Thousands of youth took the chance to ride buses and trains for free across Ottawa this summer. As of July 1, pre-teens and youth ages 11 to 18 have been able to ride for free for the summer. Starting Aug. 31, youth will be able to ride for free on weekends, public holidays and weekdays after 5 p.m. Ottawa City Council approved the plan to offer free transit to youth as part of the 2026 budget. In a summer service update to councillors, OC Transpo general manager Rick Leary says approximately 28,000 young riders have utilized the new program to date. Leary says the transit system saw high ridership numbers for major events throughout the summer, including Ottawa Bluesfest and the Canada vs. Morocco Round of 16 World Cup watch party at LeBreton Flats. Canada Day saw a decline of about 50 per cent from the year before due to extreme weather. Despite the rain, OC Transpo says approximately 113,000 trips were taken on Line 1, and 16,000 on Lines 2 and 4. Service was free for all buses, trains and Para Transpo on Canada Day. Leary says high ridership numbers were seen during the two weeks of Bluesfest with an estimated 716,000 trips on O-Train Line 1 and 107,800 on Line 2. The busiest day of Bluesfest on the transit system was July 18 for headliner Gwen Stefani. An estimated 107,000 rides were taken on Lines 1 and 2 combined. The World Cup watch party saw approximately 56,000 rides on the O-Train, an increase of approximately 35 per cent for a typical Saturday. Leary say progress is being made to roll out its new fleet of electric buses. He says there are currently 166 zero-emission buses in operation. By late September, Leary says he expects 25 per cent of buses will be electric. OC Transpo recently rolled out its fall schedule as public servants and students return to public transit in September. OC Transpo says its expecting an additional 65,000 trips a week into the downtown core.
