Letter received February 2, 2020 from J. Wilson, The Wilson's Group of Companies, Re: Tofino Bus LOS Request

Dear Mayor David Screech and View Royal Council,

It is with great urgency that I write to you today seeking a letter of support for a short-term emergency COVID recovery contract between Tofino Bus and the Province of BC and its Ministry of Transportation to continue our essential service until ridership is restored.

Intercity bus service provides the same essential service as public transit. It takes people to medical appointments, essential work, school, childcare and to get their prescriptions and groceries. It is particularly critical for those with low income and in remote communities. On Vancouver Island, twenty-nine communities and twenty-one First Nations and First Nations organizations are served with intercity busing by Vancouver Island Connector and Tofino Bus. In 2019 we provided 82,500 trips. Your community is among those we serve daily (see page 2 and 3 for locations).

Due to COVID 19 work and travel restrictions, revenue on these routes has been down 95% since March 2020. Tofino Bus has no more financial reserves, it has received all available government subsidies and grants and will be forced to close this service within the next four months if it does not have a source of revenue to operate them. With that many riders who rely on our services will have no other options to transport themselves.

The Solution:

To avoid the disruption, cost and public safety risk created by cancelling intercity busing on Vancouver Island, we have requested from Transportation Minister Rob Fleming a short-term emergency COVID recovery contract to continue this essential service until ridership is restored. This solution will prevent a gap in service for these communities, it will avoid government having to take on the cost of intercity busing on the island and it will ensure Tofino Bus is still around to serve these communities during economic recovery from COVID 19.

If you require any additional information at this time, please do not hesitate to reach out to our team. We know how important this service is to the communities on Vancouver Island and greatly appreciate whatever support you can offer us.

I look forward to hearing back from you.

Sincerely,

John Wilson President and CEO The Wilson's Group of Companies