NDP says bus service is essential

News Release
Rafterty/Hyer

New Democrat Members of Parliament John Rafferty (Thunder Bay – Rainy River) and Bruce Hyer (Thunder Bay – Superior North) are calling on the Harper government to intervene and prevent the elimination of Greyhound intercity bus service to Northwestern Ontario.

“These service cuts will be catastrophic to the social and economic fibre of our region, and the Harper government must do everything in their power to stop them from happening,” Rafferty said. Rafferty was reacting to today’s Greyhound’s announcement that it will be cutting its service to every community in Northwestern Ontario and Manitoba within the next 90 days. “This government now has 3 months, maybe less, to protect the families and businesses of our region from this disaster. They must act.”
New Democrat Tourism Critic Bruce Hyer said “If the government stands by and does nothing, this will be a further blow to rural and northern local economies that are already reeling from the forestry crisis and recession. In many communities, tourism is one of the only economic engines still running. Scrapping the only intercity bus service to places that already have limited or no train or air service will run rural tourism right off the road.”

The two MPs said Harper should do everything in its power to stop the service cuts by offering emergency assistance or loans to the company or through action in the courts. “I don’t think the government can or should bail the company out, but they should open to providing temporary assistance to protect the people of Northwestern Ontario from the service cuts until the company can find a more permanent solution that maintains service to the region.” With the loss of VIA Rail to the region and air travel as an the only alternative for many, Rafferty says the government must pull out all of the stops. “They should be prepared to take this to the courts and get an injunction to prevent the cuts if necessary.”

Rafferty and Hyer both believe that intercity bus service is an essential service to the region, and especially so today given the dramatic problems in the forestry sector and decline in tourism due to the economic crisis. “Local transportation options for people in Northwestern communities have already been slashed under decades of cuts to VIA Rail and skyrocketing gas prices. For many, the bus is the only way they have left to travel out of town for medical treatments, work, and to see family and loved ones. This is much more than just one company cutting service, this is the last option being cut off.”