The Winnipeg Bus Terminal was an

intercity bus An intercity bus service (North American English) or intercity coach service (British English and Commonwealth English), also called a long-distance, express, over-the-road, commercial, long-haul, or highway bus or coach service, is a public tr ...

station Station may refer to: Agriculture * Station (Australian agriculture), a large Australian landholding used for livestock production * Station (New Zealand agriculture), a large New Zealand farm used for grazing by sheep and cattle ** Cattle stati ...

, located beside the

Winnipeg International Airport Winnipeg James Armstrong Richardson International Airport (commonly known as Winnipeg International Airport or Winnipeg Airport) is a Transport Canada designated international airport located in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. It is the seventh b ...

History

Union Bus Depot

The Union Bus Depot was constructed in the 1930s, opened on December 12, 1936, and operated out of 264 Hargrave St., a site where

True North Square True North Square is a public plaza and mixed-use development in downtown Winnipeg, Manitoba. Managed by True North Real Estate Development, a joint venture between James Richardson & Sons and True North Sports & Entertainment, it is still under ...

development currently stands. Bus lines that operated from Union Bus Depot were Greyhound Canada, Grey Goose, Eagle (

St. Anne According to Christian apocryphal and Islamic tradition, Saint Anne was the mother of Mary and the maternal grandmother of Jesus. Mary's mother is not named in the canonical gospels. In writing, Anne's name and that of her husband Joachim come ...

), Beaver ( Selkirk), Cross Country ( Ft. Whyte), Eastern Bus Lines (

Birds Hill Birds Hill is an unincorporated community in the Canadian province of Manitoba located a few kilometers northeast of Winnipeg, Manitoba, in the Rural Municipality of East St. Paul. The community is a few kilometers east of the Red River The R ...

), Southern ( Ste. Adolphe), Sonnichsen (

Headingley Headingley is a suburb of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, approximately two miles out of the city centre, to the north west along the A660 road. Headingley is the location of the Beckett Park campus of Leeds Beckett University and Headingl ...

), Riverbend ( Ste. Adolphe), Thiessen ( Stonewall, Stony Mountain).

Winnipeg Intercity Bus Terminal

In December 1962 plans were announced to replace the old Union Bus Depot between Hargrave and Carlton St. to the Winnipeg Bus Terminal fronted on Portage Avenue between Colony and Balmoral Streets and be named ''the Mall Centre''. The project on of land would cost $4.5 million and would include a parkade and a 7-storey office building and 6-storey hotel. It was designed by architectural firm of ''Moody, Moore, Whenham and Partners'', architects of the

Centennial Concert Hall Centennial Concert Hall is a 2305-seat performing arts centre located at 555 Main Street in downtown Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, as part of the Manitoba Centennial Centre. The concert hall opened on March 25, 1968. It is the performing home of t ...

a few years later, along with Edmonton-based John McIntosh. The new bus terminal would be able to park up to 15 intercity buses at once.

PCL PCL may refer to: Aviation *FAP Captain David Abenzur Rengifo International Airport, near Pucallpa, Peru (IATA code: PCL) *Pilot-controlled lighting, a system by which aircraft pilots can control the lighting of runways and taxiways via radio cont ...

began demolition of existing building(s) at the site began in the spring of 1963. Construction crews had to dig to reach bedrock level, although they expected to dig no more than to do so. The Mall Centre and Bus Depot opened on October 15, 1964. It covers along with the Mall Centre Hotel. The 'Park-M-All' for up to 400 vehicles was included in the development. A Dutch Treat Cafeteria was the initial fast food restaurant that set up shop in the Bus Depot. For several years,

Salisbury House restaurant Salisbury House is a restaurant chain based in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. Known locally as "Sals", the chain is considered a Winnipeg institution. The first Salisbury House restaurant was founded in downtown Winnipeg in 1931 by Ralph Erwin (S ...

a small convenience store operated from the bus terminal In 1980s the Mall Centre Hotel was demolished to make way for the 160-room Relax Plaza (360 Colony St.) which was constructed in 1986, and later branded as a Holiday Inn Downtown and apartment complex.

Winnipeg James Richardson International Airport

Greyhound Canada announced in March 2008 it would move the Winnipeg bus terminal from the Mall Centre in downtown Winnipeg to a new C$6.3 million building with a single storey structure with separate areas for freight and passengers inside of a of passenger space and of cargo processing space at the Winnipeg International Airport. The terminal moved operations on August 15, 2009, where it had been for 45 years. The terminal was a hub for Greyhound, with buses originating from and travelling to

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the city, up from 631,486 in 2016. Th ...

;

Edmonton Edmonton ( ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Alberta. Edmonton is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Alberta's central region. The city anc ...

;

Calgary Calgary ( ) is the largest city in the western Canadian province of Alberta and the largest metro area of the three Prairie Provinces. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806, maki ...

;

Medicine Hat Medicine Hat is a city in southeast Alberta, Canada. It is located along the South Saskatchewan River. It is approximately east of Lethbridge and southeast of Calgary. This city and the adjacent Town of Redcliff to the northwest are with ...

; and

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most pop ...

. On October 30, 2018, Greyhound Canada stopped serving

western Canada Western Canada, also referred to as the Western provinces, Canadian West or the Western provinces of Canada, and commonly known within Canada as the West, is a Canadian region that includes the four western provinces just north of the Canada� ...

, causing the closure of the bus terminal. The terminal building demolished on 2022.

Repurposing Mall Centre Bus Depot

Today, the old Winnipeg Bus Terminal on Portage Avenue has become Balmoral Station and functions as a termination or pass-thru point for Winnipeg Transit buses. A

University of Winnipeg The University of Winnipeg (UWinnipeg, UW) is a public research university in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, that offers undergraduate faculties of art, business and economics, education, science and kinesiology and applied health as well as gr ...

Student Centre currently occupies all of the space within the office complex (491 Portage Ave.).

Successor

Most regional bus lines and inter-provincial lines like

Ontario Northland Transportation Commission The Ontario Northland Transportation Commission (ONTC), or simply Ontario Northland, is a Crown agency of the Government of Ontario responsible for providing transportation services for passengers and goods in northern Ontario. It reports to ...

and Rider Express use Maple Bus Lines terminal at 936 Sherbrook St (transit connection: Route 29 - Sherbrook - Stafford), and ONTC and Rider Express arrives Southdale Shopping Centre at 147 Vermillion Rd also.

References

{{reflist
Greyhound Bus-Terminal: Analysis of Options for the Winnipeg Downtown Terminal Final Report
''Institute of Urban Studies.'' 2006. uwinnipeg.ca Bus stations in Manitoba Buildings and structures in Winnipeg Transport in Winnipeg Transport infrastructure completed in 2009 Former bus stations 2009 establishments in Manitoba 2018 disestablishments in Manitoba Winnipeg Transit