Resecca CARMICHAEL

Copy Epiror

Prince George students may often complain
about some of the problems and limitations
with the transit system, but you’ll be glad
to know that services are expanding. Things
like limited weekend service, lack of night
service, lack of a UPass, and infrequent stops
are often cited as issues. The people at the
Prince George transit system have been hard
at work to take these concerns into considera-
tion and expand services as much as possible
within the constraints of their budget, includ-
ing Transit Analyst and UNBC alumni Aidan
Kelly.

These expanded services include more fre-
quent stops at peak times on routes 15, 1/11
and 5/55 during peak morning and afternoon
hours on weekdays. The route 15 also now
runs until three in the morning on Friday and
Saturday nights on a trial basis. There is also
a new bus stop at the Northern Sports Centre
for routes 15 and 16 on the way in, but not on
the way out. Five new buses will be added to
the fleet in order to accommodate increased
hours and demand.

The provincial Ministry of Transportation
has invested $32 million in increased tran-
sit services in various BC municipalities. In

e face of the new cafeteria. Too bad the food hasn’t changed.

Transit Options for

hours of service annually. The provincial
government contributes close to half of the

annual quarter million
dollar budget, while the
city contributes the rest.

There were many pos-
sible ways to use the
budget increase. They
decided to make changes
where they would have
the greatest impact. The
most obvious direction
was to focus on increas-
ing services for UNBC
and CNC _ students,
since they make up the
large majority of tran-
sit ridership in Prince
George. The areas of
highest demand connect
the downtown and bowl
areas with UNBC and
CNC. Since most buses
coming from in town
have to transfer onto the
route 15 in order to get
to UNBC, this bus in

particular experiences overcrowding, some-

capacity to let all students on.
With these changes, the route 15 now runs
at approximately 15 minute intervals during

peak times in the mor-
nings and afternoons on
weekdays. These allow
students greater fiex-
ibility in getting to and
from classes on time.
Routes 1/11 and 5/55
have also added several
extra buses at half hour
intervals during peak
times, indicating high
demand from the resi-

_ dential areas serviced
by these buses. Be sure

to check a bus schedule
to see when these new
stops are, since they do
only occur at particular
times.

One of the biggest
changes to the transit
system is that we now
have limited night ser-
vice on weekends. The
annual New Year’s bus

has been successful in the past, leading to the

times to the point where there isn’t enough possibility of helping people get safe rides

home with transit throughout the year. The
number 15 bus will run at hour intervals until
3:00 a.m. on Friday and Saturday nights. This
will allow many students greater access to and
from the downtown core safely and cheaply.
This change has received some of the most
positive feedback so far. It will be running on
a provisional basis until the end of April. In
order to keep this service running and expand
it to other areas, people have to actually use it,
so be sure to try it out.

Transit ridership in Prince George is pro-
jected to increase due to these expanded
services and increased awareness of the en-
vironmental, social and financial benefits of
using transit. There is a possibility that UNBC
will soon partner with Prince George transit
to bring us a UPass service, as is available in
many other universities. This would involve
bus passes being automatically provided to
students through our student fees.

Of course, there is still much that needs to
be done, such as improving services for more

“sparsely populated areas of town and provid-

ing more frequent stops at all times. But so far
Prince George transit has been doing a good
job of prioritizing in order to make transit
more accessible to everyone.

Miyrcy Geant, Puore Enis