Ecology Ottawa

News Clippings

The best councillor tweets from the Ottawa Transit Challenge

By Kieran Delamont, 1310 News, February 9, 2019

Over the past week, Ottawa’s city councillors have been, in a rare touch of populism, riding the buses this week as part of the so-called Transit Challenge. The idea, started by Free Transit Ottawa is simple: give up your car for a week, and avail yourself of the services of OC Transpo. The Transit Challenge is a lot of things to a lot of different people. Some were fully on board: Coun. Glen Gower upped the ante and says he is going to take the bus for the rest of the month. Others, like Coun. Scott Moffatt, were less supportive:

...Seems like the campaign is more to shame those who don't rather than promote those who do. Where would the world be without social media?

But whatever you think of the Transit Challenge, and whether it will bring any real change to Ottawa transit, one thing is for sure — the councillors tweeted through it. We rounded up some of our favourites:

Transit woes and wins to be discussed at city hall

By Jenn Pritchard, 1310 News, February 11, 2019

The organizers of the Transit Week Challenge will hold a review on Monday afternoon focused on the new steps for transit.

Seventeen city councillors took part in the challenge, many posting about their experience on social media.

Most of the feedback has been positive, but some had some concerns over buses being on time or even showing up at all and with poor weather there were flooding issues in some bus shelters.

EGAN: Route 269 finds the ordinary a month after deadly crash

By Kelly Egan, Ottawa Sun, February 9, 2019

They died on a wintry Friday like this, very near this hour, after leaving from this bus stop — or one just like it — set in a windy canyon on the Mackenzie King Bridge between the Rideau Centre and the National Defence building.

Just after 3 p.m., here comes Route 269, the sun already low and almost blinding. A crowd clambers on, bundled like winter warriors. Who would ever sit in the top of a double-decker again after the carnage we witnessed on Jan. 11, when three were killed and dozens were injured?

But here we are, four Fridays later, the top level filled after a couple of stops, before the bus even departs downtown. Maybe it’s how we deal with the tragic: by wrapping ourselves in the comfort of the normal, the everyday. Sit where we sat yesterday and it will all work out.

GIBBONS: It was a tough week for Transit Week Challenge

By Rick Gibbons, Ottawa Sun, February 11, 2019

Like an old diesel bus, the Transit Week Challenge wheezed to the finish line of a long, at times painful journey yesterday, a good idea made bad by crappy weather, grumpy customers and too many Twitter-addicted councillors volunteering breathless updates of their journeys home each night, as though navigating a trip to the Moon.

The plan was cooked up innocently enough by some smart, well-intentioned community transit activists who wanted elected reps to spend an entire week living like regular folk — you know, standing along frozen city streets before daylight praying for buses that never seem to arrive or are jammed like sardine cans when they do.

Dear councillors who can't hack transit: We're not sorry for you

By Robyn Miller, CBC News Ottawa, February 9, 2019

People who rely solely on OC Transpo to get around Ottawa applaud challenging city councillors to do the same for a week, but are also frustrated that not all of them can handle it.

• Transit challenge proves difficult for some councillors

Free Transit Ottawa is behind the challenge and said the goal is to draw attention to parts of the transit system that need improvement, and encourage discussion between elected officials and residents.

Corruption charges weigh heavily on engineering giant SNC-Lavalin but LRT not at risk: expert

By Tom Spears, Ottawa Citizen, February 11, 2019

SNC-Lavalin has lost billions of dollars because of corruption charges and could lose more business in future, but one expert says the projects it has underway today are not at risk.

That includes Ottawa’s light rail transit line, says Ian Lee, who teaches management at Carleton University’s Sprott School of Business. The giant engineering company is part of the consortium building the LRT.

Menard: Yes, public transit is a gender issue – and a climate issue too

By Shaun Menard, Ottawa Citizen, February 8, 2019

A bit of a controversy arose at Ottawa city council recently when I suggested the Transit Commission reconsider a proposed public member based on his public views on abortion and climate change. Despite the vitriol and hyperbole that has ensued, these are important issues.

When I raised my concerns, I wasn’t seeking to single anyone out (on the contrary, I sought to have the entire list of potential public board members sent back for additional consideration by the selection committee). My intent was to ensure that two issues, gender equality and climate change, were properly considered when assessing candidates for Transit Commission.

Stop setting deadlines for LRT: Meehan

By the Ottawa Citizen, February 8, 2019

As Ottawa councillors prepare for a key meeting with the builders of the city’s $2.1-billion light-rail transit system next week, one councillor says setting deadlines for service to begin is counter-productive.

