There’s a move by the Ford government to deregulate intercity bus service in the province.
Northwestern Ontario bus operator Kasper Wabinski says he’s all for it but wants a national policy on bus transportation to go along with it.
“The only way to do that is to bring people to the table (from) the private industry, and sit down with Transportation Canada and the federal government…to come up with the policy,” says Wabinski.
The owner of Kasper Transportation suggests without a national policy, deregulation in Ontario would be useless noting, “If Ontario deregulates is Quebec going to deregulate? Does that mean Quebec companies can come into southern Ontario and start competing and undercutting because they’re subsidized?”
Wabinski adds Thunder Bay-Rainy River Liberal MP Marcus Powlowski has agreed to look into the idea of a Canada wide bus transportation policy.
Wabinski would also like the government-subsidized Ontario Northland Transportation to come under the same rules after deregulation so there can be “A level playing field.”
