File Photo.
More Albertans are heading back to the office for the first time in nearly two years, and as luck would have it gas prices are at an all-time high.
The Town of Cochrane's Community Connectivity Advisor, Devin LaFleche says whether or not it's a coincidence more locals are relying on public transportation.
"As restrictions eased, ridership really spiked," explains LaFleche. "Now we're seeing a much more levelled out, higher level of ridership. We're back to almost pre-COVID [numbers]. We're not quite there, a couple percent short."
Ridership for Cochrane's On-demand Local Transit (COLT) isn’t the only numbers seeing a spike, in fact, LaFleche says that they're seeing the biggest jump in Cochrane commuters utilizing the interim regional service.
"We’re seeing an increase on the interim regional service so that's the 'On-It' service," explains LaFleche. "I think on the regional you really see those gas prices -- that's where people are feeling it most; that commute into Calgary."
According to LaFleche, they were previously using a COLT bus for the commutes to and from the city, but they've since had to move to a larger Coach bus to accommodate more riders.
He says that they are still seeing a bit of a lull on Mondays and Fridays and he believes that's due to Cochranites easing back to the office a few days a week.
LaFleche explains that with inflation hitting Albertans hard in the pocketbook, many locals are finding the added cost of fuel and parking in the city just isn’t feasible.
He says that on a provincial level there are still some COVID protocols in place for those looking to use public transit, and for now, riders are still expected to wear a face mask.
