How OC Transpo's New Ways to Bus is making commuting from the suburbs worse
Buses like the 88 Hurdman are now overcrowded and only reliable during peak hours, Ledgley said. The routes should be replaced with the previous ones and OC Transpo should 'reverse this route review,' he said.
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'Everything has gotten worse since April 27,' he said. 'What we are hearing from these residents, mostly, is that it was fine before (OC Transpo) made the cuts.'
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Coun. David Hill for Barrhaven-West ward says the New Ways to Bus system has 'essentially changed the concept of busing' in the city. It would be difficult to revert back to the old routes when the investment into making an efficient bus system has already been made.
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'We're making evolutionary progress and improvement,' Hill said. 'What we need to focus on is identifying the issues that are coming up and fixing those.'
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Hill says OC Transpo and the city need to prioritize winning transit riders' trust back when it comes to bus routes. He's introducing a motion to the city's transit committee to increase the current 90-minute transfer window to ensure riders aren't paying twice for the same trip.
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'The challenge is that there's an additional transfer that happens locally that didn't used to happen, and that's the reason why someone could potentially be getting double charged,' he said. 'It just shouldn't be the case where somebody going from point A to point B ends up paying twice for their ride.'
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Hill mentions mitigating factors that could delay a commuter's ride, like ongoing construction, rush hour traffic and general delays. With the New Ways to Bus system, an additional transfer occurs for Barrhaven residents locally.
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'The core issue we need to focus on for the New Ways to Bus system to be effective is those afternoon peak buses that are leaving Tunney's Pasture,' he said. 'If those are reliably on time and consistent, then we won't have the problem with the transfer window issues and then ultimately …it can be a better system.'
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But Ledgley says no route should take longer than 90 minutes in the first place, especially when it takes around 25 minutes to commute from the suburbs to downtown Ottawa by vehicle.
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'That's only solving one part of the problem,' Ledgley said. 'It's also that nobody wants to be taking two and a half hours for their commute, right?'
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Hill says transit coming through Tunney's Pasture station could be more reliable for commuters, alongside extending the transit fare windows.
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The transfer window becomes an issue when commuters run errands around the city and encounter unreliable bus frequencies and delays, says Nick Grover, an executive member with Free Transit Ottawa.
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'It's not an enjoyable experience, even before New Ways to Bus,' he said.
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In a July 23 emailed statement, Katrina Camposarcone-Stubbs, a public information officer with OC Transpo, said that they were analyzing the 'potential impacts' of extending the transfer window in response to Hill.
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'This analysis will include a review of whether any routes consistently exceed 90 minutes,' she wrote. 'At this time, the scheduled duration of the majority of customer trips take place in less than 90 minutes; however, staff will be investigating travel times further.'
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Transfers also became an issue when a route was eliminated and replaced by at least two others, Grover says.
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'If you're going from A to B, there's more transfers involved, resulting in longer commutes and also a worse last-mile challenge,' he said, referring to bus stops that were removed and installed five or 10 minutes away.
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With Ottawa's weather behaving in uncertain ways — like increasing heat waves, smog and thunderstorms — Grover says people are 'checking out' of the public transit system and opting to purchase personal vehicles.
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'Or they're having to suffer through it because they have no other choice,' he said. 'For some people, that just means going out less … We're leaving people isolated and with less access to the city.'
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Off-peak service is another essential area where OC Transpo could improve, so commuters relying on transit outside of peak hours can travel around the city more easily, Grover says. Dedicated bus lanes could also help alleviate traffic, causing the route delay, and free fare for certain demographics within Ottawa could be considered.
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These things are necessary so that people 'so poorly treated by this transit system' may think about returning to it, he said.
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Villeneuve-Elson, must account for the extra time they would spend on an OC Transpo bus if they left work a little later and missed an express bus back to Stittsville.
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'My commute home changes from being about an hour to an hour and a half to being well more than two hours,' they said.
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How did we get here?
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Coun. Wilson Lo, representing Barrhaven East, says there were 'several layers' that got Ottawa's public transit to where it is today. As a former OC Transpo bus operator, some of the reasons he's experienced delays are as simple as 'hitting the right combination of red lights.'
