Sunday bus service in Fredericton closer to reality with drivers' new labour contract

Fredericton has cleared a major hurdle blocking the road to Sunday bus service.

The city has struck a new collective agreement with its bus drivers, doing away with a provision in their former contract entitling them to double pay if they worked on Sunday.

Drivers would now earn their regular wage, plus a modest premium, for operating buses on Sundays, making the introduction of the service more feasible than before, said Coun. Bruce Grandy, who chairs the city's mobility committee.

"That puts us in a very good position to look at Sunday service, and you know, I think this council has made it very clear they want Sunday service."

Fredericton stands out as the only one of New Brunswick's three largest cities that doesn't offer transit service on Sundays.

For years, users have called on the city to implement it, but the service has gone undelivered, leaving many with no choice but to take taxis to get to and from work or to run errands.

Part of the challenge with implementing Sunday service was a provision in the collective agreement between the city and CUPE, the union representing transit workers, which entitled drivers to double their regular hourly wage if they were to work on that day.

In documents obtained by CBC News, it was revealed that staff in 2021 estimated that this provision alone would cost the city an additional $732,963 annually if it were to go ahead with Sunday service.

Details of new deal

Under the new collective agreement, the city's permanent part-time bus drivers would be scheduled to work Sundays, and would be entitled to an additional $1.25 per hour for working on that day.

Drivers could still earn double pay for working on Sundays, but only if they work beyond 80 hours in a two-week period.

Fredericton transit manager Charlene Sharpe said the premium offered to part-time drivers for Sundays would put their wage in line with what full-time drivers make during the week and on Saturdays.

She said another improvement for part-time drivers is they'll now be compensated at up to 95 per cent of what full-time drivers earn.

Their wages will also escalate to that cap within 12 months of them starting, faster than the 24-month period it previously took for them to reach just 90 per cent of what full-time drivers earn, said Ralph McBride, the CUPE representative for city transit workers.

Union understood need for Sunday service

McBride said he's pleased with how negotiations went with the city, adding there was no friction when it came to removing the double-pay provision for working on Sundays.

"The union understood the importance of providing a service for people that, you know, need to get to the Regent Mall or need to get to wherever … on Sundays, and for work purposes as well as for shopping," McBride said.

"So the union was well aware of that and … they were prepared to look at [it with] an open mind about, you know, what's best for the city of Fredericton, the ridership."

No Sunday service just yet

The new collective agreement doesn't mean buses will hit the road on Sundays just yet.

Sharpe said the city still wants to follow through on its plan to analyze data on usage trends and conduct more public consultation.

New passenger counters recently installed on the city's buses, for instance, showed the routes taking people to the Regent Mall were more heavily used on Saturdays than on the average weekday.

The city also opened an online survey last week to engage the public on how it can improve its transit service.

Sharpe said the information will be compiled and used to create a plan for implementing Sunday bus service starting in 2025.

"We want to make sure that whatever we put in place and whatever we recommend to council is going to meet the needs, and certainly we don't want to put something out there that people are disappointed with or can't use," Sharpe said.