canuck600 Posted November 5, 2018 Report Share Posted November 5, 2018 (edited) Exactly Roeco, up until the last day or two you were saying that Rider Express was going to be the greatest thing since sliced bread, you were even blaming Greyhound for a delay in start dates. Edited December 4, 2018 by canuck600 found missing word 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doppelkupplung Posted November 5, 2018 Report Share Posted November 5, 2018 Wonder what you all think of this: https://www.cbc.ca/news/business/greyhound-bus-routes-flixbus-1.4886264 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bus_Medic Posted November 5, 2018 Report Share Posted November 5, 2018 Uber for charter operators. I wish them all the best. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Board Admin A. Wong Posted November 6, 2018 Board Admin Report Share Posted November 6, 2018 CTV mapped out routes replacing Greyhound service in Alberta: https://edmonton.ctvnews.ca/interactive-maps-routes-replacing-greyhound-bus-service-in-alberta-1.4157845 And CBC had a clip aboard the last Greyhound in Alberta: https://www.cbc.ca/listen/shows/edmonton-am/segment/15627731 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ns8401 Posted November 6, 2018 Author Report Share Posted November 6, 2018 13 hours ago, Bus_Medic said: Uber for charter operators. I wish them all the best. You understand that crushing Greyhound is pretty darn simple in practice right? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bus_Medic Posted November 6, 2018 Report Share Posted November 6, 2018 4 hours ago, ns8401 said: You understand that crushing Greyhound is pretty darn simple in practice right? I was thinking specifically to territory they’ve already abandoned, but honestly, I really don’t care one way or the other what becomes of them. It’s theirs to ruin. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shaun Posted November 6, 2018 Report Share Posted November 6, 2018 Does Stagecoach have any interest in any of those routes? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
canuck600 Posted November 6, 2018 Report Share Posted November 6, 2018 Stagecoach the company that killed Gray Coach? Sorry but companies from the British Isles & Europe haven't had a great track record in North America. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roeco Posted November 8, 2018 Report Share Posted November 8, 2018 On 11/4/2018 at 6:29 PM, canuck600 said: Exactly Roeco, up until the last day or two you saying that Rider Express was going to be the greatest thing since sliced bread, you were even blaming Greyhound for a delay in start dates. I've been kinda skeptical of them since day one!! Especially since they were trying to start such a big operation in such a short period of time and overestimated the demand they thought was their. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShermanOaks Posted November 8, 2018 Report Share Posted November 8, 2018 Clearly in the post-Greyhound realm, other carriers operating 'regional" services have found their niche while trying to keep financially viable. That's clearly the pattern in all four Western Provinces (links from big cities to smaller cities and intermediate points intra-provincially). I know in Manitoba, the northern focus is simply because the cost of northern flights are very expensive, there are no advance booking discounts. The bus is simply the cheaper alternative, especially for non-urgent medical trips ($135 o/w versus $1,100 o/w!). I didn't think the concept of a non-subsidized inter-provincial across the west "Trans-Canada" service was going to fly (pardon the pun) given the competition from ultra-low fare airlines like Flair and Swoop over the last year. Greyhound was quite clear on the non-sustainability of their routes due to the large drop in ridership (i.e. ultra discount airlines, increased automobile usage and rural depopulation) which quickly led them to make a prudent business decision. It takes a lot of people and supportive infrastructure to operate multiple coaches (more than