With no provincial bus service, Moose Jaw mulls offering commuter connection to Regina

Moose Jaw city council is considering a proposal to offer a bus service for commutersthat would offer rides between that city and Regina, in the absence of a provincial bus service.

The discussion is still in the early stages, according to city spokesperson Craig Hemingway, but at its most recent council meeting, the City of Moose Jaw looked at a proposal to work with Saskatchewan Polytechnic to help its students get to the post-secondary school's campuses.

The discussion followsthe closure of the Saskatchewan Transportation Company in May, and the end of Greyhound's Prairie bus service in October.

The proposed Sask. Polytechnic plan would see a bus shuttle between the Moose Jaw and Reginacampuses in the morning and evenings, Monday to Friday, with workers also having the option to use the paid service.

Transportation a major issue, says student

Sukhjot Samra is an international student who has been studying at the Moose Jawcampus for the past three months, and is the vice-president of her local students association.

She travels to Regina frequently on weekends to visit her relatives, tagging along with her sister, who has a driver's licence.

"I have an option," she said, adding thatsome of her fellow students aren't so lucky.

She said a number of students travel from Regina to Moose Jaw, about 70 kilometres away, to be with family or to work, but can only travel at the convenience of whoeveragrees to take them.

She's heard of people paying $25 a day to get rides to Moose Jaw, with no guaranteetheir driver will take them for the rest of the week.

"It would be easy for them to go with a bus, and their timing, and they need not to convince a person, 'Please take us to school tomorrow,'" she said.

At a November forum assembly, many students raised the issue of transportation as a major headache, she said, adding that winter driving conditions can also impede their school attendance.

At its Wednesday council meeting, Moose Jaw looked at a plan that proposed a $25 a day fare, estimating that 40 students might use the service each day. At that rate, it calculated it could make a profitof $34,000 per year.

Hemingway said council has deferred the conversation until the city does a more extensive review to come up with recommendations.