CUPE 5910 (The Syndicat des chauffeurs d’autobus de la Société de transport de l’Outaouais) condemns the use of transportation on demand instead of expanding the bus service—a decision that amounts to privatization in disguise.
Bus line 78 offers service every 30 minutes and serves a fast-growing area between the Lorrain station and the Aéroparc sector. CUPE’s position is that this area could be covered optimally by adding 3 to 4 minutes to current routes and increasing frequency to 15-minute intervals during peak periods. The extensive use of transportation on demand clearly indicates that regular bus service would be viable in this area.
“Lack of adequate funding is leading to a refusal to create bus lines and turn to private taxi shuttles instead,” said Benoit Pichette-Sarault, president of CUPE 5910. “It’s privatization in disguise. Instead of investing in transit, decision-makers are undermining the network by opting for a service that will cost taxpayers more over the long run. The citizens of Gatineau deserve a reliable bus network, just like other similar-sized cities with an airport.”
SCFP-Québec believes that the STO’s decisions stem from the underdog status of transit in provincial budgets. According to data from the TRANSIT Alliance, Ontario plans to invest $5,650 per capita in transit over the next decade, where Quebec plans to earmark only $1,081. The union calls on the STO to stop hijacking the essential role of transit and to invest in forward-looking and efficient bus infrastructure for the people of greater Gatineau.
“These political choices lead directly to service reductions,” the president added. “You can call it ‘transportation on demand’ but, in the end, it’s just full-price taxi service that taxpayers are paying for.”