Route changes and on-demand service are some of the changes coming to Grande Prairie Transit after members of city council approved the redesigned transit plan on Tuesday night.
The crux of the redesign, according to the city, is that it includes what they call three key methods of delivering service; fixed routes using larger buses, fixed routes using smaller community buses, and an on-demand system
Mayor Jackie Clayton says the approval comes after nearly a full term’s worth of discussion and debate on how to transform transit without breaking the bank.
“Council has been looking at a transit upgrade for many years, the transit system hasn’t seen significant changes really in the last 10 years,” she says.
“In 2018, there was a transit master plan completed that looked at recommended service improvements, that wouldn’t have a significant cost increase.”
Clayton says on-demand services will also likely be introduced in 2021, with communities like Signature Falls, Countryside South, O’ Brien Lake, and Kensington among those likely to see the service become available in the not-so-distant future.
“They’re not new across the province or across the country, they’re utilized in many communities across Alberta… We are just looking to have another mode of transportation to be able to service the entire city without increasing the expense of transit overall.”
Despite public engagement taking place throughout the process, Clayton says councillors have asked for assurances that the dialogue with residents and transit users continues so they can attempt to make any needed tweaks down the line.
“There was an engagement process utilized through this plan, there wasn’t a great amount of uptake in giving us your opinion in terms of transit,” she says.
“Administration has committed to a six-month review, and an annual review… overall the goal here is to assure all areas receiving transit continue to have service [of] some type.”
A full list of new routes is as follows:
Route 1: Mission Heights/Eastlink/Westgate/Regional Hospital/GPRC
Route 2: South Patterson/Eastlink/Highland Park
Route 3: “Shopper Shuttle”-GPRC/Westgate/Centre West Business Park/Richmond Industrial Park
Route 4: GPRC/Regional Hospital/Royal Oaks/Northridge/Prairie Mall/100th St
Route 5: Highland Park/Poplar Drive/Country Club Estates/Eastlink/100th St
Route 6: 100th St/Prairie Mall/Crystal Lake/Mountview/Hillside
Route 7: Smith/Cobblestone/Crystal Heights/Prairie Mall/QE 2 Hospital
Route 8: Farmers Market/New Composite High School/Avondale/Prairie Mall/102 St
