Without more resources, transit overhaul can’t be transformative

By now, it should be obvious to anyone paying attention: the only real way to improve public transit in Winnipeg is for the city — with support from the provincial and federal governments — to inject more resources into the system.

That means more money. More bus operators. More buses on the road. More service hours. More frequent buses. And more stops that are convenient for people who rely on transit to get to work, school, or appointments.

Without that kind of meaningful investment, we’ll keep seeing the kind of trade-offs we’re seeing under Winnipeg Transit’s newly launched Primary Transit Network — a system that tries to modernize service with limited resources, but ultimately ends up giving to some while taking away from others.

On June 29, Winnipeg Transit unveiled the biggest overhaul to its route system in decades. At the core of the new design is the spine-and-feeder model. Instead of having dozens of overlapping routes running all over the city, many of which duplicated each other or got stuck in traffic, the new system concentrates service along primary corridors.

These high-frequency, high-capacity routes are intended to form the backbone of the network, allowing riders to get across the city faster, with more predictable service, especially during peak hours.

It’s a model that’s worked in other cities. And in theory — and to some degree in practise — it makes sense. Many riders have already reported shorter travel times. Buses on key routes like Main Street, Pembina Highway and Portage Avenue are running more frequently and, thanks to fewer local detours, are more reliable.

But there’s a catch. Like all transit systems, Winnipeg Transit has to work within a budget. And while the new system is a refreshingly innovative approach to moving people through the city, it wasn’t accompanied by an increase in overall service hours.

That means while primary routes have more bus hours, feeder routes have, in many cases, seen their service reduced.

“The Primary Transit Network and its feeder routes is a service-hour neutral project,” Winnipeg Transit says on its website. “It does not reduce or increase overall transit service hours. This means buses operate the same number of hours on weekdays, Saturdays, and Sundays as they do now.”

There are also fewer total stops, falling from about 5,200 under the old system to almost 4,000 under the new one. Transit calculated that adding back a removed stop would cost $21,833 a year.

The cost of adding back all removed stops would be an estimated $3.9 million annually, in large part because it would require more buses.

“While the cost of a single stop may not seem high, our resources are limited,” Transit says on its website. “To add back stops, we’d potentially have to look at other forms of service reductions.”

The result is some people who used to have a one-seat ride to their destination now have to transfer. Others have to walk further to get to a stop. And in many neighborhoods, buses that used to run late into the night now stop around 11 p.m. — a troubling change for anyone who works a late shift or simply needs to get home after dark.

Transit officials have said this is a necessary first step. The old system was outdated and inefficient, and in many ways, they’re right. There were far too many winding routes, redundancies, and buses stuck in slow traffic with few passengers aboard.

The new network is designed to lay the groundwork for a more modern system that could, with the right investment, support Bus Rapid Transit-style service in the future — faster, more reliable, more frequent.

But without increased funding, the plan risks creating a two-tiered system. Those who live or work along a primary corridor may see improvements. But those in outer neighborhoods, or those working outside of 9-to-5 schedules, may be left behind.

If the goal is to get more Winnipeggers out of their cars and onto buses — which is a necessity not just for climate targets, but for reducing congestion and supporting people who can’t afford a car — the city needs to make transit not just functional, but attractive. That means faster service, yes, but also more service.

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Winnipeg Transit has been under-resourced for years, if not decades. And the new system is an attempt to do more with the same — and in some places, it works. But it’s also papering over the deeper issue: there just aren’t enough buses and operators on the road to meet the city’s needs.

There is a way forward. City council could start increasing transit’s operating budget immediately and the province and the federal government could provide targeted, immediate support for mid-sized cities like Winnipeg that are trying to grow their transit systems.

The Primary Transit Network lays a strong foundation. But if the city stops there — if it fails to add more buses, restore late-night service, and improve feeder routes — then all they’ve done is reshuffle the pieces on the board, creating winners and losers.

Public transit only works when it works for everyone. That means more routes, more frequency, longer hours, and more investment — not just a new map.

tom.brodbeck@freepress.mb.ca

Tom Brodbeck
Columnist

Tom Brodbeck is an award-winning author and columnist with over 30 years experience in print media. He joined the Free Press in 2019. Born and raised in Montreal, Tom graduated from the University of Manitoba in 1993 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in economics and commerce. Read more about Tom.

Tom provides commentary and analysis on political and related issues at the municipal, provincial and federal level. His columns are built on research and coverage of local events. The Free Press’s editing team reviews Tom’s columns before they are posted online or published in print – part of the Free Press’s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press’s history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates.