The following is a synopsis of this week’s Transit Commission provided by the Commission’s Chair Councillor Glen Gower. I appreciate receiving these updates and being able to share them with residents.
Transit Operator and Worker Appreciation Day
This week’s Transit Commission took place on the same day as Transit Operator and Worker Appreciation Day. During the meeting over 3,000 OC Transpo employees were recognized for their work. This annual event is an opportunity to recognize and thank Canada’s transit workers for their dedication to move people safely. Employees representing departments from across OC Transpo attended the meeting to highlight the diversity of roles and acknowledge their contributions to keeping our city moving.
O-Payment testing and Transit App downloads
The commission also heard about the planned expansion of O-Payment to accept debit cards on conventional buses and at fare gates, as well as plans to integrate the U-Pass with campus cards. Testing is underway. There was an update on the number of residents using the Transit App, with more than 102,000 monthly active users. In February there were 37,460 daily active users and nearly 4,600 App downloads.
Improved service delivery
Ridership rose to 6 million trips in January 2024, up from 5.5 million in January 2023. During the month of February, O-Train Line 1 service delivery was 98.8 per cent and conventional bus service delivery was 98.7 per cent, up from 97.1 per cent and 97.2 per cent respectively in February 2023. On-time performance for “non-frequent” bus routes (buses with intervals of more than 15 minutes) was 78 per cent in February 2024, compared to 75 per cent last year.
Service reliability update
The Commission also received an update on some of the steps OC Transpo is taking to continue to improve service reliability. OC Transpo has established a Service Reliability Working Group to review routes and tactical improvements. They’ve introduced scheduling clinics with bus operators to provide an opportunity to share their experiences and raise scheduling concerns. All of this is being done in an effort to provide more accurate schedules and better on-time performances. An upcoming GPS-based transit signal priority program will use technology onboard buses to relay priority requests to traffic signals. A pilot project is expected to start later in 2024 or early 2025
New Ways to Bus – an update on the new network
Staff presented an update on the new bus route network planned for this year. These route adjustments are part of OC Transpo’s Five-Year Roadmap and respond to customers’ changing travel needs and ridership patterns. The network changes closely align with upcoming O-Train extensions and marks a significant step towards meeting OC Transpo’s service reliability target of 99.5 per cent. New routes and schedules will be available for review in April.
Zero Emission Bus Program update
Four battery electric buses have been in service since February 2022 and are approaching 500,000 kilometres on the road. The vehicles have been performing successfully on routes longer than 10 hours and driving distances exceeding 200 kilometres on a regular basis. Since 2022, OC Transpo has seen a fuel savings of 25,000 litres per bus, per year. The latest performance data demonstrates that battery electric buses continue to be a viable replacement for diesel buses.
Finally, the Commission received an update on the staggered delivery of 102 new electric buses. Twenty-two new battery electric buses are scheduled to arrive in Q4 2024 and an additional 29 buses in Q4 2025. Staff are working on an agreement to purchase 51 additional buses and will continue to provide regular updates. Infrastructure work to prepare building facilities for the maintenance and storage of the new buses is also underway.
