Calgary — A new bus service is launching in Alberta on Wednesday. When Greyhound ended its bus services in the province at the end of October 2018, passengers were left wondering how they were going to travel from rural areas in the future if they don't own a car. Enter Abu Ramil and Vebhav Datt Sanjiv Coomar, cousins who saw a need for a bus service at an affordable price and created Snow Travels. “We felt that a bus passenger service that was both budget-friendly and comfortable was missing from the market,” said Ramil, president and CEO of Snow Travels. “We are trying to fill that gap after Greyhound closed.” The pair were planning to launch at the beginning of March, then the COVID-19 closures happened. “It's important to launch our service now because people may be struggling or hurting because of COVID-19," said Ramil. Snow Travels will offer what it calls a low-cost, luxury, boutique bus service from Edmonton to Calgary with a stop in Red Deer. They will have three smaller buses in their fleet with a maximum capacity of 24 passengers each. Because of COVID-19, Snow Travels will be taking extra precautions to ensure the safety of passengers. Before getting on the bus, passengers will be asked to sanitize their hands and wear a mask. When the bus reaches its destination and passengers disembark, the bus driver will do a full clean and sanitize before the next passengers board. Ramil said their goal is to connect Albertans from one city to another in a smooth, efficient and safe manner. The Alberta-based company and plan to expand into B.C., Saskatchewan and Manitoba by 2022. More information can be found online.
