Kathleen, a Transport Action BC member from Prince Rupert, is a regular user of intercity public transportation services in the Prince Rupert to Prince George corridor (Highway 16, also called the Highway of Tears). One of her concerns was the lack of a simple source of schedule information showing which train or bus service was available on which days. The information can be searched on the web, but this is frequently not an option in remote parts of the province. The demise of Greyhound and its skeletal replacement, BC Bus North, further highlighted the need for easy to access schedule information. Northern Health Connections, Friendship House, and Haida Gwaii Eagle Transit all operate services in the region, with various schedules and availability rules.
To help remedy the situation, Kathleen produced a single page Travel Guide, summarising the services available. It is paper based so that it can be carried in your pocket or purse, pinned to a notice board, scanned into your phone, or handed out by community service groups and libraries. With the support of Transport Action, Kathleen had 1,600 copies printed and distributed to her community and neighbouring towns.
She also arranged for Black Press to publish the Travel Guide in its online publication, The Northern View and in Facebook and Instagram ads. The 1/2-page advertisement in The Northern View, Feb 29, 2024, Page 6-7 can be viewed in the online edition of the newspaper.
The Travel Guide also appears in the travel brochure Exploring Highway 16 West and Beyond 2024 with 10,000 copies distributed across the Highway 16 corridor.
Kathleen discussed her work on the project:
Thank you to TABC and TAC for helping create the Travel Guide for the communities of Prince Rupert and Port Edward. It has been distributed widely and the reviews have been good. The Travel Guide lists public agencies that provide ground transportation in the Highway 16 corridor between Prince Rupert and Prince George. VIA Rail is included. The schedule includes essential telephone numbers. It is a single piece of paper, replacing the need to search several websites.
People are grateful to see their travel choices. They have access to a schedule, in a form that is easily understood with telephone numbers where they can reach a person.
My goal was to distribute the travel information as widely as possible. I wanted to reach people who are not online. I knew I had achieved this when someone said, “It’s always in the newspaper.”
Two-sided Travel Guide pamphlets were printed. Posters are available for places like the Civic Centre and the college. Advertisements were placed in the local Black Press newspaper and in the online version of The Northern View.
I distributed the Travel Guide to Skeena Taxi, the Sheriff’s Office, Laundromats, Cowpuccino’s Coffee, M.L.A., M.P., Friendship House, the Port Edward Harbour Authority, the Health Unit, and City Hall. In total, I spoke with community members from about sixty places.
Each mode of transportation has its drawbacks and strengths. VIA Rail is the most barrier free of all of them. VIA takes cash, the train can be flagged, and no booking is necessary. It is unfortunate that these agencies did not consult each other when they established their schedules because there are overlaps, and Tuesdays, westbound, has no through service.
All in all, I am glad we were able to help the community. So once again, thank you TABC and TAC. Thank you also to Stuck on Designs, Melissa Ash at Black Press, and especially my mother, who taught her nine children to try to be good citizens.
