EXHIBIT 1
1. OC TRANSPO TRANSPLAN 2004
TRANSPLAN 2004 D’OC TRANSPO |
That Council receive this report for information noting that staff will proceed with the following changes to the OC Transpo route network arising from the Transplan 2004 consultation process:
i.
The extension of Route 1 to include the section of
Route 4 north and east of the Rideau Centre to Springfield Road and Maple Lane;
ii.
The extension of Route 60 to provide new peak-period
express service to downtown from the new section of Shirley’s Brook east of
Helmsdale;
iii.
The extension of Route 97 in Stittsville south along
Main Street to Fernbank, then via Shea to the Goulbourn Recreation Centre; and
iv.
A change in the routing of Route 151 in Westboro to
operate directly south from Westboro Station via McRae, Richmond and Kirkwood.
Que le
Conseil prenne connaissance du présent rapport à titre d'information en
prenant note que le personnel procédera aux modifications suivantes du réseau
d'OC Transpo, à la suite du processus de consultation de Transplan de 2004:
i.
Le
prolongement du circuit 1 afin de comprendre la partie du circuit 4 au nord et
à l’est du Centre Rideau jusqu’au chemin Springfield et à l’allée Maple;
ii.
Le
prolongement du circuit 60 afin d’offrir un nouveau service express aux heures
de pointe vers le centre-ville depuis la nouvelle section de Shirley’s Brook, à
l’est de Helmsdale;
iii.
Le
prolongement du circuit 97 dans Stittsville en direction sud le long de la rue
Main jusqu’à Fernbank, puis en empruntant Shea jusqu’au centre récréatif de
Goulbourn;
iv.
Une
modification au parcours du circuit 151 dans Westboro afin de passer
directement au sud de la station Westboro par McRae, Richmond et Kirkwood.
The Committee
approved the following direction to staff:
“That staff identify routes which are currently
considered as ‘express’ but which provide less frequent or efficient service
than similar routes which are currently ‘regular’ routes, and that staff report
back to Committee in June 2004 exploring the adjustment of the fares.”
Le Comité a approuvé la directive suivante:
“Que le personnel désigne les circuits actuellement considérés comme des
circuits « express », dont le service est moins fréquent ou moins
efficace que celui des circuits « réguliers », et que le personnel
présente au Comité un rapport qui examine les modifications possibles aux
tarifs en juin 2004.”
Documentation
1.
General Manager, Transportation, Utilities
and Public Works report dated 20 April 2004
(ACS2004-TUP-TRN-0004).
2.
Draft Extract of Minutes, Transportation Committee
meeting of 5 May 2004.
Submitted by/Soumis par: R.T.
Leclair, General Manager/Directrice générale,
Transportation,
Utilities and Public Works/Transport, services et travaux publics
Contact/Personne-ressource: G.
Diamond, Director/Directeur,
842-3636 ext. 2271,
gordon.diamond@transpo.ottawa.on.ca
|
|
Ref N°: ACS2004-TUP-TRN-0004 |
That the Transportation Committee receive this report for information noting that staff will proceed with the following changes to the OC Transpo route network arising from the Transplan 2004 consultation process:
i) The extension of Route
1 to include the section of Route 4 north and east of the Rideau Centre to
Springfield Road and Maple Lane;
ii) The extension of Route
60 to provide new peak-period express service to downtown from the new section
of Shirley’s Brook east of Helmsdale;
iii) The extension of Route
97 in Stittsville south along Main Street to Fernbank, then via Shea to the
Goulbourn Recreation Centre; and
iv) A change in the routing
of Route 151 in Westboro to operate directly south from Westboro Station via
McRae, Richmond and Kirkwood.
Que le Comité des
transports prenne connaissance du présent rapport à titre d'information en
prenant note que le personnel procédera aux modifications suivantes du réseau
d'OC Transpo, à la suite du processus de consultation de Transplan de 2004:
i.
Le
prolongement du circuit 1 afin de comprendre la partie du circuit 4 au nord et
à l’est du Centre Rideau jusqu’au chemin Springfield et à l’allée Maple;
ii.
Le
prolongement du circuit 60 afin d’offrir un nouveau service express aux heures
de pointe vers le centre-ville depuis la nouvelle section de Shirley’s Brook, à
l’est de Helmsdale;
iii.
Le
prolongement du circuit 97 dans Stittsville en direction sud le long de la rue
Main jusqu’à Fernbank, puis en empruntant Shea jusqu’au centre récréatif de
Goulbourn;
iv.
Une
modification au parcours du circuit 151 dans Westboro afin de passer
directement au sud de la station Westboro par McRae, Richmond et Kirkwood.
