Ridership Analysis: Kanata and Stittsville

The full dataset can be found in this spreadsheet, or in its original form, in this PDF. 

Introduction

This article will analyze ridership patterns in Kanata and Stittsville, including the (61), (62), (63), [64], [66], [67], <88>, [110], [161], [162], [164], [165], [166], [168], (252), (256), (257), (261), (262), (263), (264), (265), (266), (267), (268), and (283). 

Overview

Ridership in Kanata is very dispersed, with much ridership coming from trunk routes that are Nepean-focused, and a large number of low-ridership routes otherwise. 

Growth has been good on most routes, with only one route shrinking and all of the others achieving healthy increases. 

Weekend ridership is high on most routes. However, very few routes run weekend service; those that do achieve high ridership due to being the only option in many parts of Kanata and Stittsville. 

Ridership is very peak-oriented, with many routes running limited service off-peak. The cause and effect of these two factors is unclear. 

Route 61

Route 61 is a rapid route running from Tunney's Pasture on the Transitway to Terry Fox via Katimavik, then looping around Stittsville. In 2024, it was the 18th busiest route, up from 21st in 2023; ridership grew 14.4% over that period. 

As a trunk route, Route 61 shows okay ridership in the middays, when it runs frequently; this is not really the case on evenings and weekends. Its ridership per trip is around 30 in the daytime, dropping to 20 in the evenings. Weekend ridership, when service halves (more-or-less), is around 50% of weekday ridership. 

This is not good on a route whose runtime is, on average, about an hour. There's hope though: OC Transpo is cutting peak service with New Ways to Bus. Don't worry, there will not be off-peak service improvements. In fact, with the loss of the 64, off-peak trunk service will be cut. 

Route 62

Route 62 is a rapid route running from Tunney's Pasture on the same alignment to Eagleson; it runs on Campeau and around Palladium before heading to Stittsville. It was the 30th busiest route, same as 2023, with ridership growth at 12.0%. 

As the service run on this route is 30 minutes all day, every day, ridership across periods is even. It has a high weekend ridership ratio - and similar ridership as the 61 when it runs the same service, proving that demand is evenly split on the Transitway trunk to Kanata (and a hint that instead of cutting frequencies, OC Transpo should be consolidating them) - at around 80% on Saturdays and 70% on Sundays. 

Ridership per trip is around 50 per trip, healthier than the 61, on weekdays, and dropping to 15 in the evenings. 

New Ways to Bus will not make major modifications to Route 62 service. It will, however, be taken off Palladium, and run directly from Terry Fox on Campeau to Kanata West. 

Route 63

Route 63 is a rapid route running on the Transitway from Tunney's Pasture to Eagleson, then north on Teron to Kanata North. It was the 34th busiest route, with no change from 2023; during this time, ridership grew 10.9%. 

The ridership on Route 63 is very peak-oriented - and so is the service. Keeping in mind that Route 63 and 64 form a not-very-well-matched weekday pair, ridership per trip is around 30 in the daytime, dropping to 15 in the evenings; this is not good. Weekend ridership is about average. 

Route 64

Route 64 is a local service with the same purpose as the 63: a connection, on weekdays, between Tunney's Pasture and Kanata North. It was the 47th busiest route, with no change from 2023; ridership grew 8.8% over this period. 

Route 64 is a clear case of frequency splitting hurting ridership while costing more. It has an AM and midday ridership around 25 riders/trip, dropping to 20 in the PM and 15 in the evenings. There is no weekend service. 

New Ways to Bus will eliminate Route 64, leaving Route 63 as the sole route to Kanata North. This does not mean there will be consolidation of service on Route 63, improving the customer experience and making transit convenient. What a ludicrous notion. 

Route 66

Route 66 is a limited counterpeak service connecting the office parks of Kanata North to NDHQ and Tunney's Pasture. It was the 69th busiest route, up from 73rd; ridership grew 39.3% from 2023. 

Ridership is good for Kanata, hovering at around 40 riders/trip across the day. 

New Ways to Bus will (I feel) misalign Route 66, removing it from the heart of Kanata North and sending it to Innovation Station. Removing service from the central part of Kanata North will reduce ridership, and add a transfer for those that still use the bus. Instead, I think it should run on on Legget, Solandt, Hines, and Innovation to Innovation Station. 

Route 67, and another unsolicited crayon

Route 67 is a local route from Terry Fox to the newly developed areas on Cope Drive and Rouncey Road. It was the 67th busiest route, with no change from 2023. Ridership grew 10.3% over this period. 

Route 67 has high AM ridership, which drops over the day. Ridership per trip is 40 in the AM, 15 in the midday, 20 in the PM, and negligible in the evenings. There is no weekend service. AM and PM ridership are even, but as the route bypasses Terry Fox in the peak periods, it cannot serve local trips; therefore, the longer PM period has low productivity as the route cannot combine its two functions. 

