Transit Committee

Minutes

Meeting #:

22

Date:

Thursday, September 11, 2025

Time:

9:30 A.m. - 5:30 P.m.

Location:

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

Present:

• Chair Glen Gower, 
• Vice-Chair Steve Desroches, 
• Councillor Riley Brockington, 
• Councillor Marty Carr, 
• Councillor Jeff Leiper, 
• Councillor Wilson Lo, 
• Councillor Shawn Menard, 
• and Councillor Tim Tierney 

Absent:

• Councillor David Hill 

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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 September 24, 2025 in Transit Committee Report 21.

The deadline to register by phone to speak, or submit written comments or visual presentations is 4 pm on Friday, September 5, 2025, and the deadline to register to speak by email is 8:30 am on Thursday, September 11, 2025.

Vice-Chair S. Desroches was the acting Chair at the beginning of the meeting. Chair Gower attended the meeting online.

2.

Declarations of Interest

No Declarations of Interest were filed.

3.

Confirmation of Minutes

3.1

TC Minutes 20 – June 12, 2025

• Carried

4.

Responses to Inquiries

A motion to lift the responses to inquiries listed on the agenda as items 4.2 and 4.3 was moved by Councillor J. Leiper:

• Motion No. TC 2025-21-01
  Moved by J. Leiper

  That, pursuant to Subsection 89(4) of the Procedure By-law (being By-law No. 2025-100), the Transit Committee allow discussion of these items for consideration by the committee at today’s meeting:

  Response to Inquiry:

  • OCC-2025-08 - O-Train Line 2 Service Schedule
  • TC-2025-05 - Para Transpo Eligibility Reviews and Vehicle Assignment Procedures

   

  Carried

4.1

TC-2025-03 - Fire safety code for E-Bus garage

4.2

OCC-2025-08 - O-Train Line 2 Service Schedule

The resident James McAvoy spoke before the Committee and provided comments on the item.

4.3

TC-2025-05 - Para Transpo Eligibility Reviews and Vehicle Assignment Procedures

A written submission was received by, and is filed with, the Office of the City Clerk, and distributed to Committee Members.

DIRECTION TO STAFF (Councillor J. Leiper):

In response to concerns expressed by Councillors with respect to the potential to reduce Line 2 & 4 service frequency in order to accomplish an earlier start time, staff undertake to continue to consult with affected and interested Councillors and bring a recommendation to a future committee meeting.

4.4

OCC 2025-13 - Stage 2 – Line 1 LRT Construction Road Closures

4.5

TC 2025-04 - Line 1 East Extension – Bus Service After Opening

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 Committee. A copy of the slide presentation is filed with the Office of the City Clerk.

• Troy Charter, General Manager
• Sabrina Pasian, Chief Safety Officer
• François Quirouette, Program Manager, Service Strategy
• Pat Scrimgeour, Director, Transit Customer Systems & Planning
• Dan Villeneuve, Manager, Zero Emission Bus
• Rami El Feghali, Director, Transit Bus Operations & Maintenance

The following staff also responded to questions from Committee:

• Richard Holder, Director, Rail Construction Program
• Marko Kroenke, Director, Engineering Services
• Bart Cormier, Director, Director, Transit Strategic Communications & External Relations
• Joel Lemieux, Dir, Transit Services Delivery & Rail Operations

6.

Transit Services Department

Within will of Committee, item 6.2 was examined before item 6.1.

6.1

Stage 2 Light Rail Transit Project

File No. ACS2025-TSD-RCP-0003 – City-wide

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

• Richard Holder, Director, Rail Construction Program
• Mary-Ellen Gleeson, Manager, Construction Management
• Jacelyn Daigle, Director, Rail Construction Program

Following discussions and questions of staff, the Committee received the recommendation as presented.

At 2:35pm Chair Gower assumed the Chair of the meeting.

• Report Recommendation(s)

  That the Transit Committee receive this report for information.

  Received

6.2

Improving Bus Service Reliability

File No. ACS2025-TSD-TS-0003 - City-wide

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

• Troy Charter, General Manager
• Pat Scrimgeour, Director, Transit Customer Systems & Planning

The residents James McAvoy and Ajay Ramachandran spoke before the Committee and provided comments on the item.

Following discussions and questions of staff, the Committee received the recommendation as presented.

• Report Recommendation(s)

  That the Transit Committee receive this report for information.

  Received

7.

Office of the City Clerk

7.1

Status Update – Transit Committee Inquiries and Motions for the period ending September 2, 2025

File No. ACS2025-OCC-CCS-0097 - City-wide

• Report Recommendation(s)

  That the Transit Committee receive this report for information.

  Received

8.

In Camera Items

There were no in camera items.

9.

