BOW VALLEY – Roam buses will have to wait to see if a new clientele will be using their services.
The Bow Valley Regional Transit Services Commission postponed a decision on whether leashed dogs will be allowed on buses.
Commission members raised concerns about dogs taking seats from people on already full buses, potential conflict with dogs and whether owners would be responsible enough to travel with four-legged friends. Transit staff will return with additional information at a future meeting.
Tanya Foubert, a Canmore council representative on the commission, recommended Roam run a pilot, but also create rules to establish appropriate behaviour for both dogs and their owners.
“The bus is a public space and dogs are present in many public spaces in the community, so if we’re all motivated to create safe spaces then we can set the expectations around behaviour as well,” she said.
Foubert added dog owners would want to avoid conflict and if their dog or dogs are more aggressive, the owner is unlikely to take them on the bus – similar to how people with aggressive dogs don’t attend dog parks.
“Dog owners don’t want conflict. The responsibility is on the owner to ensure their dog is behaving appropriately,” she said.
Dave Schebek, a representative from ID No. 9 council, compared it to potentially “opening pandora’s box” with drivers already being taxed and facing other responsibilities without also having to be concerned about having dogs on board. He noted a pilot could also be risky since it’s difficult to take something away.
“Once somebody has something, and it has to be taken away, it’s a tough pill to swallow,” he said.
Grant Canning, a Banff council representative, echoed Schebek's comments, saying he couldn’t see the benefits outweighing the potential challenges. He gave the example of his own dog, which when she was on a leash and in confined spaces, would get aggressive despite otherwise being calm the rest of the time.
"At a high level, our mandate is to move people not animals,” he said. “I understand there’s a demand for it. I understand why people want it, but at the end of the day I don’t see the benefits outweighing the challenges.”
Martin Bean, Roam transit’s CAO, said there was potential for conflict between dogs on the bus, but any implementation would have clear guidelines in place. In Calgary, for example, dogs sit next to the window to allow for extra space between other people and animals.
The transit authority has allowed service dogs and small dogs in crates on its buses, but passengers had requested bringing uncaged dogs on routes to get to off-leash dog parks, hiking trails and other areas of the Bow Valley.
“This has been a topic of discussion and letters sent into Roam for a number of years and has been more noticeable with additional attention on dog parks in both municipalities,” stated a staff report.
The report added Canmore’s service will have a route connecting to popular dog areas such as Quarry Lake, Canmore Nordic Centre and Grassi Lakes in 2024. Banff also connected its service to the industrial district last year, which has one of the off-leash dog parks in the community.
Roam had also been getting requests from campers and operators of campgrounds, given that dogs cannot be at a site unattended due to safety and wildlife in the area.
The initial report came to the commission last March, with a public survey running in January getting 1,590 responses.
Of those, 1,333 people (71.26 per cent) were supportive of allowing leashed dogs at all times, while 223 people (14.03 per cent) were OK with leashed dogs but only during specific times. The rest of the 234 people who responded (14.72 per cent) were against leashed dogs on buses.
Of the 1,590 people who responded, the report noted 1,112 were dog owners who indicated the main trips would be to have leashed dogs on hiking trails, social trips, the dog park and veterinary appointments.
Joanna McCallum, a Canmore council representative and commission chair, said while the survey showed a majority in favour of allowing dogs, the commission’s responsibility was ultimately to all transit riders.
“This is really important and it has some far-reaching implications,” she said. “I understand there was a survey and the people who answered were wildly in favour, but we also make decisions for everybody, not just the people who answer the survey.”
When Roam drivers were asked, 63 per cent were OK with leashed dogs on the bus with the remainder not in favour.
In feedback provided by drivers, the majority were supportive while others expressed concern about the added responsibility and whether all owners would ensure dogs behaved.
The report added of the 104 Canadian Urban Transit Association members, 94 per cent didn’t allow uncaged leashed dogs on buses. Calgary, Durham Region, Mississauga and Oakville all allow leashed dogs, while Montreal allows metro service and Toronto allowed it during off-peak hours. London revised its policy last month to allow dogs, but only in cages.
The report also added concerns about contributing further to overloading buses, especially since they’re expecting more riders over the already record high 2022.
Adrian Field, the Town of Banff’s director of engineering, entered the commission’s debate multiple times, saying they had “complaints through the roof” last July since people were getting turned away due to buses being overloaded on Banff routes.
The report showed Banff’s Route 1 had between 16 and 30 days of overloads from June to September, while Route 2 had 11 to 20 days of overloads in the same period. Canmore, however, had two days of overloads in June, three in July and none in either of August or September.
Local private bus options such as Brewster, Banff Airporter, Sundog Transportation, Discover Banff Tours, Banff Adventures and Brewster Sightseeing don’t allow pets.
According to statistics, there were 1,240 dogs licenced in Canmore, 452 in Banff and 10 in Lake Louise as of 2021. Of those, one per cent were service dogs in Lake Louise, 7.8 per cent in Canmore and 5.1 per cent in Banff.
All campgrounds in the three municipalities allow dogs, while 21 per cent of Canmore visitor accommodation allow dogs, 67 per cent in Lake Louise and 59 per cent in Banff.
Parks Canada allows dogs in the national parks system, but only if they’re on a leash. Dogs, however, aren’t allowed on their summer shuttle services.
The Canadian National Institute for the Blind (CNIB) told Roam staff that allowing all leashed dogs on buses may pose concerns for guide dogs and handlers since they could be distracting due to dogs being “highly reactive to one another.”
“Allowing pets on transit would create unnecessary barriers for already vulnerable populations and make the transit system less safe and welcoming,” said CNIB in its recommendation to Roam. “For people who are blind or partially sighted, most of whom are not able to drive, the bus may be their only transit option. I’d highly recommend against introducing any unnecessary barriers for these riders.”
