Winkler pilot project to evaluate potential public transit options

The lack of a public transportation system continues to be an “urgent” concern in Winkler, and leaders are hoping a pilot project can help show them how to put reliable and affordable public transit on the road in the southern Manitoba community.

“So many different groups have told us over the years that there is a huge need for this, and told us in no uncertain terms that the need is increasingly urgent,” Winkler Mayor Henry Siemens said.

“There are a lot of taxis in our community but that is simply unaffordable for people who are either on a fixed income or need to move around a lot, and people should not be forced to rely on friends and family.”

According to Siemens, organizations and residents have also communicated to council their belief that the lack of any affordable public transit is having negative effects on the mental and physical health and well-being of many who live in the city that is home to more than 14,000 people, including seniors and those who cannot afford their own vehicles.

“The priority is to serve that demographic that currently cannot move around, because a lot of people end up homebound and cannot participate in the things they need to do and that they would like to do, whether it’s shopping, or medical appointments, or recreational events, or just getting out and being with people,” he said.

“It has an overall negative effect on the health of the community when people can’t get around.”

This week Winkler city council released a request for proposals to bring a public transit pilot project to the city, and Siemens said several groups have expressed interest.

According to Siemens, once a proposal is accepted, the pilot project is expected to see a ride-sharing style operation up and running in Winkler before the end of this year with fees that would be similar to public transit in other centres subsidized by money put aside in the city’s budget.

The goal is two-fold, said Siemens, to get a public transit-style operation up and running while also allowing them to determine how great the need is and what the best options are for a potential permanent public transit service.

“We really have to dip our toes into it because it’s an expensive proposition, so we landed on a pilot project because this way we can really learn what we don’t know to offer the right service for this community,” Siemens said.

“Once the rubber hits the road, we can generate the info to find out where people need rides from, where they need rides to, and how many rides are needed, because we don’t want to over-invest and we also don’t want to under-invest.

“We have to get this right.”

Siemens said the city expects to evaluate proposals for the pilot project before the end of this month and to have it up and running before the end of 2024.

This story was originally published in The Winnipeg Sun. It is republished under a Creative Commons license as part of the Local Journalism Initiative.