Riders concerned new location is too far away
An avid rider of Acadian Lines buses, second-year student Shane Magee of rural Nova Scotia says the Fredericton bus station’s temporary move is “just way too short of notice” for him.
Effective Oct. 1, Acadian Lines will be temporarily moving from its current downtown location on Regent Street to 85 Hubbard Rd, located on the far side of the Fredericton Railway Bridge.
The company confirmed the move in a news release last week.
“Unfortunately, our current landlord is unable to meet our needs and our lease is expiring in a few weeks so this temporary re-location is only a short-term solution to ensure uninterrupted service for our passengers and parcel express clients,” explained Manon Piché, vice-president marketing & strategic development of Groupe Orléans Express, owner of Acadian Lines.
But Magee thinks more could have been done to prepare the public – especially students.
“It’s really confusing. We’re quickly approaching Thanksgiving where a lot of students are going to be heading home and usually they take the bus, so figuring out how this is going to work for students is going to be really hard,” Magee said.
Acadian Lines’ news release explained how its current location on Regent Street does not comfortably accommodate its customers.
“Current safety concerns are addressed in the bus, passenger and taxi parking areas as well as the pick-up and delivery areas,” it read.
Magee agrees that the current location was crowded and unorganized.
“It was always full of people getting off buses and taxis,” he said.
Last year Magee used Acadian Lines every holiday and long weekend. He says that getting to the Regent Street location was hard enough without a direct bus station, and he’s not sure how many students will make it to the new location on Hubbard Road.
“It’s the cheapest alternative to driving, taking a plane, or a train,” Magee said. “Travelling on full buses of students, they must realise that students are a really important part of their business. Maybe they should accommodate us better.”
Piché apologizes for any inconvenience this move may pose for the company’s customers.
“We’re committed to making this transition as smooth as possible, and we hope to make a decision on a permanent location in the near future.”
Some riders say a downtown location is more convenient, and officials at Orleans agree, but they say there isn’t anything available there at this time.
Magee hopes for the new location will be closer to the campuses, possibly in the vicinity of the Regent Mall.
“They definitely needed a new location and they could have seen this coming for a while I think,” Magee said. “Why they didn’t plan for this is unimaginable to me.”
