During a stop in Victoria on Thursday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced $79 million in joint funding for 118 new buses in Victoria and other communities across the province.
Trudeau made the announcement alongside Premier John Hogan and BC Transit President and CEO Erinn Pinkerton at the BC Transit corporate office on Gorge Road East.
According to the federal government, the new buses will replace others at the end of their life cycle or increase capacity in communities where ridership is going up. The federal and provincial governments have each contributed $31 million for the new buses while municipalities are pitching in $16 million.
The funding will also be used for 10 long-range electric buses in Greater Victoria. Those buses will support BC Transit’s new NextRide technology, which allows passengers to see the location of their bus, and closed-circuit television cameras.
“By investing in public transit, we fight climate change, reduce commute times, strengthen the middle class and build more sustainable communities,” the prime minister’s officer said in a statement.
Premier John Horgan says a strong transit system is essential to making communities more affordable and to greening the province’s transportation infrastructure.
Trudeau is attending a Liberal Party fundraising event at Victoria’s Delta Ocean Pointe Resort later this evening. The event, called In Conversation with the Right Honourable Justin Trudeau” is a ticketed event, costing $300 for regular attendees and $100 for members of the Liberal Party’s Laurier Club.
Trudeau was in Montreal earlier today, meeting with European Council President Donald Tusk and EU Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmstrom.
An Angus Reid poll from this month shows the Conservatives ahead both nationally and in B.C. ahead of the federal election in October.
But the Greens say they are ready for the election as they see an opportunity on Vancouver Island. Esquimalt—Saanich—Sooke Green Party candidate David Merner said the message from voters is loud and clear.
“We heard it on the doorsteps. They want something different. They are tired of the status quo parties. The old-time parties. They want something different,” Merner said.
With files from The Canadian Press
CHEK News
