Greyhound Canada to shut down temporarily all bus routes as ridership plunges

Greyhound Canada is temporarily slamming the brakes on all of its bus routes and services as ridership plummets amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The transportation company says starting May 13 it will halt all routes until passenger demand recovers.

The bus operator reached the decision after it says ridership dropped by 95 per cent, which led the company to twice decrease its bus services since March, before deciding to pull the schedule completely. Nine bus routes, some of which are also serviced by other transit companies, had already been temporarily suspended.

"Although the company has made every effort to reduce costs, and has made significant outreach efforts to the provincial and federal governments, it cannot continue operations absent financial support," the company said in a statement.

"We will be monitoring federal and provincial restrictions along with infection statistics to identify when to restore operations."

It says 400 employees will be affected by the decision.

Greyhound Canada has pulled back on its Canadian services in recent years. In 2018, the company announced it was cancelling buses in most of Western Canada, blaming plunging demand.