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'It's created a lot of frustration (and) a lot of burden on our passengers,' Lo said. 'A lot of people have left transit.'
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Discontinuing some express buses has hit residents hard, especially those relying on them during peak weekday hours. Factoring in the ' trauma of the LRT launch' and transit users reminiscing about a time when transit was efficient, Lo says the changes have been 'negative' for a lot of commuters.
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The 'psychological barrier' of more transfers down the line has been a drawback for residents, and the promises of reliable transit have not 'panned out' as planned.
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'That unfortunately overshadowed a lot of the positive, good changes that have happened,' he said, referring to improved off-peak local travel in Barrhaven.
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With the New Ways to Bus route changes, Camposarcone-Stubbs says OC Transpo understands that each commuter's journey is 'unique' and that some may be experiencing longer travel journeys, additional transfers or a longer walk to the bus stop.
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'Since New Ways to Bus launched, staff have been monitoring ridership levels across the network, gathering feedback from customers, and collecting observations from frontline staff,' she wrote.
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That feedback is used to inform future adjustments to OC Transpo's bus network through service change processes, Camposarcone-Stubbs says, which take place four times a year.
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No, there are not.
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A maintenance backlog continues to impact OC Transpo's fleet, with a number of defects found during inspections. Their current fleet is set to surpass its 15-year life cycle and must be retired by April 2026.
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In addition, they've been facing challenges in procuring e-buses due to production delays affecting deliveries to the Ottawa market. These are some of the factors outside of OC Transpo's control, Lo said: 'This is an industry-wide issue.'
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Theoretically, if Ottawa can get the delayed vehicles right now, it would be an 'easy fix.' But there are not enough buses to return to the old network, Lo added.
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Villeneuve-Elson says OC Transpo's buses are constantly breaking down, which leads to route cancellations or not enough buses to cover all the city's required routes, impacting people's commutes and delaying bus schedules.
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'It cascades through the day, kind of like a set of dominoes,' they said.
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Horizon Ottawa has been consistently advocating for free transit every year, Ledgley said: 'It should be run as a public service, not as a business.'
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When the New Ways to Bus system first launched towards the end of April, OC Transpo offered free-fare service for the first weekend of May. At the time, then-transit service manager Renée Amilcar said it was a way to introduce the 'new OC Transpo' and encourage riders to try it out.
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During Bluesfest's nine-day stint, OC Transpo saw ' strong ridership ' throughout the festival, with an estimated 650,000 customer trips on Line 1 and 87,000 trips on Line 2. This was the first year when Lines 2 and 4 ran alongside Line 1 during the festival.
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Grover says these were examples of when ridership on public transit skyrocketed.
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'It's a great way to remove a barrier while also compensating for the fact that the service has been incredibly subpar,' he said.
