Key Vancouver Island routes able to restart as B.C. announces $27M package for regional transportation

The provincial government has unveiled afinancial relief program to help support B.C. flagging regional transportation sector.

One-time funding of up to $16.5 million will be directed toregional airports and another $10.7 million for inter-city bus operators.

The president and CEOof Victoria-based Wilson's Group of Companies said the money will allow his companyto restart key Vancouver Island routes in the coming weeks.

The Vancouver Island Connector and Tofino Bus togetherserve29 communities between Victoria, Nanaimo, Campbell River, Port Alberni and Tofino, and 21 First Nations communities across Vancouver Island.

The busesstopped running in February due to a lack of ridershipcaused by the pandemic.

"The devastating losses have left many in the ground transportation sector drowning," said John Wilson. "Today's grant announcement is the lifeboat many in our industry have been hoping for."

• Click here for more stories from Victoria

Heather Bell, chair of the B.C. Aviation Council, said her industry is one of the hardest hit by the pandemic.

"The aviation industry in Canada is funded almost fully in a user pay model, so it doesn't take much imagination to see, that with airtravel at a near standstill, the revenues have hit rock bottom, while the high costs for maintaining regulatory and safety standards have remained," said Bell.

Bell said when the pandemic is over, she expects air travel will return "not as a flood but as a tsunami," and called for more government support in the future to make sure there are enough workers to meet the demand she sees on the horizon.

Grant applications are open immediately, and the money will be dispensed between April 1, 2021 and March 31, 2022.

"While we can see light at the end of the tunnel, the pandemic is not over, and people and businesses still need help," said Premier John Horgan.

"Today's announcement will help protect services people rely on to commute to important appointments safely and affordably especially for those in rural and remote communities."