November 14 Transit Commission Update

It was a busy Transit Commission meeting for us on November 14. We presented OC Transpo’s 2024 draft budget, and provided an update on our bus route review and ridership numbers.

You can watch the presentation here or check out the highlights from the meeting below.

Transit Commission approved OC Transpo’s draft budget and received updates on changes to bus routes

OC Transpo’s 2024 draft budget was approved at this week’s Transit Commission meeting.

The estimated gross operating budget is $767.8 million.

The draft 2024 transit budget will continue to make strategic investments in the future system.

This includes launching on-demand transit, improving service reliability to 99.5 per cent, growing the fleet of zero-emission buses and the opening and operation of O-Train Lines 2 and 4.

The Transit Services 2024 Draft Budget is scheduled to come before Council on December 6, 2023.

October ridership and service performance

Transit Commission members also received an update on service performance for the month of October.

O-Train Line 1 service delivery was 98.7 per cent, and bus service delivery was 97.2 per cent. Para Transpo ridership was at 63,400 customer trips in October, about four per cent higher than forecasted.

OC Transpo Bus Route Review

The Bus Route Review is part of OC Transpo’s Five-Year Roadmap. The review looked at service planning principles, preparing for the opening of O-Train extensions, and changes in customers’ travel patterns following the pandemic.

Customers across the city will see a range of improvements and changes to routes when the new bus network is implemented in 2024.

Changes will include improved connectivity to community hubs, recalibration of routes connecting customers from neighbourhoods to downtown, and faster travel times that take advantage of O-Train Lines 2 and 4.

To increase awareness and help inform customers of changes to their trips, OC Transpo will communicate these important changes to the bus route network using multiple communication channels over the next few months.

The proposed bus network is designed to improve service reliability to 99.5 per cent, and will meet anticipated bus ridership, which is forecasted to be 25 per cent lower than pre-pandemic levels.

Commission members heard that the route review, recruitment, and a bus maintenance action plan are all key components to achieving OC Transpo’s 99.5 per cent service delivery target. Staff identified short- and long-term solutions in each of these areas that will help achieve this goal.

The next update to Transit Commission will be in December 2023.