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Ottawa Citizen
2 days ago
- Ottawa Citizen
How OC Transpo's New Ways to Bus is making commuting from the suburbs worse
Article content Buses like the 88 Hurdman are now overcrowded and only reliable during peak hours, Ledgley said. The routes should be replaced with the previous ones and OC Transpo should 'reverse this route review,' he said. Article content 'Everything has gotten worse since April 27,' he said. 'What we are hearing from these residents, mostly, is that it was fine before (OC Transpo) made the cuts.' Article content Coun. David Hill for Barrhaven-West ward says the New Ways to Bus system has 'essentially changed the concept of busing' in the city. It would be difficult to revert back to the old routes when the investment into making an efficient bus system has already been made. Article content 'We're making evolutionary progress and improvement,' Hill said. 'What we need to focus on is identifying the issues that are coming up and fixing those.' Article content Article content Hill says OC Transpo and the city need to prioritize winning transit riders' trust back when it comes to bus routes. He's introducing a motion to the city's transit committee to increase the current 90-minute transfer window to ensure riders aren't paying twice for the same trip. Article content Article content 'The challenge is that there's an additional transfer that happens locally that didn't used to happen, and that's the reason why someone could potentially be getting double charged,' he said. 'It just shouldn't be the case where somebody going from point A to point B ends up paying twice for their ride.' Article content Hill mentions mitigating factors that could delay a commuter's ride, like ongoing construction, rush hour traffic and general delays. With the New Ways to Bus system, an additional transfer occurs for Barrhaven residents locally. Article content 'The core issue we need to focus on for the New Ways to Bus system to be effective is those afternoon peak buses that are leaving Tunney's Pasture,' he said. 'If those are reliably on time and consistent, then we won't have the problem with the transfer window issues and then ultimately …it can be a better system.' Article content Article content But Ledgley says no route should take longer than 90 minutes in the first place, especially when it takes around 25 minutes to commute from the suburbs to downtown Ottawa by vehicle. Article content 'That's only solving one part of the problem,' Ledgley said. 'It's also that nobody wants to be taking two and a half hours for their commute, right?' Article content Hill says transit coming through Tunney's Pasture station could be more reliable for commuters, alongside extending the transit fare windows. Article content The transfer window becomes an issue when commuters run errands around the city and encounter unreliable bus frequencies and delays, says Nick Grover, an executive member with Free Transit Ottawa. Article content 'It's not an enjoyable experience, even before New Ways to Bus,' he said. Article content In a July 23 emailed statement, Katrina Camposarcone-Stubbs, a public information officer with OC Transpo, said that they were analyzing the 'potential impacts' of extending the transfer window in response to Hill. Article content 'This analysis will include a review of whether any routes consistently exceed 90 minutes,' she wrote. 'At this time, the scheduled duration of the majority of customer trips take place in less than 90 minutes; however, staff will be investigating travel times further.' Article content Article content Transfers also became an issue when a route was eliminated and replaced by at least two others, Grover says. Article content 'If you're going from A to B, there's more transfers involved, resulting in longer commutes and also a worse last-mile challenge,' he said, referring to bus stops that were removed and installed five or 10 minutes away. Article content With Ottawa's weather behaving in uncertain ways — like increasing heat waves, smog and thunderstorms — Grover says people are 'checking out' of the public transit system and opting to purchase personal vehicles. Article content Article content 'Or they're having to suffer through it because they have no other choice,' he said. 'For some people, that just means going out less … We're leaving people isolated and with less access to the city.' Article content Off-peak service is another essential area where OC Transpo could improve, so commuters relying on transit outside of peak hours can travel around the city more easily, Grover says. Dedicated bus lanes could also help alleviate traffic, causing the route delay, and free fare for certain demographics within Ottawa could be considered. Article content These things are necessary so that people 'so poorly treated by this transit system' may think about returning to it, he said. Article content Villeneuve-Elson, must account for the extra time they would spend on an OC Transpo bus if they left work a little later and missed an express bus back to Stittsville. Article content 'My commute home changes from being about an hour to an hour and a half to being well more than two hours,' they said. Article content Article content How did we get here? Article content Coun. Wilson Lo, representing Barrhaven East, says there were 'several layers' that got Ottawa's public transit to where it is today. As a former OC Transpo bus operator, some of the reasons he's experienced delays are as simple as 'hitting the right combination of red lights.' Article content 'It's created a lot of frustration (and) a lot of burden on our passengers,' Lo said. 