The “Transit Future Bus” made an appearance in Oliver on September 13. The 40-foot decommissioned bus has been transformed into an interactive public consultation tool. It is being used by BC Transit officials to answer questions and help visitors learn more about public transportation in the region.
Erin Christie photo
If you were walking down Main Street on the morning of September 13, you might have noticed an unusual sight.
BC Transit has dubbed it the “Transit Future Bus (TFB),” and it was seen rolling through the Regional District of Okanagan-Similkameen (RDOS) between September 10-15.
The 40-foot decommissioned bus has been transformed into an interactive public consultation tool designed to promote BC Transit’s 25-year plan. Components included an iPad station, a kids zone and a Post-It note board.
The six-stop tour, which included Penticton, Osoyoos, Princeton, Oliver, Keremeos and Summerland, was an initiative orchestrated to allow BC Transit officials to connect with the public about area-specific transit needs, priorities and concerns.
The plan forecasts people’s needs, considers planned changes and growth in towns, as well as human and environmental health to predict what regional transit’s networks should look like 25 years from now.
Steve Harvard, senior regional transit manager for BC Transit, said the TFB will complement and support the findings of the Regional Growth Strategy, which cites transit ridership growth as a key objective in future transportation planning.
According to BC Transit’s website, research indicates that by 2036 one in three, or 31,000 residents (approximately the same as the total population of Penticton today), in the RDOS will be 65 or older.
The RDOS land use plan predicts that future growth will mostly be contained within places where services and amenities are already in place, but that rural and agricultural areas like Oliver will remain so and the growth will continue to occur within the developed areas.
Harvard noted that the public response to the initiative, and to BC Transit’s plan, has been favourable so far. “What we’re hearing a lot is that people want more frequency of service and a little better connectivity to some of the communities, particularly between Princeton and Penticton and Osoyoos and Penticton, with links to Kelowna.”
Harvard will use the data collected during the tour to complete a report, which he will present to the transit board later this fall. He said BC Transit is planning another tour, and second round of consultations in the spring. For more information on the plan, visit www.bctransit.com/transitfuture.com
Erin Christie
Oliver Chronicle
