Urban transit has not escaped the devastating effects of the global pandemic. Service levels have been cut to public transit systems throughout Atlantic Canada. Although there are some systems that have restored service, many remain operating at significantly reduced levels.
Fredericton 50-60%
Moncton 70%
Saint John 70%
St. John’s 65-70%
Senior transit staff and municipal officials have been consistent with their messaging. “Service levels cannot be restored until ridership increases”. How can ridership increase if service is restricted?
There is a pivotal point at which the service cuts that were put in place in response to a temporary decrease in ridership begin to drive rider behaviour. Experts warn that public transit is on the verge of suffering long term consequences and refers to the phenomenon as a “death spiral”.
Ridership decreases. Revenues drop. Service is cut. Ridership further decreases because of a reduced service schedule…and the cycle continues.
If service cuts weren`t enough, the death spiral phenomenon is being further accelerated by passenger capacity restrictions, imposed by provincial health authorities in response to regional COVID-19 outbreaks. These restrictions are necessary to safeguard the health of passengers and transit workers, but the impact on transit systems already crippled by service cuts is overwhelming.
A small change in perspective leads to a significant change in point of view
We can no longer accept the argument from provincial and federal levels of government that urban transit is a “municipal problem”. The fate of public transit cannot rest solely on the shoulders of the cities in which they operate. That does not mean municipal level governments can stand by and watch their transit systems fade into obscurity. The myopic view of public transit is rooted in the ill-informed assumptions of our city councillors, even those who call themselves “transit friendly”.
As long as public transit continues to be viewed as a reviled but necessary line item on municipal budgets, nothing will change. We need a fundamental shift away from the belief that public transit is a drain on municipal finances. Our elected officials must first come to terms with the fact that public transit will never pay for itself. Then they need to recognize that a full-service public transit system is an integral part of the municipal service infrastructure of any successful city. Public transit is an essential service.
Finally, they should consider the fact that public transit is one of the very few municipal services that “self-subsidize”. Public transit offsets its cost by generating revenue for city coffers. Imagine if other municipal services (road maintenance, waste collection, administrative support services, etc.) brought in $40 for every $100 they cost the city to operate, as public transit does. (Source: CUTA Revenue Cost Ratio Data 2018). Ironically, although public transit is one of the few city services to generate revenue, its often the first to suffer service cuts.
Public transit drives regional economic and population growth strategies
In the fall of 2020, the province of New Brunswick declined to participate in a federal relief program for municipal transit after misunderstanding who it was for and what it covered. Provinces were initially supposed to match federal dollars, but loopholes in the program resulted in provincial governments not having to put up any matching dollars. The New Brunswick government decided to fund municipal transit losses under the Federal Safe Restart program, but these funds were exclusively for pandemic related losses and no money was offered to help restore public transit service cuts.
The Nova Scotia provincial government accepted $16 million dollars under the public transit aid program. Coincidently, Halifax Transit returned to 100% full service in September 2020.
Our provincial leaders must pull their heads out of the sand and recognize the important role that public transit plays in regional economic and population growth. Population growth in Atlantic Canada is under threat from an aging population, low birth rates, high rates of out migration and low rates of interprovincial migration. In 2017, the federal government launched the Atlantic Immigration Pilot (AIP) to promote immigration in Atlantic Canada. Initial results are promising. In 2019, Atlantic Canada broke previous immigration records and welcomed 18,000 newcomers. These newcomers are professionals, entrepreneurs, working class and students and are typically drawn to the larger urban centres to which they are accustomed and that provide services like an efficient and affordable public transit system.
Public transit requires operational funding from all levels of government
In February 2021, the federal government announced almost $15 billion for public transit over the next eight years. This funding announcement exposes a crucial lack of understanding for what public transit needs to survive. The current federal and provincial investment strategy falls short. It fails to address the immediate and ongoing need for operational funding. Elected officials at all levels of government need to adjust their focus and consider the “return on investment” achieved through operational funding of public transit.
Funding of public transit plays a vital role in supporting the social welfare network and provides mobility to our seniors, our low-income workers, and our students. Subsidizing efficient and affordable public transit systems will help drive a national strategy to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Ongoing operational investment in public transit fuels regional economic and population growth. When our elected officials look through this lens, they will see what advocates of public transit see…and finally begin to understand the social, environmental, and economic benefits of investing in urban transit.
Sheldon Phaneuf is a bus operator at Codiac Transpo in Moncton, and a member of ATU Local 1290
COVID’S LATEST WAVE BRINGS MORE TRANSPORTATION CUTS
Graphic by James Fraser
Contrary to the verse of T.S. Eliot, most Atlantic Canadians would agree that February is undoubtedly the cruelest month of the year. The point was certainly driven home in 2021 as another wave of the COVID-19 pandemic rolled with a vengeance into Newfoundland and Labrador – and to a lesser extent Nova Scotia and PEI. Only New Brunswick finished the month with a significantly improved active case count from the end of January – and that was mainly because their peak had come earlier in the new year. The sudden surge in cases in Newfoundland’s northeast Avalon region was particularly alarming, not only because it proved to be largely of the more virulent B117 variant, but it was also showing rapid spread among the teenage cohort. Public health authorities acted quickly, and initially placed the entire province under strict lockdown, though the restrictions were later relaxed outside the most affected area. Nova Scotia, meanwhile, put the last remnant of the Atlantic Bubble on hold by requiring all travellers arriving from NL by air or ferry to self-isolate for 14 days.
DRL Coachlines suspended its cross island service in NL for three weeks because of the COVID surge in the St. John’s area, but has announced the schedule will resume on March 8th.
One casualty of the latest crisis in NL was the trans-island bus service operated by DRL Coachlines. On February 13 it suspended all service until further notice, temporarily laying off 28 employees. However, the company has just announced that its full schedule would resume on Monday, March 8, with strict health protocols in place including mandatory masking for the duration of the trip.
DRL had been operating at about 70 per cent of its normal ridership for the past year because of the pandemic, with the company taking a big financial hit, general manager Jason Roberts told CBC News. He said about 90% of the company’s ridership originated in or was destined for St. John’s, and ridership had all but evaporated under the latest lockdown. DRL has been bleeding cash since March of 2020, despite having shut down for several months last spring, and Mr. Roberts anticipates it will be another year before it’s again in a profitable position.
Air service in NL also took another hit, with WestJet announcing that the province was being dropped from its route map effective March 19 for at least three months. The airline had been operating a single Q400 return flight between St. John’s and Halifax on a less than daily frequency for several months. Airline CEO Ed Sims attributed the cancellation to plummeting demand because of travel restrictions and quarantines.
Meanwhile, PAL Airlines is now only operating once a week on its modified St. John’s-Deer Lake-Moncton-Wabush routing. Marketing director Janine Brown expects that this reduced offering will remain in effect until travel restrictions ease between provinces in the now-suspended Atlantic Bubble. Latest indications are that reopening the bubble is indeed on the premiers’ radar, and they will be discussing it next month with some optimism that it might be back by May. Meanwhile, PAL is maintaining a more frequent service between points within NL, flying with some regularity from St. John’s to Gander, Deer Lake, Goose Bay and St. Anthony.
GREENS CALL FOR NEW MARITIMES TRANSPORTATION VISION
“With public transportation services in disarray, it’s as if there is no one in charge – which there isn’t,” says New Brunswick Green Party Leader David Coon. The remark was part of a call for unified action by the three provincial governments in the Maritimes. In documenting his case, Mr. Coon decries the absence of a strong policy role among transportation departments in general, suggesting they are far too focused on asphalt and concrete.
NB Green Party Leader David Coon is promoting the concept of an interprovincial authority to develop public transportation policy.
“To achieve our social, economic and environmental goals we must become more self-sufficient in public transportation. How do we build a public transportation network that meets our needs, and what revenue will fund the necessary public investments?” he writes.
“This is a job for a public institution that crosses provincial borders. I propose the creation of a Maritime Transportation Authority, a regional Crown corporation, that can quarterback the development of a public transportation network that enables us to travel where we need to go, when we need to go, throughout the Maritimes.
“I envision a seamless system of regional passenger rail, motor coach, and local transit services that are a mix of private, public and community enterprises.”
The full text of Mr. Coon’s statement can be found on TAA’s website:
Saint John airport CEO Derrick Stanford is seeking a new challenge outside the aviation sector.
The CEO of the Saint John Airport and chair of the Atlantic Canada Airports Association is leaving to take up a new challenge. Derrick Stanford advised the YSJ board of directors of his departure in February, effective March 10. He’d held the position since 2016.
Mr. Stanford hasn’t indicated where he’s going, but suggested it would be outside the aviation sector. Before coming to Saint John he’d been employed in the software industry.
The departing CEO did express confidence in the viability of Saint John’s airport, which currently is completely devoid of any scheduled passenger flights. He noted that discount carrier Flair Airlines recently announced that it is set to begin service to Toronto as early as May, depending on the travel restriction situation.
The flights would be twice weekly initially, priced from about $80 one way. Mr. Stanford called this a step in the right direction, and predicted that YSJ has a bright future, despite the lack of clarity about a return of Air Canada service. He says things are beginning to look up for the aviation sector generally, with COVID-19 case numbers beginning to decline globally. He added that YSJ is on a “stable footing”, and the airline industry is taxiing toward steadier ground.
“I won’t say the worst is behind us, but we’re on a course now for a slow, steady recovery,” he told CBC News.
The total revenue loss for 2020 among ACAA members is estimated to be $140 million. The airports have asked for federal government help to keep the lights on while they await the end of the pandemic.
TWO NL PARTIES GIVE POSITION ON MARINE ATLANTIC RATES
The NL provincial election scheduled for February 13 was thrown into chaos by the surge in COVID cases. All in-person voting was cancelled, and those who had not already availed of advance polls were required to apply for mail-in ballots. The deadline for those ballots to be received by the returning office in order to be counted was set at March 12, with some sources suggesting that deadline could be extended, and it might be well into April before the election outcome is known.
Transport Action Atlantic had initiated an effort to get Marine Atlantic ferry rates on the table as an election issue. Although the service is a federal responsibility, TAA maintains the matter will only be addressed if provincial politicians become more assertive. PC Leader Ches Crosbie has committed in writing to do just that.
NL PC Leader Ches Crosbie has endorsed TAA’s position on Marine Atlantic ferry rates.
“Marine Atlantic is the responsibility of the federal government. But that does not mean I cannot stand up and hold them accountable. The federal government should ensure that Marine Atlantic provides affordable and reliable service…it is their constitutional responsibility to do so.
“…Yes, I do support the principle that the cost to use the ferry service between Port aux Basques and North Sydney should be comparable to the cost incurred to travel a similar distance via road. Additionally, regardless of the election result, I will support a full review of the existing Marine Atlantic rates to ensure that the federal government is compliant with the Terms of Union.”
A response from the provincial Liberals seems to indicate that they are not prepared to antagonize their federal counterparts, and suggests that they do not consider the current rate structure unreasonable:
“Through ongoing meetings and consultations as well as an ongoing open dialogue with the Government of Canada, we continue to make the case that ferry rates should be set so as to not have any negative impact on business, trade and tourism. We continue to be committed to that approach and will call for a rate review at every possible opportunity.”
The provincial NDP and the NL Alliance Party did not respond to TAA’s invitation.
YARMOUTH FERRY SECRETS REVEALED
While the ferry between Yarmouth and Main sits idle for another year thanks to the pandemic, new details have finally come to light regarding the amounts that the Nova Scotia provincial government has been paying Bay Ferries to operate the service. The provincial PC opposition has been pushing the McNeil government for several years to disclose the exact amounts involved in the management fee paid by the province, a demand that both the government and Bay Ferries claimed would risk damage to the company’s competitive position by revealing commercially sensitive information. The matter was ultimately decided by the Nova Scotia Supreme Court, whose ruling in February made clear that these arguments didn’t hold water.
Roughly a week after the court ruling, Bay Ferries put any questions of potential appeals to bed by releasing the information to the public. According to the newly released information, the deal signed in 2018 sees Bay Ferries paid $97,500 a month, for a total of $1.17 million per year. This was adjusted upward from the original 2016 agreement, which only saw payments of $65,000 a month. The agreement also includes incentives that would allow the company to earn up to double the management fee in a given year based on the achievement of certain performance grades, though this has not yet happened. According to the release from Bay Ferries, the total management fee accounts for approximately 5% of all ferry operating costs in a typical year.
DIGBY FERRY ENDING A TWO-MONTH HIATUS
The ferry that normally runs between Digby and Saint John has been out of service since late January, forcing commercial truckers that form the backbone of Bay Ferries’ traffic at this time of year to take the long way round. MV Fundy Rose has been tied up in Halifax awaiting completion of terminal infrastructure upgrades. While it is not unusual for the service to be suspended while the vessel undergoes periodic refits, this is an exceptionally long outage period. A Bay Ferries spokesperson noted that passenger ridership had been exceptionally low due to COVID-19 restrictions, but the absence of service was challenging for commercial users. The Fundy Rose is now slated to resume operation with a 1600 departure from Digby on March 14.
CAMPOBELLO FERRY EXTENDED ONCE AGAIN
The Campobello ferry has been given yet another reprieve. The New Brunswick government announced on March 4 that the normally seasonal operation will continue until at least April 5, allowing residents to access to the rest of the province without having to travel through the US amid the pandemic.
Saint Croix MLA Kathy Bockus welcomed the announcement, but added she’d feel even better if the announcement was for a full-time ferry – a goal she indicated was still being worked on. The tug-and-barge ferry currently on the route is clearly unsuited for winter operating conditions, as evidenced by the large number of cancellations on the four days it is currently scheduled to operate each week.
With Jacques Pelletier at the wheel, Maritime Bus departs Moncton for Campbellton on the afternoon of February 1. This essential service for residents of northern New Brunswick will keep rolling through 2021, after a last-minute deal was reached among the bus company and three levels of government.
New Brunswickers in the northern part of the province will continue to benefit from motorcoach passenger and parcel service through the remainder of 2021, after an eleventh-hour solution involving Maritime Bus and three levels of government was reached. Faced with mounting operating losses, the bus operator announced indefinite closure of its services between Moncton and Campbellton and Fredericton and Edmundston, effective January 15, unless the provincial government was prepared to lend a helping hand. The deadline was subsequently extended to month-end to allow more time for a solution to be worked out.
Although the governments of Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island had declared their willingness to offer financial support to keep buses running through the pandemic, Premier Blaine Higgs refused to contribute, saying his government wasn’t going to fund for-profit corporations. The position ignored the harsh reality that the company lost nearly $4 million on its line-haul operations in 2020 because of COVID-19 – not to mention the massive revenue losses when its charter operations were brought to a standstill by the pandemic.
Under pressure from a wide variety of interests (including Transport Action Atlantic), the government finally backtracked. In a rare display of non-partisan solidarity, 21 senators from the Maritime provinces signed a letter to the Prime Minister urging help for the struggling bus industry. With a federal government contribution under the Safe Restart program on the table, the Province allocated some money through its Regional Development Corporation, and saved face by transferring the provincial share to the City of Edmundston to be passed on to Maritime Bus.
The northern municipalities, although pleased that a solution has been reached, were less than satisfied with the process. Apparently, this money was diverted from funding that the RDC was already holding for eventual distribution to towns and cities under the Safe Restart agreement, so the already cash-strapped municipal coffers were in effect paying for what they viewed as a provincial responsibility.
Mike Cassidy of Maritime Bus credits Local Government Minister Daniel Allain and Frédérick Dion of the Federation of Francophone Municipalities with brokering the eventual outcome, with the support of the senators and federal Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Dominic LeBlanc. Curiously, the Department of Transportation and Infrastructure apparently wasn’t involved in the process at all.
Mr. Cassidy tells TAA that the level of political action in all this was incredible, commenting that it isn’t right to be so involved with politics when you are trying to save your company and industry, especially after the other two provinces agreed participate. Meanwhile, he is deeply concerned about the future of the motorcoach industry nation-wide, and is working with other operators to promote bus connectivity across Canada for both passengers and parcels post-COVID.
“Governments must understand that busing is part of the mobile infrastructure,” he says, adding that the first step should be getting all the provinces to co-operate in building back a cohesive coast-to-coast network.
MARINE ATLANTIC RATES INCREASED AGAIN
If you’re planning on taking Marine Atlantic’s Argentia ferry this summer, it’s going to cost you more. The Crown corporation has announced that most of its rates will be increasing as of April 1, in order to satisfy Transport Canada demands for 65% cost recovery.
It appears that Transport Canada is totally without mercy in its demands for 65% cost recovery on the constitutional Newfoundland ferry service provided by Marine Atlantic – global pandemic notwithstanding. On February 1 the federal Crown corporation announced that most of its rates would be going up at the start of the next fiscal year, beginning in April. A company spokesman told NTV News that Marine Atlantic had failed to meet its financial targets in 2020 because of dramatically reduced passenger revenues, and had no option but to aim for making up the shortfall in 2021.
