THUNDER BAY — Kasper Wabinski says he's taking another step toward filling the void created by the departure of Greyhound bus service from most of northern Ontario last year.
His newest venture, however, is in southern Ontario.
Wabinski's Thunder Bay-based Kasper Transportation will inaugurate a route between Owen Sound and Guelph on Jan. 15, 2020, with the same model of 14-passenger van that it uses in the north.
The company holds the only license for the route.
"That was our goal from the start, to be able to build a network that's reliable, comfortable, affordable," Wabinski told Tbnewswatch in an interview Monday.
In the north, Kasper Transportation currently operates between Thunder Bay and White River, Longlac, Fort Frances and Sioux Lookout. It also has a route linking Sioux Lookout and Winnipeg.
Wabinski said he plans eventually to connect the north and the south, hopefully as soon as 2020.
Guelph is his hometown.
He said it's easier to set up a second base there, where he has family and other connections
"We're committed to building a coherent network, and we're asking the public for support. We're also asking for municipal support to help us do what we're doing."
Wabinski noted that his company's expansion to date has been accomplished without government subsidies, but he'd like to get some support from the Northern Ontario Heritage Fund Corporation for the service in the north.
