The success of the transit link between Collingwood and The Blue Mountains has staff recommending it continue for the next year.
Bus service from Collingwood to Blue Mountain began on a trial basis at the end of 2013 through a partnership between Collingwood, The Blue Mountains, and Blue Mountain Resort. The pilot was a success and Collingwood and The Blue Mountains councils voted to keep running the service for five years, with financial and marketing support from Blue Mountain Resort, making the link a private-public partnership.
Ridership on the bus linking Blue Mountain to Collingwood nearly doubled since the route was established in 2014.
According to a staff report, there were about 24,683 people using the link in 2014 compared to 51,995 in 2019.
The largest jump in ridership happened between 2018 and 2019 (from around 35,000 to 52,000). The towns of Collingwood and The Blue Mountains extended service hours for the bus in 2019 to align the schedule with Colltrans, the Collingwood-Wasaga Beach Link, and Wasaga Beach Transit.
A staff report requesting a one-year extension of the service is going before council on Feb. 18.
According to Kris Wiszniak, public works and transit coordinator, staff is only proposing a one-year extension of the service because there are several plans in the works that could impact the route, timing, and finances for the project.
Wiszniak’s report states Grey County is exploring transit options set to begin later this year. Also in 2020, Collingwood is undergoing a comprehensive transit study – included in this year’s budget – to look at “efficiencies, routing, and expansion.”
Wiszniak told the development and operations standing committee on Feb. 10 the transit study will be “in-depth” and will include discussions with neighbouring municipalities on how they and Collingwood can develop more efficient transit systems and/or have one authority to oversee it all.
The matter will be before council on Tuesday, Feb. 18. The meeting begins at 5 p.m. at town hall.