BACKGROUND
Transplan is an
annual consultation process through which proposals for the improvement of the
transit network are developed, evaluated, introduced, and reviewed in a
consistent way. Transplan 2004 started
in the fall of 2003, with the development of proposals based on suggestions
from transit customers, councillors, and employees. Consultation on these proposals took place in March 2004, and the
proposals have been improved based on the comments that were received. The recommendations in this report are for
service changes to be introduced in September 2004.
Transit ridership
in Ottawa continues to grow. In 2003,
the system wide ridership was 88 million passenger trips, 1.4 percent higher
than it was in 2002. So far in 2004,
ridership is 4.4 percent higher than it was in 2003. This continuing ridership growth has been aided by the strong
commitment of the City government to support and promote transit as a preferred
mode of travel. Therefore, it is
important that the OC Transpo route network continue to evolve, to best meet
customers’ changing and growing travel needs.
The new Terry Fox Transitway
Station and park and ride lot will be completed in 2004, and the service
changes that were approved for Kanata as part of Transplan 2003 will
begin. This will improve connections
for transit customers in Kanata and will greatly improve transit access to the
expanding commercial hub of Kanata.
The recommended service
changes for 2004 focus on the continuous improvement of service for customers
by making services more convenient and more direct. Transit Services staff are also continuing to make service changes
to meet the changing needs of customers on the rest of the route network, by
adjusting the frequency of service and the hours of service to ensure that
customers are accommodated more comfortably and more efficiently.
A programme of consultation
was undertaken to gather feedback on the Transplan 2004 proposals from the
public and from front-line transit employees.
Approximately 80 people attended an open house in Blackburn Hamlet and
approximately 190 written comments were received. A more comprehensive overview of the process and results is
included in the consultation section of this paper. The comments are described briefly in the discussion of each
recommended service change and are available on request from the Clerk’s office.
DISCUSSION
It is recommended
that Route 1 be extended to include the section of Route 4 north and east of
the Rideau Centre to Springfield Road and Maple Lane.
Route 1 currently provides
all day transit service through the downtown core between the Rideau Centre on
Rideau Street and Greenboro Station, operating on Wellington and Bank
Streets. Route 4 operates from
Rockcliffe Park, through the downtown core on St. Patrick, Rideau, Wellington,
Bank, Bronson via Catherine or Isabella, through Carleton University,
connecting to the Transitway at Billings Bridge and Hurdman stations.
Route 4 provides a key
connection between Carleton University and both downtown and the
Transitway. It would be cost-effective
to increase the capacity on this route by using larger, articulated buses. However, the larger buses would not be
required on the portion of Route 4 to Rockcliffe Park. Terminating Route 4 at the Rideau Centre and
providing service to Rockcliffe Park on Route 1 would make the use of
articulated buses on Route 4 possible and would continue the use of standard
40-foot buses on the service to Rockcliffe Park. Customers in Lower Town and Rockcliffe would still have direct
service to Bank Street on Route 1, and a new direct connection to Lansdowne
Park.
During the public
consultation period, 21 comments were received. Eighteen comments were in favour of the change, largely because
of the increased capacity the larger bus size would provide for student travel
to and from Carleton University. Three
comments disagreed, citing the additional transfer that would be required to
complete their trips, or concerns about service reliability on Route 1 with the
additional extension.
Overall, the changes to
Route 1 and Route 4 would allow a better match of bus assignment and service
levels to ridership levels.
It is recommended that Route
60 be revised to provide new peak-period express service to downtown from the
new section of Shirley’s Brook east of Helmsdale.
Route 60 provides an express
service for the residential communities of Briarbrook, Morgan’s Grant and
Beaverbrook, in northern Kanata. In
Briarbrook, a new section of roadway along Shirley’s Brook Drive is now complete
and would allow Route 60 to be extended to provide express service closer to
600 new residents.
This extension of Route 60,
at the beginning of the morning trips and at the end of the afternoon trips,
would increase ridership by approximately 25 customer-trips per day and would
not cause an inconvenience for any existing customers.
During public consultation,
a total of 19 comments were received.
Ten comments were in favour of the route extension because of the
reduced walk and improved express service.
Nine comments were not in favour.
These people were concerned about the length of the route and passenger
loads or were opposed to bus operation on Shirley’s Brook Drive. Existing passengers would not be
inconvenienced by the additional two minutes since the extension is at the
start of the morning trips and the end of each afternoon trip. Passenger loads would be monitored and
frequency adjustments would be made in the future if necessary.
