Greyhound Australia has announced it will return to the roads on 15 June, with services commencing between Sydney, Canberra and Melbourne. The regular schedule was suspended due to COVID-19.
Murrays said its express services between Canberra and Sydney, and Canberra and Melbourne will remain suspended until further notice.
“At this stage, we do not know when the services will resume but we are working hard to get back on the road. Any customers with affected bookings will be contacted,” a Murrays spokesperson said.
“Any person who holds a booking for travel on a suspended service will be issued with a travel credit, valid to 31 December 2020, regardless of fare type.
“We will advise all passengers holding a credit as soon as our services are scheduled to resume.”
Murrays’ Canberra to Wollongong and Canberra to Narooma services remain unaffected and are still operating to the usual timetable.
The company said it is also working with ski resorts at Perisher and Thredbo to resume the regular snow express service.
“Unfortunately, due to COVID-19, we do not yet know how our Snow Express will be impacted this year. We are working with the resorts in preparation for the 2020 season and we will update our website when we know more.
“We will be continually assessing our operations with reference to advice from the Department of Health and the Australian Government. We look forward to resuming our suspended services as soon as it is safe to do so,” the Murrays spokesperson said.
A Greyhound Australia spokesperson said their services will be safer than ever before, with new protocols to protect passengers and drivers. These include enhanced cleaning protocols, baggage self-loading and no travel for those displaying signs of illness; however, tickets will be honoured for travel at a later date at no additional charge if a passenger is unwell.
“We are delighted to be taking bookings again for people looking to get a change of scenery after months of isolation and restrictions,” the Greyhound spokesperson said.
“This is an important key market and therefore among the first services to re-open after our previous closures and service suspensions due to COVID-19 travel restrictions.
“Greyhound has been operating since 1928 and we’ve been through a number of challenges in that time, including several pandemics and periods of economic hardship,” the spokesperson said.
“We have been through so much and have always come out on the other side, so we’re looking forward to the reopening of interstate borders and re-establishment of our national network.”
The resumption of some bus services comes almost after a passenger travelling from Sydney to Canberra was diagnosed with COVID-19 upon returning from Indonesia. The female patient in her 70s had travelled from Indonesia and returned to Canberra on a Murrays bus on Saturday, 14 March.
All passengers on the bus were considered ‘close contacts’ and had to self-isolate for 14 days.
Murrays said it has put a variety of precautions in place to limit the risk of transmission of any virus between passengers.