Route 67 remains with New Ways to Bus, despite the jumble of routes that will run in Kanata South. It will receive a major service increase, running every 30 minutes, seven days a week. 

Route 88

Route 88 is a crosstown route running from Kanata to Hurdman via Hazeldean and Baseline. It was the busiest (bus) route on OC Transpo, showing 15.6% growth in 2023-2024. 

Route 88, as the busiest route on the network, shows strong all-day ridership. Riders/trip peaks at 120 in the midday, runs at 100/trip in the peaks, with 80 riders/trip in the evenings. Weekend ridership, as a percentage of weekday ridership, is average, but Route 88 is so busy, it's the busiest weekend route anyways. 

New Ways to Bus will give the Kanata portion to Route 68, which will run to Baseline Station. Service will be retained, with a minor improvement on weekday evenings. 

Route 110

Route 110, which also serves as a local connector in Kanata, is the 55th busiest route and the 2nd busiest limited route, the same as 2023. Ridership fell 2.0%. 

Ridership is limited for route length, but the hope is that it improves. The route receives around 30 riders/trip in the AM, 15 in the midday, 20 in the PM, and 10 in the evenings; weekend service is limited, and as such, ridership is limited as well. 

New Ways to Bus will rearrange the route in Kanata North, but with no major service impacts. The new 110 routing in Kanata North is pretty good. 

Route 161

Route 161 is a limited route, running from Terry Fox through Katimavik, Glen Cairn, and Kanata South, before looping up to Bridlewood. It was the 66th busiest route, with no change from 2023. During this period, ridership grew 5.5%. 

The route shows a peak-dominated pattern - but this may be the effect of peak-oriented service. Ridership runs between 20-25 riders/trip across the day, dropping to just 5 riders/trip in the evenings. 

New Ways to Bus will use Route 161 as a replacement for the northern segment of Route 168, running from Terry Fox along the current alignment of the 168, and extending through Katimavik to Hazeldean Mall. This is a service cut for Kanata Lakes, but an increase in Hazeldean. 

Route 162

Route 162 is a limited service route, running off-peak service between Terry Fox and Stittsville via Kanata West. In 2024, it was the 112th busiest route, up from 116th in 2023, with ridership growth of 33.3%. 

Ridership is around 10 riders/trip across the midday, with high Saturday ridership - due to the higher level of service operated; riders/trip is similar on Saturdays and weekdays. 

New Ways to Bus will assign the Route 162 designation to an all-day service from Terry Fox running on Palladium to Kanata West. 

Route 164

Route 164 is a limited service route running from Terry Fox on Eagleson to Bridlewood and Kanata South. It was the 100th busiest route, up from 101st in 2023; ridership growth was 19.7%. 

Route 164 shows around 15 riders/trip across the day, which is below the system average given the length of this route. There is no weekend service. 

This route will be removed with New Ways to Bus. 

Route 165

Route 165 is a limited route connecting Terry Fox to Kanata North, with residential connections in Morgan's Grant and Kanata Lakes. It was the 121st busiest route, with no change from 2023. Ridership grew 21.9% over that period. 

Route 165 is an OC Transpo route, and therefore, only runs when it is most useless: it cannot connect residential areas to employment zones during peak periods, and it does not run frequently enough to be a shopping route. Ridership is low, at just 4 riders/trip in the midday, and less in the evening. 

New Ways to Bus will add service, but withdrawing the route from Goldridge and Morgan's Grant without granting access to Kanata North destinations; I worry ridership will be low. 

Route 166

Route 166 is a limited route, running once a day between Eagleson Station and Kanata North. It was the 128th busiest route, up from 129th; ridership grew 91.7%, and the route operates with 10 riders/trip. New Ways to Bus will remove this route. 

Route 168

Route 168 is the "catch-all" Kanata local, running between Terry Fox and Bridlewood via Kanata Lakes, Eagleson Station, Glen Cairn, and Fernbank. In 2024, it was the 38th busiest route with no change from 2023, and ridership grew 11.0% during this time. 

Ridership on Route 168 starts strong and decreases over the day, starting at 50 riders/trip in the AM, 40/trip in the midday, 30 riders/trip in the PM, and just 10/trip in the evenings. 

New Ways to Bus will reassign the 168 to be the Bridlewood local, running directly from Terry Fox on Campeau without a detour. 

Connexion Routes

The Kanata Connexion routes suffer from the same problem as other low-frequency routes in the city: riders "time" themselves to a 200s route in the morning, then take a more frequent bus back to the suburbs in the evening. 

