O-Train Line 1 carries record number of passengers on Canada Day

The O-Train Line 1 on Thursday, July 3, 2025. (Andrew Adlington/CTV News Ottawa)

Canada Day was the busiest day in the history of the nearly six-year-old O-Train, with more than 246,000 customers trips recorded on Line 1.

OC Transpo offered free service on the O-Train, buses and Para Transpo on July 1, as people attended Canada Day festivities at LeBreton Flats, on Parliament Hill, in the ByWard Market and at several events in the suburbs.

OC Transpo general manager Renée Amilcar says OC Transpo service “operated successfully without disruptions” on Canada Day.

“High passenger volumes were observed travelling to the downtown core as customers took advantage of the safe, reliable and clean trains, buses and Para Transpo,” Amilcar said in a memo to council.

Approximately 246,000 customer trips were recorded on O-Train Line 1, the line that runs between Tunney’s Pasture and Blair stations, on Tuesday.

“This is a 66 per cent increase in trips on Line 1 from last year, and the highest single-day ridership ever on O-Train Line 1,” Amilcar said.

“OC Transpo worked with Rideau Transit Maintenance and TransitNext to increase the number of trains in service to support customer volumes throughout the day. After the fireworks, Line 1 service was increased further to support attendees leaving the core and operated approximately every three minutes. While full train loads were experienced throughout the day, platforms cleared quickly. Staff and signage were in place to support customers.”

There were 24,000 customer trips on Line 2 and Line 4 on Canada Day.

Canadian Heritage said approximately 58,000 people visited LeBreton Flats during the Canada Day festivities.

Amilcar says 120 buses were on Albert Street to support customers heading west after the fireworks at LeBreton Flats Tuesday night.

Amilcar thanked the Ottawa Police Service, other city departments and Canadian Heritage for “all the effort that went into a successful Canada Day” service for OC Transpo.

“A review of transit operations will be conducted to ensure best practices and lessons learned are captured for future Canada Day events,” Amilcar wrote. “Staff continue to gather information and anticipate that system-wide ridership will be higher than last year. Full details will be provided at the next meeting of Transit Committee.”