BC Transit is advising riders of potential service disruptions in the Victoria Regional Transit System due to an ongoing labour shortage further impacted by COVID-19 effects on employee wellness. This is resulting in the need to sometimes alter schedules and cancel trips on short notice, which is a challenge currently being faced by many other transportation agencies.
BC Transit understands the impact these disruptions have on riders and does its best to notify customers immediately. Once a trip cancellation has been confirmed, alerts are issued on BC Transit’s website. Riders are encouraged to use NextRide, Transit App, and to check for alerts regularly by visiting https://www.bctransit.com/victoria/schedules-and-maps/alerts. Riders may also sign up for route-specific alerts that will be emailed to them directly.
BC Transit and the Victoria Regional Transit Commission work hard to match service with demand, and continue to ensure reliable transportation services are available for customers. Despite these necessary trip cancellations, BC Transit is able to maintain approximately 98% of scheduled service and our team does their best to ensure the impact to customers is minimized.
When cancellations occur, BC Transit tries to maintain a balanced schedule to ensure all routes remain active, but with slightly less frequency. BC Transit is continuing with driver recruitment to mitigate future risk of service disruptions. Anyone interested in a rewarding career with BC Transit can learn more here.
The health and safety of customers and drivers is our top priority, and all BC Transit employees are asked to stay home if they are feeling unwell. This has been our policy since the beginning of the pandemic, along with enhanced bus and facility cleaning, mandatory masks for the entirety of the transit journey and one-way passenger flow on the bus. In November 2021, BC Transit also implemented a vaccination policy for all employees and the employees of our contractors and operating companies.
More information on our response to COVID-19, reviewed by the Provincial Health Officer and WorkSafeBC, is available at https://www.bctransit.com/covid19.
BC Transit apologizes for the inconvenience this may cause and continues to appreciate the patience of customers during this time.
Media contact
BC Transit Communications
250-880-1303 | Media@bctransit.com
