The Sea to Sky Corridor lost another 20 or so jobs last week as Perimeter Transportation was forced to shut down its airport commuting operations. With panic barely at bay over worldwide economic turmoil, and job loss resulting from a slowdown of work on the highway improvement project and residential development -not to mention layoffs within local forestry-sector jobs and the exodus of Hydor-Tech chemical plant - every local position nixed delivers another blow. So far, two sectors have been heralded as possible answers to generating business and jobs: the academic industry and tourism industry. With Capilano University celebrates its new degree-conferring designation and its massive expansion plans for the Squamish campus, the academic sector is showing signs of trucking along. Let's hope Quest University's dreams for the future also come true.Tourism, however, is a more elusive beast. Its expansion and promotion can come from unexpected sources. As it turns out, Perimeter had been one of those sources.The transport operator's shutdown means a loss of unsung heroes of the local tourist economy - its drivers. Although the company only began stopping for Squamish air travelers last season -leading to the question "What the heck took them so long?" - its employees have always shared stories about the entire corridor.According to driver Jason Bechard, Perimeter drivers, some of whom have worked for the company for its entire 25-year run, have been contributing to tourism by sharing regional history and lore, which is always the best way to make a town come alive. Although only anecdotal evidence suggests it, these drivers may very well have influenced more than a few visitors to get off in Squamish. And as so many new residents know, it's easy to make the leap to living here after falling in love with the surroundings. So who knows? Perhaps a minute part of our population is now here, contributing to local economic and social wealth, simply because they hopped off the bus.The Pacific Coach Lines (PCL) Whistler Skyline route has offered to take up the slack. They'll run trips several times a day at a rate of $36.75 one-way, according to the Adventure Centre's Squamish Tourism staff. If the municipally-employed Squamish promoters have any influence at all, let's hope they use it to coax PCL, from executives on down to their drivers, to share stories of the rich history and landscapes as visitors travel through the area. It can only heighten their passengers' experience aboard the bus, and may well contribute to local tourism and the economy. That must be what they call "win-win."
