Transit Survey Results

In the spring, I launched a survey along with Councillor Troster (Ward 14) and Councillor King (Ward 13) to better understand how our residents use transit, and what improvements they are looking for. As you can see from the map above, we received exactly 600 responses from across the city, though most responses were concentrated in the downtown core. Pretty good if you ask me!

We launched this survey together, as part of OC Transpo’s Route Review, because our wards are interconnected with crisscrossing bus routes. For example, a delay in Centretown could impact service in Vanier, and people in Beechwood use the bus to go downtown via Rideau. It just made sense to work together to make sure our residents’ concerns were heard. 

In the spring, I held two public meetings where we presented these survey results. The first one was held virtually in partnership with Councillors Troster and King. The second one I held in person, at the Richelieu Vanier Community Centre. OC Transpo representatives attended both meetings, and the public was able to ask them questions and voice their concerns. If you attended either of these public meetings, then you would have already seen the survey results. If you did not, then I hope you will find this helpful.

 Overall, the survey results showed that residents in Ward 12 are concerned about some of the following points related to transit:

Service during off-peak hours

Most respondent answered that they use the bus multiple times per week instead of every day. We took this to mean that many residents in Ward 12 use the bus to run errands and attend social engagements. Not everyone is using the bus to commute to work in the morning and home in the evening. Having reliable service outside of peak hours is very important to people’s lives. Late night service was also raised. Some people work night shifts or work in restaurants or bars and need to get home late. And some people just have important as well, so as not to leave people with no other option to get home.

School service

Many issues related to service for school-aged children and highschoolers were raised. Some students who live in wards 12 and 13 commute to Immaculata High School on Main Street. There is no direct service, so they have to make far too many connections, sometimes routing through Rideau Station which can be an unsafe environment for children. For Gloucester High School students, the bus leaves too close to the end of the school day, so that students have to rush.

Major destinations

Many people voiced that getting to major destinations was difficult; Global Affairs, Tremblay Station, War Museum, Aviation Museum, the Humane Society…these were just a few examples of major destinations with no direct route or insufficient service.

Travel within the neighborhood

Related to the first point, travel within Vanier needs improvement. Some attendees said that the route 15 used to meander through the neighborhood but now just goes down Montreal Road, and that the previous meandering route was better.  

Please check back to this page for updates.

As always, it is a pleasure to serve as your Councillor.

Sincerely,

Stephanie Plante

Councillor

Ward 12 Rideau Vanier