B.C. government, Translink make agreement to keep transit rolling amid COVID

Metro Vancouver's transportation authority has reversed its plans to cut service and rescinded layoff notices to 1,500 people as it works out an emergency funding plan with the provincial government.

Translink and the province say in a joint news release that they are working on a comprehensive solution to address the financial impact on the service because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Translink stopped collecting fares in mid-March and said it would be chopping service on May 18 to stem losses of as much as $75 million a month.

Unifor represents 1,200 of the members served with layoff notices and union president Jerry Dias says workers are relieved the government responded with funding that will help avoid transit chaos during the recovery period.

No dollar figure has been released and a Translink spokeswoman says the details of the support are still being worked out.

Translink has said bus ridership dropped by 83 per cent, forcing the planned suspension of numerous routes across the region.