GO Transit temporarily using Coach Canada buses due to staffing shortage

After placing roughly 100 unvaccinated workers on leave this week, GO Transit has enlisted Coach Canada to help fill the gaps.

Metrolinx said Coach Canada buses will be running passengers between the Oshawa and Guildwood GO Stations this weekend as trackwork is completed on the Lakeshore East Line.

The Coach buses will be available at the Oshawa, Whitby, Ajax, and Pickering GO stations to take riders to Guildwood GO Station, where they can continue their trip via GO train.

“To ensure GO bus drivers can be assigned to regularly scheduled GO bus trips, Metrolinx is working with Coach Canada to help get people where they need to go,” the agency said.

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GO Transit has been facing staffing shortages throughout the week after Metrolinx’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate came into force on Monday.

The policy, which was announced in September, requires all employees to have submitted proof of vaccination by November 1. Those who failed to do so were placed on unpaid leave.

The vast majority of the company’s 4,600 workers are fully vaccinated, with just 2-3% being placed on leave, spokesperson Anne Marie Aikins told Daily Hive this week.

Though the number of unvaccinated and partially immunized workers is small, Aikins said it’s enough to have an impact.