Karle Nooski is going to visit his big family in Nautley.
It's been so long that he had tears in his eyes just talking about it.
"I haven't seen them for such a long time," Nooski said, who knows his five sisters will be the most surprised to see him. "It's about time I went to Nautley to visit them."
Nooski is one of the first passengers to take advantage of the Highway 16 Transportation Action Plan. BC Transit started running buses Monday between Smithers and Burns Lake and Tuesday between Burns Lake and Prince George.
Nooski said he heard other people talking about it and decided to make the trip.
"Word of mouth travels pretty fast," he added.
Nooski said he'll use the Highway 16 bus often now that it's available.
"It's a real good bargain to ride the bus for $5," he added.
Nooski said he will spread the work when he gets to Nautley about the accessible bus fare and its schedule. Nooski's stop is at the Nadleh Whut'en General Store.
"I never did expect this - I never thought this would happen," said Nooski.
"I hope other people take advantage of what's happening. We have to spread the good news around."
Currently on offer at the Burns Lake hub is Route 162 that goes between Burns Lake and Smithers, a 145 km trek that will provide the same-day service to passengers Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, while Route 161 goes from Burns Lake to Prince George and will also return the same day, which is a distance of 230 km, on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. The fee is $5 for a one-way fare and children five years and younger are free.
"The Regional District of Bulkley-Nechako is committed to connecting people across our region," Bill Miller, chair of the Regional District of Bulkley Nechako, said in a recent news release.
"The new Highway 16 transit service attests to the dedication of the Regional District board, staff, the City of Prince George, and First Nations partners, improving access to safe affordable transportation for all people."
Federal, provincial and local governments have committed $6.4 million over three years to the plan to connect 21 communities along the 750 km stretch of Highway 16, the so-called Highway of Tears from the number of missing and murdered women on the link from Prince George to Prince Rupert.
There is a rider's guide and website outlining the current schedule online at https://bctransit.com/bulkley-nechako/home.
