Bookmobiles: on the road, off the road

Not in Ottawa ... although sometimes we are off the road for mechanical issues.

I meant on/off in a more permanent sense. You may not have been following the recent bookmobile-related news in Halifax and Guelph (but I have!)

Halifax announced they were cancelling their bookmobile, then announced a day later that they were re-instating it (and weeks later, someone still thinks it should be pulled off the road for good).

Meanwhile, a Guelph councillor put forward a motion to cancel Bookmobile service; the motion was defeated by a close margin. Councillors later endorsed another motion from a different councillor to fund the service for 6 months while undertaking a review of the service. An interesting letter to the editor in the local Guelph newspaper later questioned the use of "cost effectiveness" as a measure of the bookmobile's "success" (making some valid points; other criteria must be considered, too... We rely far too heavily on circulation statistics overall in libraries, although, at the end of the day, people coming in the door are certainly crucial!)

We've had a few inquires about our service, and, at the moment, our service will stay. Barb recently spoke about this to the Sun.

Interesting times! But then, they were never dull: check out the variety of vehicles we have used over the years here.