Bruce County is Taking Action to Become Transit Ready!

The final Transit Demand and Feasibility Study was presented to Bruce County Council on Thursday, December 7, 2023.

Bruce County is taking action to become transit ready! The final Transit Demand and Feasibility Study was presented to Bruce County Council on Thursday, December 7, 2023. The study, completed by consultants from Arcadis over the past year, included significant public and stakeholder feedback and reviewed existing services, identified local travel needs, and now presents options for transportation solutions and services that could address identified needs across Bruce County.

This foundational study has identified seven areas of transit need and demand across Bruce County:

  1. Connecting Smaller Communities to Jobs and Services
  2. Connecting Seasonal, Service, and Occasional Workers to Jobs
  3. Intercommunity Connections
  4. Transportation within Larger urban Communities
  5. Tourism-Oriented Transportation
  6. Enhanced Coordination of Specialized Transit
  7. Improved Communication, Collaboration, and Coordination of Transportation Solutions

These areas of need and demand were identified through stakeholder consultation and from 1,650 surveys completed by Bruce County residents and visitors during two public engagement phases in 2023.

“The transit needs across Bruce County are diverse and cannot be addressed by a one-size-fits-all traditional transit approach. The study provides a road map to move the County forward to be transit-ready, identifying short, medium, and long-term solutions over the next 10 years,” said Commissioner of Community Development Claire Dodds.

The County will be advocating to other levels of government to establish funding programs to help the County and member municipalities work to deliver medium to long-term transit solutions for residents in Bruce County.

“We understand that providing transit options is an important need across Bruce County. Obtaining long-term sustainable funding to be able to deliver transit solutions to meet the diverse needs of our communities is a priority for Council and staff,” adds Warden Chris Peabody. “Council thanks the public for participating so actively in the engagement work that has helped the County complete this foundational report that sets out a plan to get the County transit ready.”

While sustainable funding is not available to support establishing a traditional transit network in Bruce County at this time, the Transit Demand and Feasibility Study identified several low-cost and readily implementable transit solutions are available and are already being implemented by the County.

Examples of transit actions already underway include:

  • Setting up a ride-sharing program that County residents and visitors can utilize;
  • Collaborating with transit service providers who are already operating in the County
  • Partnering with neighbouring transit services and municipalities to extend routes into Bruce County;
  • Communicating what transit services are available in the County to the public; and
  • Advocating to other levels of government for long-term stable funding.


Discover more about the Transit Demand and Feasibility Study at www.brucecounty.on.ca/TransitStudy.