Copper Cliff

"The franchise for the Sudbury transit system belonged to the Des- marais family, and logically they were the ones to provide the bus system. However, independent bus operators were already running busses in communities and suburbs not served by the trolley lines. The trolley company needed some of those routes, including the heavily travelled Sudbury-Copper Cliff run, if it were to become a profitable bus line, and the Desmaraises weren’t about to carry the expense of conversion to busses if they weren’t going to have a viable bus franchise to operate. The companies began negotiating with the city and among themselves to deal with the matter. The situation was resolved in 1949, when the Desmaraises bought the important Copper Cliff run and the rights to carry passengers in west Sudbury; Sudbury city council granted the trolley company a city-wide bus franchise. The company began the costly conversion process, buying busses, ripping up rails, replacing roadway and re¬ moving overhead electrical installations."

"for his future actions. He looked at the overall business and found the weakness, the Copper Cliff run. Then he asked what the company’s business was — municipal or inter-urban transportation — and decided which it would be. Meanwhile, to keep the company going, he needed help, and asked for it. It’s interesting that although he was popularly judged to be on a fool’s errand, Sudburians helped him, for whatever reasons. Once he decided Sudbury Bus was an urban bus company, Des- marais had to jettison the Copper Cliff run. But he also needed cash to implement his recovery plan. So, he used the route as the bargaining chip to raise the money he needed, and he targeted the key man with a vested interest in helping him get what he wanted. Once he succeeded in his plan, he got on with trimming the business and leading the company to profit."