City looks to create stroller space on buses

Thunder Bay's transit manager says he'd like to accommodate more strollers on future city buses.

It comes after one mother expressed concern about young families being stranded because of a lack of space.

With an aging population, priority seating is in high demand, Brad Loroff said. A better use of space could ease congestion, he noted.

"So we're looking at exploring options to go to single seating, perimeter seating on the sides," Loroff said.

"It doesn't reduce the number of seats available on a bus by all that much. But it allows us to increase the aisle width, and that's what is critical for strollers on buses."

People who use wheelchairs get top priority for the open space at the front of transit buses. Seniors and those using walkers are next.

And that can leave moms with strollers stuck when buses are full — something Michelle Richmond-Saravia, a local mother of three, said is not right.

Thunder Bay Transit needs to re-think its priorities, she said in a CBC News story after she and her youngsters were denied a bus ride home because there wasn't enough room on the bus to accommodate her stroller.

Loroff said the city's transit master plan will also address the problem by putting more buses on busy routes.