With the cost of living putting the pinch on pocketbooks and traffic remaining council’s No. 1 priority, some Bradford residents prefer to get around the urban area aboard the BWG Transit service.
With an upcoming plan aiming to expand and change the service, BradfordToday spoke with several regular riders Aug. 22 to get their impressions of what it’s currently like riding the bus, and the feedback was mostly positive.
Starting on Route 1 — the cross-town bus that covers Holland Street East and West from the GO Transit station to the SmartCentres plaza — we met Manuel Garcia on his way to the gym.
Garcia explains he takes the bus about five times a week on his way to work — and workouts.
“I like the bus,” he said. “It’s fast. It’s all good.”
Off the top of his head, Garcia didn’t have any recommended changes for the service.
Gloria Kosziwka and her husband were headed home from grocery shopping at Walmart, and usually ride the bus about three times a week for shopping and other errands.
“It’s very good. We get where we want to go and that’s the important thing,” she said.
Since “they’re doing a good job right now,” Kosziwka didn’t recommend any significant changes, and was understanding of buses being a few minutes late here and there.
“With traffic, you can’t help it,” she said. “That’s to be expected.”
Hannah Kimayong usually takes the bus about five times a week and was headed home from work.
“I think it’s good,” she said of BWG Transit.
The one thing she’d really like to see changed is for the hours of operation to be expanded, especially in the morning when she’d like to be able to take the bus at 6 a.m. or earlier.
That issue was also raised by residents during the April 9 meeting about the new transit plan in the works, which aims to eventually offer service from 5:30 a.m. to 1 a.m. most days. The current schedule runs from about 7 a.m. to about 7 p.m. most days.
Phil Rogers was headed to Sobeys to get stocked up for the Toronto Argonauts game that evening and said he rides BWG Transit almost every day as his main method of getting around town and running errands.
“It’s good. It’s the right price,” he said, noting that with the re-loadable easyPASS the fare is just $1 per ride — far less than the cost of fuel, maintenance and insurance for a private motor vehicle.
Of course, Rogers understands that many people will need their own car to get to work, especially if they’re younger. But at almost 71, he said he hasn’t driven a car in about two years.
While he has occasionally experienced minor issues on the service, like a broken air conditioning unit, Rogers said they’re usually fixed within a week or so, and the odd time they aren’t, he’s been able to contact his councillor to get things moving.
While Route 1 is his go-to option, Rogers said he also takes the Route 2A/B — which goes around town clockwise and counter clockwise — from time to time if he needs to get over to No Frills, for example.
While Route 1 seemed to always have anywhere from three to seven passengers that Thursday afternoon, Route 2B seemed less popular with only about one to three riders, most of whom were too busy or uninterested in participating in an interview.
During our limited time on both routes, the drivers were all kind and patient, answering questions about routes, timing and fares in a professional manner.
Despite traffic and additional stop requests, they also managed to closely maintain the schedule and manoeuvre the buses smoothly without any hard stops or sudden movements, despite the sometimes erratic behaviour of drivers in other vehicles.
The buses were all relatively comfortable and very clean, even after being in use for most of the day.
All routes make stops at the BWG Leisure Centre and Bradford West Gwillimbury Public Library, but timing a transfer can be a bit tricky, since some routes stop there just a few minutes apart. That means even a slight delay on one route could result in missing the nearest bus on another, requiring riders to wait about half an hour for the next bus.
On the plus side, both the library and leisure centre are open to the public, with air conditioning inside and shaded areas outside, making them pleasant places to wait, should you need to.
More information about BWG Transit, including fares, routes and schedules, is available at townofbwg.com/transit.