six in this case) from the West Coast to the eastern Prairies. With long distances between cities, too many trees and a population spread thinner than butter on bread, the cost to operate and maintain a decent ground transportation service obviously exceeded revenues needed to sustain. I am not sure what model Rider Express is trying to set up? If they are looking at simply replacing what Greyhound had provided, then I hope they have deep pockets and some patience while ridership builds. If they are trying to set up a "no frills" discount bus service (a-la "Bolt" or "Mega") then they might have a fighting chance at staring something but better get going soon. They appear to have a brand, but need up their advertising game, improve their website booking system and actually offer some service for customers. I wonder if the the routes from Vancouver-Calgary-Regina-Winnipeg and from Winnipeg-Saskatoon-Edmoton-Vancouver will qualify for subsidy under the Federal Government's recently announced program to fund those Greyhound services that have yet to be or cannot be replaced? Maybe Rider Express is eligible? I wait to see what happens ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RZ350 Posted November 9, 2018 Report Share Posted November 9, 2018 On 11/4/2018 at 5:09 PM, northwesterner said: This post is insane. Just a week or two ago, you were asking why some routes didn't have any applicants to operate, as there was potential on all of them. "Awesome ridership" ???? People said the same thing about STC, and then the real numbers came out and they were abysmal. Wrong. Airfare between the major cities is low and the bus rides are long and uncomfortable. Greyhound certainly didn't help themselves, but its hard to say, hey, for the same price you can ride the bus and it will only take 10 hours, versus 2 in a plane. What kind of value proposition is that for the customer? Meanwhile, Calgary to Vancouver is 971km (or around 600 miles). Let's say do a one way trip with one driver. At current diesel prices, this is going to cost about $600CAD in fuel. Add in another $330 for driver wages (assuming $20CAD per hour, 15 hour shift). $50CAD to clean the bus at the start of the trip. And a per mile overhead, depreciation, insurance, and maintenance cost (let's go with $0.50/mile CAD - this is hard to estimate and I've been out of the business long enough that I don't remember what we used to use), so that's another $300 CAD. Total cost to run a one way trip is around $1280/CAD. I'm probably underestimating all these costs. They're charging $150CAD for the one-way trip next Friday. You say you can't expect 10-15 people to ride right off everyday. At 10 people, they're barely covering my estimate of costs. For an extra $115CAD, I can buy a ticket right now for the same day on Air Canada. The flight time is 1hr and 35 minutes. If I plan my life a little better and buy now for Friday the 16th, Air Canada is $216CAD non-stop. If I really get organized and decide to go on Friday Dec 1, the flight on Air Canada is $95CAD ... substantially less than the bus ticket. So ... who are the customers for this service, given the competition? $20 that they cancel service before January 1st. You're not completely out of line on your cost estimates. The rule of thumb in BC, using recent equipment, is $1500.00 a day to make any profit. Obviously this is for full size coaches, and fairly new. Yes you can make money at a lower rate using older equipment, but it's not sustainable over the long haul. you can of course lower this daily requirement with smaller and less expensive equipment, but then there's longevity to consider. Cutaways don't last long term, and Sprinters are expensive. yes these are generalizations, but they are mostly correct. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vortoozo Posted November 21, 2018 Report Share Posted November 21, 2018 Wilson's "The BC Connector" began their service to Kamloops, Kelowna & Whistler today. 