'People rely on those services': Continued Halifax Transit disruptions becoming a concern for users, councillors
Transit disruptions are becoming more common in Halifax, with late or cancelled ferry and bus routes leading to frustration among riders.
Several Woodside ferry crossing were cancelled Monday morning due to a mechanical issue.
The service was back making its usual crossing of the Halifax Harbour by the afternoon.
“I use transit almost every day. I primarily take the ferry to get to campus,” said NSCC student Hope Campbell.
That’s been getting harder to do for transit riders, like Campbell.
In the last week, Halifax Transit has announced delays because of technical, mechanical and staffing issues.
The lack of reliability is becoming a concern.
“I think it’s terrible. We can’t operate a functioning transit system where there’s so many cancellations because people rely on those services to get to their jobs, to get their kids to school,” said Halifax councillor Patty Cuttell.
Constant cancellations and delays also affects ridership.
“In various studies around the world, multiple times it was shown that that the transit service needs to be reliable, fast and convenient for people,” said Ahsam Habib, a transportation professor at Dalhousie University.
If it’s not, people will find other ways to commute.
“Last year, the population grew by 28,000 people,” said Jennifer L’Esperance, a senior executive director with the province’s Department of Immigration.
And that’s right on track for the province to meet its goal of 2 million residents by 2060.
Cuttell would like the province to help the city prepare its transit system for this type of growth. L’Esperance says they can assist, but not necessarily with dollars.
“If there’s labour needs to support that transportation system, that’s where we can connect them to markets nationally or internationally that would have that labor, those employees that people need.”
To help now, HRM is running a program to attract and train transit operators to keep the buses and ferries running on schedule.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Doctors say capital gains tax changes will jeopardize their retirement. Is that true?
The Canadian Medical Association asserts the Liberals' proposed changes to capital gains taxation will put doctors' retirement savings in jeopardy, but some financial experts insist incorporated professionals are not as doomed as they say they are.
Something in the water? Canadian family latest to spot elusive 'Loch Ness Monster'
For centuries, people have wondered what, if anything, might be lurking beneath the surface of Loch Ness in Scotland. When Canadian couple Parry Malm and Shannon Wiseman visited the Scottish highlands earlier this month with their two children, they didn’t expect to become part of the mystery.
Fair in Ontario, flurries in Labrador: Weather systems make for an erratic spring
It's no secret that spring can be a tumultuous time for Canadian weather, and as an unseasonably mild El Nino winter gives way to summer, there's bound to be a few swings in temperature that seem out of the ordinary. From Ontario to the Atlantic, though, this week is about to feel a little erratic.
What do weight loss drugs mean for a diet industry built on eating less and exercising more?
Recent injected drugs like Wegovy and its predecessor, the diabetes medication Ozempic, are reshaping the health and fitness industries.
He replaced Mickey Mantle. Now baseball's oldest living major leaguer is turning 100
The oldest living former major leaguer, Art Schallock turns 100 on Thursday and is being celebrated in the Bay Area and beyond as the milestone approaches.
What a urologist wants you to know about male infertility
When opposite sex couples are trying and failing to get pregnant, the attention often focuses on the woman. That’s not always the case.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Made-in-Newfoundland vodka claims top prize at worldwide competition
A Newfoundland-made vodka has been named one of the world’s best by judges at this year’s World Vodka Awards.