YOU ASKED: What happened to the bus stop at Columbia and Third (below the hospital)? I saw them remove the bench and cover and now people sit on the retaining wall or the ground. This stop is used every hour of the day and night. Where did it go?

— Carol Kennell

OUR ANSWER: That bus stop is one of many in Kamloops that are getting a makeover now that the City has hired a new contractor for its bus stops.

Transportation planner Erin Felker said the new company, Creative Outdoor Advertising out of Ontario, is replacing old bus shelters and benches with new ones this summer.

The bus stops that had shelters, such as the one at Columbia and Third, are first on the list for replacement.

“Those locations that had a bus shelter previously will be the No. 1 priority,” said Felker.

The replacement shelters and benches will be installed over the next couple of months — and at absolutely no cost to the City, said Felker.

“The company supplies the shelters, maintains them, takes care of them, so if there’s any damage or graffiti, they take care of all of that. The City is able to provide a venue for our transit customers with no cost to the taxpayer and then the company sells advertising (on the shelters and benches) and that’s what’s in it for them.”

Felker says the City’s transit riders have been supportive of the changes and she hopes their patience continues while the new shelters are being installed.

As for the shelter at Third and Columbia, Felker couldn’t give a timeline for replacement, only that it is one of the priority locations.