DUDE, WHERE'S MY BUS? - A look at Ottawa's Messy Transit System (Full Documentary)

[@giotv1]

Just want to thank everyone for the support on this project! If you want to see more please subscribe and share the video to those who might be interested! Also if you want follow me on instagram, I am the most active there: instagram.com/thegioshowofficial/

[@petergunn2249]

not a chance you live in Ottawa if you're complaining about -3 degrees

[@Spexificaid7791]

I love waiting 40 minutes for my bus and then I see three of them coming at the same time

[@Panzermeister36]

I'm glad other people appreciate how ridiculous this is as well. And then only the first bus will stop, it's already packed with three times the passengers, and you have to squeeze in there.

[@DweevilGurl]

​@@Panzermeister36you do realize if the only the "first bus" stops everytime. Then that means the buses will rotate who is first at every stop. I'm all for improving the very unreliable bus times, and I think line 2 opening... Any day now... Will greatly help with that. Side note, I'm happy line 2 is taking so long to open due to intense testing and regulation. Means it won't be a disaster like line 1 was when it opened.

[@PhilipJFry-ie6ql]

111 experience

[@user-ym9sx6jt8m]

ah.. the most Ottawa sight ever

[@PoserBallin]

The 99 is more of a ghost bus situation.

[@CSJxlp]

You can watch this whole Doc while waiting for the 88 without it showing up once

[@steffanixoom]

but don't worry, 10 minutes later 3 of them will show up in a line!

[@MrxstGrssmnstMttckstPhlNelThot]

So did it show up yet or nah?

[@joshua476]

Legend has it that he’s still waiting for the 88

[@GAMEDEVWITHKRIS]

lol yup! just wait, winter is coming and so is the snow. our wonderful lrt is gonna be busted.....again.... lol

[@mikefraser6931]

ahh yes... the good old Latey Eight

[@fab0527]

Every Halloween party I dress up as OcTranspo. I never show up to the party.

[@Ejazmalikzada]

30 Blair always gets cancelled. It's so frustrating.

[@noahstevenson2441]

💀💀💀

[@MrxstGrssmnstMttckstPhlNelThot]

Lmao

[@michelleoconnor1624]

And same with the 25 Carson's from Blair station its always delayed , late or cancelled.

[@BgirlAxe]

LMAO🤣

[@ShortStoryHubOfficial]

Former OC driver here. Ill just say shit as it is (As trust me, we are equally frustrated with it too!) While I can not comment on everything affecting service, I can give insight on what I see as a major problem that's causing most of the frustration. 1: The scheduled time points for each stop. They are obviously not accurate. The majority of routes, the driver will run behind schedule on a PERFECT day(Perfect as in always getting a green light, no traffic and very few pick ups/drop offs) The issue with them, is the times for a route are given 10 seconds per stop on the entire route. It des not factor red lights, does not factor congestion during various times, does not factor road closures/detours and it especially does not factor other slow drivers. It doesn't factor the time it takes to get up to speed. I am also convinced some don't even factor stop signs OR THE ACTUAL SPEED LIMIT! For example, I for a few months my daily was driving the 90 at midnight. Despite only picking up 1 or 2 people to drop off at Hurdman along the entire route, no traffic and even getting lucky with the lights. I still was 10 minutes late by the end of it. Another good one is the 23. Literally early morning, picking up maybe 3 people to bring into Blaire and still run late despite smooth traffic. I swear, its designed to fail, I don't know how else to express it. 2: Driver schedules. Another factor causing busses to go late or be cancelled is the driver schedule. Contrary to popular belief, majority of drivers don't just loop the same route for X hours. While some dockets(Basically the work schedule for the bus for that day) do have this, its rare. Anyway, the issue with these is many of them will give you a route that has the issue I mentioned in point 1, then will give you 1-5 minutes (sometimes longer, again im speaking of majority from my experience) of what's called recovery time. You can probably see where I am already going with this, but basically if you have a docket that will give you a route that has the issue with being late, plus no or little recovery time, then you start your next trip late. This effect will domino or snowball into larger delays until a trip gets covered by another bus, full on cancelled or it just keeps rolling until the end of the shift. 3: Lack of busses. Literally my last 'booking' (basically our schedule period where we pick schedules based on seniority) I had a split shift. My second shift was cancelled due to a bus shortage. So, the 14 I was supposed to do non stop from 1400-1900 got cancelled. This doesn't even factor the flop over the electric busses. Other words, you have a system that's basically been designed to fail, and no one above drivers will address this or want to fix it. We try reporting it and we are given shit by our bosses for it. Side note, I find it funny what the media likes to ignore when it 'reports' about the issues with OC. They are just a talking piece for the city that pretend to "investigate" the issue and just repeat what OC and the city like to tell. Notice how you rarely see or hear the opinion of the people that are actually working WITH the public? Its pretty convenient and funny I think. But don't worry, its always down to the drivers for being at fault and not the organization that's giving empty promises to the public. THAT BEING SAID! Your doc is very well done,

[@itsshivers6892]

Ex-driver from a different agency, and I upvote and agree with all of these comments, especially the first. Some schedules are intentionally made to fail because if the route takes 65 minutes to drive and they want a bus every half hour, they can either make it a 90 minute route or a 60 minute route that they know is impossible. Interleaving (the second point) is supposed to fix this, but if scheduler A assumes there's extra time on the route scheduler B is writing up, and B was counting on the same...

[@magicmckinley5047]

Just curious, I've had busses with a GPS time be really close and then just never show up. Feels like the bus just disappears despite having the GPS time. Do you know what happens there?

[@DeepBlue7]

My husband is a driver too. I feel for you guys and the crap you have to put up with.

[@bonnyc392]

@@ShortStoryHubOfficial I made the error of not getting my license but the bus service was good at one time. I know that the schedule is done on that computer in Montreal since the strike years ago. I have chatted with many drivers over the years, especially the local bus drivers of Kanata. I wish they never did the LRT and my present " councilor " Allen Hubley should have been fired. Oh how I miss the original transit way and the #95. People are absolutely fed up and now we have some terrible drivers who speed and then break heavy. I love the song at the end, so appropriate.

[@ShortStoryHubOfficial]

@@magicmckinley5047 I could be wrong on this as I do not work with the people that sort out the program, but from what I do understand, the system knows what time a bus should be at the stops along the route and uses the geo location of its last stop to give an ETA to the person using the text messages or using one of those apps. So, if a bus gets cancelled or called out of service for X reason, the system may just be delayed in processing that and assuming its still going. OR the bus GPS is lagging behind meaning the bus you think its telling you is coming in 2 minutes, already passed a few mins ago. Again, I cant exactly speak for this as I am unsure of the fine details, but from what I have seen with those computer screens we have, or talking to our control (basically supervisors that "help" us when we get stuck or have a problem) the system tends to lag. Its especially bad when you go further edges of the city. For example sometimes when I would drive the 222 out towards the Vars park and ride I would get called by them and questioned why I stopped on the 417... even though I was already finished the route and deadheading back to my next start point.

