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Seeking transit options in Salmon Arm

Many residents stranded by limited transit – college student creates petition.
Bus Petition
Mike Caley

Mike Caley knows what independence feels like.

Independence feels like easily accessible, frequently available, widely routed transit.

Caley is visually impaired. Since coming to Salmon Arm, where he is attending Okanagan College, he must rely on family to drive him from place to place.

When he lived in New Westminster, it was a different story.

There, buses and SkyTrain allowed him to work at the PNE in Vancouver for more than 10 years, making his way to and from the site on his own.

While he doesn’t expect to see a version of SkyTrain in Salmon Arm in the near future, he knows that not being able to travel on transit is far more than an inconvenience. There needs to be increased scheduling.

He points to all the people who either aren’t physically able or can’t afford to drive a vehicle. Not only does transit make getting around possible and affordable, it’s better for the environment.

“It would be nice if the elders could hop on the bus and get to where they want to go… And we have the younger generation… What transit does is, less vehicles on the road, less pollution for us.”

He points out that lots of people can’t afford to pay for rent, let alone gasoline and insurance.

Caley is president of Shuswap Connextions, a local self-advocacy group for people with disabilities. He said many residents are stranded when the buses aren’t running, which is particularly hard in the cold weather.

“I have spoken to many people that live in our community who share our concerns regarding such limited city bus transportation.”

Caley doesn’t mince words when he talks about the routes within and around Salmon Arm.

“The buses in town suck… They don’t run often enough and they don’t run very late.  People who work at Walmart – it closes at 10 and the bus stops at six or so. Say you had a job at Walmart and need to get home when it closes...”

He points out that buses are a lot cheaper than taxis.

On the current Shuswap Transit schedule, no buses run past 6 p.m., and there is no bus service at all on Sundays.

Caley has drafted a petition with help from the North Okanagan-Shuswap Brain Injury Society, which he is circulating at the college and around town. He encourages residents to sign it, to help people regain their independence.

“What we’re trying to do is get more buses running in Salmon Arm – to run later because they shut down too early for the community.”

Farther afield, Caley would like to see, optimally, three buses a day running between Vernon and Salmon Arm because many specialists, for instance, are located there. He’d also like to see buses run out to Tappen or Sorrento, perhaps to an exchange, and also to Enderby or Chase.

According to its website, BC Transit works in partnership with 59 local governments, including Salmon Arm’s. Regional transit system service levels and budgets are approved each year by local government, which also set fares and local property taxes to pay their contribution of transit costs.

Mayor Nancy Cooper said the city is coming up for a BC Transit review and staff are looking into when that will happen.

“Once we see the results of the transit review,” she said, “council will have the opportunity to decide on whether or not to make changes to bus service levels.”

 



Martha Wickett

About the Author: Martha Wickett

came to Salmon Arm in May of 2004 to work at the Observer. I was looking for a change from the hustle and bustle of the Lower Mainland, where I had spent more than a decade working in community newspapers.
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