Organizers say wet, cold weather ideal for Ottawa transit challenge

By Jenn Pritchard

The every day challenge for commuters in Ottawa include waiting for buses that never show, buses that show up late and buses with no room.

This week, 17 city councillors are experiencing these issues first hand. 

“What the councillors are running into are full buses, late buses, missing buses where GPS says the bus is coming, nothing comes,” said Sam Boswell, co-founder of Ottawa Transit Riders.

She explained to 1310 NEWS that she's impressed with how many stepped up to take part. 

“They seem to be taking it very seriously,” she said. “I was going through Twitter quickly this morning and it's actually nice to see that they understand that this is important to their constituents and to the city.”

 

 

Organizers are also pleased that the weather has been ideal – from freezing rain to snow to thawing snow and large puddles – when it comes to dealing with transit issues. 

“The weather being especially bad [Tuesday] and this week with the warming up and freezing and the flooding,” added Boswell. “That's maybe a bit of a surprise, that the bus shelters are flooded.” 

 

 

But, Boswell explained that these are issues experienced by transit users on a weekly basis. 

At the end of the week, councillors will be asked what worked and what didn't, with the hopes of opening a dialogue at city hall about transit. 

“I'm hoping they'll come out with a list of priorities that we need to work with OC Transpo to try and find some solutions,” Boswell said. 

She said organizers are looking forward to hearing from councillors that they understand what the issues are with the city's transit system. 

For more information on the Transit Week Challenge, click here
 

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