‘Tunes and Tracks’ brings music and smiles to transit riders in Ottawa

OC Transpo is hoping to entertain riders while they wait for the O-Train. CTV’s Shaun Vardon reports on the Tunes on Tracks initiative featuring local artists.

OC Transpo is looking to make your commute a little nicer with the help of some local musicians.

Currently in its trial phase, the program is called “Tunes and Tracks” and is sponsored by EnviroCentre. Local acts are hired to play at peak hours at some of the capital’s busiest transit stations.

Thursday at the Bayview Station, OK Naledi was putting a bounce in commuters’ steps as they ran for their connections. Lead singer Naledi Sunstrum thinks gigs like this are great and hopes to see the program become a permanent fixture of commuting in the capital.

“So far we have had really, really lovely folks smiling, giving us some really great, positive feedback and singing along, so we are pretty stoked. We are happy to be here,” Sunstrum said. “Things like this are great because you know public transportation, or getting from A to B, sometimes is not the most exciting thing, and I think this kind of helps make it more exciting.”

According to Felicity Borgal of EnviroCentre, this investment in local talent is a way to help make using transit more of an experience. The artists are selected in conjunction with the Ottawa Music Industry Coalition. Together, they hope that by brining musical entertainment to busy transit stations, more people will see public transit as a welcoming alternative to hopping in their cars.

“Supporting local artists and supporting local transit is part of EnviroCentre’s goal to reduce greenhouse gases,” Borgal said. “Our public transit system is the backbone of our sustainable transportation planning in Ottawa, and we want to do everything we can to support it.”

For Kirsten Gelevan, arriving at Bayview Station to the sounds of a band playing made her busy day.

“I love the song, I love the music,” she said. “When you are playing beautiful, feel-good music like this, it feels like it puts you in touch with what you like about life. Honestly I’m coming off a hectic work day and I’m leaving early to boot an hour commute across town for a special event and I was feeling frazzled and it brought joy to me.”

The Tunes and Tracks trial program wraps up on Sunday at the South Keys station from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.

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