[@MobyDrip]

University exams with this transit system is a nightmare

[@chrislevisen1010]

Being anywhere on time is next to impossible. I suppose you could leave 4-5 hours earlier than you thought, but that would be ridiculous.

[@dehavillandcanadatwinotter9621]

And students would have to go to bed earlier and get up earlier, sacrificing study time, just to get up for the bus that takes 2 hour to go a few kilometers (which are impossible to walk due to lack of sidewalks)...

[@ziiziiilyxc3158]

I uber for exam just to be sure. No way I’m trusting oc transport

[@kruszer]

@@chrislevisen1010 I've been fired from jobs/failed placements for being late too many times. They say "you should leave earlier" but exactly how much earlier should I be leaving/ When every bus in a series of connections might be late and when missing one connection means being even later for the next bus, so that you end up three buses late for the final connection... nobody has the ability to schedule that many contingencies into their transit plan! At some point I may as well just sleep overnight at work so that i'm not late?

[@meadows.9700]

​@@chrislevisen1010 I lowkey do this. No matter what time an exam is at, I will wake up at 5 and take the first bus to campus and find somewhere near the exam room to study until it's time. I do this for lectures and labs too because I'm too paranoid.

[@connorbrown1662]

A forty minute long video about a super specific subject that directly affects me?! Yeah absolutely

[@Dakota.P.]

Hey, something to watch while I wait for the bus!

[@MrxstGrssmnstMttckstPhlNelThot]

Are you still waiting?

[@jaafarf1198]

Are you still waiting?

[@Aeristopia]

Still waiting, I assume

[@B3NT0.]

He’s still waiting.

[@neffynavas9056]

We need a longer documentary...waaaaaay longer...

[@MoFarghali]

Hope this blows up i lived in Ottawa for years then moved to Toronto, one time my TTC bus was late 5 minutes one of my coworkers told me its pretty common. I started laughing, didn't know how to explain to him that Ottawa has it 10 folds worse

[@ryanironheart4154]

I believe by OC quality control standards a bus that is 10-15 minutes late is acceptable and thus scene as being on time and meeting service. In addition as long as all trips for a route are made regardless if they are and hour or so later than OC has met the requirement and the trip has been fulfilled (think popular rush hour buses that are suppose to be every 10 minutes but you don't see any for 40 minutes and then 3 or 4 show up withing a few minutes of each other)

[@NoThisIsPatrickOfficial]

Toronto from Ottawa, how has that been? 5x the people I already feel like Ottawa is way over crowded!!

[@arlencarlson]

@@NoThisIsPatrickOfficialI used to think Toronto was crowded…until I visited London, and experienced “the Tube” and their overall transit system. That is crowded! Now in Ottawa…and in 6 years have never taken the unreliable transit. In Toronto, used to call the TTC, Take-the-Car. But really, Toronto has it together, more or less. Ottawa…well, knowing recent experience of my wife, this video hits a real nerve!

[@NoThisIsPatrickOfficial]

@ oh yikes I don’t think think I’ll be visiting London anytime soon! Time to move out to the country haha

[@Andrew-if3sd]

I used to live in Toronto back in 2005, your comment is pretty accurate

[@RogueNationVideos]

I feel like I'm watching an episode of The Fifth Estate, or something better, in terms of production quality. Very well done.

[@FestinaFirefly]

Tried going to work (7km away) recently by OC Transpo. It's about 15 minutes by car, 30 minutes by bicycle, and a monumentally stupid 1h15m by bus. I'll not be doing that again!

[@notlikeH4PPY]

I just do not understand how they dropped the ball so hard? It is consistently half the time to bike than it is to bus?? (AND THATS IF THE BUS EVEN SHOWS UP) How? Why do we even have a transit system at that point?

[@christopherprobst]

The documentary mentions that the Trillium line is to open mid-November. It's now the end of November, and we are still waiting. OC Transpo is such a disgrace.

[@FoxBatinaHat]

Apparently they will (reveal) the date it will open in Dec 6.

[@sparetire3]

And to add insult to injury to us tax payers...December 6th will be the announcement date.. I bet 2025 will be the date. I bet if management got a salary cut for each day of delay will make them think otherwise.

[@TechOttawa]

@@FoxBatinaHat Or they could announce how much longer they will need to complete "testing" - SEE YOU NEXT YEAR! LOL

[@Elvira-k3r]

​@@FoxBatinaHatand then it won't work because, you know, weather 🙄😋.

[@ShotarollAlan]

​@@Elvira-k3r will never forget the article about how "LRT trains can't handle Ottawa winters" uh ottawa winters are like half the year, what are they even testing 😭😭😭

[@itsshivers6892]

Good documentary. I have a few points to add as a former bus driver, who is now disabled (due to bus driving, ironically, but admittedly not in Ottawa). 1: Fleet choices are also a problem. The fact that buses go out an hour late is a sign that they're backlogged on repairs and parts. Setting aside mechanic staffing levels, let's talk procurement. There are two thought processes of making a bus: Make a middling-good bus that costs a bit more up front, or make an absolute turdburger that barely rolls out the door but is cheap as heck, counting on making money on parts. New Flyer in particular is of the loss-leader turdburger model, and OC uses them for more than half of their fleet (all the accordion buses, and some of the short buses); of course they're never leaving on time. Nova is of the middling-good model (most of the short buses). I do not know what Alexander Dennis' reliability is like, but since they're less than 10% of the fleet (double-deckers), downtime on them is essentially a rounding error. 2: Fun fact regarding OC's paratransit: The problem with insufficient service is way larger than people realise, because they're hiding behind one little rule: if you can use regular transit, at least part of the time, you're usually ineligible for paratransit service. I'm in a wheelchair; snow prevents me from going out, but because I can use the regular buses if the roads are clear that's just too bad for me. 3: All of this is a known culture-of-council issue. Cutbacks are because they want to pretend public transit can operate at a neutral dollar amount, or with only minimal subsidies. It's simply not possible; a bus costs about $150 an hour to run; $30 to the driver, another $20 or so to salaries of mechanics, managers, what-have-you, the rest to the gas, repairs, and a portion of the vehicle purchase price. At $3 a head, you can fit 50 people on board. With backpacks, children's strollers, shopping bags, that is basically the maximum number of people you can fit on board, nose-to-nose level crowding. You can't run a transit agency on that basis. It'd be like if they started saying "now that we have the new garbage limit, we're not filling our dump trucks as much so to increase efficiency we'll only pick up every four weeks instead of two... why are you complaining? Why not just get your own dump truck if this is too inconvenient for you??" 4: This culture-of-council issue shapes culture-of-transpo, and the problem goes back over 30 years. Look up Pierre Lebrun, an ex-driver who went into OC Transpo with guns blazing in 1999. The resultant inquiry sums up to yep, this isn't surprising because of the work culture here, where people harass and bully each other, and management is complicit and helps to cover up for the bullies when it happens. It hasn't changed: just a few years ago it came to light that a bunch of sexual harassment instances had been hushed up within the agency as well.

[@eskaweeks]

Thank you for your insight, this is very interesting to read from the perspective of a bus driver.

