Bus route 17 returning

OC Transpo’s route 17 is returning in some form this spring.

OC Transpo temporarily suspended the old route 17 in 2021. This frustrated many Manor Park commuters.

In November 2023, OC Transpo presented a “route review” to City of Ottawa council. This included recommendations to cut many routes. There were also some suggested route “improvements”.

One of those improvements is a revived route 17. It will be active as a peak period weekday connection from Wateridge to Rideau Station via Montreal Rd and Brittany Dr.

OC Transpo is finalizing the routes for the 17 and other added routes. More information will be available in the coming months.

‘Improving service reliability’

General Manager of Transit Services Renée Amilcar submitted a memo to the mayor and councillor. She said the 2023 bus route review was necessary “in response to noticeable changes in customers’ travel patterns”. These were mostly a result of the COVID-19 pandemic and continuing work-from-home policies.

OC Transpo will implement changes to the bus route network this spring.

The purpose of the route review was to help OC Transpo attain a “service reliability” target of 99.5 percent.

“Improving service reliability is key to building and maintaining a public transit system that customers and residents can have confidence in. The target of 99.5 percent means that out of approximately 8,000 trips delivered each weekday, no more than 40 trips would be cancelled in a single day.”

OC Transpo shifted routes from “downtown-focused commuter routes”. Instead, they supported connections to “community hubs such as transit stations and grocery stores”. The changes complement O-Train lines 2 and 4 (the north-south line and airport connection, expected to launch later this year).

The review eliminated the remaining 200-series “Connexion” routes (offering local rush-hour service to transit stations). OC Transpo cancelled several east end 200 routes in 2021 when route 17 was “suspended”.

Bus service on streets with low ridership is being cut and OC Transpo acknowledged “walking distance to bus stops may increase for some customers, and some customers will need to make an additional transfer.”