1 x Daily to Kamloops & Kelowna 3x Daily to Whistler, with extra departure on Friday https://bcconnector.ca/schedules/ For some reason the Kamloops & Kelowna services have not been timed for connections with their Victoria service, as they arrive back to Vancouver late in the evening. Prices are a few dollars less than EBus. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roeco Posted November 21, 2018 Report Share Posted November 21, 2018 4 hours ago, vortoozo said: Wilson's "The BC Connector" began their service to Kamloops, Kelowna & Whistler today. 1 x Daily to Kamloops & Kelowna 3x Daily to Whistler, with extra departure on Friday https://bcconnector.ca/schedules/ For some reason the Kamloops & Kelowna services have not been timed for connections with their Victoria service, as they arrive back to Vancouver late in the evening. Prices are a few dollars less than EBus. I'm thinkin in order to time the schedules for connections for Kamloops and Kelowna they would probably need to base drivers in Kamloops and Kelowna, not sure how else they could do it. As for Whistler should be pretty easy to time connections! ebus schedules are set up to connect so u can get to the Island same day. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vortoozo Posted November 21, 2018 Report Share Posted November 21, 2018 15 hours ago, roeco said: I'm thinkin in order to time the schedules for connections for Kamloops and Kelowna they would probably need to base drivers in Kamloops and Kelowna, not sure how else they could do it. As for Whistler should be pretty easy to time connections! ebus schedules are set up to connect so u can get to the Island same day. I would certainly hope that the drivers aren't being scheduled for an out-and-back trip as part of one duty day. The Kelowna bus leaves Vancouver at 10:30am and doesn't get back until over 12 hours later. Consider time to pick up/drop off the bus from the depot & load passengers and that's an almost a 13-14 hour day!!! Now add in some time for snow storms, traffic, etc. I wouldn't want to be on that bus on the return leg, the driver would be beyond fatigued. Never mind if they had already done the same thing the day before. I doubt a driver base would be required in Kelowna, but certainly switching with another driver in order to have a rest period before returning is hopefully already part of their plan. Now, instead of that driver being there a full 24 hours, why not have them rest and then come back with the bus the next morning? The scheduling can certainly be tweaked in order to provide for connections. Same thing with Whistler - currently you can travel from Whistler to Kamloops but not Whistler to Kelowna. And forget about Kamloops or Kelowna to Whistler. What's the point of building up a full network like that if the connectivity isn't there? If you have both Vancouver - Kelowna/Kamloops leaving at 12:30pm or later then you have full network connectivity. A possible departure time could be 2pm, as this provides a 20 minute connection from Victoria & a 2 hour connection from Whistler. Looks like the Whistler timing could possibly tweaked for a later departure/arrival without impacting the next run in order to make a better connection. And then schedule the returns the next day arriving back in Vancouver by 1pm. This provides a reasonable connection to Whistler (1 hour) and Victoria (30 minutes), and the same bus could turn around and head back to the interior. Same number of busses, well-rested drivers, network connectivity. That's how it should be done. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShermanOaks Posted November 22, 2018 Report Share Posted November 22, 2018 On 11/3/2018 at 9:03 AM, ShermanOaks said: Based on information gathered off of the individual bus company websites, here’s an overview of the “post-Greyhound” scheduled service in Manitoba as of November 3, 2018: The following companies have also been observed in active service: MAPLE BUS LINES - www.maplebuslines.com Operates out of 939 Sherbrook Street in Winnipeg Lv. Winnipeg @ 9:00 PM - Ar. Thompson @ 5:45 PM - Sunday to Thursday Lv. Thompson @ 10:00 PM - Ar. Winnipeg @ 5:45 PM - Sunday to Thursday