OC Transpo ridership hits record levels

Ottawa – OC Transpo ridership reached an unprecedented level during the April to June period this year with 24.93 million passenger trips taken. The record number of riders in the second quarter of 2011 represents a 9.9% increase over the same period in 2010 and more than doubles the national average increase during the same timeframe.

“This big increase in the number of people using OC Transpo is great news,” said Mayor Jim Watson. “It is clear that the residents of Ottawa know that public transit is a real alternative for getting around in our growing city.”

Growth in ridership is attributable to the upgrading of the bus fleet to modern more comfortable vehicles, the continuation and growth of the U-Pass program and the increase in gas prices, which makes public transit an even more attractive alternative. OC Transpo has also improved the rider experience with the implementation of the on-board announcements program.

“This increased ridership really shows that residents in Ottawa are taking advantage of our great public transportation system, which will ultimately help us achieve the City’s long term sustainability goals” said Councillor Diane Deans, Chair of the Transit Commission. “As I indicated in my letter to OC Transpo yesterday evening, I am very grateful to the employees who work tirelessly to continuously improve our transit system, from making the service faster and more reliable, to enhancing the customer experience in general. All of those efforts are making a difference”.

As indicated by the Canadian Urban Transit Association last month, public transit ridership across Canada showed very strong growth in 2010, with an increase of 4.1% nationally over the previous year.

The Q2 Transit Services Performance Report is available at ottawa.ca.

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