An Alberta government decision to deregulate bus service could hurt rural Alberta, but Greyhound’s service was so poor it’s hard to imagine it could get worse, say rural residents.
“We’ve had very poor service here for so long,” said Terry Lee Degenhart of Hughenden, Alta.
Rural residents who must travel to medical appointments rely on friends and family to reach their appointments. Farm parts arrive by courier or farmers must travel several hours .
“It’s so awful anyway, so maybe it will be better.”
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Alberta transportation minister Luke Ouellette recently announced that the province’s intercity passenger bus service won’t be regulated as of Oct. 1 and carriers such as Greyhound and Red Arrow will no longer have limits on competition in exchange for servicing a minimum number of rural routes.
“This is about putting in place the tools necessary for a flexible and responsive bussing system for all Albertans,” Ouellette said when he announced the changes.
Greyhound announced last year that it was no longer economically feasible to operate buses on certain routes and would be canceling some service.
The government hopes eliminating the regulated system will encourage other carriers to provide service.
Alberta Transportation spokesperson Tammy Forbes said Greyhound’s announcement last year triggered the process to allow other carriers access to passenger service in Alberta.
“In reality, this is trying to support options for routes in Alberta, not limit them.”
Lynn Jacobson, a farmer from Enchant, Alta., said the nearest bus service from his southern Alberta town is 80 kilometres away. He suspects the heavily travelled routes will have more competition, but no one will bother to set up service in less travelled parts of the province.
Debbie Johnstone, chief administrative officer for the village of Veteran, said Greyhound has dropped its bus service to three days a week, but it is still a service that seniors such as her mother use when they need to travel.
“My mom takes the bus. I don’t know how busy the bus is,” she said.
Janice Chapman and her husband took over operating the Greyhound bus depot in Veteran nine years ago when Greyhound closed its doors. Their oilfield company relied on Greyhound to bring parts.
Few passengers ride the bus, but a lot of businesses in the area rely on the bus for parts delivery.
“We have a fair amount of freight business. We have a huge amount of rig stuff,” said Chapman, who is unsure what the deregulated service will mean for bus service in Veteran.
“I don’t know what it’s going to do. It’s not going to help us. We’ll probably lose our bus out here.”
Bob Barss, president of the Alberta Association of Municipal Districts and Counties, said they are cautiously optimistic that the changes will improve service to rural Alberta.
“The service hasn’t been great in rural and remote areas for quite a while unless you lived in a big freight corridor,” said Barss.
“We have to give it an opportunity to work before we criticize it.”
“We’re hoping this will open up opportunities for small carriers to get into rural Alberta.”
Greyhound Canada spokesperson Tom Olson said the company supports deregulating passenger bus service. It was no longer feasible for Greyhound to operate a 55-passenger bus on certain routes.
“There will be no loss of service. In fact, it will be enhanced,” he said.
Alberta NDP leader Brian Mason said deregulation is sure to eliminate service in rural Alberta.
“Where business can’t provide an essential service, government must step in. We see a strong transport system in Alberta as key to keeping rural communities vibrant and driving our economy.”
Bus routes in Manitoba and Saskatchewan are supported by government, he said.
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