Over 200 OC Transpo bus trips cancelled for a fourth straight day
Ottawa transit riders are dealing a fourth day of frustrations and waiting for the bus, as a staffing shortage resulted in hundreds of cancelled bus trips across the capital.
"We have been heading towards this type of crisis in our transit system for sometime," Coun. Catherine McKenney says.
According to the Twitter feed OCTranspoLive, more than 210 bus trips had been cancelled as of 10:30 p.m. on Saturday. OC Transpo reported 324 trips were cancelled on Wednesday, 324 trips cancelled on Thursday, and more than 200 trips were cancelled on Friday morning.
McKenney told Newstalk 580 CFRA on Friday that Council's approval of an OC Transpo route optimization plan in 2011 to save $20 million and the elimination of over 100 buses and driver positions with the launch of light-rail transit left the system vulnerable to staffing issues.
"We've got an extreme shortage of drivers, buses – we just don't have any extra capacity in the system, anything goes wrong and your bus doesn't show up," the mayoral candidate said.
OC Transpo has warned the high number of bus trip cancellations could continue into next week due to a number of "short-term factors."
"The number of staff who worked overtime last week while O-Train Line 1 was being repaired, higher than-usual sick leave absences, and normal seasonal vacations," OC Transpo general manager Renee Amilcar said in a memo on Friday.
Amilcar says OC Transpo is "making every effort" to improve service reliability for the balance of August and to prepare for September.
"Very frustrating, very inconvenient. Not what we want, we want reliability – that is the number one job of a transit system," Coun. Theresa Kavanagh told Newstalk 580 CFRA's Ottawa Now on Friday.
Kavanagh says when people rely on public transit to get to work, school or run errands, they need reliable service.
"You hear about individual cases where somebody couldn't get to where they had to go and lots of frustration, especially for people who have to change multiple times to get to a destination … if that link is broken they've really got a problem," Kavanagh said.
OC Transpo says 32 new bus operators will come on-board in mid-August to help relieve the staffing crunch and boost service.
Kavanagh says the COVID-19 pandemic and the upcoming launch of Stage 2 of the LRT system presents the city with a chance to change the transit system.
"What routes are really needed? That is the big question," Kavanagh said. "Some routes have empty buses, I think everybody knows that, but there's a few people that really depends on them. These are tough decisions."
OC Transpo operates approximately 7,900 trips a day. The transit service continues to run below capacity during the COVID-19 pandemic as employees with the federal government and other businesses continue to work from home and lifestyles have changed.
Ridership numbers for June, released by Coun. Glen Gower on Twitter, show 3.8 million passengers used public transit, below the 2022 budget of 5.8 million expected passengers. In 2019, 6.8 million passengers used public transit in June.
Kavanagh says the city must work with the federal government and other major employers to look at the future of the office and commuters using the transit service.
"The reliability is really important, but we have to look also at who's our customer base, where are they going and do they need monthly passes – maybe they don't anymore."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'Anything to win': Trudeau says as Poilievre defends meeting protesters
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is accusing Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre of welcoming 'the support of conspiracy theorists and extremists,' after the Conservative leader was photographed meeting with protesters, which his office has defended.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
'My stomach dropped': Winnipeg man speaks out after being criminally harassed following single online date
A Winnipeg man said a single date gone wrong led to years of criminal harassment, false arrests, stress and depression.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Pilot reported fire onboard plane carrying fuel, attempted to return to Fairbanks just before crash
One of the two pilots aboard an airplane carrying fuel reported there was a fire on the airplane shortly before it crashed and burned outside Fairbanks, killing both people on board, a federal aviation official said Wednesday.
'One of the single most terrifying things ever': Ontario couple among passengers on sinking tour boat in Dominican Republic
A Toronto couple are speaking out about their 'extremely dangerous' experience on board a sinking tour boat in the Dominican Republic last week.
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
7 surveillance videos linked to extortions of South Asian home builders in Edmonton released
The Edmonton Police Service has released a number of surveillance videos related to a series of extortion cases in the city now dubbed 'Project Gaslight.'
Ukraine uses long-range missiles secretly provided by U.S. to hit Russian-held areas, officials say
Ukraine for the first time has begun using long-range ballistic missiles provided secretly by the United States, bombing a Russian military airfield in Crimea last week and Russian forces in another occupied area overnight, American officials said Wednesday.