At a glance
Key takeaways
- Transecure waiting areas are found on every O-Train station platform.
- Transecure waiting areas include a collection of safety features all in one place.
- Safety features found in the Transecure waiting area include: enhanced lighting, dedicated CCTV cameras, emergency phone, accessible seating, and more.
On every platform at every O-Train station, you’ll find an area with yellow signage labelled “Transecure”. What does that mean? What makes this section of the platform different?
This time on The Next Stop Blog we’ll take a closer look at the Transecure waiting area to find out what it’s all about.
Transe-what?
The Transecure waiting area takes its name from OC Transpo’s Transecure program. Transecure covers a variety of safety initiatives across the transit system, including our community watch program, Night Stop shelters, Safe Stop program and online anonymous reporting form. You can read more about the overall Transecure program in a previous blog post (opens in a new tab) .
The Transecure waiting area is designed to provide a visible, well-lit place to wait for your train. While every platform is designed to be safe no matter where you wait, the advantage of Transecure waiting areas is that they combine customer amenities and safety features in a single area, making a convenient and easily-identifiable safe zone.
Safety features
Transecure waiting areas include:
- Accessible benches
- Emergency phone
- CCTV coverage focused on the area
- Additional lighting
- On-demand overhead heating in outdoor stations
- Tactile and Braille signage indicating the train’s direction of service
- Customer information like maps and tips on how to ride
- Payphones with free direct line to OC Transpo Customer Service and other services
- Automated External Defibrillators (AED) at select Transecure waiting areas
Solving a problem through design
Transecure waiting areas were created to solve real customer concerns about visibility, accessibility and predictability on platforms.
Before the Transecure waiting areas were introduced, we heard that some customers were feeling uncomfortable waiting on train platforms alone at night or having difficulty finding customer amenities or safety features quickly. We set out to design a designated area, similar to our Night Stop shelters (opens in a new tab) at Transitway stations.
Transecure waiting areas helped to address these concerns by offering a clearly marked, well-lit, easily monitored location with an emergency phone and other amenities nearby. This area is standardized across the O-Train network so you always know what to expect when you see the yellow signs.
On O-Train Line 1, Transecure waiting areas are always located at the front of the train platform, so that even when single-car service is running, the train doors will always be near the waiting area. The Braille and tactile signage located at the Transecure waiting area, along with audio announcements on the platform, ensure that customers of all abilities can comfortably use the O-Train.
✨ Did you know? OC Transpo’s Transecure waiting areas were designed based on similar programs on Toronto’s subway and Vancouver’s SkyTrain, with even more helpful features for Ottawa riders.
A little extra peace of mind
All station platforms are designed for visibility, predictability and accessibility. It’s part of how the OC Transpo network is built with customer safety in mind. When you’re looking for extra safety features all in one place, remember the Transecure waiting area.