[@syndicatedsatellite7288]

Some drivers are hard on the equipment... The bus driver that gets the bus after may find damages done due to the equipment due to previous drivers abuse...

[@itsshivers6892]

@@syndicatedsatellite7288 I mean... yes, I guess?? but that's not the point I was making. Trust me, Flyers are turds. Here, maybe this will help to explain. The agency where I worked used a mixed fleet as well, but the Flyers were less reliable than both newer *and* older Novas, and so they filled as many of the rush hour runs with Flyers as they could, so that the Novas were on the road for off-peak service to reduce the amount of breakdowns off-peak when there are fewer buses and drivers to be able to cover any outages. If the bus is so unreliable that the agency itself takes those kind of actions, there's a structural problem.

[@syndicatedsatellite7288]

@itsshivers6892 If the bus company is running turds they should only hire drivers who won't abuse the busses... If the bus is abused, a turd will break down faster..

[@itsshivers6892]

​@@syndicatedsatellite7288 ...Uh, yeah they do that already, obviously... or did you think that the month of training on hire was for fun? But if you are trying to say "it's all the drivers' fault and the company is blameless" then you're massively missing the point. Anyways, I think that's all I have to say on the subject, cheers.

[@rightlanehog3151]

Thanks for making the detailed report that corporate media in Ottawa can't be bothered to produce.

[@edwardk3]

They won't touch this subject because it directly affects WOMEN. They are corrupt misogynist!

[@AnikRichard]

Investigative journalism seems to have when the same way as decent public transport.

[@dewiz9596]

I’m moving to “Out of Service”. At both Blair and Tunneys Pasture Station, that’s where all the busses seem to go.

[@myreadingisodd]

I miss the 95. I live in Barrhaven, worked around Montreal road and I could ride one bus across the city. Now it’s 3 buses, a train transfer. An hour and half turned into 2 and a half or more so I quit that job. Now jobs specifically request that if you take transit they won’t hire you because you can’t always show up on time. I should NOT have to leave my house 4 hours before a shift to get there on time.

[@Xelopheris]

The majority of the slowdown has nothing to do with adding in the train, and ultimately when it's full length, that will be very different. The problem is largely all the construction that makes it take a long time for busses to make it across the area that is currently being converted into LRT. If you just look at the schedules for busses going to the suburbs from Tunneys Pasture, they spend somewhere between half and 2/3 of their time between the park and rides as they exit the suburb and the O-Train station. Not only is that just so much slower, but it also limits the actual capacity of our busses overall since so many are doing those long runs.

[@uniquepolyglot2022]

I miss the 95 Barhaven, 97 Airport and many other buses. I used to only take one bus to go to Downtown. Now, I have to take one bus and than a train. The train made things more complicated for me.

[@JohnnyPerth]

This

[@BlubbyO]

So line 2 is going to benefit Carleton Students which will be massive improvement for them. Also I can see Lansdowne being a huge hub for people wanting the 85 bus. And it connecting to Line 1 just huge! Line 4 coming online, will greatly improve commute times for residents as far out as Orleans, who want to get out of their cars. In the west end we are still stuck with buses crawling down Woodroffe until stage 2 comes online.

[@epicbobbing101]

Growing up in Orleans it was 135 or other to trim or place then 95 to Algonquin or work. Crazy it's 3 + buses now.

[@audreytodd6565]

One time when I was a teenager, years before the LRT, I waited at Hurdman for over 2 hours. In a snow storm. When it was -30. At some point I think I just started openly weeping.

[@BlubbyO]

Advice. Don't goto work when we get big snow. You employer better darn well understand. Call in sick. 🤗

[@MrHermeteeowish]

And once you finally get to your destination, soaking wet and hypothermic, some dickhead who drove there gets pissy that you're late, and trots out the classic line, "Well you should have planned better!"

[@audreytodd6565]

@@BlubbyO thankfully did not have an employer expecting me to come in during a snow storm, this was back when i was in high school and trying to get home

[@analogbunny]

If you're a tall, bearded, tattood, biker-lookin' dude and this happened to you I still wouldn't judge you. It fills us all with rage, but the only thing to get angry at won't be there for another 20 to 90min.

[@TechOttawa]

I feel your pain and def had the same issue getting to Orleans often 1990-2014. Have a car now..

[@jimbob172]

Thank you for making this sorely needed documentary. I’ve often had the same question - “how is this acceptable?” The service seems to have gotten worse over the years. It’s so bad I’m surprised there aren’t riots

[@jamesExiledLegends]

protip: it's not acceptable

[@ryanironheart4154]

And the city wonders why ridership has still not returned to pre-pandemic levels. The buses are unreliable, the trains are unreliable, the wheels are problematic, the track is problematic due to all the tight turns between St. Laurent and Rideau and even the wires are problematic. To boot coming in the new year the increase in fare is likely to be $4 for a one way trip. I'm glad I can afford a car and finally cracked and purchased one this summer

[@nancyenright9562]

Then, like this guy, why didn't YOU email them also??? There is power in numbers?

[@dehavillandcanadatwinotter9621]

@@ryanironheart4154 I mean, at least your city has rail and didn't get rid of rails way back when for passengers.

[@whytho5732]

Managers at oc transpo make a crazy amount and keep getting huge raises while front line staff and resources are basically forgotten about. The GM gets 10,000 dollars after taxes every 14 days in to her chequing account, does she deserve it? Nope! She doesn’t even live in Ottawa. Oc transpo is a mess

[@attkrby9100]

Watched this whole video waiting for my bus to show up. Showed up 10 minutes after it ended!

[@pillowface5628]

hahah....i haven't bused in ages and I worked for OC in maintenance. I can honestly say it was the worst place I have ever worked. Terrible environment

[@Suppamandan]

The sad part is that transit from barrhaven became worse after the LRT showed up. The cut the bus lines, and the good ol 95 disappeared

[@lauraaliaga1898]

When I first moved to Ottawa from Montreal, I was a huge proponent of public transit, having come from a city that does it very well. So I came here with every intention of using public transit exclusively. I ended up buying a car within 8 months out of sheer frustration and delays with OC Transpo. I'm so sad to see that in almost 12 years, nothing has improved

[@Curt__]

Ur pretty

[@ryangaetz8538]

Not only has nothing improved, it's actually gotten worse...

[@Spexificaid7791]

Oc transpo genuinely raises my blood pressure on a daily basis, it is so hopelessly terrible

[@millioncomet]

This is a fantastic documentary. As a Carleton student living in Quebec, getting to campus can often take up to an hour and forty five minutes thanks to missing connections, packed buses, or even just no-shows. This is more often than not an issue with the OC transpo buses instead of the STO, and it’s honestly shocking that the capitol city of Canada has such poor public transit. I’m truly hoping that the trillium line opening goes off without a hitch, because nobody can afford having it fail spectacularly, especially with the winter coming up. Thank you so much for bringing to light the personal and historical context of this issue!