Motions of Which Notice has been Previously Given

9.1

Motion – Councillor W. Lo – Donated bus

File No. ACS2025-OCC-CCS-0091 - City-wide

• Motion

  THAT Transit Committee recommend Council direct OC Transpo staff to donate bus #4426 to the Canadian Transit Heritage Foundation, once it has become decommissioned; and

  THAT Council approve the waiver of Subsection 41(4) of By-law No. 2000-50, as amended, to permit the donation of bus #4426 to the Canadian Transit Heritage Foundation, with the lost residual value funded from the Transit Services account #407005-200010.

  Carried

9.2

Motion - Councillor W. Lo - Hearts Desire and Rideau Glen Bus Services

File No. ACS2025-OCC-CCS-0092 - City-wide

• Motion

  THAT Transit Committee recommend Council direct staff to introduce transit service (either fixed route or on-demand) into Hearts Desire and closer to Rideau Glen by the autumn 2026 booking; and

  THAT should no transit service be introduced into Hearts Desire or closer to Rideau Glen by the autumn 2026 booking, or if it is unfeasible, all households in the two communities be reverted to the Rural Transit Area-A transit property tax levy starting in the 2027 taxation year and until such time as service is introduced.

  For (1)	W. Lo
  Against (6)	G. Gower, T. Tierney, J. Leiper, R. Brockington, S. Menard, and M. Carr

  Lost (1 to 6)

9.3

Motion - Councillor D. Hill - Transit Fare Transfer Window Expansion

File No. ACS2025-OCC-CCS-0093 - City-wide

• Motion

  THAT Transit Committee direct staff review the 90 minute transfer window and present options as part of the comprehensive fare review to temporarily increase the transfer window in order to address current service disruptions felt by many suburban residents.

  Carried

10.

Notices of Motions (For Consideration at Subsequent Meeting)

10.1

2026 bus procurement

• Motion No. TC 2025-21-02
  Moved by W. Lo

  WHEREAS OC Transpo began electric bus operations in 2021 with a pilot fleet of four buses which entered revenue service in 2022, and

  WHEREAS staff deemed the pilot a success in January 2023 and proceeded with a $974 million programme to purchase 350 electric buses and related charging infrastructure (conditional on annual budget approvals) up to 2027, and

  WHEREAS the $974 million comprises $335 million in municipal funding, a $289 million Canada Infrastructure Bank loan, and $350 million in federal funding through the Zero-Emission Transition Fund, and

  WHEREAS the federal loan and funding covers the cost of charging infrastructure and offsets the cost differential between e-buses and diesel buses, and

  WHEREAS due to a lack of options for and the untested abilities of high capacity e-buses, the zero-emissions bus executive steering committee in 2024 shifted from procuring a mix of 40- and 60-foot to exclusively procuring 40-foot buses, and

  WHEREAS New Ways to Bus reduced bus service levels across OC Transpo’s network which, compounded by fleet age and availability issues, has led to customer complaints and concerns about vehicle overcrowding and passengers unable to board full buses, and

  WHEREAS operator recruitment challenges continue in the transportation sector, including public transit, rendering the option of using more 40-foot buses to replace the capacity of 60-foot buses unrealistic, and

  WHEREAS in recognition of the need for capacity and to replace aging vehicles in the bus fleet, Transit Committee in 2024 approved the purchase of 50 diesel articulated buses in the 2025 budget.

  THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED THAT all bus procurements in the 2026 budget be diesel or diesel-electric hybrid, depending on market availability, cost, and other operational considerations, and

  BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED THAT all bus procurements in the 2026 budget be high capacity vehicles, including exercising any available options from last year’s articulated bus procurement, and

  BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED THAT if not exercising an option from a previous procurement, options for future years be included, and

  BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED THAT staff explore joint procurement opportunities with other transit agencies for bus orders resulting from this motion.

11.

Inquiries

11.1

OC Transpo Youth Pass

Submitted by Councillor S. Menard (on behalf of L. Dudas):

Ottawa school boards extensively rely on dedicated OC Transpo resources for the trans-portation of middle and high-school students, to and from school. With this, over 90% of all the discounted OC Transpo Youth Passes being purchased in bulk by school boards, creating two tiers of youth, those that have their bus pass paid for and those whose fami-lies are left to cover the cost personally.

Through the 2025 Budget process, OC Transpo eliminated the discounted Youth Pass, and Council voted to delay this elimination until September 1, 2025 to give the Ottawa Student Transportation Authority (OSTA) and the Consortium de transport scolaire d'Ottawa (CTSO) time to adjust.

The elimination of the Youth Pass has further increased financial pressures for youth and their families who do not qualify for passes through their school board or transportation authority, as they are now required to purchase an adult pass at full fare. 

• Looking at best practices from other municipalities across Canada, how do their transit services support youth transit, in comparison to Ottawa?
• How do other Canadian transit systems that have direct arrangements with local school boards, support student transportation?
• Are there other recommendations or strategies that could be considered, to better support youth transit, specifically including those who are not receiving a transit pass through their school board or transportation authority?     

Can OC Transpo review and make recommendations on: 

• Discounted single fares for youth aged 12–18
• A monthly Youth Pass available exclusively to individual riders
• A discounted Summer Youth Pass available for July and August

11.2

Zero-emission bus (ZEB) programme

Submitted by Councillor W. Lo:

On 17 July 2025, the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) board received an update on its Green Fleet Program. The report notes some successes, notably a reduction in emissions and that the TTC now boasts one of the greenest large bus fleets in North America.

However, the report also notes several considerations and risks of their e-bus programme, including production lead times, need to replace aging buses, run incompatibility, range limitations, charging capacity limitations, workforce requirements, and operational agility in unplanned scenarios. Left unaddressed, those considerations and risks could negatively impact service delivery and reliability in the City of Toronto.

Most notably, the report recommends the TTC board procure up to 200 diesel-electric hybrid buses in 2027 as insurance against service disruptions (with options for additional purchases in future years) due to those risks and uncertainties.

Both OC Transpo and the TTC have New Flyer XE40 e-buses with the same Siemens “engine.” However, the TTC’s pilot fleet of 25 New Flyer e-buses is three years older and was tested in an environment more representative of regular operations and care, as their total e-bus pilot fleet comprised 60 vehicles, compared to our four pilot e-buses.

Differences in service design aside, the TTC offers a three-year preview of what we can expect in principle as OC Transpo’s e-bus fleet grows (at least for the New Flyer e-buses). As such, it is entirely appropriate to consider some of the TTC report in an Ottawa context, as we face the similar issues with e-bus production timelines, an aging fleet, and future financial considerations, among others.

1. Please provide range and mean distance between failure (MDBF) data of the four New Flyer pilot e-buses (2101 to 2104) since entering revenue service in a chart with monthly data points. How does the data compare to the NovaBus diesel fleet in the same timeframe?
2. Noting MDBF data does not capture the severity of the failure, please provide data on the average length of time the pilot e-buses have been removed from revenue service since entering revenue service because of a propulsion-specific failure. How does the data compare to the NovaBus diesel fleet’s propulsion-specific failures?
   
3. Please provide the same data from the previous two questions for the remaining e-bus fleet (2105 and up), if available.
   
4. What is the usual real-world lifespan of an e-bus battery? Do our e-bus batteries have a warranty?
   
5. Does OC Transpo have battery degradation targets and are the pilot e-buses’ batteries performing and degrading as expected?
   
6. What are OC Transpo’s plans when e-bus batteries reach end-of-life?
   
7. Including battery replacement, how does an e-bus mid-life refurbishment compare to that of a diesel bus, including cost?
   
8. Excluding trippers and runs designed for e-buses, what is the average length (kilometres) of a run?
   
9. How do e-bus runs differ from runs designed for diesel buses? Are there “contingency kilometres” to account for unplanned scenarios like detours?
   
10. In the current booking, what percentage of weekday runs are incompatible with e-buses? Same for weekend runs.
    
11. How will adjusting runs for e-buses affect service hours and cost, workforce requirements, vehicle requirements, and operational agility in unplanned scenarios at 25, 50, 75, and 100 per cent e-bus fleet composition?
    
12. The ZEB executive steering committee noted a lack of tested options for 60-foot e-buses when the decision was made to shift to procuring 40-foot e-buses exclusively in the current ZEB phase. What is the expected fleet composition in the next phase of the ZEB?
    
13. Will St-Laurent Garage accommodate all 350 e-buses to be purchased (conditional on annual budgets) through the current CIB/ZETF agreement upon completion of charging infrastructure works approved and/or underway?
    
14. Within the current phase of the ZEB programme, how has the delivery of vehicles and charging infrastructure aligned?
    
15. What are the implications of pausing e-bus procurement in favour of diesel or diesel-electric hybrid buses (including high capacity buses) for the 2026 budget?
    
16. Did the 60-foot diesel bus procurement as part of the 2025 budget include options for future years?

11.3

Central Park High School Routes

Submitted by Councillor R. Brockington:

High school students who live in the Central Park neighbourhood are experiencing a 90+ minute commute to travel to/from Nepean High School and Notre Dame High School.  Both the frequency of bus routes and schedules are significantly impacting the commute of students.

How can OC Transpo make some adjustments to better serve high school students who live in the Central Park neighbourhood?

12.

Other Business

There was no other business.

13.

Adjournment

Next Meeting: November 24, 2025.

The meeting adjourned at 3:17 pm.