A Penticton senior says he will continue to voice his frustration over the lack of public bus service to the Penticton Regional Airport.

Les Gooch, 75, said Penticton is the only municipality he knows of in British Columbia with a population of more than 5,000 residents that does not provide transit service to and from its community airport.

In early December, the City of Penticton issued a press release inviting residents to share their concerns and provide input on how to improve service at the city’s south- end airport.

“The City of Penticton wants to hear from you as it launches a study to assess demand for expanded air services,” said a news release from the City of Penticton.

“The City is inviting travellers to complete a short survey about their travel needs. Your feedback will help identify service gaps and, together with current passenger flight data, build a strong business case with the goal of attracting more flight options.”

Gooch moved to Penticton more than 20 years ago, in 2004, and has used the Penticton Airport regularly ever since. He said the absence of transit service — particularly during prime working hours — has been a long-standing frustration.

“The fact BC Transit and the City have never offered transit service to the airport, especially during prime working hours, is frustrating,” said Gooch.

“There’s one bus that goes very close to the airport, with a stop on Skaha Lake Road before it turns up the Channel Parkway,” said Gooch.

“That bus would only have to travel less than half a mile to go to the airport. There are tons of buses that go up and down Main Street.

“You think they could arrange to have one bus take an extra little trip over to the airport to pick up and drop off people.”

Gooch said he conducted his own research and found Penticton appears to be the only small or mid-sized city in British Columbia that does not offer transit service to its community airport.

“I use Kelowna Airport quite a bit and they offer regular bus service to within 100 metres of the front door,” he said, acknowledging that Kelowna is a much larger city with an international airport.

“Every municipality and city that I’ve ever lived in offers bus service to their airport, but we don’t. This is just a fact.”

He added that BC Transit already provides service to areas such as Okanagan Falls, Naramata and the West Bench, making it difficult for him to understand why a route could not be extended to the airport.

“When I’ve talked to BC Transit in the past, they comment the airport is located outside city limits, but so are so many other places where they do provide service,” he said.

According to Gooch, BC Transit officials have told him there was once regular bus service to the Penticton Airport more than 30 years ago, but it was discontinued due to low ridership.

“I told him that was 35 years ago and a lot has changed,” he said. “It seems that every time I contact BC Transit and ask them about this, it’ just like running into a brick wall.”

Gooch believes a reasonable first step would be a short-term pilot project offering service during peak travel times, particularly for popular flights to Vancouver and Alberta.

“I think with any effort at all, you could offer bus service out to the airport an hour or two before the busiest flights take off,” he said. “Of course, I wouldn’t expect buses to head out there at 10 or 11 at night.

“It just seems to me when you have an important asset like our airport in Penticton, you would do what you can to make is easier to access for residents. Not everyone has a car or can afford a car and they’re stuck paying for taxis that are very expensive.”

Gooch reiterated that extending an existing route to include several daily airport stops would not require a major overhaul of the current transit system.

Jamie Weiss, senior media relations and public affairs advisor with BC Transit, confirmed there has not been any regular transit service to the Penticton Airport “in recent memory.”

In 2023, BC Transit and its local government partners completed the South Okanagan–Similkameen Transit Future Plan, which included extensive public and stakeholder engagement across the region, including Penticton, Weiss said.

“That process was designed to identify community priorities and inform future transit investments,” he said. “Through that engagement, direct transit service to the Penticton Airport was not identified as a priority.

“Outside of that planning process, BC Transit has not been involved in formal or active discussions with the City of Penticton or the Penticton Indian Band specifically focused on establishing direct transit service to the airport.”

While BC Transit recognizes interest from some residents, Weiss said there are many competing transit demands throughout the region.

“BC Transit is in continuous discussion with the City of Penticton, both at the staff and council level, to ensure that transit planning continues to meet the evolving needs of our riders,” he said. “We are always happy to discuss local priorities.

“If the City of Penticton and local stakeholders identify airport service as a priority, BC Transit would be receptive to discussions about feasibility and potential service options as part of that collaborative planning framework.”

Weiss added that direct airport service would require either reallocating existing resources or expanding service hours, and anticipated ridership is lower than many other transit investment priorities.

“More recently in 2025, Penticton Council supported a BC Transit service expansion plan that focuses on local improvements, including more frequent service and extended evening hours as part of the city’s broader transit planning and budget deliberations.”

The city’s airport services survey wrapped up late last week.

“Penticton Airport is a vital asset for our community and the entire South Okanagan, connecting residents, visitors and businesses, while contributing significantly to our local economy,” said Blake Laven, general manager of Development Services.

“Our community is growing and we see opportunities for expanded air services. Your input will give us the data we need to make a compelling case that we can take to approach the airlines.”

Two surveys were available, one for community members and leisure travellers and another for businesses.

Penticton Airport is owned and operated by Transport Canada and is located on the traditional territory of the SnPink’tn (Penticton Indian Band).

Penticton Indian Band Chief Greg Gabriel could not be reached for comment.

— This story was originally published by the Penticton Herald