[@edwardk3]

I live in Chelsea myself and getting to class is a nightmare on this "TRANSIT SYSTEM"

[@deqa]

The real answer that the entire city is pro-union (OCDSB, OC Transpo) and doesn't do anything about any infrastructure other than that sinkhole that exploded in Ottawa few years back. I'm guessing, too, that there's a lot of pro-union legislation enacted in Parliament that will never be touched by either side (just like the numerous other bills that are passed based off the shoddiness of our Charter rights). I encourage anyone who actually "hates OC Transpo" or transit is to just get a used car and pack the streets more than they already are. There's a reason why there's more people in vehicles than people taking transit in Ottawa. Also LRT is slow as fuck and is garbage in Ottawa. To give credit to Canadians, they are obsessed with the idea that "there needs to be a specific reason for change" and "the data". If the buses eventually come, they come! You can investigate any part of Canadian bureaucracy and find that it is wholly inept (apart from the RCMP), but the issue is whether or not it works. If it works, Canadians don't care. It is THE epitome of "the bubble". There were numerous things that happened in Canada the last few years that were reported on, that people don't care about, or are swept under the rug in Parliament.

[@asdasdae]

@@deqa The fact that you don't think that the RCMP is inept completely removed any credibility you might've had in your comment lmfao

[@tuber4tuber]

I feel like I just watched an episode of 60 minutes. Thanks for this video, what an outstanding job you've done.

[@lacteur1]

I started watching this expecting it to be nothing but a long rant and assuming I'd move on after the first 5 minutes or so and here I am, 43:25 later. This is exceptional! Kudos to you, sir!

[@fejirodavina9352]

right now, it’s the most hopeless I have been as Ottawa resident. On top of the inevitable fare increase, there is the provincial restriction on bike lanes which could be a temporary aid to transit as we know it currently. Lovely presentation, watched it from start to finish no breaks.

[@jamesphillips2285]

Some workarounds I can think of: - Close entire street to cars, reopen it as a bike road or pedestrian street. - Limit speeds to 32km/h (the maxmium speed of a pedal-electric bike). Alberta straight up said they would not enforce speeding fines under 50km/h when the City of Edmonton did that. - Close one lane for a "parade" of cyclists.

[@jens_le_benz]

@@jamesphillips2285 >Take away space from cars > In Ontario Good luck with that in this administration

[@jamesphillips2285]

@@jens_le_benz In theory: car drivers should be supportive of bike and bus lanes. Every driver who is able to take the bus or bike, instead of being forced to drive, is about 0.66 less cars on the road (assuming 1.5 passengers per car, giving a lane capacity of 2,000 passengers/hour). EVERY commonly available ground transportation mode increases the corridor capacity, when compared with personal cars.

[@sadie8834]

I’m honestly just going to start hitch hiking atp.

[@thezu9250]

@@jamesphillips2285 Ottawa doesn’t have the weather to make those paths bikeable walkable for a good chunk of the year. You need to build a proper transit system. Also, people should be able to work more from home.

[@R1ver7th]

I am a high school student smack dab in the middle of ottawa. i live very close to tunneys pasture, 20 minutes away from my high school by car. In order for me to guarantee ill make it there on time, i need to leave 1 and a half hours before its starting time, because every other timeslot has a chance of getting me to school late. it has affected my sleep, it has affected my experience, and it has definitely affected my grades. once i had to wait more than an hour for a single bus to come. Basically the only transit problem i dont have to deal with is the cost, because the school board pays for your transit pass if you live a certain distance away. this is by far the best outline I've seen of ottawa's transit problems, and i think every resident should watch this video.

[@thierrylecuyer1507]

This is excellent, as an Ottawa resident for over 40 years, I've seen it all. Thanks for your research and hard work on this!

[@MrxstGrssmnstMttckstPhlNelThot]

"Imagine waiting 20 minutes in -3" Imagine waiting half an hour to an hour in -30! Couldn't have been me many times in my life!

[@julieerin115]

Grew up in Ottawa, so -3 during the winter is considered tropical weather for me.

[@AnikRichard]

I was going to say this. -3 would have been fine. By the time it reaches -20, in our humid Ottawa weather, waiting outside, exposed to the wind and your feet in the snow... that bus wait is not good !

[@patkack9547]

I raise you 45 mins at -15. 3 buses just didn't show...

[@Demonsta]

Lol yeah, this is a great video but the perspective definitely feels very privileged. That quote made me chuckle but I was shaking my head through the suburb talk. I commuted from riverside south for years in my youth, the 99 was one of the most reliable busses I've taken in 20 years of bus commutes, and the majority of ridership was coming to/from the park and ride. It's a decidedly rich neighborhood where most households have multiple cars, it may be easier to commute than to park downtown but they're acting like living in a suburb is something adults have no choice in lol. Routes are getting cut left and right and you want to add routes between suburbs? Heaven forbid you have to transfer once! They seem to think people further into the city can take one bus going anywhere but most trips are going to take 2-4 different busses unless your main route is right on the transit way... Like the blessed 99. Sorry I didn't realize how much that annoyed me until I started typing lol. But I guess people who can afford this kind of production aren't exactly the average rider.

[@NickNab]

I once walked from Merivale to Blair because waiting for the bus would take too long.

[@TheArejoe]

That must have taken a very long time 😃

[@julieerin115]

Wow, that's crazy!!

[@nikkijubilant]

I understand, as it's quicker for me to walk in between 3 buses rather than wait for and ride 5 buses one way from Baseline to Aylmer, Quebec! It's quicker to walk one and a half hours than stall for almost 3 hours plus. This is madness. Driving yo Montreal one way is 2 hours from Ottawa.

[@NickNab]

@@TheArejoe Took about three or so hours, if I recall correctly. Also I was wearing sandals, I regretted that choice the most.

[@bcmcinnis]

Very well done. Great example of someone filling the gap missed by “traditional” media.

[@hayley1652]

Now THIS is what I’m talking about. Expose em. One time, it took me 4 hours and 30 minutes to get from downtown to kanata (normally was 1 hour)

[@farkid911]

I loved waiting for the bus and seeing it come from the other direction where it isn't supposed to be coming from

[@katiemutschler6040]

My favorite moment was being on the 19 and it accidentally got confused and he missed 3 spots. There was a guy down the street that was so confused. I felt so bad for him but by the time I noticed, we were blocks away and I couldn't tell the driver he missed 3 stops and people were waiting. How do you go down the wrong street by accident! There was no detour that day

[@farkid911]

It's incredible how bad it is. I was late for school so many times

[@pritulkhan1395]

Gio, this is a wonderful documentary. This could be your niche... documentaries on Ottawa like this. Put out more man!

[@zevermeirre]

My friends in toronto apologize all the time when transit is late there by 5 or 10 minutes, they've never felt the 30-1hr lateness of Ottawa. This doc is super well done!

[@marianchapman9254]

Dude, cool documentary. This was awesome. I hope all of Ottawa sees this.

