Cold Lake transit service on a weekday will move faster and more efficiently as the city launches a new accelerated weekday schedule beginning Monday, March 14.
The current system will remain in place until the end of the day on Friday, March 11.
The new Monday to Friday service will follow the same accelerated Saturday schedule that is currently in place but will see a two-hour earlier start.
Transportation Services Manager with the City of Cold Lake George Urlacher says customers have expressed their desire to arrive at their destinations faster.
“The new accelerated weekday schedule means there will be no waiting in between stops if a bus is running ahead of its scheduled time. For this reason, it’s imperative that anyone who regularly uses Cold Lake Transit download and become familiar with the TransLoc smartphone app. The times posted on the schedule can be used as estimates, but users should always watch their bus moving in real-time on the app to determine the best time to head to their stop.”
Drivers will no longer stop at posted bus stops if there are no passengers waiting to board or disembark and wait times at the Tri-City Mall transfer point will be shortened.
Urlacher says one of the great benefits of moving to a weekday accelerated service model is that people traveling from opposite ends of the city will no longer have to transfer to a different bus at Tri-City Mall.
“They can stay on the same bus for their whole trip, saving time and making their ride much more convenient. The new schedule will also significantly reduce the amount of time it takes the bus to make a complete loop. The bus will cover the same distance it does currently, but in a shorter amount of time.”
The weekday schedule was initially planned to start by 2020 but was delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Cold Lake Transit service will continue to be free of charge for residents and visitors with Saturday’s schedule remaining unchanged.
Despite the changes to the schedule, Sundays will remain with no service on Sundays or statutory holidays excluding Remembrance day and Canada day.
