The City of Ottawa Transit Commission met on Thursday, September 12, for its first meeting since the beginning of summer.
Deputy City Treasurer Isabelle Jasmin began the meeting by giving a short presentation on OC Transpo’s finances for Q2 of 2024. In the second quarter of the fiscal year, OC Transpo racked up $6.7 million in costs from maintenance, insurance claims, and Para Transpo operations. The city transit service also faced a $7.4 million shortfall due to lower ridership and higher use of discounted fares.
Thirty members of the public spoke before the commission regarding the LRT service reductions, a significantly higher turnout than usual for Transit Commission meetings. Laura Shantz, representing Ottawa Transit Riders, addressed the reduction in LRT service on the O-Train Confederation Line, which has been changed from every five minutes to every ten minutes as a cost-saving measure. Shantz said that for people who do not rely on transit, the cut may not seem substantive but will cause transit users to have a harder time making connections with busses: “Having to leave earlier and get to your destination later and may mean an extra 35 minutes waiting for your connecting bus instead of five.” Shantz concluded by asking the commission to “Fund transit like it matters.”
Transpo boss Renée Amilcar gave an update on the state of Para Transpo, light rail, and bus service in Ottawa. Safety metrics have improved in the transit system; most notably, no bus operator has been assaulted seriously since 2021, when plexiglass dividers were installed on buses.
Para Transpo delivered 95 percent of its services on time in July and August, and ridership increased above the estimated amount projected for the summer months.
For LRT, service delivery for July was at 98.8 percent, while for August, it was at a lower 97.1 percent. Bus service delivery was at 97.8 percent for July and 98.4 percent for August. However, it is important to note that only 84 percent of buses arrive on time for frequent routes and 76 percent for less frequent routes, meaning that one out of every four less frequent buses is still late by five minutes or more. Ridership levels were up to 4.4 million trips in July, meeting projections but still below pre-pandemic levels.
Councillor Jeff Lieper brought forward a motion asking that LRT service be kept at intervals of five minutes per trip, noting that these service cuts will cause connection issues and decrease usage in OC Transpo overall. Lieper’s motion proposed using any surplus tax revenues from 2024 to maintain the five-minute frequency rate. OC Transpo staff indicated that should Leiper’s motion be approved, the five-minute service frequency would be reinstated following the opening of the Trillium Line.
Councillor Lieper’s motion was not voted on during the meeting, meaning it will be voted on at next week’s Council meeting.