[@jaytouhey109]

All of Ottawa? I don't think so kid

[@Panzermeister36]

Excellent video. I live only 6 km from my workplace. A 15 minute drive, 25 minute bike ride, 1 hour walk. It would take 55 minutes with OC Transpo (assuming everything runs on time). If I can walk as fast as OC Transpo, that is a problem. And there is the lack of trust that the buses will arrive and routes transfer on-time. Then you have reduced ridership, lower profits, and further reduced service...a compounding cycle. I have zero confidence in OC Transpo so I just don't use it. I would like to, if it were feasible and reliable. I wouldn't have to pay for gas or parking. I could maybe sit down and get some work done during my morning commute. That's common in European countries with decent commuter rail systems. I would also love to bike all the time, but the pedestrian bridge is closed for the winter (5 months) and I cannot bike the never-plowed paths in the snow.

[@karlcarlsburg9641]

Same deal here. Im 4km north/south commute to work and it's a 45 min walk, 15 min bike ride, 40-50 minute bus ride depending on traffic, and if it shows up on time.

[@ryanironheart4154]

I'm a fat guy on a city bike (not lycra wearing speedster on a road bike) and at speeds averaging 22-24 km can bike to work (from Orleans) on average 40-50 minutes. With the bus/train if everything running smoothly it and average 50-65 minutes trip....that's just sad

[@littleamy20]

​@@karlcarlsburg9641same woes here!! I commented my similar proximity to downtown to counter the argument that this related to living in the suburbs. It's not

[@legrandliseurtri7495]

I was about 5km from home recently. There was a bus stop nearby, and when I looked at the electronic sign it said the next bus was 35 minutes away, and unfortunately it wasn't even the best bus possible for me cause it would have stopped about 700 meters away from my house. I decided I might as well walk, and I got home in less than 40 minutes. Yeah...

[@deemaxwell4172]

Move to Montreal, the bike paths are always FULLY PLOWED before everything else, while the sidewalks stay like frozen lunar surfaces for weeks on end. Everyone walks on the bike paths, risking life and limb from the winter cyclists, who are their own breed of kamikaze.

[@louthelost]

Awesome Diane Deans mentions, I miss her, even more so now knowing how much she went to bat for us

[@jamesofnoaffiliation]

Crazy high quality minidoc. I appreciate the hope towards the end but frankly my faith in OCTranspo and Ottawa's ability to fix this can't really get lower at this point...

[@lolaofalllola]

Hurdman: Perfect place for getting track and field practice before getting on your bus

[@meeshterious8644]

My thoughts exactly! 😂

[@lacteur1]

Your comment made me laugh out loud. Thank you!

[@patkack9547]

Hahaha, Blair too! Sprint practice.

[@matthewharris-levesque5809]

You're missing a few very important points * OC Transpo has a policy of, when a bus is broken or unavailible, working until the last minute to take a bus from somewhere else in order to replace the unavailable one. This means two things (neither of them good) - either that the trip may cancelled at the last moment (meaning it's too late for customers who could have made alternate plans to make other choices) OR that there's a domino effect, because they now have to adjust and replace the bus that was "stolen" * Busses tend to clump up - it's not uncommon for us to see two or three of a same number in a row. This has effects down the line, when the drivers want their breaks (fair enough) but their breaks eat into the next scheduled trips.. A simple solution would be to set the "late" bus of the gathering as "Offload Only" where it only stops when letting people off the bus (allow people to get on if it's stopping anyhow, because, people). This allows it to (hopefully) catch up to where it should be, and allow the driver his break, and to be ready in time for his next departure, avoiding cases of point number one. CLients will learn to understand that "Offload Only" on the display means that another bus is on it's way shortly! * Raising the price of the bus just makes people want to take alternate methods - be that cars... or walking or biking, While the last two are great for the environment, they're all three BAD for the transit budget. We need to give people the incentive to take the bus for short trips - It takes me 40 minutes to walk to the local mall. I'd rather do that than wait 30 minutes for the bus, ride the bus for 20 minutes, and pay for the experience. Then pay again for the same experience back home. That's eight bucks and ten minutes I saved in each direction. AND I avoided the sardine can feeling, AND I avoided the chance the bus wouldn't even show up. But if my cost was a clean and simply 2$ coin? - I might consider the wait. And I'm sure I'm not alone. It's a minimal amount to be sure, but it's also an amount - and people are people. * Pathing. Bus routes are (even more now than ever) designed to get people to and from downtown - or maybe more and more to get people to and from the train. The problem is that the system we have is a wheel with no rim - it's only the spokes. If you want to side shuffle, say from barhaven to south keys, or from south keys to gloucester, you have to ride inwards and then back outwards to get where you're going. Doubling or sometimes tripling the ride time. In fact, in most cases where clients need to take three buses (the standard - one to get to a hub, one to get between hubs, and one to get from the hub to your destination) then (you can check the math on this) google maps will most often tell me that the bus ride is [bike time+car time] or longer. That's inefficient pathing. *You DID cover this point.* * Participaction: The design of the stations is MISERABLE. Take a look at the staircases at gloucester center - steep and narrow; if there's ever an evacuation, there will be a trampling death, I guarantee it. At Hurdman, the busses let you off at one end of a three block concourse - if you're heading for the 44 or the 46 or others that are at the end of the line, you need to walk the whole concourse (3-4 minutes) in order to get there. What about those with mobility issues? And the need to squeeze past milling clients who are filling the whole path. The number of times I myself, or another person, are running for the bus as it passes them - with no hope of making the 4 minute jaunt fast enough... If the station were designed to drop people at center mass (both from busses and from trains) this could all have been avoided! * You're also missing the fact that the East-West train is still not properly adjusted. It still has to move slow on most corners and in many stretches. I've seen traffic jams on the neighboring roads move faster than the trains in many instances.

[@chilliduck1987]

Great additional points. Blair station is especially inconvenient when accessing the nearby amenities. It’s so poorly designed and only works for transferring from the train to busses heading east.

[@fredghostkyle]

This is a fabulous documentary on Occasional Transportation!!! Great to see the interviews as well as some amazing journalism!

[@patkack9547]

😂 Love it! I'm totally using that! I say the OC Transpo is not public transport. While the lack of movement happens in public, it's only transportation if it's "typically managed on a schedule, operated on established routes" (wiki) which as we know doesn't happen.

[@DenisCôté-d6o]

This video is a description of the transportation system in the National Capital Area. OC Transpo could not organize a two car parade. The bus schedule is never accurate. Many times, the scheduled bus never shows. Now with the slOw-train , it takes users more time to get to their destination than it did when using the buses on the transit way. Can't believe a rail system is slower than the bus in traffic. Billions of dollars were spent for a slow transit system that is inefficient. Thank you "Jimbo"!

[@Manders73]

This made me feel so seen and validated in my feelings and frustrations towards the OCT, I have no words. Thank you so much for putting your time and effort into this; great job 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻

[@edwardk3]

Unfortunately it left me feeling invalidated. Like my opinion was not considered at all!

[@Curt__]

Damn you're cute

[@BoatsNhoes824]

@@Curt__creepy simp

[@BoatsNhoes824]

@@Curt__goofy ahh

[@Curt__]

@@BoatsNhoes824 sorry I don't speak ebonics

[@OKR-s7p]

My biggest issue is the busses are too full! I have to wait over an hour sometimes because I had to wait for 3 busses just to get one with any passenger space. I genuinely feel for any mother's with baby carriages or handicapped folks with walkers or chairs.

