No parking fees. No filling the tank. No second guessing whether or not you chose the best route. Just a ride, and a guarantee that you’ll get to where you need to be on time.
From catching flights and getting to appointments, to shopping trips and interviews, Southeast Shuttle Ltd. is sure to get you there.
Owner-operator Emily MacDonald says that her business was created to fill a need within her community. With airport parking fees sitting at well over $120.00 as soon as your trip extends beyond four days, and taxi fares for long drives continually on the rise, she saw that there had to be a balance between creating a viable business where she could make a living, and offering a valuable service to her community.
“So basically, it’s a scheduled run service between southeastern Manitoba and Winnipeg. This is not just a Steinbach to Winnipeg service,” MacDonald drives home. “We want this to be available to as many people as we can reach, and we want it to stay affordable, too.”
Prior to the website launch, MacDonald booked rides through Facebook, and was overwhelmed by encouragement and thanks from people across the area.
“I had a message from someone from St Pierre, and he’d actually said ‘Do I have to come to Steinbach? If I have to come to Steinbach, then that’s not a southeastern Manitoba service- that’s a Steinbach service.’ And he was right. That’s when we started mapping out our service zones. We’ve made it as wide as we can, but we still only have two vehicles, so in that sense we’re still limited.”
Services include ten trips between southeastern Manitoba and Winnipeg per day on weekdays, and eight trips per day on weekends.
“On our website, you’ll see a schedule,” MacDonald clarifies. “There, you can see which of our runs works best with your schedule, and book that one.”
Custom rides, additional stops, home pickups, and even Jets game pickups and drop-offs, are also available for a fee. If the runs you see do not align with your schedule or destination, contact Southeast Shuttle Ltd.
“If we can make it work, we will!” she promises.
Currently, Southeast Shuttle Ltd. has pickup zones in La Broquerie, Grunthal, Landmark, Ste. Anne, Blumenort, Lorette, and Steinbach. And at the opposite end, Winnipeg stops include the Health Sciences Centre, Saint Boniface Hospital, the YWG Airport, and Polo Park.
“We’ve included Polo Park for the simple fact that it is a really good transportation hub.” MacDonald continues. “If I can get you to Polo Park, from there you can get almost anywhere in the city for a few dollars. For example, there is an express bus from Polo Park that takes you right to the doors of Grace Hospital.”
In discussion with friends and community members, MacDonald confirmed that one of the greatest transportation needs is to medical appointments.
“So we’ve added stops to hospitals!” MacDonald shares. “We’ll drop you right at the doors. And because we know that oftentimes people don’t like to, or can’t, go to medical appointments alone, we’ve added a special care rate. So that you can take someone who cares for you with you without having to pay the full fee.”
MacDonald shares about a ride with one of her very first clients.
“He had a wedding in Winnipeg, and driving was not a possibility. And he told me, he said ‘this is a lot cheaper than a taxi. It’s a bit more expensive than a carpool, but I don’t have a carpool!’ So we picked him up, and we got him where he needed to go.”
If all that’s standing between you and an appointment, a flight, a shopping trip, or even a wedding, consider Southeast Shuttle Ltd- they’ll get you there.
“We’re really hoping that we can be that for people.”
To view the schedule and book your seat, visit www.seshuttle.ca.