Here’s how general election candidates will support public transportation

My first step would be to sit down with city transit staff and BC Transit and understand where the system is working well and where it isn’t.

Before assuming the answer is simply more funding, I would want to know whether we can use what we already have more efficiently. If buses or parts of routes are regularly running with very low ridership, maybe those hours can be better used somewhere else.

At the same time, if we want people to take the bus, it has to be reasonably convenient. I take the bus occasionally myself, and frankly, it isn’t always the easiest way to get around. Frequency, reliability and connections matter.

The small things matter too. Clean, well-maintained exchanges and stops—including something as simple as regular power washing—can make transit more pleasant to use.

An effective public transportation network is vital for our quality of life, as well as our economy.

Our plan focuses on data-driven efficiency and smart network optimization. We will work directly with BC Transit to optimize existing routes, ensuring high-frequency corridors efficiently serve major employment, education and commercial hubs like Thompson Rivers University and our primary business districts.

For less-dense or rapidly developing outer neighbourhoods, we will introduce flexible options like on-demand micro-transit. This ensures all residents maintain reliable connectivity without running costly, empty conventional buses. By modernizing schedules, prioritizing transit efficiency, and tailoring services directly to actual neighborhood ridership data, we can expand network accessibility and improve the rider experience while strictly respecting the taxpayer’s dollar.

We need to do more with bike lanes but we need to take another look at the one on Sixth Avenue to determine if that process is best. We need to continue to lobby BC Transit to expand bus routes in the city. That’s especially important outside the downtown/Tranquille Market area. I’d like to see the bike valet become year-round with another one on the North Shore. A lot of people ride fat tire bikes in inclement weather.

Kamloops is unique in its geography, with its large, spread-out size, spanning hillsides and being physically divided by the river. I believe all of that makes it unique when building a transit model. I’d like to focus on the following as our need for a smart and productive transit system grows

• Better Transit Access in High-Frequency Core Corridors: With the growth expected in our community, our transit system should be more robust. We should look to prioritize frequent, dependable 15-minute service along our highest-demand corridors—connecting TRU, Royal Inland Hospital, downtown and the North Shore transit exchange. Reliable scheduling turns transit into a practical daily choice rather than a last resort.
• Transit Stops need to be safe, clean and accessible: Transit should be accessible and safe for seniors, students and commuters.
• Transit-Oriented Development: Council needs to ensure that transportation and housing are planned together. We should focus on higher-density housing along established transit routes. This would increase transit revenues, reduce traffic congestion, and maximize return on investment.

Kamloops Public Transportation has the third highest ridership in the province.  We need more routes as promised by BC Transit in the 2025 budget. We asked for more funding to expand routes both traditional as well as Handy Dart. It was approved by council. BC Transit could not access the funding. We need to continue to push for these new routes. We also need more reliability on route execution. If we say every 30 minutes it needs to be every 30 minutes. We need to move forward with the Valleyview bus exchange. We had heard the presentation. It’s time to move forward on this plan.

I would explore looking into reducing bus fares and other models that eliminate a third party. I would explore fare reduction to help ensure more bus far collections and safety for the drivers, since many people don’t end up paying. Improving the routes of the Northshore, TRU and Aberdeen to ensure more reliability along those busy routes. I would have more dialogue with BC Transit, ourselves, and an elected service provider employee to have frequent updates about concerns and issues.

Public transportation is a service provided by BC Transit in partnership with the City of Kamloops. We must continue to advocate for additional buses so that we can improve and add new routes, keep riding times at a minimum as well as keeping rates as reasonable as possible. Enhancing our current handyDART services is also very important. We have the ridership as we have shown to provincial administration running transit, we just need to continue pushing. Having a good relationship with the province is critical.

While the City of Kamloops funds over 53 per cent of the operating costs for standard transit, BC Transit is the service provider. We build the case and provide our part of the funding, but the province ultimately decides who will receive increased routes, hours and frequency.

In my first term, I consistently joined with other members of council in advocating for increased public transit services. Ridership in Kamloops has now surpassed pre-pandemic levels, rebounding to approximately 120 per cent of previous use, and the case for the expansion is strong.