[@Lizziefilmsthings]

I have given up on conventional OC transpo due to the fact that in peak hours, there is rarely space for me to sit. I have almost fallen (multiple times) on the transit because there is no space, and the drivers don't care if I get a seat or not. It's horrendous.

[@wassimkhoris9519]

What a crazy good quality doc regarding this issue. I moved from Toronto last year and Ottawa really does not feel like the capital of Canada...

[@Beritexi]

So glad you made this documentary. As I lived through much of it as a non-driver for medical reasons, it rang true. But I was shocked to see the scenes from the City Council! Disgraceful! Thank you for shining a light on this issue.

[@Okanagan48]

I was a bus driver for 25 years I watched the system deteriorate after Jim Watson became Mayor and the City became the Region. Transitways weren't plowed, repairs started falling behind, schedules were thrown aside. It was a good system when the Region ran OC Transpo. So so sad!

[@neopatrician]

Yes, exactly.

[@TheAudio1]

Woke mayor. Jimbo's only accomplishment was coming out of the closet.

[@deqa]

@@TheAudio1 As much as I hate populists that support Trump, you have to give them credit, democrats in the US hold a center position compared to leftists in Ottawa, Toronto, Vancouver, or in our current government. People are unaware of how ideologically captured the left in Canada is. A "conservative Canadian" is just a democrat (classic liberal) in the US, and I'd vote democrat every time. The 'trucker convoy' types are definitely far-right, though. If you guys want to complain about Ottawa's "woke mayor", then look at the parties that ran. You can see how cringe Canadian politics is from the outset of the "Canadian Communist Party". Like they have no real opposition. And consider the NDP as a party. You guys worship the environment and pretend to be center-left? That's STILL not a democrat in the US. How'd you guys let stuff get THIS bad? Did we forget what classic liberalism was? The sad truth is, the populists, as much as I hate them, are right on a few issues. It's over for Cuckanada.

[@caitthecat]

​@deqa What are you talking about??? You actually think Ottawa has voted anything left wing the past three decades? What do you think left wing is? 😂 You actually look crazy right now.

[@unclemick-synths]

​@@caitthecat some people think bike lanes are "left wing". Most people this side of the pond wouldn't know a real socialist if it bit them.

[@s.m.1981]

This is so well made. We'll done!

[@s.m.1981]

Thank you for talking about ParaTranspo!

[@Xandrvick]

Carleton student here! Oc transpo has been the bane of my existence in Ottawa since I moved. Funny that this is on my recommended, since like three days ago it took me OVER AN HOUR to get home on two busses over a short distance, whereas like you said, it would’ve been a 15 minute drive. Busses just won’t show up a campus, are ridiculously overcrowded, and if you have to take a connection that runs every half hour (like me) good luck, you’ll almost always miss it and need to wait at a cold bus stop for the next one, which will probably also be late. I feel incredibly seen with this lol.

[@whymeagainjoe]

I was constantly late for work because of a local connection in the south west of Ottawa. My job accused me of being a drug user with no evidence and fired me stating I was always late. The other option was leaving home an hour earlier to arrive at work and sit around for an hour unpaid in the morning when my shift started at 8. That's OC transportation for you.

[@k.f.1203]

This documentary was really well done! Good job.

[@HugoLacchiaOfficial]

Not even 10 seconds in and i subscribed. I literally moved 10mins walk away from my job because of the frustrating public transit system of Ottawa after 2.5 years of trying.

[@whoami-m6i]

Just the tip of the iceberg, if you look at federal-level projects, i.e, Pheniox, ArriveCan, and a lot more, it's amazing how all levels of government in Canada poorly manage all kinds of projects

[@lacteur1]

Bingo! It's all about project managers getting their "delivered a project on time" bonuses even when the project is nowhere near acceptable.

[@katherinecolbert4460]

This is absolutely epic. your work on our LRT issue it’s very admirable. 10/10. Thanks for this

[@carsjam]

Standing on an over-crowded platform watching and listening to a gaggle of out of service buses idling during rush hour: If only there was a solution!

[@dt6827]

Wasn't expecting to see a video about this location in my feed today. My son skips the 99 and gets a lift to the park and ride because the 99 can't even connect to the other local buses when it does show up.

[@rtfmpeople]

OK, the video was awesome, but HOLY CRAP THE CLOSING CREDITS SONG WAS EPIC!

[@barbarakajic9695]

Thank you so much for addressing this. The public transport and infrastructure in the capital city of a G7 country should be paramount for its citizens. Too many years of negligence in this city has jaded me. Any hope for change is just squandered.

[@Industryman]

Coming from Kanata and the many issues plaguing out there, this is a stellar documentary and really does highlight the growing issues the city and its wards face. Great work!

[@Bonkermcbonk]

I was living near the Ikea, but going to school at La cité and had to commute the entire way. 2/3 buses and the entire train track. I would was up at 4:30 am to get to my first bus stop, the 65, which was supposed to come by at 6:00. Sometimes i would be waiting for the next one an hour later, becausr the first one just wouldnt show up. That was happening almost daily, and I was calling OC transpo every time. They would always tell me the same thing "it left on time, it should be there" as if thats helpful. In quebec city, the buses have tracking, you can see where it is in real time. I've never had a missing bus, or a bus that was more than 10 minutes late. I just dont understand why it cant be the same in the capital of this country. Its so frustrating. Thank you for making this essay.

[@patkack9547]

In Gatineau too. You can see where the bus in real time! It's pathetic that OCT doesn't have basic tracking given its unreliability

[@lmf8503]

I was born in Ottawa, and have relied on transit for over 40 years. I've also been talking about OC Transpo's issues online for close to 30 years. I could write endlessly, but I just want to touch on the key points I think you have missed. First and foremost, you have glossed over a great deal of history. At no point in the past was OC Transpo considered a "World Class" transit system. The very early days of the Transitway were a massive improvement to service, and better than comparable sized cities in North America. However, that promise was followed by multiple strikes, a mass shooting at OC Transpo headquarters, 2 fatal crashes and an ever decreasing quality of service. The Transitway was never utilized properly as part of an efficient hub and spoke system, and the downtown core was over capacity by 2000. Which leads to the second point. As painful as it was, cancelling the North-South LRT project was the right call. The project, as it was planned, would have been a mess, especially the surface rail through downtown. It also did not serve the majority of riders, and would have been even more of a white elephant with the decrease in downtown commuters. It only got as far as it did because former mayor Bob Chiarelli saw it as his "legacy". The system that we are building now, essentially converting the Transitway to rail, should have been the only plan on the table, and could have had shovels in the ground in the early 2000s. Third, I don't think comparisons to other cities can be taken very far. You touch on the geographical issues, which do play a huge role, but there are also deep rooted social issues at play as well. Riders here are extremely adverse to change, especially if it involves adding transfers. It's not surprising given OC's track record, but they have also fought against much needed improvements. Commuters were lucky to have direct buses from the farthest suburbs to downtown for years. That doesn't work in a major city and was unsustainable. There are multiple routes that should have been split decades ago. There are multiple routes with stops so close together that it kills performance. Anywhere else in the world the metric for stop distance is double that of OC Transpo. Any other comparable sized city, the furthest suburbs would be served by regional transit, not city buses, or at the very least there would be a fare zone system. Ultimately, it comes down to two things: a lack of leadership, and a lack of money. As long as the North American attitude that transit is only for hippies, teenagers, poor people, and maybe commuting, persists things won't get better. We are still letting developers build transit impenetrable communities. Convincing transit riders to focus their efforts on constructive feedback is an uphill battle, and convincing the large majority of people who do not interact with transit that they benefit as well is almost impossible. I admire your optimism, but the next few years are going to be rough. I am grateful that stage 2 of the LRT had shovels in the ground before the SHTF. Until that is done, and the kinks are ironed out, it will be a challenge just to keep OC Transpo out of a death spiral.

