Skeena-Bulkley Valley MP Taylor Bachrach has presented a petition in the House of Commons today (Monday) calling on the federal government to create a national public bus service.
This comes after Greyhound left northern B.C in 2018 and across Canada it ceased operations last year.
According to Bachrach, the petition highlights the importance of passenger rail and bus service in connecting small and rural communities.
He added that the petition is calling on the Federal Government to show national leadership to empower an existing crown corporation or create a new one that will connect Canadians with bus services.
Bachrach said during the Town Hall that was held in February there were over 100 participants about the lack of regional bus and rail service.
“The message that we heard from so many people was that without good bus service connecting our communities once again there are many people who aren’t able to access services, they aren’t able to travel between communities safely and they aren’t able to have a high quality of life in the North,” he said.
Bachrach added that the most impactful stories during the Town Hall was about seniors who do not drive and were forced out of rural communities because they couldn’t enjoy the quality of life they once did.
He also said in the Northwest services have become centralized in larger communities.
“Particularly for people living in rural and remote communities without that bus service that people once depended on they really have fewer options in terms of visiting family, accessing medical services, legal services,” Bachrach said.
He added that in our region there have been initiatives by local and provincial governments to improve bus services.
The Federal Government has 45 days to issue a response to the petition.