Winnipeg-Brandon passenger bus service shuts down after 2 months

A charter bus company is shutting down its passenger service from Winnipeg to Brandon due to low ridership, two months after it started.

Brandon Bus Lines will make its last passenger trip between the two cities on Friday, said spokesperson Jeanelle Hrechka.

The charter bus company started offering the service three days a week in November 2018, following the shutdown of Greyhound services in the province and across the country.

Despite initial support from the community, the service didn't have many passengers to serve, Hrechka said.

"We actually had a few days where nobody signed up at all. We had days where we had, you know, one or two people going into Winnipeg and maybe one or two people coming back," she said.

"I really had a good feeling that our numbers were going to be fairly high, or, you know, at least get a five-person average each way. And we just didn't make those numbers."

Brandon Bus Lines is mainly a charter service, Hrechka said, so its bottom line won't be too badly affected by the loss.

Hrechka said the business isn't ruling out bringing back the service during special circumstances, such as the holidays or back-to-school season.

Hrechka said she doesn't know exactly why the ridership wasn't there.

"Not for certain," she said. "But you know, maybe we've just come to a time where people don't ride the bus anymore. I'm not sure."