[@seirousgamer3923]

As a Toronto resident, looking at the report which came out reminded me of the story which I read about in the book "A Thirty Years' War: The Failed Public/Private Partnership That Spurred The Creation Of The Toronto Transit Commission, 1891-1921" by C. Ian Kyer. It's kind of funny that we've gone back in circles to learn the lessons of 100 years ago again

[@stukah6715]

Thanks for covering this! The OC Transpo is absolutely deplorable sometimes.

[@JoshuaRyanDoesStuff]

Yeah I stayed in Ottawa for 6 months last year, I’m from Toronto. I was blown away by how horrible the transit was in our capital. I got so fed up of being late/ needing to leave obscenely early I bought a bike. Same deal living in the south side, a reliable 45 minute bike ride was better than an up to 2 hour commute by bus.

[@angeldrapeau4638]

Thank you for bringing light to this issue. The most frustrating part is the lack of accountability from OC Transpo. Waiting 40 minutes to an hour in -30 weather is miserable and maddening. The high cost we pay for public transit does not represent the service we endure daily. They are losing riders each and every day

[@Leo_HuangAB]

I might be moving to Ottawa for a job soon. Everyone I know who's lived or worked in Ottawa is already telling me to not take the trains and only take the bus. And now I see this about the buses, man looks like I need to figure out how to plan ahead and go by foot for everything

[@brittanytrusler5295]

If you're in the mood for death-defying adventure, give commuting by bicycle a chance!

[@bonnyc392]

I take the bus. This is fact for every part of the city. Kanata is not getting LRT trains. I waited 50 min for a bus that was 50 min late and the same bus # came right behind was 21 min late. The roads are also very busy so even if you drive, this WILL be your reality. Very frustrating !

[@amaze2n]

Foot/bike for everything is the only way when you have time constraints. If your job pays well enough, get a car because the physical exhaustion accumulates. When you can afford being an hour late, OC Transpo does the job.

[@patkack9547]

Train is fairly reliable and comes every 4 mins T peak hour. However, freezing rain, snow or anything winter related makes it unreliable. The buses run every 20-30 mins and are so unreliable it's like waiting for unicorns. Centertown is walkable and served by the train and buses. Otherwise in terms of walkable hoods, Westboro (no train) or New Edinburgh (also no train) are your best bets.

[@lyricmatthews6171]

I much prefer the train, they come a lot more frequently and get you there faster

[@pritulkhan1395]

I have lived in Ottawa for two decades before I moved to Toronto. Toronto's TTC is so much more reliable. 5 to 10 minute late is a minor inconvenience in comparison to Ottawa's terrible system. I don't even want to begin to think the inefficiencies with the LRT.. I heard it's really bad.

[@dcchiasson5991]

For the past couple of months, I've taken OC Transpo 3 times a week to go to the CIvic for treatments. It has taken me up to 2 hours to get from close to Lincoln Fields Station (I take a local bus to the station, then the 85 to the hospital) to the Civic, because of buses that either didn't show up, or that were ridiculously late. On other occasions, I've tried to get to Robertson Road, but the expected bus only went as far as Bayshore. Each time, we were told the next bus would go further. Nearly 2 hours wasted, and we changed our plans. The 51 Tunney's Pasture sometimes offers "no service for the next 4 hours". I could go on...

[@droid7627]

Thank you for making this!!! I grew up in Barrhaven putting up with OC, and it wasn't until I moved to Pembroke where i could afford (and require frankly) a car. My eyes were OPENED. When I moved back to Barrhaven I worked in Nepean. a 15-25 minute drive. I didn't have access to my car for a while and would have to take 2-3 busses on a 1hr+ commute, which itself, is insane. One night the 80 blows right past me after a long shift, and I have to sit there and pray that the second last bus of the night - that drove right past me - wasn't actually the last one. And then the epiphany hits me - about how much time I've been saving myself by owning a car. I do everything to make sure I have a car and it drives, I cannot go back to relying on those busses. And it's a shame, because I know a few people that drive the busses, they're cool people, but even they'll be the first to admit the transit is a disaster, and a shadow of its former self.

[@Matt-fc2gw]

I am so happy to see this video is going viral. Please continue to share this video, maybe is enough and the right people see it, it could help get us some improvements. Great work DUDE!

[@richardbeare11]

20k views in a day, not bad at all. Also, kinda says something about the bus system, doesn't it 😂 Good work, btw. First impressions: Well paced, well shot, well structured.

[@tylerpeppy1450]

As a student who lives in your exact neighborhood waiting for the 99 very often, it is hilariously ridiculous that the busses almost never show up on time. This documentary puts this in perfect view for everyone.

[@TechOttawa]

What a spectacular masterpiece! Thank you for this reporting. 🙏Bang on. I didn't own a car 1989-2014 and took the 95 to Orleans daily - it worked OK when combined with bike racks on the main line. Heartbreaking to see all the issues now. Line 1 East stations do NOT serve their neighborhoods well AT ALL. Hurdman/Tremblay and St Laurent are wickedly difficult to access in any normal way. Esp Tremblay! NO ACCESS, no plans that make ANY sense. My 2 cents on Line 1 - The St Laurent to Lees stretch of Line 1 track will forever cause issues - track/car issues are borked in this stretch. Needs complicated realignment or new cars.

[@TheBookBully]

This is a fantastic piece, and absolutely needed in this embarrassment of transit system. Hoping it blows up internationally and embarasses Mark Sutcliffe so much he is forced to make changes.

[@thomastello6845]

so true, unfortunately OC transpo has just been getting worse and worse

[@jessip8654]

I endured using oc transpo for three years before it broke me and I got a car. I hope you're right and it gets better. Fighting traffic on the freeway just to go downtown sucks.

[@via3600]

I sure do love getting up before the sun rises to wait for a bus that may or may not come. A trip that would be about a 10 minute car ride takes anywhere from 40 minutes to 2 hours. I very VERY rarely make my 8 am class in time.

