OC Transpo memo admits bus service falling short as riders face cancellations and long waits

A memo sent to Ottawa city council is shining a light on why many OC Transpo buses are failing to show up. CTV’s Josh Marano reports.

A new internal memo sent to Ottawa city council is shedding light on why so many OC Transpo buses are failing to show up and why riders are being asked to be patient.

In the memo, OC Transpo acknowledges in writing that bus service is not meeting standards, as cancelled trips and long wait times continue across the city.

“We recognize that the number of undelivered trips that’s presently occurring is unacceptable,” says interim general manager of Transit Services Troy Charter.

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The agency points to aging buses, staffing shortages, and delays in getting new vehicles on the road, while warning council that improvements will take time.

For transit rider Max Frederick, relying on the bus system can feel like a gamble.

“I take the bus from Orléans to Algonquin, which takes, on a good day, like an hour and 15 minutes, an hour and 30 minutes,” Frederick says. “There’s some bumps along the way.”

Frederick depends on transit to get to and from school and says missed buses have become part of his routine, particularly during winter commutes.

“The screens at the bus stations, I don’t really follow them anymore,” he says. “I just use the app because sometimes it’ll say a bus is cancelled when it’s not, or it’ll take down a bus that never really comes.”

The memo confirms what many riders have been experiencing: a growing number of undelivered bus trips.

Delays discouraging ridership growth

Transit advocates say the reliability issues are discouraging people from choosing public transit.

“This kind of lack of reliability is one of the reasons people are hesitant to ride the bus,” says Laura Shantz of the Ottawa Transit Riders group. “It’s one of the reasons people are hesitant to pick OC Transpo for their commute.”

According to the memo, too many buses are currently stuck in maintenance, compounded by a shortage of licensed mechanics needed to repair them.

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“It’s pretty cyclical when we get to this time of year,” says Noah Vineberg, president of the Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) Local 279. “Anytime there’s a consistent weather change or pattern that goes in a certain direction, and then you add the fact there’s holidays and our members want to be with their families.

“The buses that we have been able to manage to keep on the road are being over extended,” he adds. “The weather and all the different patterns heavily impact that.”

Shantz says learning that staffing shortages extend into maintenance is particularly concerning.

“To hear we’re also having just a shortage of people to even work on these buses that we do have is discouraging,” she says. “It makes me really question what’s going to happen over the coming months.”

OC Transpo says short-term fixes are underway but acknowledges that meaningful improvement will not happen overnight.

Charter wrote that new electric buses are arriving weekly but getting them into service requires carefully balancing the training of mechanics on new technology while continuing to maintain an aging fleet.

“We’re really focused on onboarding these electric buses, new buses, more reliable, less prone to failure,” Charter says. “And when they do come in for maintenance, they’re in for shorter periods of time.”

The memo promises weekly updates to council on service improvements, a sign of growing pressure at city hall.