There will be no increase in passenger and passenger vehicle rates on the North Sydney- Port aux Basques route, but both passenger and commercial users of the seasonal Argentia route (where Transport Canada requires full recovery on marginal costs) will pay 2.5% more. That, of course, assumes that the service actually runs this summer. It was cancelled entirely for 2020, but reservations are now being accepted for two round trips a week beginning in late June, with the possibility of a third sailing being added should demand materialize.
But far more critical is the two percent increase for commercial traffic on the company’s main route to Port aux Basques, coupled with a 3.4% hike in the drop trailer management fee. This is expected to have a noticeable impact on the cost of living on the island, as a large proportion of groceries and everyday household needs as well as building supplies are carried by drop trailers.
For the hospitality industry the fare hike comes at a particularly inopportune time. In the aftermath of COVID-19, with air transportation in serious crisis and unlikely to recover in the near future, affordable ferry service will be particularly important to the struggling tourism sector. If the Atlantic Bubble is restored by summer 2021, Marine Atlantic will be uniquely positioned to bring significant numbers of visitors from the Maritimes – if the price is right.
With no expectation the rate increase was imminent, Transport Action Atlantic had already initiated an effort to get ferry rates on the table as an issue in the February 13 provincial election. Although the service is clearly a federal responsibility, TAA believes the issue will only be addressed if there is a strong protest from provincial politicians. Accordingly, the parties had been asked to present their positions by answering two questions:
Does your party support the principle that the ferry service between Port aux Basques and North Sydney is a part of the Trans Canada Highway, and as such the cost to users should be comparable to travelling the equivalent distance by road?
Regardless of the outcome of the February 13 provincial election, will your party demand a full review of the existing Marine Atlantic ferry rates to ensure that the Government of Canada is compliant with the spirit of the 1949 Terms of Union?
TAA plans to post any responses received on its website prior to polling day.
ANOTHER SEASON LOST FOR BAR HARBOR FERRY
The Cat will sit idle for another year, as the full 2021 ferry season has been cancelled. PHOTO – Tim Hayman
It will be at least another year until the international ferry service between Yarmouth and Maine resumes. On February 1, the provincial government announced that the entire 2021 sailing season would be cancelled, citing ongoing COVID concerns, continued international border restrictions, and the likelihood that a critical percentage of the general population will not be vaccinated until the summer. The move is anticipated to save on certain costs such as marketing and season preparations and hiring crew, which would otherwise have taken place if the season was scheduled and later postponed or canceled. Still, there will be certain fixed costs to keep up basic maintenance and infrastructure work in the interim.
This will be the third year in a row that the high-speed Cat ferry will sit idle. The service for the 2019 season was slated to move its American terminus to Bar Harbor after previously serving Portland, but the move ran into hurdles with the completion of the new American facility, resulting in repeated postponements and then full cancellation of the season. With the terminal then complete, the 2020 season was anticipated to see a return, but COVID restrictions once again caused postponements and an eventual cancellation of the full season.
The absence of the ferry service has continued to be a blow to the tourism industry in southwest Nova Scotia, though as COVID continues to restrict non-essential travel, those challenges will persist with or without the ferry in operation. Hopefully the 2022 season will find the region (and the broader world!) in better shape.
AIRPORTS PLEAD FOR HELP AS SERVICE CUTBACKS CONTINUE
Graphic by James Fraser
Just when we thought the air travel situation in Atlantic Canada couldn’t get much worse – it did. Just days after indefinitely suspending all service from Sydney and Saint John, Air Canada added Fredericton to its no-fly list. As of January 23, the only airport in New Brunswick with scheduled passenger service is Moncton. And, on the same date, the direct Air Canada service between Toronto and St. John’s which had existed for decades came to an end.
The cutbacks in scheduled service have had a drastic effect on all airport authorities in the region. Even for those now deserted by Air Canada and WestJet, the bills still have to be paid as the runways must be kept open for general aviation and emergency medical flights. The total revenue loss for 2020 among members of the Atlantic Canada Airports Association is estimated a $140 million, which the ACAA says will have a substantial impact on cash flow and future financial viability, with a severe trickle-down effect on the respective communities. They’re asking for federal government help to keep the lights on while they await the end of the pandemic. But even then, they aren’t expecting a rapid recovery.
Meanwhile, a retired airline executive told CBC News that he isn’t anticipating a quick resumption of the cancelled services once the pandemic subsides. Duncan Dee, former COO at Air Canada, said reactivating idle aircraft and personnel takes time, adding that he suspects management will take a “wait and see” attitude and evaluate demand at Moncton before making a decision on other New Brunswick airports.