Lv. Thompson @ 2:15 PM - Ar. Cross Lake @ 5:30 PM - Monday to Thursday Lv. Cross lake @ 5:10 PM - Ar. Thompson @ 8:25 PM - Monday to Thursday Lv. Winnipeg @ 7:15 AM - Ar. The Pas @ 4:10 PM - Ar. Thomspon @ 8:25 PM - Monday to Friday Lv. Thompson @ 8:15 AM - Ar. The Pas @ 12:25 PM - Ar. Winnipeg @ 9:50 PM - Monday to Friday THOMPSON BUS - www.thompsonbus.com Operates from the Winnipeg Richardson International Airport: Lv. Thompson @ 10:00 PM - Ar. Winnipeg @ 7:10 PM - Sunday to Thursday Lv. Winnipeg @ 10:00 PM - Ar. Thompson @ 7:10 PM - Monday to Friday Lv. Gillam @ 7:45 AM - Ar. Thompson @ 11:45 AM - Monday-Thursday Lv. Thompson @ 4:30 PM - Ar. Gillam @ 5:40 PM - Sunday to Wednesday Lv. Thompson @ 1:15 PM - Ar. Cross Lake @ 4:10 PM - Monday, Wednesday, Friday Lv. Cross lake @ 4:30 PM - Ar. Thompson @ 7:25 PM - Monday, Wednesday, Friday BRANDON AIR SHUTTLE - www.brandonairshuttle.com Operates from the Winnipeg Richardson International Airport: Lv. Brandon @ 7:00 AM/ 10:00 AM / 2:00 PM Ar. Winnipeg Airport @ 9:30 AM / 12:30 PM / 5:00 PM - Daily Lv. Winnipeg Airport @ 11:00 AM / 3:30 PM / 8:00 PM Ar. Brandon @ 1:30 PM / 6:00 PM / 10:30 PM - Daily Lv. Dauphin @ 9:30 AM / 1:30 PM - Ar. Brandon @ 11:30 AM / 3:30 PM - Daily Lv. Brandon @ 1:30 PM / 6:00 PM - Ar. Dauphin @ 3:30 PM / 8:00 PM - Daily KAPSER TRANSPORTATION - www.gokasper.com Operates from Balmoral Street stop in downtown Winnipeg: Lv Selkirk @ 6:30 AM / 8:30 AM / 10:30 AM / 3:30 PM / 5:30 PM Lv. Winnipeg @ 7:30 AM / 9:30 AM / 11:30 AM / 4:30 PM / 6:30 PM - Monday to Friday Lv. Winnipeg @ 8:20 AM - Ar. Sioux Lookout @ 3:00 PM - Mondsy, Wednesday, Friday Lv. Sioux Lookout @ 3:00 PM - Ar. Thunder Bay @ 7:00 PM - Daily Lv. Thunder Bay @ 9:30 AM - Ar. Sioux Lookout @ 3:00 PM - Daily Lv. Sioux Lookout @ 3:00 PM - Ar. Winnipeg @ 7:05 PM - Monday, Wednesday, Friday The following companies have received operating authority and have announced their intentions to start service but have not yet been observed in service. KELSEY BUS LINES - www.kelseybuslines2014.com Website has schedules posted, media report indicated will start in mid-November: Lv Flin Flon @ 7:30 PM - Ar. Winnipeg @ 6:50 AM - Sunday, Tuesday, Thursday Lv. Winnipeg @ 8:30 PM - Ar. Flin Flon @ 8:30 AM - Monday, Wednesday, Friday Lv. Thompson @ 10:00 PM - Ar. Winnipeg @ 7:10 PM - Sunday Tuesday, Thursday Lv. Winnipeg @ 10:45 PM - Ar. Thompson @ 7:55 PM - Monday, Wednesday, Friday RIDER EXPRESS - www.riderexpress.ca Website indicate that Calgary-Winnipeg trips on hold, however they planning to start Edmonton-Saskatoon service on November 12th with their timetable showing a Saskatoon-Regina-Winnipeg portion: Lv. Regina @ 11:30 AM - Ar. Headingley Flying J @ 6:30 PM - Daily Lv. Headingley Flying J @ 11:30 PM - Ar. Regina @ 6:30 AM - Daily Despite some media reports raising concern, northern Manitoba appears to be very well (and perhaps over-) serviced. The key thing to watch here is if this level of service continues (based on demand) and if these companies continue to roll. Service to and from the west goes as far as Brandon, but has yet to begin beyond that. This will be interesting to watch as new companies take to the Trans-Canada route. The eastern service into Ontario has been up and running for well over a year or so, and it will likely continue. (Note that Kasper makes a connection with Ontario Northland in White River.) Staying tuned as this continues to unfold ... And yet a third bus operator running along PTH #6 between Winnipeg and Thompson. https://www.highway6express.com HIGHWAY 6 EXPRESS Operates from the A&W across from Polo Park: Lv. Thompson @ 8:00 AM - Ar. Winnipeg @ 4:30 PM - Monday & Friday Lv. Winnipeg @ 8:00 AM - Ar. Thompson @ 4:30 PM - Sunday & Wednesday Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Board Admin A. Wong Posted December 3, 2018 Board Admin Report Share Posted December 3, 2018 Some pictures of the former Edmonton downtown Greyhound station / VIA Rail station today: The black rectangles used to have the Greyhound logo on them. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
