Travel Markets and Public Transit

Introduction 

As part of the Transportation Master Plan process, the City commissioned a study into travel called the "Transport Trends Report", which analyzes transportation across town. This document can be found on the City of Ottawa website. 

These surveys are a gold mine of data, and TRANS conducts other transport surveys with semi-regularity. I recommend anyone reading this blog to read both the report and at the TRANS surveys. 

To our interest today is the Origin-Destination survey, which analyzes travel destinations for all trips in Ottawa. The last of these was conducted in 2011, coincidentally when Network Optimization fossilized the bus route network. 

I will look at the report at a high-level, analyzing the large-scale markets that OC Transpo could serve. 

A cautionary note, the O-D survey was conducted in 2022, when many peoples' travel patterns were in flux; the dust had not yet settled from the fallout of the pandemic. Transit ridership is about 40% higher than it was at the time, and no doubt some of the O-D survey data is already obsolete. 

Stage 2 Update (Transit Committee) - 12 June, 2025

Introduction

This is the second part to my update on the Transit Committee meeting on 12 June, focusing on Stage 2 updates. The first part, covering everything else, can be found here. 

The relevant documents are a report to city council at this link and a motion here. 

Transit Committee - 12 June, 2025

Introduction

On 12 June, 2025, Transit Committee met for the fourth time this year. You can find the meeting video here. 

This meeting was presentation heavy, and as such, this update is a little longer than usual as well. 

As usual, councilors talked a range of questions, some good, many bad. But as long as the good questions are simply one time questions and not part of a clear headed strategy to reform and rehaul OC Transpo operations and management, we won't see any progress on a better transit system. 

Stage 2 talk has been quarantined into its own article again, which should be up in a day or two. 

This meeting's document list, with everything in PDF format: 

• OC Transpo Update
• Response to Westboro Collision Coroner's Inquest
• Verdict of Inquest Jury
• Action Plan to address the Inquest recommendations directed to the City of Ottawa
• OC Transpo's Non-Fare Revenue Strategy
• Stage 2 Light Rail Transit Report