'A lot of people have left transit.' Article content Discontinuing some express buses has hit residents hard, especially those relying on them during peak weekday hours. Factoring in the ' trauma of the LRT launch' and transit users reminiscing about a time when transit was efficient, Lo says the changes have been 'negative' for a lot of commuters. Article content The 'psychological barrier' of more transfers down the line has been a drawback for residents, and the promises of reliable transit have not 'panned out' as planned. Article content 'That unfortunately overshadowed a lot of the positive, good changes that have happened,' he said, referring to improved off-peak local travel in Barrhaven. Article content With the New Ways to Bus route changes, Camposarcone-Stubbs says OC Transpo understands that each commuter's journey is 'unique' and that some may be experiencing longer travel journeys, additional transfers or a longer walk to the bus stop. Article content 'Since New Ways to Bus launched, staff have been monitoring ridership levels across the network, gathering feedback from customers, and collecting observations from frontline staff,' she wrote. Article content That feedback is used to inform future adjustments to OC Transpo's bus network through service change processes, Camposarcone-Stubbs says, which take place four times a year. Article content Article content No, there are not. Article content Article content A maintenance backlog continues to impact OC Transpo's fleet, with a number of defects found during inspections. Their current fleet is set to surpass its 15-year life cycle and must be retired by April 2026. Article content In addition, they've been facing challenges in procuring e-buses due to production delays affecting deliveries to the Ottawa market. These are some of the factors outside of OC Transpo's control, Lo said: 'This is an industry-wide issue.' Article content Theoretically, if Ottawa can get the delayed vehicles right now, it would be an 'easy fix.' But there are not enough buses to return to the old network, Lo added. Article content Villeneuve-Elson says OC Transpo's buses are constantly breaking down, which leads to route cancellations or not enough buses to cover all the city's required routes, impacting people's commutes and delaying bus schedules. Article content 'It cascades through the day, kind of like a set of dominoes,' they said. Article content Article content Horizon Ottawa has been consistently advocating for free transit every year, Ledgley said: 'It should be run as a public service, not as a business.' Article content When the New Ways to Bus system first launched towards the end of April, OC Transpo offered free-fare service for the first weekend of May. At the time, then-transit service manager Renée Amilcar said it was a way to introduce the 'new OC Transpo' and encourage riders to try it out. Article content During Bluesfest's nine-day stint, OC Transpo saw ' strong ridership ' throughout the festival, with an estimated 650,000 customer trips on Line 1 and 87,000 trips on Line 2. This was the first year when Lines 2 and 4 ran alongside Line 1 during the festival. Article content Grover says these were examples of when ridership on public transit skyrocketed. Article content 'It's a great way to remove a barrier while also compensating for the fact that the service has been incredibly subpar,' he said.
Ottawa Citizen
3 days ago
- Ottawa Citizen
Adam: Tim Tierney should know better than to mess with road pylons
Ottawa councillor Tim Tierney turned into a vigilante last week when he took the extraordinary step of tossing construction cones off city roads because they blocked traffic. Comrade-in-arms Coun. Matt Luloff was by his side in this escapade. Article content The two east-end Ottawa councillors took matters (law?) into their own hands out of frustration at unannounced road and ramp closures on Highway 174 that they say caused traffic chaos. Roads and ramps east of St. Laurent Boulevard on the 174 have been routinely closed during Stage 2 LRT east extension apparently without proper notice, and this has riled residents. The councillors claim the cones were left blocking roads even when construction was already completed. 'I know that brings a lot of discussion about (safety),' Teirney said of his action. 'If I can open up a lane of traffic seven or eight hours in advance of the next crew coming to move those cones, I'm just going to do it. It's sad when a councillor physically has to do it.' Article content Article content Article content So, what we've come to is that councillors can take it upon themselves to throw cones off roads if they feel the pylons don't belong there. And Luloff agrees: 'When they make these changes without any notice, there's very few viable routes for us to get into the core or move about the city. What are you supposed to do?' Article content Go rogue and throw cones off the roads, of course. Article content But then, what happens if there is a serious accident on the arbitrarily re-opened roads? Who takes the blame? The city, the contractor or the councillors who took matters into their own hands? Article content When I read the story in the Citizen, I wondered if you or I pulled that kind of stunt on a public road, would we find ourselves on the front page of the Citizen or in the back of a police cruiser being interrogated for, say, vandalism? But we are not Tierney and Luloff, are we? Article content Lane closures are happening all over the city as the construction season kicks into full gear. You'll find major roads closed, and often access to malls blocked. It can be frustrating, and it may well be that the extent of the problem in the east end is much worse. Commuters sitting in traffic for hours unnecessarily is not fun. The councillors are right to be frustrated at OC Transpo and the contractor, and right to demand better. Any contractor of a major road project should have the sensibility to understand the importance of putting up proper signs about road closures so commuters can plan their routes ahead of time. And if an LRT contractor is failing in its duty, OC Transpo should have stepped in much earlier to fix the problem. Article content Article content But if the closures were causing chaos, as the councillors say, it is surprising that the issue was not raised at Transportation Committee, Transit Commission or council itself for remedy. Article content OC Transpo general manager Renee Amilcar has apologized for a Montreal Road ramp closure that happened without proper notice, and the contractor has promised it won't happen again. Article content Tierney and Luloff are right to be frustrated and angry, but that is no license to arbitrarily remove cones because they feel the pylons shouldn't be there. They should know better. It sets a bad precedent. The summer months are a time for road construction, which comes with high frustration—from commuters who have to put up with detours to businesses that are losing customers. But we don't want other people to think they can also take matters into their own hands and start removing inconvenient pylons.
