In nine of the past 10 months, Winnipeg Transit recorded the lowest number of people sleeping in bus shelters since at least the beginning of 2019.

The Transit Control Center received 102 reports of people sleeping in bus shelters or at bus stops in January, compared to an average of 282 for that month between 2019 and 2023. There were 72 reports made in February, compared to an average of 220, while fewer than 100 applications were submitted in February, March, May, June, August and September.

July was the only month with a slight increase compared to the same period last year, with 136 reports this year, up from 120 in 2023.

Each month’s numbers were significantly less than those from 2021, when the problem peaked.

Mayor Scott Gillingham said the data provides an early sign that key city investments are working.

“I made a campaign commitment to make investment to get people out of (living in) bus shelters and I think our deliberate investment as a council is starting to show impact,” he said.

“We’ve invested in 24-7 safe spaces to give people an alternative space to get out of bus shelters and into a warm space. We invested in community safety officers and (the) Downtown Community Safety Partnership. Both of these organizations connect people in bus services to the services they need.”

However, he cautioned that more time is needed to determine whether the city has turned around. The goal is to bring the number to zero due to better housing.

“The problem and the challenge have not gone away. There is still work to be done,” said Gillingham.

Noting that the city still faces widespread homelessness, the mayor stressed that efforts to attract more housing and secure more federal funding to address encampments must continue.

Winnipeg Transit said employees who observe someone sleeping in a shelter are expected to report the matter to the control centre. Members of the public who call 311 about an emergency involving someone sleeping in a bus shelter will be directed to call 911 and those calls may not be reported to Transit Central, a spokesman noted.

The leader of an organization that provides outreach services to homeless Winnipeggers said she has noticed a decrease in the number of people staying in bus shelters but the number of people living in homeless encampments is increasing.

“Encampments have become places for people who normally would have been in a transit shelter (before) … We’re seeing encampments that are much (heavier) populated than before,” said Marion Willis, executive director of St. Boniface Street Links.

“A camp can be a whole series of tents now, like a community… It’s not that there are fewer people living homeless, that’s for sure. It’s (a change in) how vulnerable people choose to live.”

Willis said Street Links cleaned up significant encampments on Midwinter Avenue and Fermor Avenue this week, after finding better places for the people living in them to live.

“(Deposits) are, frankly, everywhere. There’s so much more activity … than people realize,” Willis said.

Jason Whitford, executive director of End Homelessness Winnipeg, said there has been high demand for space in the city’s homeless shelters.

“It’s a reflection of the growth of the unprotected population. And it’s often more visible when colder weather comes and people will seek shelter in the only space available, (which can include) bus shelters,” Whitford said. “Ultimately, the solution is long-term, sustainable and safe housing.”

The union representing crews that clean transit shelters said there are public health and safety risks arising from people living in them.

Chris Scott, president of Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1505, which represents crews who clean transit shelters, noted the health and safety risks posed by people living in them. He said it appears the problem is less widespread now.

He suggested that mild autumn weather may have an effect, leading more vulnerable people to stay outdoors instead of seeking warmth in heated bus shelters.

As colder weather sets in, Scott said missing panes of glass in many vandalized shelters will also reduce numbers.

“Without shelter from the elements, whether it’s pouring rain… or snow, without walls and no heat… it can (affect this),” he said.

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Joyanne Pursaga
Reporter

Joyanne is a town hall reporter for the Winnipeg Free Press. A reporter since 2004, she began covering politics exclusively in 2012, covering City Hall and the Manitoba Legislature for Winnipeg Sun before you join Free press in early 2020. Read more about Joyanne.

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