Ottawa Transit Riders / Le groupe des usagers de transport en commun d'Ottawa

OC Transpo is raising youth fares in September. This means that youth in Ottawa will pay the same as adults - this means that they will pay the highest fares in Canada.

We’re not very happy about this. We think that the city (and OC Transpo) should be prioritizing youth as transit riders of the future.

Other progressive groups in the city are rallying to fight these increases as well.

If you would like to sign Horizon’s letter, click here: Letter to city council objecting to increasing youth fares.

Last year, we encouraged members to participate in a study conducted by McGill on transportation in Canada.

The study is now available: Mobility across Canada: Insights from a national transport survey.

Some interesting tidbits from the survey:

• 16,962 people participated in this survey, across 12 Canadian metropolitan regions: Toronto, Montréal, Vancouver, Ottawa-Gatineau, Calgary, Edmonton, Québec, Winnipeg, Hamilton, Halifax, Victoria, and Saskatoon.
• Across all regions, car is the dominant commute mode. However, public transit and active travel hold considerable shares in larger metropolitan areas such as Toronto, Montréal, and Vancouver.
• About 70% of respondents agreed that a car is ‘necessary’ for them to do everything that they want to do.
• Women are more likely than men to say that harassment and discrimination are issues on public transit.
• Despite safety concerns, women are more likely than men to ride public transit in all regions.
• A majority of respondents support greater funding of public transit.
• Respondents were divided into drivers and non-drivers and asked about different ways to fund transit.
• Across all regions, drivers are more likely than non-drivers to agree that additional transit funding should come from transit fares.
• In Ottawa, both drivers and non-drivers expressed very little support for increasing transit fares.
• Overall, most respondents believe additional funding should come from provincial governments with generally lower support for federal or municipal taxation.
• Cyclists and walkers report higher levels of satisfaction with mobility than drivers or transit users.

This is the first in a series of reports on transportation in Canada. For more information, visit the McGill page on transportation research at TRAM: Transportation Research at McGill

The Ottawa Transit Riders will use reports like these to continue to press for more funding for public transit in Ottawa.

The cost of youth transit fares across Canada

• OC Transpo (as of Sept. 1): $135 (11-19). Children 10 and under ride for free
• Toronto Transit Commission: $128.15 (13-19). Children under 12 ride for free
• Brampton Transit: $118 (13-19), $84 (6-12)
• Hamilton Transit: $103.40 (13-19) as of Sept. 1, 2025. Children 12 and under are free
• Winnipeg Transit: $84.70 (youths 16 and under and high school students ages 17-21 with a GoCard). Children aged 11 and under ride free with a fare-paying customer
• Calgary Transit: $84 (13-17) as of September.  Children 12 and under are free
• Gatineau’s STO: $69 (age 20 and under). Children 12 and under travel for free
• Edmonton Transit System: Monthly fare cap $66 (18 and under). Children 12 and under ride free when accompanied by a fare-paying rider
• TransLink Vancouver: Concession Compass Cards fare $63.80 a month. Children 12 and under ride for free
• Montreal STM: $62.75 (ages 6-17 and students)
• Kingston Transit: $61.75 (15 to 24). Children 14 and under ride for free

These data come from CTV: OC Transpo to charge highest transit fares for youth in Canada this fall

The Ottawa Transit Riders spoke out against these fare increases at Transit Commission meetings this spring along with other local advocates. We argue that raising fares on youth is foolish and short-sighted. We should be listening to youth, offering them deeply discounted fares, and providing services that meet their needs.

Good public transit provides freedom to youth and we want them to get in the habit of using transit.

Ottawa’s current strategy appears to be designed to drive youth away.

A few weeks ago, I had to drive to North Gower and back during the afternoon rush hour. It took me almost 3 hours, sitting in traffic, cursing the Gods.

The whole time I sat in traffic, I kept thinking, people VOTED for this.

You might ask, but did people know what they were voting for?

And I say “yes”.

Candidates can promise all sorts of unreasonable things during a campaign – but most people know that if a candidate promises to give each child a pony, that promise probably isn’t going to happen. Don’t vote for that candidate and expect a pony.

It is equally irresponsible to promise to keep taxes low while maintaining services.

If you vote for the low-tax guy, you’re voting for transit to be de-funded.

If the low-tax guy also demands that public servants return to the office, what you get is TRAFFIC.

It’s like math – there’s only one correct answer to 2+2.

Are you enjoying sitting in traffic day after day?

The foolish thing of course is that these policies are fiscally irresponsible. Most transit funding is fixed costs. Taxpayers have already paid the lion’s share of transit – we have the trains, the tracks, the bus routes, the bus shelters, the buses, the computer systems, the staff, the bus operators, the mechanics, etc.

What we’re arguing over is funding the small difference between bad service and good service.

De-funding transit causes service to become unreliable which causes people to stop using it. That doesn’t affect the cost of providing the service very much – it costs OC Transpo pretty much the same to run a bus that is half full as one that is full. But it REALLY reduces revenue. About half of OC Transpo’s revenue comes from transit fares so when fewer people take transit, OC Transpo struggles.

