Penticton council throws support behind mission to get Ebus service

Penticton council has thrown its support to bring luxury passenger transit service back to the South Okanagan for the first time since Greyhound Bus service went out of business several years ago.

John Cowan, a vocal proponent of public transportation who recently settled in Penticton, made a presentation to Penticton council Tuesday detailing his advocacy to bring passenger bus service back to this city and the entire South Okanagan.

“You’re probably sitting there looking at me wondering who is this dude that came here from Vancouver less than two years ago and he’s stirring up all this trouble trying to get a bus service for Penticton,” said Cowan. “I’ll answer that question. The reason is I’ve been a transportation advocate my entire life.”

He worked for more than 35 years in the railway industry.

“It (passenger service) has always been in my blood,” he said.

It was tragic when Via Rail cut service to many western Canadian cities, including Calgary and Regina, in the early 1990s, said Cowan. “But at least they had Greyhound to take up the slack.”

When Greyhound Canada announced they were shutting down passenger bus service across the country several years ago, it was devastating news for literally millions of Canadians who used their services to travel across the province and all of Canada, said Cowan.

“It left a lot of communities, including Penticton, with no doable bus service,” he said. “I didn’t realize how intense that was until I moved here in 2024 and realized that if you live in Penticton today and you don’t own a vehicle, your only way to get out of there was to fly and that’s not an affordable option for a lot of people in this town, as I’m sure you all know.”

Cowan said he called EBus, which provides passenger bus service to cities and towns in Alberta and BC last July, when the Coquihalla Highway was shut down for several days because of a large sinkhole.

He asked what was happening with regular runs between Vancouver and Kelowna and was informed they were being detoured, said Cowan.

“That told me right then and there that they are detouring buses through here (Penticton),” he said. “A week later, I called again … to ask if they could not re-route. You run two buses a day from Kelowna to Vancouver, but they both go via Merritt and could you know re-route one via Penticton so we could get service.”

They said, at that time, it wasn’t possible as it would take more than an hour per trip for that to take place, said Cowan.

“She said it would mess up their Kelowna to Kamloops schedule,” he said. “I said you could re-adjust that. We did that on the railroad all the time. The point of the matter is, the folks of Penticton have had no decent bus service now for eight years.”

The need for passenger bus service from Penticton to Vancouver remains overwhelming as he’s read hundreds of posts each month on social media for residents looking for transportation to the Lower Mainland, said Cowan.

“I just don’t think that’s acceptable,” he said. “As a result, I got on this venture to get this bus to come here. I’m not one to give up easy. When people say no to me, I don’t do well and it just emboldens me to want to go even further.”

Regional media, including CBC radio, have promoted his efforts to bring EBus service to Penticton on numerous occasions in the past couple of months, said Cowan.

He’s challenged EBus senior management to come to Penticton and meet with members of council to explain why the company has so far refused to provide service to this community, he said.

“We have to work together in concert to make this happen,” he said.

He’s personally spoken to a high-ranking senior manager with EBus and has been assured they are interested in bringing their services to Penticton, said Cowan.

“He does want to make this work if we can,” he said. “We really need to have this.”

Council with the village of Keremeos are also on board and recently forwarded a letter of support for this service, said Cowan.

He then asked Penticton council for a letter of support, which he will forward to EBus management.

“They are a private company and they obviously want to make money,” he said.

He’s not asking for EBus to provide a new service, but simply to re-route the existing Kelowna to Vancouver service, said Cowan.

“I’ve talked to a lot of your constituents and they want this service and I think we need to do our best to try and get that for them,” he said.

He has started an online petition that already has more than 1,500 signatures, a written petition with more than 200 signatures and a third supported by local MP Helena Konanz, who will voice her support for this service in the House of Commons, said Cowan.

“She wants to get it on the public record in Ottawa that we need this,” he said.

His recommended passenger pickup and dropoff location would be Penticton Airport, said Cowan.

“I’m very passionate about this and I really do want this to work for the folks of Penticton,” he said. “They really need this. They really do.”

Mayor Julius Bloomfield thanked Cowan for all his hard work.

“It is admirable the amount of ground you’ve already covered on this,” he said. “It is difficult when trying to entice private businesses to come to Penticton. It’s always difficult when people think that we’re trying to subsidize a private business, which is not the case here.”

Cowan said he’s in favour of improving regional service offered by BC Transit between Penticton and the South Okanagan to West Kelowna and Kelowna. However, that service doesn’t eliminate the need for long-distance passenger service from this region to the Lower Mainland.

The EBus service also offers 52-seat luxury service with seatbelts and washrooms, which BC transit buses don’t offer, he said.

Coun. Ryan Graham thanked Cowan for all his hard work, adding he’s confident all communities across the South Okanagan would support his initiative to bring EBus service to Penticton.

Later in the meeting, council unanimously supported a motion by Graham to support Cowan’s initiative to bring EBus service to Penticton as soon as possible.

“I’m under no illusions this is going to happen tomorrow,” he said. “All I’m asking from EBus through our city and super consultant, Mr. Cowan, is that it’s time to connect the South Okanagan.”

— This story was originally published by the Penticton Herald