[HALIFAX, NS] – Two of the three provincial governments in the Maritimes say any help for the region's troubled intercity bus service lies in opening up private sector competition, not in providing subsidies or in starting a publicly-funded regional service.
The transportation ministers for New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island said Wednesday they were warm to the idea of allowing private sector involvement to ensure a regional transit service would continue after Acadian Coach Lines shuts its operations down later this year.
Parent company Groupe Orleans Express announced a day earlier it would shut down the service by Nov. 30 because it couldn't cope with the costs of operating non-profitable routes. It says it lost close to $12 million since acquiring the bus service in 2004.
New Brunswick Transportation Minister Claude Williams expressed disappointment with the company's decision, but said he understood that many rural routes aren't financially viable.
Williams says his province is conducting its own review of intercity bus regulations and he plans to discuss options with Nova Scotia and P.E.I. over the next few days.
''I'll be talking to my counterparts in the other provinces in an effort to open up the industry to allow small commercial carriers to compete and do business,'' Williams says.
Bus service is regulated in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia where Acadian Coach Lines has exclusivity on the routes it operates. The company says that exclusivity allows profitable routes to compensate for those that don't make money, particularly those serving communities with small populations, but in the end that didn't prove to be the case.
Williams says the New Brunswick government has ruled out the possibility of subsidizing Acadian Coach Lines and isn't interested in setting up a publicly-funded service with other provinces.
P.E.I. Transportation Minister Robert Vessey also says a solution would have to be found in the private sector.
He says his province already subsidizes a public transit system with limited financial resources.
''It's a great opportunity for the private sector to take it and have a look at it with a new business model,'' Vessey says.
In Nova Scotia, Transportation Minister Maurice Smith was less definitive about what he thought should be done once Acadian Coach Lines closes, but says any solution would have to be agreed upon by all three provinces.
''This is a service that's being cut in all three provinces and I think we are much better off in trying to work together than each individual province going off on its own,'' Smith says.
The Crown-owned Saskatchewan Transportation Company operates 29 bus routes and serves 290 communities in that province. It reported a 7.4 per cent increase in ridership last year compared to 2010.
