Council retains control of London Transit Commission until early 2026 after closed door meeting

City council will maintain control of the London Transit Commission until early next year after a failed attempt to appoint members of the public.

City Council isn’t finished with its takeover of the London Transit Commission (LTC) just yet.

On Thursday, the Strategic Priorities and Policy Committee (SPPC) considered a request from the temporary LTC (comprised of seven council members) to initiate steps for a new composition of four councillors and three members of the public by the end of September.

Coun. Skylar Franke, who currently chairs the LTC, told colleagues, “We did want to ensure we had some more voices from the community at that leadership level, as well as there was a general sentiment in the Spring that [councillors] would not be serving for an extended period of time.”

In early April, city council removed the remaining members of the LTC and temporarily repopulated the board with seven councillors.

The decision came in the wake of three Commissioners’ resignations that expressed concern about disfunction among its members and a divisive relationship with city hall.

After Franke brought forward the motion, Deputy Mayor Shawn Lewis asked that the meeting move behind closed doors to receive legal advice related to a lawsuit filed by a previous Commissioner who was removed in the spring.

When the committee emerged from the confidential session, Lewis said, “I think our best course of action is to stay the course, with council oversight of this commission until such time as we get some professional recommendations on what may serve Londoners best.”

A consultant is currently conducting a review of the governance at London Transit and will make a recommendation in the first quarter of 2026.

Options could include the return to an arms-length commission made up of councillors and members of the public, or to move London Transit in-house as a new department within city hall administration.

A motion by Coun. Sam Trosow, who also sits on the temporary LTC, to defer a decision until after the governance report is received by SPPC early next year was supported 14-1 (Franke opposed).

After the meeting, Lewis said there are steps the current LTC could take to ensure transit riders and other stakeholders have a voice in decision-making.

“Nothing in the decision today to leave the seven members of council as the board until the governance review comes back stops LTC in any way from having rider engagement sessions, an advisory committee of riders who comes to the board meetings, [or] an advisory committee of specialized [paratransit] riders,” said Lewis.

Council will make a final decision July 22.