Gray Line, Victoria

[porsena]

I see the famous Coastal Renaissance thread has been closed, so I'll post here the link to a story in the Victoria paper about a reduction in service by Gray Line, the major tour operator between the BC mainland and Vancouver Island.

 

Gray Line has said they're laying off 30 bus drivers and closing their Victoria works yard. The driver layoffs likely have implications for the number and frequency of buses between downtown Vancouver, the Vancouver International Airport, and downtown Victoria - a service used regularly by cruise ship passengers. I suspect the driver layoffs can be laid partly at the door of Translink's new Canada Line trains in Vancouver, which must have eaten into Gray Line's business especially at the Vancouver end. I know that our last couple of trips, which would have been by Gray Line 18 months ago, have been by Translink instead.

[Urban trekker]

Thanks for the update - yes that other thread has been closed - stay tuned - hopeful that something might be done.

 

Cheers

 

Dennis

[Urban trekker]

Since we aren`t suppose to be political on these threads I will only say that after reading the article and seeing who the owner is/was - they also shuttered the Gray Line in Vancouver and I knew one of the people affected - he told me that it had more to do with unions than anything else - couldn`t get the concessions that the company wanted.

 

Also did you notice that Pacific Coach Lines are also not running buses on some of the early runs to Victoria.

 

Cheers

 

Dennis

[Putterdude]

Thanks for the link. Like Ut, I rather suspect it may be a union situation. However, I am surprised about you thinking that they were the major player between Vancouver and Victoria, I always have been of the mind it was Pacific Coach Lines had a lock on that market...or am I missing something. I doubt that Grayline's business would have been impacted by the Canada Line. I would guess the competition was in their own back yard with CVS Cruise Victoria and from Vancouver with LandSea.

Ut has alluded to the fact that something is going on behind the scenes to have the "Coastal Renaissance" thread re-established or a reasonable facsimile thereof. Email Ut or myself and we will bring you up to-date.

[c-to-sea]

Right. The scheduled service on BC Ferries is Pacific Coach Lines, which we have used

often in the past. However, Porcena is correct that the Canada Line has impacted their

business. Depending on how much luggage one has, the less convenient bus/CL to the airport is a lot less expensive. However, the PCL service has the advantage of taking

luggae at point of pickup, including the Swartz Bay terminal and delivering it bus-side at

YVR. There is one hitch, though. It is usually necessary to change buses at Tsawwassen

outside on the lot. Arriving at YVR is much the same. PCL is a one-off move, while CL/Bus

means one transfer and hauling luggage all the way. CL has lots of luggage room but the bus to Tsawwassen does not have as much.

By the way, for anyone not flying in or out and wanting a day in Vancouver, BC Ferries

sells day passes for Translink onboard. Adults $9.00, Seniors $7.00 for unlimited use on

CL, Skytrain, Bus and Seabus good for one day.

 

Now back to Gray Line.

 

Cliff

[insideedge]

Gray Line has said they're laying off 30 bus drivers and closing their Victoria works yard. The driver layoffs likely have implications for the number and frequency of buses between downtown Vancouver, the Vancouver International Airport, and downtown Victoria - a service used regularly by cruise ship passengers. I suspect the driver layoffs can be laid partly at the door of Translink's new Canada Line trains in Vancouver, which must have eaten into Gray Line's business especially at the Vancouver end. I know that our last couple of trips, which would have been by Gray Line 18 months ago, have been by Translink instead.

 

 

I suggest you read the article again. Pacific Coach Lines runs the cross water service, not Grayline. Grayline of Victoria runs the double decker tours around Victoria, shuttles and tours to the Butchart Gardens and has been the major supplier for cruise ship tours in Victoria for years. The loss of 30 drivers was a reduction in staff so a new company (TMS) can come in and service the cruise ships. It is simply a ploy to break the union and there will be a significant reduction in the quality of the tours being offered by the ships.

Grayline had many drivers with over 25yrs experience touring people around Victoria and those drivers have no interest in working for a company with reduced wages and benefits. But I have heard time and again, the cruise ships do not care about the quality of the tour, they care about making money. I would like to believe that to be untrue but I guess time will tell.

[scottbee]

Since we aren`t suppose to be political on these threads I will only say that after reading the article and seeing who the owner is/was - they also shuttered the Gray Line in Vancouver and I knew one of the people affected - he told me that it had more to do with unions than anything else - couldn`t get the concessions that the company wanted.

 

Also did you notice that Pacific Coach Lines are also not running buses on some of the early runs to Victoria.

 

So when a group of people say no to a pay CUT; that's a union issue? The change they were after wasn't from the employee side; so the correct phrasing of this probably should be "more to do with management"

[Putterdude]

I suggest you read the article again. Pacific Coach Lines runs the cross water service, not Grayline. Grayline of Victoria runs the double decker tours around Victoria, shuttles and tours to the Butchart Gardens and has been the major supplier for cruise ship tours in Victoria for years. The loss of 30 drivers was a reduction in staff so a new company (TMS) can come in and service the cruise ships. It is simply a ploy to break the union and there will be a significant reduction in the quality of the tours being offered by the ships.

Grayline had many drivers with over 25yrs experience touring people around Victoria and those drivers have no interest in working for a company with reduced wages and benefits. But I have heard time and again, the cruise ships do not care about the quality of the tour, they care about making money. I would like to believe that to be untrue but I guess time will tell.

 

While I may not share your views entirely, thank you for at least de-linking the PCL/Grayline matter, I thought I had been missing something.

[Urban trekker]

So Inside Edge - if I understand your post correctly this new company will only be operating their buses and tours on the days that cruise ships are berthed at Ogden Point - they wont be trying to sell any tours to other tourists outside the Empress etc.

 

I will be looking forward to peoples review of the new companys tours - until such time as they actually start operating them isnt it a little premature to state that they wont be a quality tour.

 

To keep it on the topic of cruising - cant wait for the Canucks to finish cruising through the season and the playoffs start.

 

Cheers

 

Dennis

[Urban trekker]

Further news on this - Gray Line has shut down their entire operation as of yesterday - but has sold sixty of its buses to a US firm that owns Horizon in Vancouver and recently brought Gray Line in Seattle - they intend to HQ Horizon in Victoria and apparently are well into the cruise market - are having a job fair - looking to hire 30 drivers for the new firm - the Gray name will be gone but the article in the Times Colonist didn't say what the new firm would be called.

 

As for the union issue - it will depend on how the successor company is structured according to a CAW rep.

 

Cheers

 

Dennis

[porsena]

The company is TMS. TMS is a Maryland-based provider of coach services and they own Horizon Coach Lines, which I think is based in Vancouver. TMS has also owned Gray Lines for the last couple of years so, as insideedge indicated above, there's possibly more here than meets the eye.