Overall, the extension on
Route 60 would improve transit service for new residents.
It is recommended that Route
97 be extended in Stittsville south along Main Street to Fernbank, then via
Shea to the Goulbourn Recreation Centre.
Route 97 was extended to
Stittsville, as part of the rural transit service expansion, in September
2002. It currently operates via
Hazeldean Road, Main Street, Abbott Street, and Shea Road to the Goulbourn
Recreation Centre. This route provides
a link to Kanata Centrum and the future Terry Fox Transitway Station, and an
all-day downtown connection.
To allow more residents
convenient access to this Transitway service, Route 97 would be rerouted via
Main Street, Fernbank Road and Shea Road.
This would provide improved coverage in the southern portion of Stittsville
generating an estimated 75 new customer trips per day. This rerouting would remove Route 97 from
the section of Abbott Street between Main Street and Shea Road. The majority of the approximately 40
existing passengers on Abbott Street would still have good access to this route
within 400 metres walk to either Main Street or at the Goulbourn Recreation
Centre.
The performance of Route
163, the other all-day service in Stittsville, is identified for elimination in
the Transit Service Financial Performance Review 2004 Report, also on today’s
Transportation Committee agenda. The
impact of this service cancellation would be mitigated by the recommended
change to Route 97.
In the course of public
consultation, 19 comments were received on this proposed change. Sixteen were in favour of the change,
including an endorsement from the Stittsville Community Association. Three people disagreed with the rerouting
because it would result in a longer walk to Route 97.
Overall, the change to Route
97 would provide improved Transitway service coverage in the southern portion
of Stittsville, which is expected to lead to increased ridership.
It is recommended that Route
151 be changed to operate directly south from Westboro Station via McRae
Avenue, Richmond Road and Kirkwood Avenue.
Route 151 currently operates
via Byron Avenue, Richmond Road and McRae Avenue to and from Westboro
Station.
The benefits to existing
customers outweigh the inconvenience as follows:
During the public consultation
period, a total of four comments were received: two in favour and two against the route change.
Overall, the change in Route
151 would result in travel time savings and an improved transit service to
majority of the customers travelling through the area.
A proposal to revise and
streamline transit service in Blackburn Hamlet was presented as part of
Transplan 2004. This proposal was to
combine Routes 25, 28 and 125 into one route that would travel in both
directions through the community, with extensions to downtown during rush
hours. It was also proposed that the
express Routes 23 and 28 be combined into one route serving Chapel Hill South
via Innes and the Bypass for a faster, more direct, trip for residents.
The proposal for these service changes in Blackburn Hamlet and Chapel
Hill South has been withdrawn by staff following the Transplan 2004 public
consultation process. The current
routes in the area, Routes 23, 25, 28, 125, and 128, will continue to provide
the same service as they do now.
During the period of consultation, 100 comments were received on these
proposals. Sixty-three of the comments
opposed the change or expressed concern about longer waiting time, longer
walking distance, or more-crowded buses.
Thirty-seven of the comments expressed support for the shorter travel
time that some customers would have.
City staff will consider
whether an alternative plan can be created that would provide frequent, direct
service to downtown from both Chapel Hill South and Blackburn Hamlet, without
the inconveniences that this year's plan would have caused. If a new plan is developed, it will be
presented to the public in early 2005 for consultation and for comment.
RURAL
IMPLICATIONS
The recommended change to Route 97 would improve transit service in the southern part of Stittsville, by reducing the distance that customers need to walk to their nearest bus stop with direct service to Kanata, Bayshore, and downtown Ottawa. This change is expected to increase transit ridership in Stittsville without increasing the cost to provide the service. The change would also mitigate the effect on transit customers in southern Stittsville of the removal of Route 163, described in a separate report.
CONSULTATION/PUBLIC
NOTIFICATION
Brochures describing the
proposed service changes were distributed on board buses in the areas affected
in early March. The brochure was also
distributed at City facilities and to all Councillors and to community associations
in the areas affected. The information
was also available on the OC Transpo web pages. The brochure and the web pages invited customers to send their
comments on the proposals to OC Transpo.
The proposals were also
posted at bus garages so that front-line staff would have the opportunity to
give feedback on proposals and to make suggestions from the operational
perspective. One public open house was
held in mid-March in Blackburn Hamlet.
Approximately 190 customers
provided written comments during the consultation period. Of these, approximately 160 were about the
proposals for service changes in Transplan 2003. These comments are described briefly in the discussion of each
recommended service change. The
comments were helpful in bringing new issues to the attention of staff.
One of the proposals has
been withdrawn based on the comments received through the period of
consultation.
