The Transit Future Bus paid a visit to Keremeos on July 22, to present results of the transit future plan and to seek further input from Similkameen residents.
The first phase of the plan for Keremeos began last September with the initial visit of the Transit Future bus. That visit sought public opinion, as planners worked to put together a 25 year vision of goals and future transit route networks for the Lower Similkameen.
Last Tuesday’s visit presented the transit views expressed by the public last fall, and prioritized the implementation of options available for service.
“We heard from our public consultations last fall that Keremeos residents want more regional connections.
“This visit is an opportunity for us to ask, ‘Have we heard you correctly?’ ‘Have we got our priorities straight?’ as well as give people a chance to talk and learn about the service,” said BC Transit spokesperson Maria Lockley. She said the bus would return to Victoria to develop a final transit plan that would be presented to the regional district in draft form in the fall.
Service options for regional and inter-regional transit for the Similkameen include increasing the days of service between Princeton and Penticton, from the existing three days per week to offer one daily round trip, Monday to Friday.
Local service options presented for Keremeos prioritize the introduction of local service within Keremeos, with local connections to Cawston & Ollala.
Service would offer two to three round trips per day three days per week, with the possibility of growing service in the future. Service times would start and end to enable access to regional transit service.
“There is a hesitancy to spend money until the planning is done,” Lockley said of the transit plan, “we want to do something that’s going to last, and not be redundant 10 years later.”
BC Transit was also at the Keremeos Rodeo in May, soliciting opinions on transit future needs in the region, where they collected 60 opinions. Residents wishing to comment on the region’s future transit needs can find an online survey at:www.bctransit.com