A faster way to ride the transit in Whitecourt is coming

By Serena Lapointe

Last year, the Town’s public transit system was reviewed to see where it could be enhanced to
increase effectiveness for users. WATT Consulting Group Ltd was retained by the Town of
Whitecourt to do the review and provide potential changes that fit within the existing budget and
available resources.
The Town’s ask for WATT was to review the network, learn about community travel patterns and
key destinations, engage with front-line staff about challenges and user feedback, develop route
options that meet the community’s needs, review bus stop infrastructure and provide
recommendations for either new locations or design changes of existing infrastructure, and
review the information provide to the public about the system to see if it needs improvement.
In mid-January, the Community Services Advisory Board reviewed the information from WATT
and provided its recommendations to Whitecourt Town Council. One of the key takeaways from
WATT was the opportunity to enhance service during peak hours by introducing an express
option. With this option, one bus would follow the regular route while a second bus would run
along a condensed route, connecting the most used destinations during the busiest times of the
day, enabling riders to get where they are going faster.
The express option would include most schools, including St. Joseph School, Percy Baxter, and
Hilltop High School. Other stops that are less used would be removed from the ride, resulting in
a significantly shortened round trip. The current route with all stops included runs on a one-hour
cycle, but the express option would cut that in half, down to 30 minutes.
Chelsea Grande, Director of Community Services, explained that it would move people quicker.
“This will allow people to move quickly and more frequently up and down the hill and vice
versa.” She said that having a long route was something that kept people from using transit
more frequently, based on feedback from staff and riders during the review.
For students and those using the bus to get to work, an express route would also mean less
time on the bus. Accessing an express route bus stop might mean residents need to walk a bit
further, but it would result in less waiting at the bus stop once they arrive and a shorter ride to

their destination. “This would also offer the opportunity to transfer between the two services
(buses), if they didn’t want to walk a little further,” explained Grande.
Council asked if there was an option to provide peak service a bit differently in the summer
months, linking in Festival Park and perhaps Graham Acres, still keeping the route quick but
opening up access to areas that are used significantly more in the summer than in the winter.
Festival Park and Graham Acres are not otherwise part of the express route changes, although
there are stops within walking distance of both. Grande said they would look into it.
Since the express bus would be cycling quicker, Grande said users waiting for a bus at a stop
that sees both buses would only wait for about 15 minutes before one arrived, giving them a
quicker option to get onto a bus. She also noted that a rider going from one side of the
community to the other would experience the full 30-minute express ride, but someone could

have a much shorter ride than that, depending on where they are going, making the express
route even more convenient.
Councillor Braden Lanctot asked how Whitecourt’s transit system can get onto Google Maps. “If
I’m riding transit in Edmonton, I can go on Google Maps, and I click the transit button, and it
shows me (where I can go). It overlays all the different routes and my transfers. It’s super
accessible, and I don’t have to have a separate app.”
He wondered if it were possible to have Whitecourt’s system accessible in a similar way, rather
than needing another app, reading a pamphlet or looking at the maps located at the community
bus stops. Grande said it’s something they can investigate. Currently, the community uses the
TransLoc app to see real-time bus tracking and pinpoint stops.
Data will be collected on user feedback over the next year and presented at a later date.
Grande said they also monitor feedback on a regular basis. “The Community Services Advisory
Board monitors it monthly, and we do make small adjustments throughout the year.” Peak
service operates from 6:30 am to 9 am and 3:30 pm to 5:30 pm, Monday to Friday. In 2024,
Whitecourt’s transit program provided over thirty-seven thousand rides, helping better connect
residents to all corners of the community. The express route is anticipated to see
implementation this summer.