If you're looking to get down to the Lower Mainland from Prince George other than flying or driving yourself, there now officially is a way.
After Greyhound left British Columbia, it left people scrambling to find bus services to serve routes.
Adventure Charters has officially received approval from Transport Canada for two inner-city bus routes within the Cariboo, Fraser Canyon, and Kamloops regions.
The license was provisionally granted at the end of April by the Passenger Transportation Board.
“There were several additional steps to complete following the license approval," Adventure Charters owner Janna Gerzen says in a release. "One of the requirements was for us to publicly release our detailed routes, schedules, fares and even obtain ticket pre-sales as of April 15."
Gertzen explained ticket sales before final approval was granted by the government generated some confusion with social media followers at first, but Adventure Charters was committed to answering clearly and as soon as possible.
The inside of the bus that would travel from Prince George to Surrey. (via Adventure Charter and Rentals) “One aspect we were pleasantly surprised by is that potential passengers are quite interested in close-community hops, like 100 Mile House to Williams Lake, for instance," she adds in the release. "Since the initial schedules were geared toward the longer trips, Adventure Charters has immediate plans to introduce fares more suited to the shorter jaunts."
Williams Lake to Kamloops will be able to transport 20 passengers while Prince George to Surrey can accommodate as many as 36.
Routes will run twice per week with the ability to add more if it's warranted.
The company says buses will stop in several smaller communities when tickets are pre-booked.
Currently, those communities are Prince George, Hixon, Quesnel, Kersley, McLeese Lake, Soda Creek, Wildwood, Williams Lake, 150 Mile House, Lac la Hache, 100 Mile House, 70 Mile House, Clinton, Cache Creek, Kamloops, Hope, Spences Bridge, Lytton, Boston Bar, Yale, Chilliwack, Abbotsford, and Surrey.
A third-party online reservation system will be used to ensure the best experience and most secure method, the company says.
Passengers will advance-book and pay by credit card, then either print the ticket or have it ready for the driver on their mobile device.
Trips are expected to start on May 2.
Fares are determined how many zones a passenger will travel through:
ZONE 1: Prince George, Hixon, Quesnel, Kersley, McLeese Lake, Soda Creek, Wildwood, Williams Lake
ZONE 2: Williams Lake, 150 Mile House, Lac La Hache, 100 Mile House, 70 Mile House, Clinton, Cache Creek, Savona, Kamloops
ZONE 2: Kamloops, Spences Bridge, Lytton, Boston Bar, Yale, Hope
ZONE 3: Hope, Chilliwack, Abbotsford, Surrey
PRICES
- Travel between 1 zone = $65
- Travel between 2 zones = $90
- Travel between 3 zones = $110
Prince George trips will leave from the Prince George Travelodge (1458 7th Ave).
