Message from the President
Established in 1946, the Saskatchewan Transportation Company (STC; the Corporation) is a Crown Corporation of the province of Saskatchewan. STC is subject to The Crown Corporations Act, 1993, which provides the Crown Investments Corporation (CIC) of Saskatchewan, the holding company for Saskatchewan’s Crown corporations, the authority to establish the direction of the Corporation.
Corporate Mandate
STC is a provincial coach company which provides safe, affordable and accessible bus passenger and freight service to Saskatchewan communities.
Mission Statement
To provide Saskatchewan residents with
CONVENIENT, AFFORDABLE, SAFE, COURTEOUS and
RELIABLE passenger and freight transportation services.
2010 was a year of improvements.
I am pleased to report that STC has grown its
ridership in 2010 by almost 10,000 riders. This is
an increase of almost 4 per cent over the prior year
and is a significant achievement given the recent
declines in ridership being experienced by
all carriers in the industry.
There were many reasons for STC's success
in 2010.
Seat sales that were trialed in 2009 were expanded
successfully in 2010. Senior seat sales in both May
and September offered one-way travel on STC's
network for only $10. Results were overwhelmingly
positive with more than 20,000 seniors taking
advantage of the sales.
In addition to the senior seat sale, STC re-packaged
its youth pass which offers unlimited travel for the
duration of the pass. In 2010, the pass was priced
at $40 for one month of travel and was offered
for the months of June, July and August. In 2009,
the pass was $75 for the two-month period of July
and August. Sales of the pass soared in 2010 with
2,506 passes sold, compared to only 264 passes
in 2009.
STC improved its on-board amenities. More
coaches were equipped with Wi-Fi, allowing our
travellers to stay connected. Students were able to
do homework while on their way to visit family and
friends. Business travellers found it a convenient
way to convert travel time to productive time.
Wi-Fi continues to be one of the most popular
customer requests. In 2011, we will expand this
service to additional coaches in our fleet.
Other amenities were added to a larger proportion
of our fleet in 2010, including fold-down
trays, extended leg room, AC power outlets,
and window shades. These amenities make
a significant difference to the comfort of our
passengers.
On-board security enhancements continued in
2010. STC’s coaches are equipped with GPS,
allowing for precise tracking of the location
of each coach. This, in addition to security
improvements, such as random screening of
passengers and increased training for our drivers,
has greatly improved the confidence of our
travellers.
Terminal improvements in 2010 have been made
with our customers in mind. Brighter and more
efficient lighting provides a safer and more
comfortable environment. Washrooms that were
once dark and enclosed were modernized to
provide bright and spacious areas for all customers,
including those in wheelchairs.
New passenger seating was installed. Charging
stations are now provided in our terminals to allow
our customers to charge their electronic devices.
In addition, these terminals now have personal
workspaces for those wishing to have access to a
work surface.
With all of these improvements, it is perhaps
obvious that STC's ridership should be increasing.
We are confident in our service ability – 92 per
cent of our current passengers rate the service they
receive as good or excellent.
Despite our current customers' confidence in our
services, our challenge continues to be finding
ways to communicate the benefits of bus travel
to those who do not currently ride with us. In
2010, STC continued to focus on advertising and
promotional efforts. As in 2009, STC partnered
with CTV on its Hometown Tour, a terrific initiative
to keep our communities connected and bring
awareness to STC’s services.
In 2011, STC will continue with its advertising and
promotions, but will strive to be even more creative
in the use of signage and promotions, such as
the implementation of travel packages that offer
hotel accommodation and STC transportation for a
great value. Simply stated, the value, comfort and
convenience of our services to the province need
to be better understood so that we can earn the
opportunity to serve a growing customer base.
During 2010, STC management and staff took
steps to ensure that the organization was running
efficiently. Processes and procedures were reviewed
company-wide to look for savings or ways to
improve our customer service. We feel confident
that we are providing the taxpayers with the best
value for their investment in our current services,
and we will remain focused in that pursuit.
STC has the additional capacity in place to
handle significant growth in both riders and
freight, meaning that costs can be controlled as
revenues grow. This further defines our greatest
challenge, that of getting the message out about
the services we offer and the value we provide to
Saskatchewan, as our greatest opportunity.
In all of our efforts, STC continues to place a
growing importance on being green. Not only
is bus travel one of the greenest travel choices
available, which you can read about within
this report, but the company takes numerous
additional steps to be green. In 2010, building
on other initiatives such as the use of biodiesel in
our coaches, STC installed new, efficient lighting
and initiated a company-wide light bulb recycling
program. Green initiatives will continue to be
important to the company in 2011.
STC continues to serve 290 communities and
travels 3.2 million miles per year. We partner with
227 independent businesses and contractors from
Saskatchewan to ensure our service is as seamless
as possible. A majority of these agreements come
from our rural agencies. I want to thank these
partners for their dedication and want to express
how much their quality of service means to our
business.
To our staff, I commend you for the efforts put
forth in 2010. It is my pleasure to reply to the
numerous letters of customer appreciation
that STC receives. A customer satisfaction rating
of 92 per cent (who rate our services as good
or excellent) is attributable to your daily
contributions to this company. We couldn’t have
done it without you.
To the readers of this report and to the people of
Saskatchewan, I encourage you to have another
look at STC, The Bus Company. We're improving,
and we look forward to serving you.
Shawn Grice
President & CEO