Transit Service reliability is at an all-time low, and I continue to hear from residents across the community expressing frustration about late buses, cancelled trips, and overcrowded conditions.
As part of my commitment to continue to update residents on the state of OC Transpo’s service reliability, I wanted to provide additional context regarding the challenges the system is experiencing as well as an update from Council this week.
What’s contributing to unreliable bus transit service:
There are many factors contributing to the decrease in bus service reliability. The main factors being:
- An aging bus fleet, which requires more frequent and longer maintenance, reducing the number of buses available for service
- Staffing shortages in vehicle maintenance, making it harder to get buses repaired and back on the road quickly
- Supply-chain delays, which have slowed the delivery of new replacement buses
- Traffic congestion across the city, causing delays even when buses are running
- Winter weather, which further impacts schedules, reliability, and travel times
What’s contributing to LRT Line 1 service issues:
In addition to concerns with bus reliability, over the past month, OC Transpo has faced major reliability issues on Line 1 after a mechanical defect was found in key train components, forcing many vehicles out of service. With a large portion of the fleet unavailable, trains have been shorter (single car) and less frequent, leading to crowding, longer waits, and missed connections for riders. While work is underway to inspect and repair the trains, restoring full and reliable service will be incremental. Full technical details and action plan can be found here.
Please note that this issue does not impact service on Lines 2 and 4.
What solutions are underway for bus reliability:
Short-Term Actions
- Focusing on critical fleet repairs: Maintenance work is being prioritized and streamlined to return buses to service faster, while maintaining safety for riders and staff.
- Protecting critical trips: Schedules have been adjusted to improve reliability on essential routes, including trips to hospitals, schools, and the first and last trips of the day.
- Strengthening preventative maintenance: Maintenance plans have been updated to reduce avoidable defects and speed up the return of buses to service.
Medium Term Actions
- Recruiting and retaining staff: An active recruitment campaign is underway to hire mechanics and bus operators, supported by targeted advertising and hiring events. A new collective agreement allows OC Transpo to offer more competitive wages and benefits, strengthening recruitment and retention in a highly competitive labour market. Current job openings can be found here:
- Electric bus delivery: New electric buses to replace the aging fleet are on order and being built, with deliveries continuing through 2026 and completing in late 2027. There are currently 36 electric buses in service, with 110 more expected by April and approximately 234 in the fleet by the end of 2026, gradually improving service reliability as they enter service.
Council motions on rider compensation
At the January 28 Council meeting, two motions were introduced requesting that OC Transpo explore options to compensate transit riders who have been significantly impacted by the ongoing service disruptions.
I will be supporting both motions. The first motion seeks a short-term plan to provide financial relief to riders who are paying full freight for less than service. The motion directs staff to explore options including rebates, fare discounts, or fare relief in future months, as has been done in the past. This motion recognizes that the measures that are being taken to improve service reliability will not take effect until late spring, and that in the meantime, we need to take meaningful steps to address rider satisfaction – not just asking riders to be patient.
The second motion seeks to find a long-term solution to service reliability by embedding a ‘Service Guarantee Policy’ into Transit Services as an accountability tool for OC Transpo to continuously strive to meet the required service levels. This is a policy that other transit services are exploring, including Toronto, as a way to improve long-term transit planning, better fleet management, and to inform investment plans. It would also outline how we would address financial or other compensation to riders if service levels do not meet expectations.
Both motions are complimentary, and address in some part the concerns that I have been hearing regularly from residents. Transit, like many services in our city, is critical. You would not expect to pay full price for swimming lessons, if half the lessons were cancelled. Transit is no different, especially when the issue is continuous and systemic, as is the case we find ourselves in today.
These motions will be debated at the next Council meeting on February 11th. I would be happy to hear any feedback on the two proposals.
