Listen to this article
Estimated 3 minutes
The audio version of this article is generated by AI-based technology. Mispronunciations can occur. We are working with our partners to continually review and improve the results.
OC Transpo says it’s hopeful Ottawa’s bus service will return to normal by early spring.
But a month since it pulled several LRT train cars off Line 1 because of a newly detected wheel assembly issue, OC Transpo says it remains difficult to predict when that line will get back to full capacity.
“We’ll do so when it’s safe to do so,” Troy Charter, the city’s acting head of transit services, said on Friday.
Charter’s update came during the latest weekly briefing to bring Ottawans up to speed on the service’s ongoing bus and LRT performance issues.
Bus reliability hit a low point in early January, with hundreds of trips cancelled. A fleet of aging buses requiring maintenance work is a factor there.
There’s a seemingly daunting backlog of required work, as a slide presented to city council’s transit committee last week suggested.
It’s the red part that’s key. Those bars refer to the backlog of needed labour required on OC Transpo buses, a trend that’s expected to improve as new buses are brought online. (OC Transpo)
As new buses, including electric buses, finally get delivered to Ottawa, that situation is expected to improve.
Charter added on Friday that four new buses are now available for service, which will help increase the number of available buses.
Beyond that, 89 new e-buses are expected to be available for service by the end of March.
“I think we’re still going to be challenged a little bit for several more weeks,” Charter said. “I expect that [by] early spring … customers will really start to notice a difference in terms of the performance.”
Troy Charter, the acting head of OC Transpo, speaks during the latest briefing on transit service on Friday. (CBC)Still at 21 train cars on Line 1
When it comes to Ottawa’s LRT service, Line 1 is down from the usual 26 train cars needed to meet regular peak demand.
That’s been the case since late January when OC Transpo pulled a number of cars off the line after it detected a new wheel assembly issue — different from the problem that caused a pair of Line 1 derailments in 2021.
OC Transpo continues to work with Rideau Transit Group (RTG), the consortium responsible for maintaining Line 1, and Alstom, the train manufacturer, on a fix for both performance issues, Charter said on Friday.
Only 21 train cars are currently operating on Line 1, which has been the case for more than a week, though Charter said Line 1 service continues to operate at three- to four-minute frequency during peak periods.
“I know that customers want to see immediate improvements in the service, but the work we’re undertaking is complex and unfortunately it cannot be rushed,” Charter said.
RTG and Alstom have both been asked to join Charter during a future weekly briefing, he added.
“They do want to [speak] to it. But at this point in time it’s a little bit too early for them to come forward because we’re still doing all that analysis [into the problems] and determining the path forward.”