Image: Mike Vanden Bosch / PML / B.C. Transit said bus service in Chilliwack and the surrounding communities will be impacted by job action from CUPE Local 561, meaning that regular bus service won't run on Monday and Tuesday, February 27-28. HandyDART will still remain operational in Chilliwack, Abbotsford and Mission.

By Mike Vanden Bosch

Chilliwack bus service

B.C. Transit confirms Chilliwack bus service will be impacted by CUPE job action

Feb 24, 2023 | 1:27 PM

CHILLIWACK — B.C. Transit confirmed Friday afternoon that bus service in Chilliwack and the surrounding communities will be impacted on Monday and Tuesday due to job action from CUPE Local 561 representing First Transit bus operators.

According to a media advisory, B.C. Transit will notify its riders that CUPE Local 561, operating under FirstTransit, has indicated increasing job action and will cease service in the Agassiz-Harrison, Central Fraser Valley, Chilliwack and Hope transit systems as of the start of the scheduled service on February 27 to the end of service on February 28.

The job action will impact customers in the communities of Abbotsford, Agassiz-Harrison, Chilliwack, Hope, Mission and customers using the Fraser Valley Express. This service disruption will not impact handyDART service, which will remain fully operational in Abbotsford, Chilliwack and Mission, B.C. Transit said.

“B.C. Transit is closely monitoring the situation and sincerely apologizes to customers for the inconvenience caused by this matter. We understand the frustration felt by customers, and that the job action is difficult for everyone involved in the region. We contract the services of private operating companies to deliver these transit services. These companies hire and manage their own workforces. The labour dispute is between BC Transit’s contractor – First Transit – and their unionized employees,” B.C. Transit wrote in a statement.

B.C. Transit is the provincial Crown agency responsible for the delivery of transit services outside of Greater Vancouver.

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BC Transit will update customers as more information becomes available. It encourages customers to sign up to receive alerts at bctransit.com. Customers may also follow @BCTransit on Twitter for updates.

The job action impacts Central Fraser Valley, Chilliwack, Hope and Agassiz-Harrison transit systems, and also customers who use the Fraser Valley Express.

Within Chilliwack, all routes are affected, including Route 51 (Vedder), Route 52 (Evans), Route 53 (Chilliwack), Route 54 (Promontory), Route 55 (Yarrow-Greendale), Route 57 (Broadway), Route 58 (Tyson), Route 59 (Industrial), Route 66 (Fraser Valley Express), as well as Routes 71 and 72,

CUPE 561, the union that represents First Transit workers in Chilliwack, Abbotsford and the surrounding region, confirmed the job action today ahead of plans to hold a noon-hour rally on Monday (Feb. 27) at Abbotsford City Hall to bring attention to the issue of low wages, lack of a pension, and poor working conditions.

“We had hoped to reach a fair collective agreement without any disruption in service, but First Transit had other ideas. The company cannot be surprised that we have arrived at this point,” said CUPE 561 President Jane Gibbons.

“We were clear when this job action began that we wanted to cause as little inconvenience as possible to the riding public. We wanted to give residents ample notice of what might lie ahead if First Transit did not come to the table with a different approach. But the company did not hear that message and simply refuses to recognize its responsibility to bring compensation for these workers in line with that of other transit workers in the region.”

Gibbons added that fair compensation, including a pension plan, will help create a more sustainable transit system throughout the region. CUPE 561 is encouraging members of the public to visit www.weneedalift.ca and call on their local representatives to urge First Transit to return to the table with a fair offer.

by Mike Vanden Bosch

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B.C. Transit confirms Chilliwack bus service will be impacted by CUPE job action

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