Transit Commission

Minutes

Meeting #:

14

Date:

Thursday, September 12, 2024

Time:

9:30 A.m. - 9:30 P.m.

Location:

Champlain Room, 110 Laurier Avenue West, and by electronic participation

Present:

• Chair Glen Gower, 
• Vice-Chair Cathy Curry, 
• Councillor Riley Brockington, 
• Councillor Marty Carr, 
• Councillor David Hill, 
• Councillor Jeff Leiper, 
• Councillor Wilson Lo, 
• Councillor Shawn Menard, 
• and Councillor Tim Tierney 

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1.

Notices and meeting information for meeting participants and the public

Notices and meeting information are attached to the agenda and minutes, including: availability of simultaneous interpretation and accessibility accommodations; in camera meeting procedures; information items not subject to discussion; personal information disclaimer for correspondents and public speakers; notices regarding minutes; and hybrid participation details.

Accessible formats and communication supports are available, upon request.

Except where otherwise indicated, reports requiring Council consideration will be presented to Council on Wednesday, September 18, 2024, in Transit Commission Report 14.

The deadline to register by phone to speak, or submit written comments or visual presentations is 4 pm on Wednesday, September 11, 2024, and the deadline to register to speak by email is 8:30 am on Thursday, September 12, 2024.

2.

Declarations of Interest

No Declarations of Interest were filed.

3.

Confirmation of Minutes

3.1

TTC Minutes 13 – Thursday, June 13, 2024

• Carried

3.2

TTC-LRSC Confidential Minutes 2 – May 31, 2024

• Carried

4.

Responses to Inquiries

4.1

TC-2024-05 - Accommodation of passengers using a wheelchair by bus type

4.2

TC-2024-04 - LRT Operating Speeds

Councillor Hill requested that this response to inquiry be listed on the next Transit Commission agenda for discussion.

4.3

TC-2024-03 - Seniors Ride Free – Para Transpo

Councillor Carr requested that this response to inquiry be listed on the next Transit Commission agenda for discussion.

5.

Presentations

5.1

OC Transpo Update – Rail, Bus, and Para Transpo

The following Transit Services Department staff provided a presentation on the item, and answered questions from the Commission.  A copy of the slide presentation is filed with the Office of the City Clerk.

• Renée Amilcar, General Manager, Transit Services
• Duane Duquette, Chief Safety Officer
• Francois Quirouette, Program Manager, Service Strategy
• Olivia McGuinty, Manager, Business Support Services
• Troy Charter, Director, Transit Service Delivery and Rail Operations
• Richard Holder, Director, Engineering Services

The following staff also responded to questions from Commission:

• Rami El Feghali, Director, Transit Bus Operations and Maintenance
• Raouia Howarth, Manager, Transit Technology and Innovation
• Francois Quirouette, Program Manager, Service Strategy

Commission received the following submissions, and a copy of each is filed with the Office of the City Clerk:

• Peter Stockdale email dated September 9
• Dan Dorner email dated September 10
• James McAvoy email dated September 11
• Nathan Prier (Canadian Association of Professional Employees) written comments received September 12

The following members of the public spoke before the Commission and provided comments on the item:

• Hannah Tellier
• Heather Farrow
• Joel Harden
• Matt Lortie
• Dwight Williams
• Joan Kuyek (SCAN! Ottawa) – slides on file
• Antoine Beaudet
• Patrick Laplante
• Delphine Robitaille (University of Ottawa Student’s Union)
• Raj Doobay – speaking notes on file
• Kathlean Fitzpatrick
• Benet Gladwin – speaking notes on file
• Kari Glynes Elliott (Ottawa Transit Riders)
• Cédrik Desjardins
• Morgan Coulson
• Daniel Jones (Horizon Ottawa)
• Aidan Kallioinen (Carleton University Students' Association)
• Sarah Dewalt
• Thomas Deadman
• Alexandra Stratas
• Pavel Nangfack
• Ashrakat Mostafa
• Dina Khodaii
• Josh Franklin – speaking notes and slides on file
• Kishanth Jeyamoorthy
• Erin Leigh (Ottawa Coalition to End Violence Against Women)
• Mikaela Kennedy
• Sofia Chaudhry Schlichting

Commission also considered the following motions:

• Motion No. TTC 2024-14-01
  Moved by J. Leiper

  WHEREAS Confederation Line 1 service has been reduced under delegated authority to 10 minute headways during weekday off-peak hours, specifically from 5 minutes from 9 am – 3 pm and from 6:30 pm – 9:30 pm; and, 
  WHEREAS overall ridership on OC Transpo is substantially reduced from pre-pandemic levels that has had a severe impact on revenues; and,
  WHEREAS frequency of service is an important determinant of ridership, affecting overall trip time in a system characterized by transfers as well as the decision to use transit for non-commuting purposes; and,
  WHEREAS the combined potential wait times for the Trillium Line and Confederation Line are potentially over 20 minutes not including connecting bus wait and travel time, seriously diminishing transit as an attractive choice for commuting and non-commuting purposes, which is critical to restore ridership levels;
  THEREFORE be it resolved that the Transit Commission recommend that Council approve that Line 1 frequency be restored to 5-minute headways from 9 am – 3 pm and from 6:30 pm – 9:30 pm on weekdays, to be funded from the City’s expected 2024 surplus in tax-supported programs when the Trillium Line resumes revenue service.
• Motion No. TTC 2024-14-02
  Moved by T. Tierney

  BE IT RESOLVED THAT the Leiper Motion be referred to the City Council meeting of September 18, 2024.

  Carried

6.

Finance and Corporate Services Department

6.1

2024 Transit Operating and Capital Budget Q2 Status Report

File No. ACS2024-FCS-FSP-0013 - City Wide

Isabelle Jasmin, Deputy City Treasurer Corporate Finance, presented a brief overview of the report and answered questions from the Commission.  A copy of the slide presentation is filed with the Office of the City Clerk.

Renée Amilcar, General Manager, Transit Services, also answered questions.

Laura Shantz, and Megan Cardinal (Community Associations for Environmental Sustainability, slides on file) spoke before the Commission and provided comments on the report recommendations.

• Report recommendation(s)

  That the Transit Commission receive the 2024 Q2 Transit Operating and Capital Status and 2024 Year-end Forecast for information as detailed in Documents 1 to 3.

  Received

7.

Transit Services Department

7.1

Presentations from OC Transpo Unions in Response to Council Motion No. 2022-03/09

File No. ACS2024-TSD-TS-0003 – City Wide

The following union representatives addressed the Commission and answered questions:

• Noah Vineberg (Amalgamated Transit Union, Local 27)
• Jamie Larkin (Amalgamated Transit Union, Local 1760)
• Anshul Chaudhary (Canadian Union of Public Employees, Local 5500) – slide on file

There were no public submissions on this item.

• Report recommendation(s)

  That Transit Commission receive this report for information.

  Received

8.

Office of the City Clerk

8.1

Status Update – Transit Commission Inquiries and Motions for the period ending September 3, 2024

File No.  ACS2024-OCC-CCS-0078 - City Wide

• Report recommendation(s)

  That the Transit Commission receive this report for information.

  Received

9.

In Camera Items

There were no in camera items.

10.

Notices of Motions (For Consideration at Subsequent Meeting)

There were no Notices of Motion.

11.

Inquiries

There were no Inquiries.

12.

Other Business

There was no other business.

13.

Adjournment

Next Meeting: Thursday, October 10, 2024.

The meeting adjourned at 3:44 pm.