Ontario government initiating third-party review of the Ottawa Student Transportation Authority

Frustrations with the lack of school bus service in Ottawa reached a boiling point this week, with an Ottawa councillor removed from an online public meeting after raising questions about compensation for parents left chauffeuring their kids to school.

"I hope you're out of a job soon," Coun. Clarke Kelly told the head of the Ottawa Student Transportation Authority during the meeting Wednesday evening.

Meantime, the Ontario government is launching a third-party review of the Ottawa Student Transportation Authority and its finances.

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The transportation authority held a virtual meeting with school board trustees and councillors to discuss the school bus shortage that has meant approximately 9,000 students don't have a bus ride to school.

Kelly was kicked out of the virtual meeting after raising questions about compensation for parents who are paying out of pocket to drive their kids to school.

"I've seen hundreds of cars outside schools in my ward, people doing U-turns, people crossing the road, kids in danger, they don't know who's coming to pick up who," Kelly told CTV News Ottawa on Thursday. "It's absolute mayhem and it's putting kids at risk. So I don't feel that that was really hitting home with the leadership of OSTA."

The Ottawa Student Transportation Authority declined an on-camera interview with CTV News Ottawa, but said in a statement that its goal is to be "transparent with elected officials and the public."

OSTA notes the city of Ottawa and councillors are "not responsible for delivering transportation services," but were invited to the presentation "out of courtesy as their constituents were reaching out to them about student transportation."

"Councillor Clarke Kelly interrupted the presentation several times, at which point he was told this was a presentation and not an open forum.  After the presentation was delivered, an open forum was provided for Councillors to ask questions," OSTA said.

"Councillor Clarke Kelly then became verbally aggressive and disrespectful.  OSTA then removed Councillor Clarke Kelly from the forum."

Kelly says he was "left angry and disappointed in what we experienced last night."

The ongoing bus driver shortage and bus cancellations caught the attention of Ottawa area MPPs.

"We're giving an additional $1.8 million to OSTA to help resolve the situation and yet there have been no resolutions," Goldie Ghamari, Carleton MPP, told CTV News Ottawa.

Ghamari says the Ontario government is initiating a third-party review of the Ottawa Student Transportation Authority.

"They're going to take a look at how OSTA plans, how it manages its finances and we're going to work with OSTA and probably give them some suggestions to see how to make sure that this does not happen again next year," Ghamari said.

OSTA is looking at several short-term solutions including coach lines to provide shuttle service for secondary school students, redesigning routes to combine or lengthen routes and reassigning students to OC Transpo.

OSTA acknowledges it would take weeks or months to implement changes to the bus system.

As politicians demand answers on the school bus shortage, parents are left driving their kids to school every day.

"Our two girls have a bus into school in Kanata in the morning but in the afternoon we're on our own to pick them up." Alexander Lawson said. "My oldest daughter doesn't have a bus at all so we have to drop her off."

"I think it's time for Vicky (Kyriaco) to resign as general manager of OSTA."