Some of the comments
received from customers were not about the Transplan 2004 proposals. These comments will also be helpful and will
be used in other operational and planning work. Concerns, for instance, about the frequency and quality of
service, or about bus stops and shelters, are already being addressed. Suggestions for further service changes will
be examined as part of the work to prepare Transplan 2005.
TRANSPORTATION MASTER PLAN
The
recommendations in this report are consistent with the Transit Service Strategy
in the City’s new Transportation Master Plan, to maximize ridership within the
available resources.
FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS
There is no net cost to these recommended service changes in this
report, and they will be accommodated within the Transit Services budget for
2004.
SUPPORTING
DOCUMENTATION
Exhibit 1 – Routes 1 and 4
in Lower Town and Rockcliffe Park
Exhibit 2 – Route 60 in
northern Kanata
Exhibit 3 – Route 97 in
Stittsville
Exhibit 4 – Route 151 in Westboro
DISPOSITION
Upon receipt of the service changes for 2004 by Committee, staff
will begin making operational arrangements and will begin preparing public
information for the service changes.
The changes will be introduced on Sunday, September 5, or Tuesday,
September 7. Following the introduction
of the service changes, comments from customers and operating experience will
be monitored closely, and a full review of each change will be conducted
approximately one year after introduction.
EXHIBIT 1
EXHIBIT 2
EXHIBIT 3
EXHIBIT 4
OC TRANSPO TRANSPLAN 2004
TRANSPLAN 2004
D’OC TRANSPO
ACS2003-TUP-TRN-0004
Rosemarie Leclair, General Manager, Transportation, Utilities and Public
Works (TUPW); Gordon Diamond, Director of Transit Services, TUPW; Dr. Helen
Gault, Manager, Transit Services Planning and Development,
TUPW; and Pat Scrimgeour, Program Manager, Service Planning, TUPW appeared before Committee on this item.
There was some concern that the report requires ‘approval’ of Committee and Council and not merely ‘receipt’, as the staff recommendation is worded. GM Leclair clarified that, in keeping with Committee and Council-approved processes, both of the reports on this agenda need only to be received for information by the Committee, with the understanding that Committee has the jurisdiction to make changes and/or additional recommendations, if considered necessary.
The Committee heard the following delegations:
David Jeanes, Transport 2000 spoke specifically on changes to Route #151 and
Route #4. He expressed concern that
there had been no public consultation in this process in the form of public
information meetings with the people most affected by the route changes. He felt that the timing of these changes is
unnecessarily disruptive and that ridership numbers do not warrant the use of
articulated buses for Route 4. He
suggested that the O-Train could be improved to provide better service between
Carleton and Hurdman, taking some of the excess ridership from Route #4 in that
corridor. With respect to Route #151,
he felt that a 3-minute time saving does not justify the cut, although he acknowledged
in principle that the route network needs to be designed to better focus on the
transitway, a principle stated in the Transportation Master Plan. He felt that there should have been a public
meeting specifically for the seniors affected by the changes to Route #151 in
the Westboro area.
In response to questions and comments from
Committee Members rising from the delegation’s comments, staff provided the
following clarifications:
§
The report lists a variety
of public consultation carried out with respect to these changes.
§
Timing and location of
future Open House consultation on Transplan 2004. Blackburn Hamlet was chosen as the location for the Open House
because the biggest proposal put forward as part of this process was a realignment
of services in Blackburn Hamlet and Chapel Hill South. Consequently, this proposal has since been
withdrawn.
Michel Binda stated that the O-Train is often referred to as the ‘Carleton Train’
because it seems to serve that area more than any other. He suggested that ridership would increase
if service were extended east and west.
He was concerned about security issues with respect to transit and
suggested that many of these issues could be resolved at no extra cost by the
re-allocation of existing resources. He
suggested that supervisors need to be more visible at transit stations, citing
particularly the problems with smokers inside the stations, and he felt that
response time of security staff needs to be improved. He remarked that morale of bus drivers is low and that there is a
higher occurrence of fare fraud because many drivers do not make the effort to
check passes or verify correct change fares.
He also felt that the GPS program (video links in transit stations)
should be discontinued and those funds could be rerouted towards improvements
to the transit system.
In response to questions and comments from
Committee arising from the delegation’s comments, staff provided the following
clarifications:
§
Mr. Diamond agreed to meet
with Mr. Binda following the meeting to discuss his concerns.
§
the majority of drivers do
not suffer from low morale.
§
an extensive presentation
was recently brought to Committee by staff on the security system and many of
the initiatives that are in place; OC Transpo and Transit Services Security
Department are leaders in the security business in transit in Canada.