Ottawa Citizen
4 days ago
- Ottawa Citizen
Renée Amilcar departs with OC Transpo in a better, but still challenging place
Article content In her farewell statement to Amilcar, City of Ottawa manager Wendy Stephanson said she had always been impressed by Amilcar's ability to be fearless. Article content 'She's never afraid to make a tough decision or make a decision that might not be the most popular, but in the long run it's best for our community.' Article content Some have argued that public transit is in a much stronger position now than it was when Amilcar arrived in Ottawa in 2021. Line 1 performance has improved. Lines 2 and 4 are performing well. Eastern extensions of Phase 2 will open later this year, and the reliability of the bus service has improved, Mayor Mark Sutcliffe said in June. Article content But others argue that the jury is still out on New Ways to Bus, the major overhaul of bus routes launched in April that changed dozens of routes, redeploying the limited pool of buses to where ridership was higher. Article content Those changes included introducing new routes while retiring others and revising routes to major destinations like hospitals, universities and colleges. For some riders, it was more efficient. For others, it has resulted in commutes so convoluted that a 90-minute bus transfer window no longer works. Article content Article content 'They called it a consolidation, but it was a reduction,' Grover said. 'Some routes got more frequency, but dozens and dozens had more transfer points.' Article content Article content 'We need to return to accountability and transparency with the people of Ottawa rather than information control and spin if the people are going to feel comfortable that their city is working for them,' said John Adair, co-lead counsel for the inquiry. Article content In the pre-Amicar era, Shantz pointed out, riders depended on texts from other transit users to notify them of significant issues such as a stopped train. Article content In the summer of 2023, when Amilcar shut down Line 1, she and other experts answered questions about progress in a daily media conference. Article content Article content 'She mentioned to me a number of times that she felt it was a cultural shift to be as open and transparent as possible. It has been an extremely different approach,' said Coun. Glen Gower, chair of the city's transit committee. Article content 'She was very hands-on. I wouldn't be surprised if she worked every day of the week,' Gower said. 'She lived and breathed transit.' Article content At the same time, details about technical questions, such as what actually caused the August 2021 derailment, have been sparse. (This past week, the CBC reported that Alstom, which manufactured the trains, claimed in a 2023 report that the tracks fall short of industry standards.) Article content 'I would like to see a future leader champion for that kind of transparency,' Shantz said. 'We need, in the public interest, to know what is going on.' Article content One of the unknowns is whether Line 1 tracks will ultimately have to re-aligned, Shantz said. If so, the public needs to know how long will it take and the contingency plans while it is being done. Article content 'We could face years of repair,' she said. 'We need to see independent assessments of these things. Otherwise, every year we'll be holding our breath and waiting for the next time the straw breaks the camel's back.' Article content Q: Amilcar has been keen to measure the system's performance using data. Has it been valuable? Article content A: OC Transpo set an ambitious goal of achieving 99.5 per cent service delivery — a measure of the degree to which planned trips are delivered — for conventional buses on its route network. Article content 'She really believes that, if your bus and train showed up when you expect them, that's the way to win new riders,' Gower said. 'Price is less of a priority.' Article content There are other goals, including measuring whether trips are evenly spaced on frequent routes. The goal in that case is 85 per cent. For less frequent routes, there's a target of 85 per cent for 'punctuality,' which measures whether the bus arrives at the stop no more than one minute early or five minutes late. Article content Article content Amilcar has not avoided addressing the gaps between the goal and reality. In April, she said the 98 per cent rate for daily trips in 2024 was 'not good.' Article content 'When we deliver a 96, 97 or even 98 per cent of the service, it's bad. It's very bad,' she said. Those marks would be great grades in school, 