OC Transpo launches downtown express today in latest LRT replacement

A new R1 express shuttle service is expected to speed up the trips from Blair station through downtown during morning and afternoon rush hours, the latest response to frustrations with bus service offered during Ottawa's latest LRT shutdown.

The express service started Monday as Ottawa begins a third week without train service, according to a Sunday morning update from the city's general manager of transit services, Renée Amilcar. 

It will run Monday to Friday from 6:30 a.m. to 8:30 a.m. for the westbound morning commute, starting at Blair Station with stops on the Mackenzie King Bridge, and along Albert Street at Bank and Kent streets.

Riders can watch for "R1 Lyon Express" on the display.

From 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. on weekdays, express buses will leave from the Slater Street stops at Bank and Kent streets, along with the Mackenzie King Bridge, for the eastbound afternoon commute to Blair.

That display will show "R1 Blair Express."

48 buses now part of R1 and express service

The express shuttles will rely on 12 buses running about once every 15 minutes, though Amilcar said OC Transpo will monitor and adjust if needed.

That's in addition to the 36 buses deployed for regular R1 bus service, for a total of 48 buses.

There is no dedicated fleet for R1, meaning both drivers and buses have to be pulled from other routes to make R1 service and the express shuttles happen.

"It's a delicate balance [OC Transpo is] trying to achieve," said Coun. Glen Gower, chair of the city's transit commission, in an interview Monday from Tunney's Pasture, where he was observing how service was performing.

"OC Transpo has listened to and heard the feedback from customers on R1 bus service and is responding," Amilcar said in her note, adding that the express buses will offer "an additional travel option during the busiest commuting times."

She said there will be no further changes to the existing R1 route and shuttles. 

They serve as a replacement for the LRT, which has been closed since July 17 due to concerns raised by the discovery of a loose bearing in a wheel hub assembly. 

After completing axle inspections on the fleet and receiving an analysis of the hub from its manufacturer in France, OC Transpo was planning a gradual return to LRT service starting on Monday.

But that fell through when new concerns over restraining rails prompted the city to announce they must all be adjusted before service can resume.

The current estimate foresees that work will take at least 10 more days.

When LRT service resumes, Gower said R1 service will continue for a period of time to help riders transition.

Gower said Monday that while he understands the frustration of residents about OC Transpo's communications on the shutdown, "I think we've come a long way from where we were at during the last term of council."