After focused lobbying, financial planning, and statistical evidence was presented, 8,000 additional annual service hours were approved by BC Transit and funded jointly by our council in January 2026 to adjust trip times, fix scheduling bottlenecks and improve overall trip reliability. This was a start, but the data indicated that a much larger investment is required for expanded neighbourhood coverage and network growth. This requires an additional 23,000 annual service hours.

Unfortunately, with provincial budget constraints coming to light, funding was frozen for all upcoming BC Transit service expansions across the province, including the additional hours we had approved and felt hopeful BC Transit would allocate.

My commitment is to continue advocating for the expansion of services that Kamloops needs to meet both ridership demand and environmental targets. Through UBCM, Kamloops Council has sponsored resolutions to lift funding caps on operating grants, made direct requests to the transportation minister, highlighted funding commitments, and built coalitions to ensure the province hears that municipalities outside of the Lower Mainland also deserve access to public transportation.

When the provincial budget stabilizes and broader economic uncertainties resolve, Kamloops will be high on the priorities list for expanded services. When that day comes, I’m committed to ensuring that we’re at the front of the line.

Being born and raised in Kamloops I have personal experience on the difficulties of our public transportation. Geographically things are very challenging and this is also an item that is mostly controlled provincially vs municipally. I think that to prevent cost increases on taxes and create better services the solution is something like ride share apps that allow for carpooling and location efficiencies to happen. This provides a much better service to the users in need of more than what the current public transit system can provide.

As I understand it, the incoming council will inherit a plan for improving the public transportation network that is already in progress. My first priority would be to pursue the funding necessary to implement the improvements that have already been proposed.

I would also like to see us remain open to innovative approaches to transportation. During my 2022 campaign, someone shared an idea with me that has stuck with me ever since. To the best of my recollection, it was an idea originally proposed by Mitch Forgie, owner of Red Beard Café. A passenger gondola connecting the North and South Shores!! Woah!

I don’t know whether that particular idea is viable, but I LOVE the thinking behind it. Could we create innovative transportation infrastructure that serves Kamloops residents while also becoming an attraction that actively attracts tourism and contributes to economic activity?

I would like to see more ideas like that brought forward and seriously explored. We shouldn’t assume that the ways we’ve traditionally moved people around a city are the only ways available to us.

Top priority for me is expanding Kamloops’ transit.  Kamloops hasn’t received substantial expansion in service since 2019. Kamlooosians take 4 million transit trips per year. When and if BC Transit offers more hours for Kamloops, I will be voting to support more hours and new routes. 

Second, active transportation is the low hanging fruit. More 30 per cent of new growth will be in the centre of the city. Better sidewalks, multi use lanes and bike lanes will reduce congestion in the core, and help traffic flow through the core as well. 

Third, I opposed council’s decision to continue the truck route through downtown Kamloops (Lansdowne St). Summit Drive is already a truck route and is more appropriate for accessing Mission Flats. I will continue to advocate to remove the truck route from the downtown core.

This issue is important to me, as the only candidate I’m aware of that is a regular transit user. I have a record of advocacy, working with Councillor Nancy Bepple and Transition Kamloops, to first make sure that Kamloops was putting up it’s share of funding for future route expansions and then lobbying BC Transit and the provincial government to fund it’s share of the program. This advocacy includes raising the issue directly with Premier David Eby. That conversation is ongoing, but I believe we will be able to support future route expansions as well as completion of a new Valleyview transit exchange during the next Council term.

I ride Kamloops transit regularly, so I experience the system alongside the people who depend on it. But improving transportation isn’t just about buses. We need to think about how people safely move around Kamloops by bus, bicycle, on foot and through other forms of transportation.

I want riders, transit operators, BC Transit, City staff and people who walk and cycle regularly at the same table. We should identify areas where safety, accessibility, connections and infrastructure aren’t working well and address them based on how people actually use our community.

