First Meeting

Just a little update. We’ve had our first meeting with CMHC Granville Island. I won’t go into too many details, but suffice to say there is dialogue. While we did not see any concessions, we weren’t expecting to either. There are lots of players involved in a decision such as this. It was well attended by many industry members, from Destination Management Services to Tour Companies and Transportation Services. There is another one April 5th. We must keep the dialogue going. Banning buses from parking on the island is NOT solving the congestion issue. Our solution is simple, requires little difference in the way of manpower and parking policing, and has been well received by the industry. The initial approach, on Cartwright Street, is for the hours of 10 AM to 2 PM, bus parking only, including the current bus parking zones. This is the height of activity for the buses during the peak season. It would necessitate the removal of 55 car parking spots for that 4 hour period. The remainder of the day and year would be business as usual. Those 55 spots can allow up to 15 full-size buses to park, bringing in hundreds of extra people. The existing parking staff would suffice. We are reducing the area they need to police, as that’s fewer vehicles to monitor. Freeing them up for the rest of the island during peak times. The industry understands there is a lack of space on the island during peak times, but removing the bus parking is only going to increase the buses on the road, not reduce it.