Greyhound buses stop operating in Canada

The end of the line for the traditional greyhound buses in Canada: After almost 100 years in the country, Greyhound is giving up its route network there, as the company announced. The reason is the corona pandemic: Last year, the number of customers fell by 95 percent. The Canadian Minister of Transport, Omar Alghabra, said he was "disappointed". The long-distance bus company, recognized in numerous films and songs, had already discontinued the route network in the Western Canada region (Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba and Saskatchewan) in 2018. This is followed by the provinces of Ontario and Quebec. "Unfortunately, a full year of no income made it impossible to continue the business," said Greyhound Canada chief Stuart Kendrick. The company has also struggled with competition from low-cost airlines, public transport companies and deregulation - Greyhound no longer offered more and more routes exclusively. Transport Minister Alghabra said many Canadians are dependent on the greyhound - the government will now "examine options to fill this void". Union leader John Costa called the withdrawal "devastating news". The Greyhound bus has been the only way to connect people in small towns across Canada with bigger cities for generations, Costa said. "The elderly will no longer be able to visit their families, students will not come to school, many others will be left without means of transport." In addition, 400 drivers would lose their jobs. Greyhound announced that tickets would be refunded. The cross-border routes between the big cities of Montréal, Toronto and Vancouver and destinations in the USA would be driven again as soon as the border was open again. Greyhound with the jumping greyhound logo was founded in the USA in 1914. The company is currently part of the British transport company First Group.