Greyhound Canada To Downsize Its Canadian Business Based On A 41% Decline In Ridership Since 2010

EFFECTIVE OCTOBER 31, 2018 OPERATIONS WILL DISCONTINUE IN ALL PROVINCES EXCEPT ONTARIO AND QUEBEC, CANADA-US ROUTES WILL CONTINUE

TORONTO, July 9, 2018 /CNW/ -- Greyhound Canada has taken the difficult decision to downsize its operations. The company has notified all proper authorities of its intention to discontinue service – both passenger and freight -- effective October 31, 2018 in the provinces of Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba. In British Columbia, all routes will cease except for Vancouver to Seattle, which is operated by Greyhound Lines, Inc. (USA) and BoltBus.

All routes in Ontario and Quebec will continue unchanged, aside from the Trans-Canada service west of Sudbury in northern Ontario, which we will exit.  

Greyhound Canada will continue to serve the following corridors:

• Toronto-Ottawa-Montreal-New York
• Toronto-Niagara Falls-Buffalo-New York
• Toronto-London-Windsor-Detroit
• Toronto-Barrie, Toronto-Guelph/Kitchener/Cambridge, and all other southern Ontario services.

Customers can find additional information by visiting https://news.greyhound.ca or calling 1-800-661-8747.

Decision Rationale

This decision is regrettable and is due to a challenging transportation environment that is characterized by declining ridership in rural communities; increased competition from subsidized national and inter-regional passenger transportation services; the new entry of ultra-low-cost carriers; regulatory constraints, and increased car travel. Greyhound envisions that these changes will result in a viable, sustainable business on the remaining routes.

Greyhound Canada had taken a range of cost reduction steps over the last few years, including frequency adjustments to route schedules and other efficiency measures. Unfortunately, these actions were insufficient and the downward trajectory continued. 

"It is with a heavy heart that we announce these service impacts for the end of October. We understand that these route changes are difficult for our customers. Despite best efforts over several years, ridership has dropped nearly 41% across the country since 2010 within a changing and increasingly challenging transportation environment. Simply put, we can no longer operate unsustainable routes.

"We are committed to keeping customers informed and will continue to provide fair and open communications to ensure that adequate notice is given."

-Stuart Kendrick, Senior Vice President, Greyhound Canada

Business as Usual Until October 31, 2018

Important to note: it is business as usual until October 31, 2018 — Greyhound Canada's operations will continue during the summer period and beyond Thanksgiving.

Route Changes and Route Retention

Effective October 31, 2018 the route information is as follows:

• British Columbia – discontinue all routes. Note: Service between Vancouver and Seattle, which is operated by Greyhound Lines, Inc. (USA) and BoltBus, is unaffected.
• Alberta – discontinue all routes
• Saskatchewan – discontinue all routes
• Manitoba – discontinue all routes
• Ontario - In Ontario, we will operate substantially as we do today in the southern and eastern regions of the province with no changes in the Toronto and Ottawa areas. There will be changes in the northern part of the province. Service will be discontinued on the Trans-Canada Highway, west of Sudbury. Greyhound Canada will continue to operate in southern Ontario (click here to view Southern Ontario map).
• Quebec - In Quebec there are no changes, with service between Ottawa and Montreal unaffected. Service between Montreal and New York that is operated by Greyhound Lines, Inc. (USA) is also unaffected.

Greyhound Canada is continuing its discussions with provincial and federal governments about the importance of government investments in rural connectivity.

Route change information is available at greyhoundcanada.ca.

www.greyhound.ca
Customer information: 1-800-661-8747
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SOURCE Greyhound Canada

Ontario and Quebec: Melanie Paradis | Tel: [phone] | [email protected] or Wendy Cumming | Tel: [phone] | [email protected]; British Columbia, Alberta, Manitoba, Saskatchewan: Veronica Rivas | Tel: [phone] | [email protected], http://www.greyhound.ca

Related Links

http://www.greyhound.ca