COLD LAKE - At the Feb. 25 regular council meeting, the City of Cold Lake once again discussed a request from Cold Shot Bus Service for municipal funding to sustain its rural transportation services in northern Alberta.
The request, originally made in December 2023, led to further discussions in March 2024, prompting Mayor Craig Copeland to meet with Sunny Balwaria, president of Cold Shot.
Council’s discussion focused on Cold Lake’s potential leadership in lobbying for provincial funding for rural bus services.
CAO Kevin Nagoya noted, “This issue here was raised by recommendation of the Corporate Priorities Committee meeting.”
He added, “The recommendation that was made by the committee was to do a letter to other municipalities to seek feedback, engage interest in supporting the Rural Transportation Service lobbying initiatives similar to maybe your Highway 28 type of committee and start putting some resources in that.”
A list of municipalities currently serviced by Cold Shot was reviewed.
Communities served by Cold Shot include: Athabasca, Beaverlodge, Bonnyville, Boyle, Dawson Creek, Edmonton, Fort McMurray, Fort St. John, Fox Creek, Gibbons, Grande Prairie, Grassland, High Prairie, Hythe, Nampa, Peace River, Slave Lake, Smoky Lake, St. Paul, Valleyview, Westlock, and Whitecourt.
City of Cold Lake Mayor Craig Copeland suggested refining the list to focus on Alberta communities that align with Cold Lake’s interests.
“We might want to review that list again and maybe knock off a few . . . I would just stick with Alberta and like-minded communities. I don't think Edmonton or Fort McMurray, Fort St. John, Grande Prairie need to necessarily be on there - but like-minded communities,” Copeland said.
Council officially passed a motion directing administration to send a letter to neighboring municipalities to gather feedback and assess their interest in supporting a lobbying initiative for Rural Transportation Services.
