Greyhound shuts down services in Western Canada

By Miriam Ostermann, Associate Editor

New transportation woes are facing Strathmore, Wheatland County and the rest of Western Canada, following Greyhound Canada’s announcement of axing its passenger bus and freight services.
As of Oct. 31, Greyhound will discontinue all routes in Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba, and cancel all routes in British Columbia except one service route between Vancouver and Seattle.
The decision will affect 107 communities in Alberta and eliminates a means of transportation for hundreds of passengers annually.
“We are very sympathetic for all Greyhound customers, especially those in small towns and rural areas such as Strathmore and Wheatland County where we have proudly provided service for decades – in some communities for more than 85 years,” said Stuart Kendrick, senior vice president for Greyhound Canada.
“We have tried to correct this situation over multiple years, but our service has been challenged by numerous factors and simply put, we can no longer operate unsustainable routes.”
A total of 333 outbound passengers and 332 terminating passengers – ending their trip in Strathmore – used the service in Strathmore from April 2017 to March 2018.
“The decision by Greyhound is a very unfortunate thing,” said Strathmore Mayor Pat Fule. “Our community, like many others, used the system for travel and many deliveries and shipping. I realize it’s their corporate decision, but it will affect our residents and many others. I’m hoping they considered all options before they finalized this end of service.”
The company said a decline of nearly 41 per cent in rural ridership since 2010, increased competition from subsidized national and inter-regional passenger transportation services, the new entry of ultra-low-cost carriers, regulatory constraints and increased car ownership led to the discontinuation of operations in all provinces except Ontario, Quebec and Canada-U.S. routes. In the process, 415 jobs will be lost and nearly two million consumers will feel the impact.
“It is with heavy heart that we announce these service impacts for the end of October,” Kendrick had stated previously in a press release. “We understand that these route changes are difficult for our customers.”
The company announced it had made various cost-reduction efforts in recent years; however, the actions proved insufficient as the trajectory continued to spiral downward.
Greyhound Canada stated they will continue its discussions with provincial and federal governments about the importance of government investment in rural connectivity and are committed to keeping customers informed. Updates and route change information can be found at greyhoundcanada.ca.