'but not for transit … not for buses. We need to deliver what we planned: 99.5 per cent.' Article content In her farewell speech to city council in June, Amilcar said OC Transpo had set the bar high. Article content 'We aimed for 99.5 per cent service delivery, and I know, with the right funding, we will get there,' she said. Article content For transit advocates, 'the right funding' is the big question. This year's transit budget is bigger than ever before, but fares are increasing and service has been pared back, Grover said. For public transit to thrive, it must be made more attractive and that means spending more money, he argues. Article content Article content 'I can't blame (Amilcar) for the stuff that happed. I would have liked to hear her speak out more for the things she needed. The role of general manager is limited. You're executing a plan. It would be good if the general manager could speak out more and be bolder for what they advocated for,' Grover said. Article content Shantz likes to see metrics, but points out they were also available before 2017, although not on as granular a level as now, because transit vehicles are equipped with GPS. Article content 'There are a few other things I would like to add — like the rider experience,' she said. 'I would like to see a regular pulse on how people are experiencing the system. I would like to see the metrics broken down to compare rush hour to non-rush hour. That's sometimes hidden in the numbers.' Article content Article content 'It was a good-looking relationship,' said Noah Vineberg, president of Amalgamated Transit Unit Local 279, which represents OC Transpo bus and train operators, maintenance workers, dispatchers and fare inspectors. 'I did like working with her. We had a good dialogue.' Article content However, Vineberg said, he has been disappointed by how little has changed. Sore points for drivers have been the scheduling of work and work-life balance. The amount of time scheduled to get from Point A to Point B was not realistic, he added. Article content 'When it came to taking care of her people, that vision never really came to fruition,' he said. Article content In May, union members said they were 'met with silence' at a city council meeting after showing up with a petition demanding higher wages and better working conditions. Article content 'The members' concerns were always on the back burner,' Vineberg said. 'The train got all the attention, and busing was neglected. It was part of the crisis.' Article content Article content Meanwhile, a recruitment campaign has failed to retain workers, he said. Article content OC Transpo on-boarded 800 operators within two years, Amilcar told city councillor in June. Vineberg argues that, while plenty of operators were hired, workers were being lost just as fast. Article content 'There have been a lot of promises that have not been fulfilled,' Vineberg said. 'Morale is at an all-time low. There used to be pride. The pride is gone. We're not satisfied with the service we provide to the public.' Article content Amilcar did a good job for transit, Vineberg said. 'She failed to look after some of her own people along the way.' Article content A: The solution to the LRT's wheel woes remain elusive. The 'sustainable solution' for Line 1 is an ongoing issue, Gower said. Amilcar was hoping to see a resolution to that before she left Ottawa. Article content Modernizing the bus fleet is also on the radar. By 2036, the entire fleet will be electric, a major project that includes new garages and charging stations, Gower said. Article content Article content But at this time there aren't enough buses, Grover said. 'Ten years ago, they had a thousand. Now they have 700, and 200 of them are in the garage.' Article content It's unclear how much New Ways to Bus fallout there will be when post-secondary students return to campuses in large numbers in September. Route changes had been introduced in late April, when many students had already departed the city. Article content Shantz points out that students are the best customers for transit. If they are satisfied with their experience, it will become a habit, and they might even convert their parents. 'We have to make sure its working for them,' she said. Article content Other users are not seeing better quality of service, though, Shantz said, citing the example of Para Transpo users who can't rely on same-day bookings. Article content 'It's frustrating to see service not improve in the ways it can move,' she said. 'Trains are great, but they're not the whole network. We need bread-and-butter fixes.'
