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Local concern following Greyhound announcement

Posted on July 12, 2018 by Westwind Weekly
Southern Alberta Newspapers photo by Collin Gallant The 2 p.m. Greyhound to Calgary pulls out of the company's depot in downtown Medicine Hat on July 9, the day the company announced that it plans to close all of its western Canadian routes by Oct. 31, 2018.

Tim Kalinowski
Southern Alberta Newspapers

Greyhound’s announcement Monday it was ending all service in western Canada (except B.C.) by Oct. 31 was met with disappointment and concern from Lethbridge residents, but many the Herald talked to also admitted the decision was unlikely to inconvenience them personally.
Fred Brown was cooling himself in a shady spot in Galt Gardens on July 9. He said he hadn’t ridden Greyhound in a number of years, but he liked to have the option if needed.
“I am not too happy about it,” he said of Greyhound’s decision, “because sometimes I feel it is necessary I travel by bus. I know we have Red Arrow, but Greyhound is kind of the old standby. I haven’t used it for years, but I like to have it there. I feel this is another slap against poor people.”
Brown said he did understand the business side of Greyhound’s decision, however.
“I have run deficits myself, but I know I don’t like to run a deficit for 14 years. That wouldn’t work for me.”
Alana Standing Alone was also keeping cool at a local sidewalk cafe. She said while she didn’t use the service herself, she knew many who were dependent on the busline for their transport needs.
“I don’t think it is right because a lot of people still use it, and if they end it I think it will be really detrimental,” she said.
Jared Browne was appalled to hear of the decision by Greyhound to end its western service routes and put 415 people out of work.
“I think it is a sad idea,” he said. “For low-income families, that is their one way to travel, everything else is so expensive. I have used Greyhound myself many times, and that was it – it was the cheapest option to get from one city to another. Without that, you are kind of stuck where you are.”
Kennedy Peterson was enjoying the Galt Gardens spray park with her kids Monday afternoon. She was shocked to hear of the decision, and felt the announcement was rather poorly timed by Greyhound.
“I think it is a service people are needing nowadays with the gas prices going so high,” she said.
Sami Arnett admitted she had never ridden Greyhound in her life, but felt ending the service would be a major inconvenience for those who rely on it.
“I think that is pretty ridiculous,” she stated bluntly. “How are people supposed to travel to other cities where people don’t have cars or can’t afford planes? That’s not fair at all.”

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