New bus service on Kingston-Ottawa route

A Flixbus picks up passengers on Wellington Street in downtown Kingston. (Kimberley Johnson/CTV News Ottawa)

Flixbus is expanding its service across southern Ontario, and making Kingston a focus of new routes, including one to Ottawa.

Starting Thursday, it is now making stops in the Limestone City as part of its Ottawa to Toronto route. 

Passengers will also be able to take direct routes from Kingston to Kitchener-Waterloo. 

The service will be the only intercity carrier to pick up and drop off ticket holders' right in downtown Kingston, with the stop located at 275 Wellington St., outside the Food Basics.

Pierre Gourdain, the senior managing director of Flixbus North America, says it was important that they be able to provide service right into the core of the city.

"It’s definitely key," Gourdain tells CTV News Ottawa. "We’re also very conscious on the last mile and the connection to transit is very important, we don’t want someone to have to have 20 miles by car to get to a Flixbus stop, and to be able to walk to the stop is definitely a plus."

The new route between Kingston and Kitchener-Waterloo will run 5 days per week, excluding Tuesdays and Wednesdays. Trips will start at $40 for one-way. 

The line from Ottawa to Kingston to Toronto will run daily, with multiple trips on weekends.

Gourdian says research showed high demand for service to and from Kingston, especially for service past Toronto.

“Kingston is definitely standing out; there’s a bit less of a car culture maybe," he says. "And a strong environmentally consciousness. People are more efficient about the way they travel so it’s definitely travelling above its size in terms of bus market."

Prices online for a one-way ticket from Ottawa to Kingston show an average of $30.