The City of Ottawa is unveilling a new plan, in order to get its bus service working harmoniously with its light rail lines, and ultimately get residents to where they need to go with fewer problems.
At a Transit Commission meeting Wednesday, General Manager of Transportation Services John Manconi said 19 buses will be added to OC Transpo's services before the end of the year. That's on top of the 40 which were added two weeks ago. Another 20 new buses are expected to arrive in the city early in 2020 and remain on standby for R1 service, if the trains go down.
Manconi believes these steps will ensure transit users aren't delayed as long as they have been in recent weeks.
Other improvements to the light rail service include better shelter coming to Tunney's Pasture and floor mats installed at Lyon, Parliament and Rideau Stations, where there have been slippery floor issues.
As for the trains themselves, new software has been added to allow for quicker resets of the TCMS (the train's brain). Winter switch covers have been removed, as Manconi said they were causing problems, and OC Transpo will also be testing longer swell times for train doors, as well as an option to have them opened manually.
Manconi explained that he has been applying pressure to Rideau Transit Maintenance.
Rideau-Rockcliffe City Councillor Rawlson King asked Wednesday, when residents could expect a reliable transit system. Manconi said he couldnt give a time line.
The good news, Manconi added, was ridership on the transit system had gone up over the same time last year.