canuck600 Posted December 4, 2018 Report Share Posted December 4, 2018 The city of Penticton has bought the former Greyhound depot in Penticton. https://www.castanet.net/news/Penticton/243653/City-buys-Greyhound-depot The building is slated for demolition though. Hopefully the large "Bus" sign on the roof gets saved by somebody. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ns8401 Posted December 5, 2018 Author Report Share Posted December 5, 2018 For the Penticton Depot, life after Greyhound isn’t so good... it’ll be demolished after the city of Penticton bought it... https://globalnews.ca/news/4729214/city-of-penticton-buys-greyhound-station/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ns8401 Posted January 15, 2019 Author Report Share Posted January 15, 2019 Brandon Bus is giving up on its run to Winnipeg due to low ridership: https://globalnews.ca/news/4848426/brandon-bus-lines-cancels-service-to-winnipeg/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DavidW Posted January 15, 2019 Report Share Posted January 15, 2019 8 hours ago, ns8401 said: Brandon Bus is giving up on its run to Winnipeg due to low ridership: https://globalnews.ca/news/4848426/brandon-bus-lines-cancels-service-to-winnipeg/ Brandon Bus Lines, operating three round trips a week and charging a lower fare couldn't make it, but Brandon Dauphin Air Shuttle, with 28 round trips per week during the same period, and charging a higher fare, is reportedly overloaded (and on at least one occasion sent prospective passengers it couldn't accommodate to Brandon Bus Lines). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShermanOaks Posted January 17, 2019 Report Share Posted January 17, 2019 Busy night at a Winnipeg bus depot located at 936 Sherbrook Street. Mahihkan Kelsey Bus Lines #64 preparing to depart at 8:30 PM for Portage La Prairie, Dauphin, Swan River, The Pas and Flin Flon. Maple Bus Lines #8-56 preparing to depart at 9:00 PM for Ashern, St. Martin Jct., Grand Rapids, Ponton, Wabowden and Thompson. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
9924 Posted January 17, 2019 Report Share Posted January 17, 2019 15 hours ago, ShermanOaks said: Busy night at a Winnipeg bus depot located at 936 Sherbrook Street. Mahihkan Kelsey Bus Lines #64 preparing to depart at 8:30 PM for Portage La Prairie, Dauphin, Swan River, The Pas and Flin Flon. Maple Bus Lines #8-56 preparing to depart at 9:00 PM for Ashern, St. Martin Jct., Grand Rapids, Ponton, Wabowden and Thompson. 10 bucks says those are both ex-First Canada out of the oil patch. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ns8401 Posted January 17, 2019 Author Report Share Posted January 17, 2019 Was First running MCI J’s in the oil patch? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roeco Posted January 18, 2019 Report Share Posted January 18, 2019 On 1/15/2019 at 4:09 PM, DavidW said: Brandon Bus Lines, operating three round trips a week and charging a lower fare couldn't make it, but Brandon Dauphin Air Shuttle, with 28 round trips per week during the same period, and charging a higher fare, is reportedly overloaded (and on at least one occasion sent prospective passengers it couldn't accommodate to Brandon Bus Lines). On 1/15/2019 at 4:09 PM, DavidW said: Brandon Bus Lines, operating three round trips a week and charging a lower fare couldn't make it, but Brandon Dauphin Air Shuttle, with 28 round trips per week during the same period, and charging a higher fare, is reportedly overloaded (and on at least one occasion sent prospective passengers it couldn't accommodate to Brandon Bus Lines). I wonder if it would not now make sense for Maple to operate Winnipeg-Portage-Brandon-Minnedosa--Hwy 10 to Dauphin-Swan River and The Pas? For passengers and freight too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
9924 Posted January 18, 2019 Report Share Posted January 18, 2019 5 hours ago, ns8401 said: Was First running MCI J’s in the oil patch? Yuppers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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