[@Dandy21]

I’m in my 30s and I’ve been using transit my whole life. Never needed a drivers license and never been in the trap of car payments/insurance/gas But OC is so awful now, it’s practically impossible to travel the city consistently so I’ve been reluctantly going through my driving tests. I just want to take a bus like in any livable city

[@quinnmcgillis4618]

I always relied on a car to get places because I live in Greely. But I went away for school to a different city only to learn that public transit was in fact reliable and a normalized method of transportation. Growing up in Ottawa I was always disconnected from the public transit system and used it occasionally when I went to high school on Walkley to go into the city after school or meet with friends. There is a bus that goes to Greely but I’ve never used it before. Hopefully we will see better days in the future!

[@NoThisIsPatrickOfficial]

Traffic in Ottawa in unreal; as a business owner who’s income depends entirely on traffic more or less, clients traveling across the city to come see me will instead route much closer to them even if services are worsened; the commute saves them immense amounts of time when this problem never existed a few years ago. I’ve noticed an extreme drop off in clients who live further away who has used my services for years; suddenly it takes them 2x as long to reach and no longer do we maintain those clients.

[@jodytoupin1225]

Yes, this is a trickle down effect of a bad transit system plus most workers back to work. The traffic is now absolutely nuts, worse than I have ever experienced, Even though I don't work far from home, it takes me so long to get home during rush hour and to work in the morning. It is a nightmare.. so I can't imagine how bad the bus system is in getting to where they are supposed to be on time. Great documentary, much needed. If we had a better transportation system, more people would use it and less cars on the road.

[@Curt__]

Are you hiring?

[@KookieMM0221]

I'll never forget one of the first R1 busses picking us up at St Laurent Mall and just skipping Cyrville station and dropping us at Blair. There was a hord of people who had walked from Cyrville to Blair just hoping to get a bus. It was February and freezing, I gave a lady my gloves because her hands were blue. I'm glad that the kinks are being worked out, but that shit is scarred into my brain forever. I don't think an apology was ever given to those people, but hey, now there's a Happy Goat coffee shop at Blair.

[@benpregent]

This is such a tragedy, 20 years ago Ottawa used to be known for its great bus service. I used to live in the West end and worked downtown around 2003 and taking the bus was great back then. It would often be quicker by bus than car

[@PhilipJackson03]

Ottawa can have a good transit system once it stops making transit specifically for downtown-suburb priority as well as creating it specifically for car drivers. If those two mindsets alone were changed, all the smaller things down the system would be fixed in kind. Which would mean less traffic on the road, support for low-income residents and in turn a much stronger local economy…but that’s a long ways away. Especially with them just eliminating senior discounts and raising the child discounts.

[@xylvnking]

I'm glad I got to experience it at its best. In 2005-2009 I would take the bus literally everywhere around ottawa. I had friends from kanata to orleans to barrhaven and I grew up downtown.

[@AK-pz7om]

5:48 I’m only a couple mins in but thank you for taking the time to make this. I’ve been in this city two years and also work downtown. Similar to you, I’d rather not drive and pay extortion level parking fees, so I decide to take transit. I leave from Gloucester area and the time span in which my bus can arrive varies +/- 15-20 mins. It’s terrible…obviously transit has its funding issues however we’re about to be charged $4/ride for abysmal service. Public transit needs to be seen as an essential service and less focus on profit - it’s not gonna happen here in the short term. Ottawa’s public transit is extremely abysmal for a G7 nation’s capital. What are we doing here? This is simply a microcosm of an overall issue with Canada and being ok with mediocrity. What are we actually elite at? We settle for the status quo and are scared of taking risks. I want to be excited about HSR from TO-MTL, however I doubt it’ll happen because of political will (which is always the convenient excuse for not doing something). These politicians don’t want to serve people and solve issues, they just worry about the hot topic of the day that will get them re-elected. Sorry for the rant and I appreciate this documentary. RM Transit is a good channel to follow for a deeper dive into Canadian transit. P.S: Jim Watson needs to be held accountable for his crimes for what he did to OC Transpo

[@nhahais]

At Carleton I would often wait 45 minutes in -30 temperature for the bus

[@steffanixoom]

Same here & then when a (then 96) would show up it would be cram packed with government workers already & it was like the Hunger Games to try and squeeze on somewhere

[@Sy8ro]

Absolutely right. I used to take the bus when I was younger and it was always unreliable. They never show up on time, or at all sometimes. I got my own car at 22 and my mental health and life in general has greatly improved

[@eframellenbogen]

Well done on this documentary. Thank you for taking the time and effort to present the facts in an objective and transparent fashion. It was an eye (watering) opener.

[@michaelqu]

What they need is something called public light bus in the suburbs. Here in Hong Kong, the light buses are the domineant way of getting around the suburbs, and they have routes that go to MTR stations where trains go downtown. Because light buses are small, they can be run more frequently, every 10 minutes or less

[@FinleyMcH]

im a carleton student from stittsville, and im pretty much forced into driving if i want to attend my lectures as the trip by bus is approx 110 minutes (assuming the bus even shows up). i think i realized that i had to get my drivers license when i would have to take the bus to CHEO for appointments as a teenager, but rarely ever making it due to random cancellations. im very fortunate to be able to drive and to have access to a car, but i want to be environmentally sustainable. i feel stuck.

[@jojomojolazy]

Fr man its ass

[@edwardk3]

Your situation is all too common unfortunately. But here in Ottawa we often don't have a choice, plus the cars can have disproportionately negative effect on women's equality.

[@davidsolano2423]

Yes, On Sundays it is impossible to take a bus.

[@elijebrown7083]

great work. This is truly one of Ottawa's biggest problems

[@Doodles999]

This is what OC Transpo LRT brought into Ottawa, sewer smelling Stations,selling buses that we now need,& a maintenance team that leaves water lines open during the winter so the pipes freeze and burst. Thank you OC Transpo on this failure.

[@DyingDarkLight]

I biked from fisher and meadowlands to Carleton U in 2018/19. Always beat the bus even in the winter months, and when I left Ottawa I lent my bike to some friends because it was more reliable.

[@susanvp4685]

Very impressive documentary on the failings of City of Ottawa. Watson, Manconi & the city manager should have faced criminal charges for the shenanigans of this project

[@Curt__]

You're such a milf

[@Curt__]

You're hot for a grandma

[@JohnnyPerth]

This is well done. Transat was better when I was a kid back in the 70s. I’m glad for the Greenbelt

[@user-ni6eq2jm4v]

omg…I have been WAITING for someone to talk about this! I took the 99 Hurdman every day for a year. Almost every single day my bus was canceled or delayed by a significant amount of time. I lived a 10 min drive away from work, but yet it took me over an hour to go home every day because that bus never showed. I was so miserable and I count my blessings I don’t have to take that bus anymore! Thank you for talking about this!

[@samchiappetta4629]

Thank you for this! Super well made, provides important historical background, and, perhaps most importantly, ends on a much needed optimistic note! -Written while waiting for the bus

[@carlmuir6880]

Great documentary. Easier times back in college when the 2 and 95 had you covered for most of rlthe ridership. The South end drastically needs another way to get out as Barrhaven just gets more and more populated. I also would have loved to have actually found why the 99 is always late. Like tracking say 3-4 back to back 99 busses and how they actually get off schedule. Accidents? Extra long driver Timmies breaks? Traffic? Worth the watch!