It's the end of the road for Halifax's methadone bus

The decision to officially retire the bus on Friday — which is International Overdose Awareness Day — is an indication of how much progress has been made in combating Nova Scotia's opioid problem. 

"That's the last day the wheels on the bus will go round and round," said Cindy MacIsaac, executive director of Direction 180, the community-based methadone treatment clinic that operates the bus.

But the bus also ran into opposition from some residents who didn't want a methadone clinic parked in their backyard.

Responding to needs

​These days, about 70 to 100 patients head to the bus at one of three locations in Halifax and Dartmouth. The decision was made to park the bus and serve those clients from Direction 180's new, larger office at the former Guardian Drugs location on Gottingen Street.

"It's sad, but at the same time it's a sign of evolving and responding to the needs of our client population," said MacIsaac.

Starting Saturday, clients who once visited the bus will get their methadone at a new dispensary in the basement of the building. These clients are trying to stabilize their methadone treatment or have relapsed with substance use, said MacIsaac.

The vast majority of Direction 180's 470 clients go to pharmacies to drink their methadone, or have carry privileges to take their doses home.

When the bus first hit the road, the methadone treatment wait list was as long as three years. 

Bus being put up for sale

Now, with timely treatment in Halifax starting almost "on the spot," people aren't left waiting and slipping through the cracks.

The Winnebago was replaced in 2015 with a new $160,000 Ford chassis bus — paid for entirely from donations and proceeds from a fundraiser that sold lipstick. It's logged 47,000 kilometres in its daily trips around Halifax and Dartmouth.

The vehicle is now up for sale. MacIsaac is hoping it will fetch $80,000 to $100,000, which she said will be reinvested in programs.