Marking 45 years on the road, the Rocky View Regional Handibus Society celebrated its milestone Aug. 8 with a small gathering at its Airdrie headquarters — a moment to reflect on decades of growth, change and vital community support.
For executive director Paul Siller, who has been with the society for 25 years, the journey began well after its founding in 1984 by a group of local women seeking better transportation for disabled children.
“I wasn’t there at the beginning,” Siller said. “I was hired in 2000, after turning down the job twice. I stepped in when the previous executive director left, intending to help for just three months. Here I am 25 years later.”
Back then, the society ran five buses with four drivers and had an additional focus on school board transportation. Today, it has expanded to a fleet of 17 vehicles serving nearly 600 clients in Cochrane alone and many more throughout Rocky View County, Chestermere, Crossfield and other neighbouring communities.
“We’ve shifted from school routes to filling gaps for municipalities, helping people get to medical appointments, groceries and social visits to keep them independent at home longer,” Siller said. “Regional cooperation lets us combine trips efficiently across communities, saving resources and serving more people.”
Board chair Orville Lammle, who has led the society for six years, knows the growth firsthand. Before joining the board, he and his wife ran Cochrane’s Big Hill Senior Citizens Activity Society bus service from 1999 to 2010.
“We were overwhelmed,” Lammle recalled. “Two of us managing four buses and six drivers, and I was also driving all the time, with about 300 customers, operating out of our home with a phone and pens and paper. We just couldn’t transition to the kind of service people needed.”
That led to a partnership with Rocky View Regional Handibus, which already had technology and plans for expansion. “Paul was a natural target for me to go after, so I did,” Lammle said.
He became a volunteer driver for Rocky View society, then turned in his keys at 70 and became chair.
Cochrane remains one of the largest single user groups, with many residents relying on the service for local needs and vital transportation to reach Calgary specialists and other appointments.
“It’s undeniably the most important thing for people with disabilities,” Lammle said. “It not only helps them move around their communities, but specialists aren’t in Cochrane or Airdrie — they’re in Calgary. This service is invaluable.”
Siller says it took two years to adjust to adding Cochrane’s four vehicles to their existing fleet of eight in 2010. But the collaboration has led to a more fluid, cost-effective service.
He uses an example of one recent trip to explain what they bring to the table.
“I was going to the Foothills Hospital. We picked up someone in Bearspaw who needed to go to the Lougheed Hospital. So Cochrane to Bearspaw to the Foothills, to the Lougheed. Then we skipped down to Chestermere to bring someone back to the Foothills Hospital. When we arrived there, the person we dropped off earlier was ready to go. So we handled four trips from three people from three different municipalities. If each municipality had its own service, that would be three buses running around and for part of that day, the buses would be behind each other on Highway 1A or Crowchild Trail.”
In the first six months of 2025, 2,092 rides were provided for Cochrane residents of the 7,542 rides total — a nine per cent increase from the previous year.
Siller praised their municipal partners for providing operational support for the service that provides a huge benefit to residents.
Capital funding is the other side of the coin. While they have secured government grants for some new buses, both Siller and Lammle stressed that private donations are essential to keep the fleet modern and the service running smoothly.
“Costs for new buses have more than doubled in recent years,” Siller said, noting a 2016 van that cost $63,000 now sells for $155,000. “We rely heavily on fundraising and grants, and the generosity of community donors really saves the day.”
Lammle agreed: “Whether it’s a bus, a large gift or a small amount, those contributions keep this service going for the people who need it most.”
The society looks ahead to a capital campaign this fall to replace some older vehicles in its fleet of 17.
“Some of them have 480,000 kilometres, and we cannot retire them yet without cancelling trips,” said Siller.
Siller expressed gratitude to the community and municipal partners.
“We appreciate all the support. It truly keeps this vital service running for 45 years and beyond.”
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