A plan presented to the Regional District Okanagan-Similkameen outlines the future of transit in the area through the year 2040, adding up to a estimated total share of $550,000 from taxpayers.
The vision statement for the Transit Future Plan sets the goal as having transit services in the area streamlined and organized under a transit committee.
The 25-year plan was adopted by the regional district board at the regular meeting on April 16.
In the short-term, the plan outlines upgrades to transit in Penticton including an estimated 2,262 more service hours and 36,700 more rides and an extra bus with the development of the Main Street frequent transit network. The plan estimates the cost of that phase-one upgrade to be $257,100 with BC Transit sharing $101,800 of the costs.
Daniel Pizarro, Regional Transit Manager presented the plan to the board. He said bringing schedules and routes together from Osoyoos to Kelowna is the key to a cohesive transit plan.
“If you look at the most tangible benefit for residents in the RDOS (is) getting from point A to B without having to look at five or six different rider’s guides,” Pizarro said.
One of the important next steps is to form a transit committee which will help make decisions and ideally bring local governments together to amalgamate transit systems.
“Until we get that governance side of the project, we don’t know what the next step is going to be. It’s always good to keep in mind the transit future plan is a strategic document that leads investment over short, medium and long term,” Pizarro said.
“At this stage somebody could say no. So we have to get everybody together and say are you prepared to work on a regional service and be part of that.”
Pizarro pointed to a similar project in the West Kootenays where the regionalization of transit brought together three communities.
Tom Siddon, director for Okanagan Falls-Kaleden, noted after the presentation that he could not vote for a plan that doesn’t include Kaleden, though he changed his position when staff said Kaleden could be included in later development of the plan.
“I cannot leave Kaleden out of the equation,” Siddon said.
“It is a community of 500 houses and 1,200 people,” Siddon said. “It exists and it is not served by the new service.”
The next step after forming the transit committee is getting the plan approved by B.C. Transit, which could happen as soon as May.