Route 252

Route 252 serves the southern parts of Bridlewood and Fernbank. It was the 91st busiest route, down from 90th (in a tie with the 262), showing ridership growth of 21.3%. 

It showed about 25 riders/trip, with an even AM/PM split. New Ways to Bus will eliminate the route in favour of an expanded 256. 

Route 256

Route 256 serves central Bridlewood and Cope/Akerson. It was the 80th busiest route, up from 82nd in a tie with the 299. Ridership growth was 22.9%. 

It had around 30 riders/trip, with a lower PM ridership, compared to the AM period. New Ways to Bus will expand this route to cover all of Bridlewood, with one extra trip in the PM period. 

Route 257

Route 257 serves northern Bridlewood. It was the busiest Kanata Connexion route, and the 77th busiest route, down from 75th in 2023. Ridership grew 12.2% over this period. 

Route 257 shows ridership of 20 riders/trip in the AM (due to its higher frequencies in this period) and 30 riders/trip in the PM. AM/PM ridership is evenly matched. New Ways to Bus will eliminate this route in favour of an expanded Route 256. 

Route 261

Route 261 serves central Stittsville. It was the 97th busiest route, up from 99th in 2023, with ridership growth of 26.2%.  

Rider per trip sits around 25-30, with even AM/PM ridership. New Ways to Bus will remove the route from central Stittsville, and it will become a route serving Stittsville Main and Kimpton only - not even the area north of Hazeldean around Huntmar. The central Stittsville segment will be handed to new Route 266. 

Route 262

Route 262 serves West Stittsville. It was the 88th busiest route, up from 90th when it was a tie with the 252; ridership grew 32.4% over this period. 

This route sees about 20-25 riders per trip, with higher PM ridership than AM ridership. New Ways to Bus will not substantially modify this route. 

Route 263

Route 263 serves central and southern Stittsville. It was the 105th busiest route, down from 104th in 2023, with a ridership growth rate of 24.8%. 

There are 25 riders per trip in the AM, and 20 in the PM, with a balance across the AM/PM periods. New Ways to Bus will extend this route to Richmond Village. The central segment across Trailway will be handed to a new Route 266. 

Route 264

Route 264 serves western Kanata Lakes. It was the 107th busiest route, down from 103rd in 2023; ridership grew 14.8% over this time. 

There were 20 riders/trip in the AM and 10 riders/trip in the PM, with an imbalance in favour of the AM period. This route will be removed as part of New Ways to Bus. The Goldridge segment will be replaced with Route 265. 

Route 265

Route 265 serves Beaverbrook. It was the 115th busiest route (tied with the 283), up from 123rd in 2023 (tie with the 21), with ridership growth of 54.8%. 

There were 20 riders/trip in the AM and 10 riders/trip in the PM. There is a strong imbalance in favour of AM ridership. For New Ways to Bus, this route will be extended across Kanata Lakes, replacing parts of the 264 and 268. 

Route 267

Route 267 serves Glen Cairn and Katimavik. It was the 89th busiest route, up from 92nd in 2023. Ridership grew 30.2% during this time. 

The route sees 25 riders/trip in the AM and 20 riders/trip in the PM. The AM/PM distribution is imbalanced in favour of the PM period. With New Ways to Bus, this route will be eliminated and replaced with confusing deviations on local routes. 

Route 268

Route 268 serves the central parts of Kanata Lakes. It was the 89th busiest route, up from 92nd the year before, with ridership growth at 30.2%. 

The route has 35 riders/trip in the AM, and 15 riders/trip in the PM. Ridership is, like the 265, severely imbalanced in favour of AM ridership. New Ways to Bus will remove Route 268, replacing part of the route with an expanded 265. 

Route 283

Route 283 serves Richmond Village. It was the 115th busiest route, tied with the 265; up from 118th in 2023. During that period, ridership grew 28.0%. 

The route has 20 riders/trip in the AM and 10 riders/trip in the PM. Ridership is lower in the PM than the AM. With New Ways to Bus, the 283 will be sent to Limebank Station, with the 263 extended to Richmond Village as well. 

Thoughts

The Kanata routes show lower ridership than Barrhaven and Orleans in general, despite higher population and more destinations. Kanata presents unique challenges: triple reverse branching (to downtown, Terry Fox, and Kanata North), a challenging road network, and low density, but the proposed New Ways to Bus network does not meet these challenges, despite dumping service into the area. 

Kanata needs trunk routes. Consolidating service into trunks will help improve frequency, increase legibility, and hopefully, increase ridership. New Ways to Bus is therefore a step backwards, with reduced frequency on the trunks; this is the wrong way to plan. 

Kanata. A challenging environment for transit. (Stage 3 to Terry Fox only can't come soon enough). I'm still working on the LRT subcommittee article. It's in progress, very slowly (rather like LRT improvements). 

Until next time.