And for people who voted for the low-tax guy, how much are you saving?

While it depends on your household, most people saved about $40-60 per year thanks to the mayor’s insistence on not raising taxes in order to fund transit appropriately.

What does that cost residents?

Well, some people might have to buy a new car, or an additional car, or replace the car they have sooner than expected. Almost everyone is paying more for gas these days – undoubtably more than anyone is ‘saving’ in taxes. What about extra wear and tear on cars? Extra wear and tear on roads? The time wasted sitting in traffic?

Is that teeny-tiny tax break worth it?

Canada has signed on the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals which are a global call to action to address today's most pressing social, economic and environmental challenges. Canada and the Sustainable Development Goals - Canada.ca

Canada has declared that to meet goal 11 (sustainable cities and communities), it wants 22% of commuters to adopt shared or active transportation by 2030.

Ottawa met this standard in 2016 when 29% of commuters were using sustainable transportation. Sadly, the decline in our transit can be seen in this chart which shows that in 2021, only 17.9% of commuters were using sustainable transportation (includes both biking and transit).

This target is very achievable.

In Copenhagen, 62% of residents commute by bike. More than 60 per cent of people in Copenhagen commute to work or school by bike - Canadian Cycling Magazine

In Hong Kong, 80% of residents ride public transit. Hong Kong public transportation: a world-class model | InfraJournal

We could do better (unofficial motto of Ottawa).

The Ottawa Transit Riders is working with Strong Towns Ottawa to improve Bank Street. Do you have questions about what they're proposing? Suggestions? Concerns?

Take a look at their website: Strong Towns Ottawa

Results of survey on Para Transpo demands

As you may know, in September 2023, the Ottawa Transit Riders presented a list of “demands” to city councillors asking them to improve service on Para Transpo.

We’re halfway through this city council term – how well is the city (and OC Transpo) progressing towards making Para Transpo better?

We ran a short survey of people who use Para Transpo and found the following:

1. Offer same day booking / on-demand booking

2.Provide 24-hour service

3.Be flexible with cancellations

4.Coordinate destination / pick-up locations

5.Make Presto readers accessible

6. Conduct planning session with first responders to discuss evacuations

7.Communicate alternatives when elevators are out of service

The Ottawa Transit Riders is reaching out to transit riders outside the urban core. We’ve hosted several transit forums (more to come!) and we’ve staffed tables at various events in Barrhaven, Kanata, and Orleans.

This summer, we’re proposing to host book club discussions with local community groups. Dates and locations to be confirmed.

We’re reaching out to members to ask which books you think we should discuss. Click on the survey link to vote and feel free to suggest other books that you know of.

Which books would you read?

The Ottawa Transit Riders supports ParaParity – a subcommittee of transit riders fighting for accessibility in Ottawa.

In September 2023, we invited city councillors to a Para Awareness event where we presented seven simple, cheap improvements to Para Transpo. These aren’t the most important demands, they are basic common-sense baby steps towards respecting the people who use accessible transit.

Last year, we held a Para Transpo challenge, asking city councillors to ride Para Transpo with an ambassador.

So how is all the advocacy working?

We asked people who use Para Transpo to complete a short survey. Results will be posted shortly.

Alt text for image: The logo of Para Parity are silhouettes of two red buses and the words Para Parity. The seven demands are:

Offer same day booking / on-demand booking

Provide 24-hour booking and service

Be flexible with cancellations

Coordinate how riders / dispatchers choose destination and pick-up locations

Ensure that Presto readers on new buses are accessible to riders

Conduct a planning session with first responders and Para Transpo riders to discuss evacuation options

Communicate alternatives when elevators are out-of-service

People who ride public transit in Ottawa are frustrated by unreliable buses. We are tired of standing at bus stops wondering if our bus will show up. We’re tired of budgeting extra time (just in case) while we navigate around the city. 

OC Transpo tends to present inaccurate data on bus performance. They do not measure how often buses arrive on time or how many are slightly late or very late. If you are baffled by the surprisingly good metrics that OC Transpo claims, you are not alone.

There is a Transit Commission meeting on Thursday, April 10th.

Councillor Riley Brockington has presented a Notice of Motion demanding that OC Transpo create a plan to achieve bus reliability targets agreed to by OC management, as part of a common benchmark used by the public transit industry.

He is asking that people who want better public transit in the city support his motion. You can write an email of support and share it with the Committee Coordinator ([email protected]). You might want to identify yourself as a person who uses public transit and tell her that you support councillor Brockington’s demand for better data and a plan to improve reliability.

You can also appear before the Committee if you wish to speak as a delegate. Register in advance with Ms Busnardo dos Santos by email, [email protected]. 

If you want some advice on giving a delegation, here is a link to a training session hosted by Horizon Ottawa: https://www.horizonottawa.ca/public_delegations

Better data is essential - let’s push for it!