The City of Salmon Arm is looking at an expansion of public transit services to include Sundays and evening hours.
At the Monday, May 27 council meeting, city staff will be seeking authorization to sign an Expansion Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for expansion initiatives relating to the Shuswap Regional Transit System.
In a related report, staff recommends investigating three proposed expansion initiatives. One is Sunday service on routes 1 (West Loop) and 2 (College/Hillcrest). The estimated total cost of this expansion is $56,929, the municipal share being $22,072. Estimated annual revenue: $4,292.
The second initiative, one that has been requested on a regular basis, is an extension of service on Fridays and Saturdays to 10 p.m. This would begin with two routes to gauge how popular this expanded service is. Estimated total cost is $22,772, with $8,769 being the municipal share. Estimated annual revenue: $1,776.
The third initiative involves extending service on weekdays to 8 p.m. This is another regularly requested expansion of service. Estimated total cost: $56,929; municipal share: $22,072; estimated annual revenue: $4,292.
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The above expansions were among recommended service improvements listed in a report to the city from BC Transit. Other proposed improvements not being recommended by city staff at this time include service to Salmon Arm’s industrial park, additional service on route 11 to Enderby and a reverse shoppers shuttle that would travel from Askew’s to Walmart and back, visiting more shopping establishments on local roads in the process.
The staff notes that with council’s support of the MOU, BC Transit will request from the province matching funding required for operating and capital costs.
In December 2018, council discussed putting $35,000 into reserve for potential route enhancements to be cost-shared with BC Transit.
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