North Bay, ON – May 29, 2020 – The City of North Bay will be re-introducing transit fare collection and resuming regular parking enforcement as of June 15, as the province continues with the gradual reopening of Ontario’s economy.
Parking enforcement was eased and transit fare collection was temporarily suspended in the early days of the COVID-19 response as non-essential businesses were shut down and rear-door boarding of buses was introduced to help protect drivers and the public.
North Bay Transit has since implemented of a number of health and safety protocols that will allow for the safe re-introduction of fare collection and front-door boarding, including the installation of plexiglass barriers separating drivers from passengers.
“We have remained committed to providing city-wide transit throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. Fares were suspended back in March to limit interactions and help protect our employees and riders,” said Coun. Chris Mayne, Chairman of Infrastructure and Operations. “These new measures will allow us to return to a more usual way of operating while continuing to protect against the spread of COVID-19.”
With ridership expected to moderately increase as the economy reopens, North Bay Transit will continue to limit the number of passengers on each bus to 15 to ensure sufficient space for physical distancing. Frequent cleaning and sanitization of buses will continue.
The re-introduction of fares will apply to both transit and para buses, with passes to be made available for purchase at the terminal on Oak Street.
As the province continues to ease restrictions and more businesses restart operations, it is also important that regular parking enforcement resumes. In the Downtown, one-hour of free, on-street parking or two hours of free parking will still be available in Lot 2 (Oak Street) or Lot 4 (Parking Garage).
For an up-to-date list of COVID-19-affected municipal services and facilities, please visit https://www.cityofnorthbay.ca/covid-19-information/