How to get a direct bus route from Toronto to Waterloo? Get at least 100 people interested
Ever since Greyhound shut down, residents have been left with long and indirect routes to Toronto
After more than a year without a direct bus route from Waterloo to Toronto, Harshita Mistry hopes she's found a solution — and all she needs is the help of 99 other people.
Mistry's frustration at the closure of the Greyhound Canada bus line sent her looking for options other than a more-than-two-hour train ride or a $100 taxi fare.
She found OurBus, an American-based provider that's similar to Greyhound's model. According to the company's website, if a requested route has at least 100 people who sign on in support, it will look into offering that route in the future.
Mistry requested a route from the University of Waterloo to Toronto and had already surpassed the support needed by Friday.
"I was really frustrated about how difficult it is to just get to Toronto," said Mistry, a software engineer. "I just posted this — I did not have any kind of expectation, honestly, but it's good to see that a lot of people are on the same page."
OurBus did not respond to CBC's inquiries in time for publication about whether it will consider Mistry's request, how long it might take to establish a bus route or what the cost might be.
It already operates bus routes in Canada, but from Toronto to New York and Niagara Falls.
Lots of talk and slow action
Announcements and calls for streamlined transit in this region have been happening for years. The calls have grown louder since Greyhound Canada's closure was made permanent in May 2021.
A two-way, all-day expanded service on the Kitchener GO transit line was announced in the provincial budget in March. In April, Metrolinx released a business case for two-way, all-day GO train service between Kitchener and Toronto.
The plan included a call for more train service and shorter travel times between Kitchener and Toronto, in addition to new station platforms and track upgrades.
While an existing transit route from Kitchener's GO station to Union Station is available for commuters, it's only available at certain times of the day, typically falling before 9 a.m. and during rush hour at 5 p.m.
This is an improvement from pre-pandemic service, according to Metrolinx spokesperson Matt Llewellyn.
According to Llewellyn, current service includes 20 trips per day, compared to 16 trips pre-pandemic, including weekday rush hour express options for Kitchener and trip extensions to and from Kitchener GO.
"Before the pandemic, Metrolinx increased service on the corridor – including mid-day and late-night options – by nearly 45 per cent."
Just this September, Metrolinx introduced additional off-peak trips between Toronto and Kitchener."
Llewellyn says Metrolinx "will continue to monitor ridership, work with our partners at MTO, and determine whether there are other opportunities for Metrolinx and GO Transit to fill any gaps in service" in the area.