Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons

By Victor Kaisar

New Bus Route

New evening, weekend bus service to Tkemlúps to launch in January

Dec 19, 2024 | 9:50 AM

KAMLOOPS — The long-awaited introduction of new evening and weekend bus service to Tkemlúps te Secwépemc will take place early in the new year.

Elise Wren, BC Transit’s Manager of Government Relations, says there will be changes to the Route 18 – Mount Paul bus schedule that will take effect on Jan. 6, 2025. It will include a new stop at Sweláps Market, at the intersection of Highway 5 and Shuswap Road.

“This is service that goes from the Lansdowne Exchange and goes right into the Tkemlúps te Secwépemc land and then back to Lansdowne Exchange,” Wren told CFJC Today. “We’ve been working on this in partnership with Tkemlúps for a little while and its exciting that its finally coming into play.”

The current Route 18 bus operates between 7:00 a.m. and 6:45 p.m. on weekdays, with no service in the evenings or on weekends.

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“On the weekday mornings, it starts about approximately 5:30 in the morning at Lansdowne Exchange and then runs all the way till 10:40 PM, which is a big change for us,” Wren said, of the new changes.

“And then on weekends, you’ll see Saturday from about 7:30 in the morning until 10:40 at night, and then Sunday 7:30 in the morning until about 8:30 at night. So really adding those extra hours for this neighbourhood.”

Wren says the provincial government has approved its share of funding needed for this expansion, after deferring it over the last two fiscal years to support existing bus routes and COVID-19 recovery efforts.

“BC Transit and the Province has seen a huge surge in demand post-COVID from transit systems across B.C.,” Wren said. “The province has stepped up and increased their funding this past year for transit and City of Kamloops is lucky to have expansion from that.”

You can find the updated bus timings and more details for the expanded Route 18 – Mount Paul bus here.

Preview of the new Route 18 bus route as of Jan. 6, 2025. (Image Credit: BC Transit)