§
The Video Links Program is
providing revenue that is applied towards the cost of providing transit. This year, the payments will begin in August
and will generate approximately $50,000 in revenue for the City; that sum will
increase next year. Action is taken
promptly when complaints are received about the volume of the ads being run by
the program.
§
There are currently 5 ‘Walk
and Ride’ Security teams and that will increase to 6 this year; the security
cars at the Lincoln Fields and Hurdman stations are usually parked on the
platforms and the security personnel do engage in foot patrols of the stations.
§
Staff will be bringing
forward a report on ‘fare fraud’ this fall.
Councillor McRae offered Mr. Binda the
opportunity to talk to her as a follow-up to his discussions with Mr. Diamond,
as well an invitation to address the Committee on this issue again, should he
find that he still has concerns after his discussions with staff.
Further discussion on this report ensued and
the following points were addressed by Committee and staff:
§
the importance of relying on
staff’s expertise of the transit system and that Committee and Council need not
receive reports for approval with respect to route specifications
§
the definition and
determination of a regular route versus an express route; staff advised that a
report on this subject is forth-coming in the Fall
§
the possibility to extend
some local bus routes to the Hurdman station to connect with feeder or express
routes; staff advised that if there is a way to do that at no cost, it will be
done and staff will provide that information to Committee.
Councillor Cullen proposed the following
motion: “That the report recommendation be amended to record: That
Transportation Committee recommend to City Council the approval of these
changes to the OC Transpo route network arising from the Transplan 2004
consultation process:
i)
The extension of Route 1
to include the section of Route 4 north and east of the Rideau Centre to
Springfield Road and Maple Lane;
ii)
The extension of Route 60
to provide new peak-period express service to downtown from the new section of
Shirley’s Brook east of Helmsdale;
iii) The extension of Route 97 in Stittsville south along Main Street to
Fernbank, then via Shea to the Goulbourn Recreation Centre; and
iv) A change in the routing of Route 151 in Westboro to operate directly
south from Westboro Station via McRae, Richmond and Kirkwood.”
In
consideration of this motion, some members of Committee expressed that all
members of Council should have the opportunity to vote on this issue as it
affects constituents of many wards while other Committee members felt that
there is no need to encumber Council with such technical arguments and details.
The following motion was proposed by
Councillor Bloess: “That staff identify routes which are currently
considered as ‘express’ buses which provide less frequent or efficient service
than similar routes which are currently ‘regular’ routes, and that staff report
back to Committee in June 2004 exploring the adjustment of the fares.”
The Committee then considered the following
motions:
Moved by Councillor Cullen
That the report recommendation be amended to
record:
That Transportation Committee recommend to
City Council the approval of these changes to the OC Transpo route network
arising from the Transplan 2004 consultation process:
i)
The extension of Route 1 to include the
section of Route 4 north and east of the Rideau Centre to Springfield Road and Maple
Lane;
ii)
The extension of Route 60 to provide new
peak-period express service to downtown from the new section of Shirley’s Brook
east of Helmsdale;
iii) The extension of Route 97 in Stittsville south along Main Street to
Fernbank, then via Shea to the Goulbourn Recreation Centre; and
iv) A change in the routing of Route 151 in Westboro to operate directly
south from Westboro Station via McRae, Richmond and Kirkwood
LOST
Yeas
(3): Councillors R. Bloess, A. Cullen;
C. Doucet
Nays (5): Councillors
G. Bedard, J. Legendre, M. McRae, D. Thompson, J. Stavinga
Moved by Councillor Bloess
That staff identify routes
which are currently considered as ‘express’ but which provide less frequent or
efficient service than similar routes which are currently ‘regular’ routes, and
that staff report back to Committee in June 2004 exploring the adjustment of
the fares.
CARRIED with Councillor J. Legendre dissenting
The Committee then received
the following report recommendation as presented:
That the Transportation Committee receive this report for information noting that staff will proceed with the following changes to the OC Transpo route network arising from the Transplan 2004 consultation process:
i.
The extension of Route 1 to include the section of
Route 4 north and east of the Rideau Centre to Springfield Road and Maple Lane;
ii.
The extension of Route 60 to provide new peak-period
express service to downtown from the new section of Shirley’s Brook east of
Helmsdale;
iii.
The extension of Route 97 in Stittsville south along
Main Street to Fernbank, then via Shea to the Goulbourn Recreation Centre; and
iv.
A change in the routing of Route 151 in Westboro to
operate directly south from Westboro Station via McRae, Richmond and Kirkwood