Those who read The Chief's front-page article ("Squamish Transit service cuts suggested") during the past week posted lots of interesting and useful comments in response to B.C. Transit officials' recent suggestion that trimming service in some areas, and finding efficiencies in others, would likely increase ridership and/or make it more cost-effective.
The comment that most tweaked our sensibilities, though, was the one suggesting that Squamish "isn't good bus territory - too spread out, with high levels of car ownership." On the contrary, Squamish IS good bus territory precisely because it is so spread out - pods of medium- to high-density development separated by large tracts of undeveloped forest, wetland, parkland, etc., with a couple of main shopping/service areas, all of it connected by two north-south transportation corridors. It matters little that most people own at least one vehicle - those who (for whatever reason) don't, or don't want to, should have the option of taking the bus to access shopping and other services, including going to a movie or out for a night on the town. Hence the need for more and more frequent service that includes buses running late into the evening.
The same writer opined, "I doubt if any journey covers its costs." Well, no public transit system in the world covers its costs with just fares - all have to be subsidized to one degree or another. True enough, the low ridership on many Squamish Transit buses means cost recovery is much lower than, say, Whistler or Vancouver, where most buses are at least half full and peak-period routes are at or near capacity.
But the answer is not to cut service. It's to make it more efficient - we like the idea of having one main "spine" route connecting to three or four "feeder" routes using smaller buses - and more frequent so that it meshes with people's needs. We would think every half hour should be a target frequency level on "feeder" routes. Only by increasing frequency and reliability will officials convince more people to leave their vehicles at home.
A couple of Chief online readers provided personal stories to counter the B.C. Transit official's contention that those in well-to-do neighbourhoods such as Glacier View Drive don't or won't use transit because they have easy access to private vehicles. One letter writer this week said he bought his home in the area precisely because he knew there was transit access nearby, and that he'd have to sell his home and move if service to the area is cut. These are merely anecdotal accounts, but illustrate that officials need to be wary of cutting service without considerable forethought.
"It doesn't make sense from a business perspective," the B.C. Transit official told Squamish council, "to run buses if no one is riding them." Yes, of course, but we can't just rely on the bottom line, either. Transit provides a public good that is worth subsidizing through our tax dollars. Build it - that is, a system that's sufficiently frequent and reliable to meet people's needs -and they will come.
- David Burke
