There is a new way to travel through Alberta.
Snow Travels Inc. launched its bus lines in the province on July 23, providing service between Calgary and Edmonton via Red Deer, from Calgary to Canmore, Calgary to Drumheller, and Calgary to Lethbridge via Okotoks, High River, Claresholm and Nanton.
The company seeks to fill a gap left by Greyhound, which ended its services at the end of October 2018.
“We realized this was a service people in Alberta were missing,” said Snow Travels president and CEO Abu Ramil. “We wanted to provide an affordable option for people to travel through the province.”
Rates vary based on destination, with travel from Calgary to Lethbridge the most costly at $30 both weekends and weekdays, and Calgary to Canmore or Edmonton $30 on weekends. Going between Calgary and Okotoks costs $15, and heading south from Okotoks costs $10 to High River, $20 to Nanton, $22 to Claresholm, and $25 to Lethbridge.
Buses will travel to Lethbridge and Drumheller every day except Tuesdays and Wednesdays, and all other routes travel twice every day with the exception of no early morning rides to Edmonton on Tuesdays.
“This is meant to be for recreational travel or maybe for commuters if it fits their schedules,” said Ramil. Stop times can be found on the Snow Travels website.
The Okotoks pick-up and drop-off location is at the 7-Eleven on Milligan Drive and the High River stop is at the Heritage Inn.
Buses seat 24 passengers but are currently booking a maximum of 12 to accommodate COVID-19 health and safety guidelines, said Ramil. In addition, passengers are asked to hand-sanitize before boarding and to wear a mask, and drivers will thoroughly clean their vehicles at the end of each line.
“We want to make sure we are providing a safe service with COVID, but we look forward to being able to open up our buses to full capacity,” said Ramil.
He said the bus line is easy on the budget but packs a hint of luxury with comfortable seats, WiFi access, free bottled water, recliner seats, overhead storage and reading lights. Each seat has access to USB ports for charging devices as well, he said.
Snow Travels intends to expand beyond Alberta’s borders into British Columbia, Saskatchewan and Manitoba by 2022
“Our goal is to provide safe, affordable and comfortable travel options for people in Alberta,” said Ramil.
Krista Conrad, OkotoksToday.ca
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