The chambers of commerce in New Brunswick’s three largest cities are not content to wait. They’ve joined together in a united campaign to oppose those who suggest that single airport scheduled passenger service for the entire province may the way of the future. That possibility was raised in the recent provincial budget speech. Moncton, Fredericton and Saint John were all profitable airports pre-pandemic, with a combined economic impact of $765 million, the chambers note, insisting that economic prosperity demands that scheduled service be returned to all three as the public health threat subsides.
The one airline that seems to be bucking the pandemic trend has been forced to adjust its services from Moncton to Newfoundland and Labrador to accommodate the latest round of travel restrictions. St. John’s-based PAL Airlines has abandoned its service between Charlo NB and Wabush NL, and combined it with a new route linking Moncton with Deer Lake. And, until interprovincial travel restrictions are eased, non-stop service between YQM and YYT has been temporarily eliminated. As of January 10, a tri-weekly DASH-8-300 is flying St. John’s – Deer Lake – Moncton – Wabush and return. PAL’s Janine Brown says a daily St. John’s – Moncton – Ottawa routing is still their post-pandemic objective, with a separate service planned for Deer Lake and Wabush.
VIA SERVICE WON’T BE BACK BEFORE MID-MAY
It will be May 15 at the earliest before VIA Rail’s Ocean again pulls out of Montreal’s Gare Centrale – and likely not even then if interprovincial pandemic travel restrictions are still in place.
In what continues to be a pattern fitting of Groundhog Day, VIA has extended the cancellation of the Ocean through at least May 15, 2021. This continues the rolling pattern of recent months, where bookings for the next few months were first blocked and then outright cancelled as time approached. It also now guarantees that the earliest possible service resumption on the east coast will be the beginning of what would normally be the peak season for the year, though it’s unlikely to be anything resembling the normal travel season, and leaves Atlantic Canada without passenger rail service for more than a year. It still remains to be seen what exactly the service offering will look like when the train does resume.
The exact date that service will actually resume still remains unclear. The passenger carrier continues to insist that it intends to resume service when it is safe to do so, but it is likely that this date will be dependent on when travel restrictions between Quebec and the Atlantic provinces ease – and that remains heavily dependent on COVID case numbers and dynamics between the provinces.
VIA has also extended the modified service offering on the Canadian, with only one weekly departure west of Winnipeg and heavily modified onboard services, through the middle of May, and the Winnipeg-Churchill’s economy-only service will also continue through that time. Meanwhile, further Corridor service reductions have rolled out in recent weeks in light of further restrictions in Ontario and Quebec. It’s clear all across the country that the interruptions to VIA will be here for some time yet.
TAA AWARD HONOURS TRANSIT AND MOTORCOACH DRIVERS
Metrobus operator Amy Bonnington is one of hundreds of transit and motorcoach drivers who’ve kept essential public service rolling throughout the pandemic. Transport Action Atlantic has collectively honoured all of them with the 2020 John Pearce Award.
Transit systems throughout the region continue to struggle under the pandemic burden of greatly reduced ridership revenue coupled with higher operating costs. But they were pleased to receive a bit of recognition from Transport Action Atlantic recently. TAA has decided to confer its John Pearce Award for 2020 collectively on all the transit and motorcoach drivers throughout the four provinces who have continued to report for duty without interruption during COVID-19 in order to transport essential workers to their jobs and ensure mobility within their communities. They faithfully fulfilled their daily responsibilities, and not without significant risk to their personal health and safety despite all the precautions that had been put in place.
“Halifax Transit’s bus operators and ferry crews’ pride in public service during COVID-19 has been exemplary,” said Dave Reage, director of Halifax Transit. “I am so proud of their ongoing commitment to our customers and community. Throughout these challenging times, they have worked together to keep Halifax moving!”
Judy Powell, general manager of Metrobus Transit in St. John’s commented “During this difficult time, they put our customers ahead of themselves to ensure the people of our communities could access essential goods and services.”
The John Pearce Award is given annually to recognize an outstanding contribution to the public transportation cause. It was created by TAA in 2017 to commemorate the lifetime achievements in public transportation advocacy by the late Mr. Pearce, a founding father of the association’s predecessor Transport 2000 Atlantic, a past president, and long-time member of the board.
