After years of having no way of commuting without a vehicle, residents will now be able to hop on a bus that will connect Innisfail, Penhold and Red Deer County to the City of Red Deer.

Penhold Mayor Michael Yargeau says he has heard requests for such a service for years but it was never an option due to lack of funding. He's excited to see the response from the service.

“It’s a really good opportunity for us to have a two year run and see how we do and then see what our usage is and decide from there and see if it’s something that we want to invest in the cost for a small municipality to invest in a transportation system is huge.”

The service will run for two years, as a pilot basis starting in January of 2019. Yargeau says a City of Red Deer bus will run three times per day, one in the morning, evening, and night.

He says this program will be great for those wanting to work in Red Deer or just need to make a quick trip in.

“We want them to stay in town, but sometimes it gets difficult for them if they are in situations where they don’t drive anymore or they need to get a job and they are 16 and don’t have a car yet or anything.”

If the program works well and operational costs seem feasible he says they will look at options for the future.

“It’s exciting for the town to have this; I really hope we see the ridership that justifies it.”