On behalf of Council and the…

On behalf of Council and the Township of Ignace, I am submitting these comments to you.

The Township of Ignace is a small community of only 1,200 people in Northwestern Ontario located on Highway 17 approximately half-way between Thunder Bay and Kenora. The nearest larger center is Dryden that is 110 km west. Thunder Bay is 250 km east. We are more or less a small island in a sea of forest. Being able to connect to the outside world is critical.

We are encouraged by your plans to make changes to the regulatory regime to try to improve access to intercommunity bus service. Given our small size there are few services here and many people have friends and family in other communities. The ability to travel by intercommunity bus is obviously important. It is the only alternative to private passenger vehicle or a taxicab for intercommunity travel here – there is no air, rail, subway or other transportation service. Unfortunately intercommunity bus service over the last few years has been significantly reduced, which has created a lot of hardship. The operator only has one bus eastbound or westbound daily and tickets cannot be bought here.

We support your objective to eliminate government control of market entry. We believe that there is a large enough rider pool to generate business opportunities and the current regime is preventing that from happening. We would like to see operator(s) using minibuses providing regional intercommunity service. We support your proposal in the “Other Options” of the report to exempt operators using small vehicles from the licensing process of the OHTB. Changes like these could result in an affordable, safe and reliable intercommunity bus service for the communities in Northwestern Ontario.

A key part of any plans to improve intercommunity bus service here would be government subsidies for the service. As noted in your discussion paper, the Ontario Northland Transportation Commission and Metrolinx are not required to get licensing from the OHTB, but your paper does not mention that these services are significantly subsidized by the Provincial Government. We support the position regarding the need for government subsidization taken by the Northwestern Ontario Municipal Association in its report titled “The Future of Inter-Community Bus Service in Northwestern Ontario” that is dated December 11, 2015. Northwestern Ontario should be treated fairly – if government subsidies are provided in other regions of Ontario for intercommunity transportation services, then Northwestern Ontario should get the same treatment. If subsidization is not in your plans for intercommunity bus service in Northwestern Ontario, then the subsidization of intercommunity travel enjoyed in other regions of Ontario should be cancelled.

Wayne Hanchard
Administrator Treasurer
Township of Ignace

[Original Comment ID: 194261]