City of Regina offers bus as warming space before indoor warming centre opens

The City ofRegina has provided a busto be used as an overnight warming space outside Carmichael Outreach.

Starting Wednesday, the bus will be available from 9 p.m. to 9 a.m. CST, seven nights a week, on the 1500 block of 12th Avenue near St. Johns Street.

City council is providing $100,000, paid for by a 0.03 per cent mill rate increase approved in December,for a 24-hour warming centre at Carmichael Outreach, with another $200,000 coming from the provincial Ministry of Social Services.

That indoor centre is expected to open on Jan. 22. The warming bus is a stop-gap measure to provide urgent shelter to people sleeping on the streets in the meantime, according to the city.

In Saskatoon, buses are also available as a warm place to stayin emergencies. The city's long-standing Safe Bus programallows anyone, at any time, to flagdown a bus. Bus driverswill then contact emergency services directly and provide a safe place to wait.