THUNDER BAY – The City of Thunder Bay is set to renew its transit fleet with four new buses, and expand its LIFT+ specialized transit service with an additional two buses.
City council will vote on the recommended procurement of the six vehicles Monday, from Creative Carriage Ltd. in Saint George, Ontario for around $1.3 million.
An HST rebate will knock the true cost to just below $1.2 million, according to estimates prepared by the city’s community service department.
Costs will largely be borne by senior levels of government, through the Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program (ICIP). With around $470,000 in federal dollars and $394,000 from the province, the city will be left to kick in just over $315,000 – around 26 per cent of the total cost.
Funding for the city’s portion was included in its Facilities, Fleet and Energy Management (Asset Management) 2020 Capital Budget, it said.
Four of the vehicles are requested as part of Thunder Bay Transit’s cyclical replacement plan, as it retires other buses that have reached or exceeded their expected seven-year lifespan.
Another two will support a planned expansion of LIFT+ specialized transit services.
Creative Carriage submitted the lowest compliant bid, as part of a Joint Transit Procurement Initiative process overseen by Metrolinx.
