OC Transpo says there was a decrease in missed and cancelled bus trips in September as public servants and post-secondary students returned to the transit system after summer vacations. In a memo to council, Transit Services general manager Rick Leary says OC Transpo’s on-time performance in September was the best performance in 13 months. Data shows on-time bus performance in September was 77 per cent, up nine per cent from the year before. Leary says only 0.8 per cent of bus trips were not delivered in September, with cancelled trips down 69 per cent from September 2025. Only four per cent of bus trips were missed in September, with Leary saying, “this is important progress in delivering the service OC Transpo advertises to customers.” “A key part of the Customer-First Action Plan is adjusting bus schedules, as 70 per cent of customers use the bus for their trips,” Leary said. “As shared with the Transit Committee, this work began with 8 routes in the spring and summer and expanded to 22 routes by September for a total of 30 routes serving 50 per cent of transit customers. We are now seeing the results of this important work, when compared to last year.” The improved reliability on the OC Transpo bus routes comes as more electric buses arrive in the fleet. As of Oct. 14, there are 187 electric buses in the fleet. “As mentioned at Transit Committee, the focus of the maintenance team has been to conduct proactive maintenance on the bus fleet,” Leary said. “This has resulted in a 48 per cent decrease in vehicle defects reported on in-service buses since the peak of last winter. Maintenance activities continue to move towards more proactive work and less time spent on reactive maintenance.” Ridership increase OC Transpo is also reporting an increase in riders on the O-Train and Para Transpo last month compared to September 2025. Leary says there were 2.73 million customer trips on the O-Train in September, up two per cent from September 2025. Para Transpo ridership increased eight per cent to 81,600 trips last month. Leary says the Express bus service was popular in September, with customers making 783 boardings on average each day. To accommodate demand, OC Transpo is introducing a new express bus trip to supplement Route 82 next month. “Route 582 will depart from Woodroffe and Knoxdale, serve local stops in the Craig Henry and Trend-Arlington areas, and save time for customers by continuing directly to Tunney’s Pasture Station with no stops after Baseline and Greenbank,” Leary said. “This service will begin on November 2. Customers will receive further information at octranspo.com in advance of the route going into service.” OC Transpo is also adding two trips on Route 256 and Route 75 based on customer feedback and ridership. Other changes include:
