Public opinion in West Kelowna has led to the Kelowna Regional Transit System adding a new seasonal city bus route this summer.
The new route, 31 Gellatly, will run on weekends and holidays from July 1 to Sept. 1, connecting the Westbank Centre Exchange, Gellatly Bay waterfront, West Kelowna Yacht Club, Gellatly Nut Farm Regional Park and Pebble Beach.
Jonathon Dyck, communication manager for BC Transit, said the route addition comes at the request of West Kelowna council and public feedback on future transit plan developments.
“Traditionally this area hasn’t been heavily serviced by transit. This route addition was asked for by our local transit partners and is one we believe will be well used,” Dyck said.
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“We’ve been working on this for some time as we know the aquatic park along Gellatly, the yacht club, the nut farm park and Pebble Beach are places people want to get to during the summer months. We also know there are parking challenges in that area so offering another transportation option that is sustainable and affordable for people can be helpful.”
Dyck said KRTS will monitor the ridership and if the numbers justify it, consider evolving the route into a year-round service.
He added developing a new bus route is more that simply drawing a line on a map. Planning considerations include routing, stop timing points, type of bus appropriate for a route and bus stop locations.
“It takes working with a lot of partners to make something like this work, and quite frankly members of the public saying this is something we want which is what we heard throughout our transit planning public engagement process in West Kelowna.”
As a special sneak preview, the new route will be available on Saturday, June 30, offering special late-night service for Westside Daze festival-goers, with the last trip leaving Westbank Centre Exchange at midnight.
To view a full schedule and map for the new transit route, visit www.bctransit.com/kelowna/schedules-and-maps.
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