As of March 16 all routes will be running. This includes all express routes. There will still be some individual trips to be reinstated between mid-March and early April so people should check the schedules at www.octranspo.com before using routes restored on March 16.

OC Transpo will also be restoring the route 60 tomorrow (Wednesday February 25). This is in addition to the route 61 which resumed service on Monday. While the route 60 does not serve the Park and Ride, it will help take the pressure off the 96, 96D and 61.

What has helped get service restored earlier is the decision of the provincial government to grant Council's request to speed at the safety inspection process and the progress maintenance staff are making at inspecting and repairing buses.

I will be letting people know of further changes to when full service will be restored.

CLARIFICATION ON ECOPASS DEDUCTIONS

OC Transpo have updated the information on how long Ecopass deductions will be suspended. The date deductions will restart will depend on when they were suspended. The information from the OC Transpo website is below.

Sincerely,

Peggy

ECOPASS

ECOPASS payroll deductions are currently stopped, but ECOPASSES are still valid on OC Transpo and STO buses. ECOPASS holders will receive the same discount and reimbursements which have been offered to other December pass holders. This discount and reimbursement will be provided by further postponing payroll deductions.

The total discount period, before any deductions resume, will include credit for: · any amount that you paid after the strike began, plus · credit for service in February, equal to 10 days of weekday service, plus · credit for a 60% discount in March, plus · credit for Express Ecopass holders, equal to the monthly express premium which would normally be charged in April, May or June.

Payroll deductions will resume at the appropriate pay-period in April, May or June based on the date that deductions were stopped by your employer, the extra deduction-holiday calculated from the above credits, and the timing of your pay period. For details, please contact your Ecopass Administrator.

If you have an ECOPASS that has expired since November 2008, it will continue to be accepted for a limited time. Please visit an OC Transpo Sales Centre http://www.octranspo.com/fares/Sales_Info_Centres/TwyMap_SalesOffices.html no later than April 30th to pick up a new card.

February 13, 2009

COMPENSATION FOR TRANSIT USERS CHANGED - NEW PACKAGE A STEP BACKWARDS

At the February 11th Council meeting it was possible for some councillors to block the recommendations proposed by the Transit Committee. The Transit Committee recommendations recognized the time it will take to get back to full service by allowing people to use regular December passes until the end of March and express December passes until the end of April. Contributions for Ecopass holders would have been suspended for an equivalent period of time.

A majority of councillors voted to approve these recommendations, but there were enough councillors opposed to get a reconsideration motion passed. With reconsideration the issue would have been on hold until early March and there would be no compensation for Ecopass holders or people who purchased December passes until the next Council meeting at the earliest.

Details of the reduced compensation measures can be found here.

While the compensation is still better than getting a refund on your bus pass for people planning to use the service in February, the change to the compensation plan is unfair to transit users who will not be receiving full service until March or April. It also adds to the confusion in what has already been a difficult process.

At council, I argued that people paid for full transit service in December and that including days with only partial service when calculating compensation was not fair. A majority of councillors shared that view. However, because the motion for reconsideration meant our option was no compensation or reduced compensation, a revised compensation proposal was approved.

The vote on the motion of reconsideration that led to the compensation measures being reduced was:

In favour of reconsideration (so that compensation would NOT be based on when full transit service is available): Mayor O'Brien and Councillors Brooks, Chiarelli, El-Chantiry, Harder, Jellett, Legendre, Monette, Qadri, and Thompson

Opposed to reconsideration (in favour of compensation being based on when full transit service is available): Councillors Bellemare, Bloess, Cullen, Deans, Doucet, Feltmate, Holmes, Leadman, McRae, and Wilkinson

February 4, 2009

EXPRESS BUS SERVICE NEEDED AS SOON AS POSSIBLE

At the Council meeting to approve the agreement to end the strike, I made it clear that express service was needed as soon as possible. The speed at which buses will be available is better than first expected, but OC Transpo projects that express service will not be fully restored until April 6. I will continue to work for the process to be speeded up.

Updates on which buses are running and the schedules can be found here.

The most recent information from OC Transpo for Kanata bus routes is that services will be restored as follows:

MEASURES TO ASSIST WITH PARKING TO CONTINUE UNTIL FULL TRANSIT SERVICE RETURNS

Measures put in place during the strike to assist people with parking will stay in place until transit service is fully restored.

People can continue to park all day at on the street where there are no parking meters AND one, two or three hour parking is normally permitted up until April 5. Starting March 23 courtesy notices will be issued to let people know when free all day parking is ending.

Temporary lots and discounts at most city parking lots for people who car pool will remain in effect until service is fully restored. Details can be found here.

January 22, 2009

ADDITIONAL HELP ANNOUNCED TO HELP PEOPLE COPE WITH THE TRANSIT STRIKE

Funding has been provided to community agencies to help those hit hardest by the strike cope. After the initial $200,000 was exhausted, council allocated an additional $500,000.

There are also additional measures to help people get to work, including additional parking spaces and discounts at city parking lots for people who are carpooling. Details of measures to help people people cope can be found here.

WHERE TO FIND FREE ON STREET PARKING

During the strike people can park all day at locations without parking meters where there would normally be a one, two or three hour time limit. One question that has come up is which downtown streets don't have parking meters. To see a map showing parking meters downtown click here.

There are some locations where parking or stopping is not permitted. Before parking check the signs to be certain. Generally parking is not allowed in areas north of Laurier Street with no parking meters and is allowed on streets south of Laurier.December 11, 2008.

HELP AVAILABLE TO GET TO APPOINTMENTS FOR SENIORS AND ADULTS WITH DISABILITIES

Through the Western Ottawa Community Resource Centre in Kanata seniors and adults with disabilities can arrange for rides to medical and other appointments. This service has existed for many years, but with the transit strike the need is even greater. Rides are provided by volunteers.

To get information about arranging for a ride or to volunteer, please call 613-591-3686. More information can be found here.

December, 2008

City's final offer balance of controlling costs and respecting transit employees

The City's final offer to OC Transpo employees represented a very reasonable attempt to reach agreement without a strike. Details of the offer can could be seen here [link no longer functions]. People who use OC Transpo are particularly hard hit, but all of us who are travelling during rush hour are feeling the effect. We need to get the strike settled as soon as possible with an agreement that reflects the current economic realities. I hope as there is more discussion of the City's offer, the union will agree to return to the negotiating table and come up with a settlement.

Information on changes to rules in place during the strike can be found here. There is also a ride matching service at ottawaridematch.com.