I’m currently working on organizing a Dance Bus for students, and that experience has reinforced for me how much transportation affects whether young people can safely participate in their community. I would encourage the city to assess specific areas around schools, transit stops, crossings, sidewalks, bike routes and other high-use areas to identify barriers to safe and accessible transportation.

I would also advocate for practical transit improvements including frequency, overcrowding, reliability, evening and weekend service, accessibility and connections to employment, education, healthcare and essential services.

I recognize that council doesn’t control every transit decision—BC Transit is an important partner. But council can listen, advocate, prioritize resources and plan our streets and neighbourhoods so that people have more than one safe way to get where they need to go.

My goal is a transportation network that works for how Kamloops residents actually live, not simply one that moves vehicles from one place to another.

I would like to see more express routes in the city to move residents in a timely fashion across the city. I would also like to see a review and confirm that transit is effective in supporting major employers like RIH, where employees face parking challenges and also having transit support specific shift start and finish times.

I would also like Kamloops to become one of the growing number of communities in Canada that support free transit use for young adults. Studies show that those who use transit regularly in their early adult years are more likely to continue using transit. Communities that have moved forward with this model have found that it also supports the transit system itself as the network typically experienced increased ridership and the associated revenues over time. 

Kamloops transit is run by a private company under contract. I see that as a real issue. A bus system is a public service, and fare revenue should go back into the community to fund better service, not shareholder returns.

As councillor, I will push to bring operations under public control when the existing contract expires. I will oppose any renewal that keeps private profit at the centre of the system. The first step is a public review of the current contract, so residents know what it costs, when it expires, and what it would take to bring services in house.

Ownership is only part of it. We also need to extend service. Kamloops is not a very walkable city, so people either need to afford a car or rely on a bus system that does not always meet their needs. Many routes are limited in how often they run, or in how far they reach. That does not make sense for a city like ours. Transit is one way to make life more affordable. Give people reliable ways to get around, and they may not need to buy and maintain a vehicle.

My priority is more frequent service on core routes, connecting the North Shore, downtown, Sahali, and Aberdeen to TRU and Royal Inland Hospital. A bus every 15 minutes is a realistic option for commuters. I will also work with BC Transit and the province to design new development around transit, and to move toward electrification. I will keep supporting reduced fares for students, seniors, and low-income riders.

Even the basics matter. Riders deserve proper shelters at busy stops, so waiting for a bus is comfortable. Ultimately, transit should serve people first, and it should stay public.

If public transportation needs to extend their hours of operation to fit the work schedules of those who may take the bus and possibly make these non-peak hours of operation free so that the cost of running is justified.

Users of public transit and active transportation commuters need to be actively engaged by the city to determine their usage needs like where new bike paths and bus routes are needed.

We need longer transfer times and more frequent buses running on our current bus routes. We need to implement a policy that requires all future road upgrades and improvements include active transportation and/or mass transit options to better connect our city.

With the rise of e-bikes and e-scooters, the city needs to recognize multi-use paths as an integral economic driver for the city and needs to increase maintenance and care of these paths.

We also need to ensure carshares like PropelUs are supported by the city through favourable zoning and policy. Reducing overall car usage will improve our climate impact and reduce maintenance costs for our roads.

Kamloops has outgrown its transit system. Council committed to a 2027 expansion, but provincial funding through BC Transit fell short. I’d hold the city to that commitment and keep pushing the province. Operators face threats, violence and even overdoses on their buses, with no scheduled breaks.

They need proper training, equipment and a real voice in fixing schedules.

The province had approved our request for additional transit hours , when the 2026 budget came in, they pulled the funding. We will keep pushing for our fare share. As we have shown the strongest transit ridership numbers in the interior.

Increases to our transit hours and expansion of routes, in partnership with BC Transit.

Communication is key here. Bus is late –  we need an app to tell the person sitting at the bus stop, someone is coming. Bus is canceled – we need to let the people know they need to make other arrangements. Ride share or park and ride would be a viable alternative for people who travel to similar locations. The volunteer army needs to connect. People are willing to share if they know how.

The transportation network is something I would need the keys to the city to comment on. We will have to circle back once I gain access to information.