“I think it’s time to stop setting deadlines for the LRT to open,” Coun. Carol Anne Meehan tweeted Friday afternoon. “It disappoints people and shakes their confidence. The LRT will be ready when it’s ready to roll. Can’t wait.”

Today's letters: City shouldn't dip into reserves for core activities

By a number of writers, Ottawa Citizen Letters to the Editor, February 9, 2019

(...)Reserve funds should be refunded

It’s a rather curious thing, this city of Ottawa reserve fund. It seems there is over $400 million in it, from under-spending and over-taxing. Now all the departments and special interest groups are standing with their hands out, demanding this money.

(...)There’s gridlock inside the greenbelt too

Re: Like suburban life? Then stop gridlock griping, Feb. 1.

Brigitte Pellerin’s arrogant, self-congratulatory comment on suburbanites’ complaints about traffic services or infrastructure is infuriating. She argues people have chosen to trade access for commuting, and so should just deal with it.

(...)Stop picking on the inner city

Brigitte Pellerin has nailed it. Picking your location – the ‘burbs – then complaining that you don’t have all the “benefits” of living in the city’s core is indeed a bit much.

(...)Only elected people should sit on city committees

Re: Council toes charter line in asking questions about transit commissioner, Jan. 30.

As a past co-chair of the city’s Environmental Stewardship Advisory Committee, I took great interest in the selection of the four public members for the Transit Commission. As a member of an advisory committee, I could not vote on any decisions made by the Environment and Climate Protection Committee. But members of the Transit Commission do vote.

City budget drops ball on climate change, advocates say

By Kate Porter, CBC News Ottawa, February 8, 2019

Environmental advocates say a "business as usual" draft city budget doesn't go far enough to tackle climate change, and they want the mayor declare a climate emergency as other cities have.

Ecology Ottawa is one of many organizations now parsing the budget tabled earlier this week to figure out if it thinks city spending has changed for the better — or worse — in areas it deems a priority

(...)"On a lot of these other items, the city is just playing it by the book and saying 'steady as she goes, business as usual,'" said Robb Barnes, Ecology Ottawa's executive director.

"We don't think that's sufficient. We think we're in an emergency period, the United Nations tells us this," he said, referring to a report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change last fall that said the world has until 2030 to dramatically reduce emissions or risk severe droughts, floods and poverty.

City of Ottawa Budget 2019

By Theresa Cavanagh, Baywardbulletin.ca, February 6, 2019

(...)In 2019, the City is looking to invest $15 million to build more affordable housing for residents. This funding will allow the City to start construction on about 125 new affordable housing units this year. Should other levels of government match this unprecedented municipal investment, this could double construction to up to 250 new units. Many of these units will be built near transit or light-rail stations.

(...)Draft Budget 2019 includes measures to improve neighbourhood quality of life, such as a plan to reforest areas hit by the 2018 tornadoes. In this Term of Council, $1.49 million will be spent annually to plant 500,000 trees and regenerate Ottawa’s forest cover across rural, suburban and urban communities.

(...)The budget includes a 25-per-cent increase in funding for ward-led traffic-calming projects across the city, up from $40,000 per ward to $50,000.

(...)Residents can:

• Register as a public delegation at a budget review meeting of any committee, board or commission.
• • Members of the public can make a five-minute presentation at meetings taking place between February 14 and March 5. A list of upcoming meetings is available at ottawa.ca/budget.
• Contact your City Councillor to express your view about Draft Budget 2019.
• Email [email protected].
• Tweet @ottawacity using the hashtag #ottbudget.
• Call 3-1-1 / 613-580-2400 (TTY: 613-580-2401).

Transit challenge proves difficult for some councillors

By Robyn Miller, CBC News Ottawa, February 8, 2019

With a few days left in a weeklong transit challenge, some Ottawa city councillors are expressing their frustration with a system in which getting from point A to point B isn't always easy.

Free Transit Ottawa issued the challenge to rely solely on transit for a week and 17 councillors accepted.

(...)Gloucester-South Nepean Coun. Carol Anne Meehan also "flunked" day four of the transit challenge, admitting that she took her car to get to a morning appointment.

"It would have taken me an hour and a half by bus to get here to the Humane Society and it took me 15 minutes by car, so given a choice, what would you do?" Meehan asked her followers in a Twitter video.

"At least I have a choice … a lot of people don't."