still very important,” said Kendrick.

Many years ago there were highly popular routes that helped to offset the cost of rural routes with fewer passengers but operators say that is no longer the case. The only other alternative is to reduce frequency of service, said Kendrick. At one time, transporting parcels also helped to offset the reduced passenger traffic but the demand for that service has also declined.

Prairie Sprinter has been working with Travel Alberta and provides guided tour packages. No longer are visitors to Alberta left with just the Rockies to explore. There is a five-day, four-night tour from Calgary that includes the Cypress Hills, Medicine Hat, Dinosaur Provincial Park (a UNESCO World Heritage site), Atlas Coal Mine and culminates at Rosebud including taking in a theatre performance.

In the summer there is a one-day round trip from Calgary to Dinosaur Provincial Park that includes a 45- minute guided walking tour of the site.

“We are pioneering it,” said Natalie Koch, marketing manager of Prairie Sprinter. “Alberta isn’t just the Rockies.”

There are a range of tours from Medicine Hat too.

Back to linking smaller communities: Alberta Transport has been looking at the load factor and the need to link smaller communities such as Redcliff to Medicine Hat, Bow Island, Cypress County and Forty Mile County, said Mason.

A pilot project has been developed to work with municipal transit systems to connect smaller communities with government financial support.

“It is a pilot. It is not a full-blown program in terms of the available budget. We thought we could make a start by establishing a pilot and testing how it works and see what the response was,” said Mason. “Hopefully if it is successful we can improve on that and make it a province-wide program.”

The provincial government has taken a stance on reducing emissions and public transport could play a part, said Mason. “I think people are quite aware of the need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions,” he said. “Having said that I think the primary motivation in this case will be people who have no other transportation options. That’s actually the highest needs, the group that we are targeting.

People are looking for options other than using private automobiles but only if it works for them.

“If it’s convenient enough and if it’s affordable people will take public transit,” said Mason.

Kendrick says perhaps there needs to be a public awareness campaign of the difference between having 40 people travelling in a bus rather that 40 vehicles with one person in each.

https://prairiesprinterinc.ca/

http://www.jandlshuttle.com/index.php?msg=1

https://www.greyhound.ca/

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