Calgarians start petition against bus route cuts

Some people in the community of Coach Hill are concerned theyll lose their bus route when the West LRT line is completed.

Calgary Transit plans to cut several routes when thenew leg opens, whichcould be as soon as December.

Myrtle Sproule and her husband both take Bus 101one of the routes Calgary Transit is considering cuttingthat heads downtown from her home in Coach Hill.

Her three children also take that bus to two different schools.

Sproule says what is most concerning is that the new transit route will mean three members of her family will have to make two transfers.

Itsthe reason why shehas joined forces withsome neighbours and have been going door-to-door with a petition to keep Bus 101 on the road.

"Speaking to everyone in the community, they're all saying 'Yes. Why are they taking the 101 away?,'' Sproule says. "Everyone I speak to is just as appalled as I am."

Ald. Richard Pootmans also says he hasreceivedseveral dozen callsfrom people asking the city to keep the bus route.

Meanwhile, Calgary Transit saysit held 14 open houses on the topic, consulted thousands of people who live in the southwest and have come up with a route plan that works for the majority of residents in the area.