OC Transpo's New GM: Revamping Ottawa's Transit

0:00It's March 29th. Welcome to Canada News Today, powered by AI. I'm Corey with the story. Rick Leary just stepped in as the new general manager for OC Transpo in Ottawa, right when the city's transit system is hitting major snags with its fleet. He's the XCEO of Toronto's TTC, starting his career as a driver in Boston and climbing through systems across North America. Mayor Mark Sutcliffe called this an incredibly tough time, but Leary brings frontline know-how from his seven years leading the TTC until last year. He hit the ground running on day one, diving into an assessment of line one to get full service back online. Leary's top aim is safe, reliable rides, and a solid vibe for passengers, stressing that Ottawa's deserve a system they can count on every day. The mayor laid it out straight to reporters. Service levels are frustrating and way below what residents expect. Folks have dealt with longer weights and crowding since January, when cartridge bearing issues forced OC Transpo to yank trains over 100,000 kilometers from service.

1:04Now line one runs single trains at three to four minute headways with just 21 low mileage units, causing fluctuations in crowds this week. Buses are struggling too from an aging diesel fleet, with undelivered trips averaging 1.6% last week, better than 6% in early, January, but still double to 0.5% target. They're pushing forward by adding six new electric buses last week, hitting 78 zero emission vehicles total while tackling capacity across. The board to study things out