Examining Transit changes in west Winnipeg

St. James

A petition being circulated to restore Portage Avenue transit service to the front doors of the Grace Hospital and Assiniboine Clinic has gathered 985 signatures, including that of Coun. Sherri Rollins (Fort Rouge-East Fort Garry).

As winter approaches, immediate restoration of this service is essential.

Let us look at some of the other St. James and West End problems created by Winnipeg Transit’s new system.

The D12 Ellice, D13 Sargent, and D15 Ness routes provide service downtown. However, none of these routes actually run through downtown on Portage Avenue. The D12 and D13 cross Portage at Garry Street. The D15 leaves Portage in the 800 block and travels down Broadway to Main Street, forcing riders to either walk from Broadway or transfer to another bus to get to events at the Canada Life Centre. In the 21-year history of the downtown arena, I have always thought that transit service to the front door of the venue from most parts of Winnipeg was a real positive. Why has it been scaled back?

The old 15 Sargent bus used to provide links to the West End and Inkster industrial park through downtown. The new D13 runs between the Forks and the airport to the Forks. Were any studies ever done to figure out if West End residents use transit to go to work in the North End or vice versa?

The recently discarded 14 Ellice route used to go as far west as Ferry Road, loop down to St. Matthews Avenue and return to Ellice on Roseberry Street. The replacement D12 Ellice route now goes up Berry Street to the airport – a service already provided by the D13 Sargent bus. Why are we increasing direct, no-transfer transit service from the airport to downtown while eliminating service to downtown from Perimeter Air’s Ferry Road terminal? Now, residents of East St. James have more difficulty getting downtown and to the major big box stores north of Polo Park.

Additionally, the 14 Ellice route used to connect the West End to southeast Winnipeg along St. Mary’s Road. The D15 Ness bus now takes a completely different route to southeast Winnipeg, travelling though Windsor Park and Southdale all the way to the new Sage Creek neighbourhood. Where are the studies to justify this route instead of St. Mary’s Road.?

One of Winnipeg’s great urban myths is that the Assiniboia Downs neighbourhood is in Headingley, when it is actually part of Winnipeg’s Charleswood-Tuxedo-Westwood ward. In this century, this area has seen growth in businesses, recreational facilities and housing without any regular transit service. Why can’t the D15 cross the Perimeter Highway to provide regular service to this neighbourhood? It crosses Highway 59 into Sage Creek.

All city councillors should make it a priority to understand and correct the mistakes of the new plan. Any long-term reduction in transit ridership will have a disastrous environmental effect.