Public transit users in Sooke can expect improved connections and more frequent service in the new year.
B.C. Transit and the Victoria Regional Transit Commission will introduce the changes on Jan. 2.
The changes in Sooke come in respone to customer feedback and ridership demand on the early morning weekend trips. The schedules were also updated to improve weekend on-time performance on routes 50 and 61.
Among the changes:
• Routes 50 (Langford/Downtown) and 61 (Sooke/Langford/Downtown) will both start earlier on the weekends.
• Saturday service from Sooke will start at 6:48 a.m., while Sunday service begins at 7 a.m.
• Route 61 Sooke will also have three extra round trips added creating hourly service from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
To support the changes, B.C. Transit staff will be on hand to help customers by having staff at main bus stops explaining the new routing during the first week of January.
B.C. Transit is not planning any other changes to Sooke routes in the near future, but will conduct a Local Area Transit Plan for Sooke in 2019. It will focus on identifying future service improvements specific to the area.
The service expansion builds off the 20,000 additional service hours that have been implemented throughout the fall, says B.C. Transit.