Winnipeg Transit has been asked to look into possibly expanding its Sunday bus service due to recently extended Sunday shopping hours.

Winnipeg City Council voted last year to extend Sunday shopping hours, allowing businesses to open earlier in the morning. However, Coun. Devi Sharma (Old Kildonan) told The Times she was concerned about bus services. Buses running on a Sunday/holiday schedule creates difficulties not only for shoppers who rely on public transportation, she said, but also for retail employees who have to get to new Sunday shifts.

"What I’m finding, in my experience, is that the transit service hasn’t adjusted," she said.
"People can’t get out to shop but, more importantly, people can’t get to work on time."

Sharma put a motion forward at council’s Feb. 26 public works committee meeting asking for Winnipeg Transit to review the implications of expanding its Sunday service to accommodate Sunday shoppers and workers.

The motion was passed. Winnipeg Transit is to report its findings within 60 days.