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Ottawa Rapid Transit

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Map of Ottawa Rapid Transit (click to enlarge)

In Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, the public transit services operated by OC Transpo have two rapid transit systems: the Transitway, a bus rapid transit network, and the O-Train, a diesel-powered light rail line.

Contents

[edit] Transitway

[edit] Major routes

Image:Octranspo articulated.jpg The Transitway is one of the most extensive and successful implementations of bus rapid transit; many of the Transitway roads are above or below the grade of normal streets in Ottawa, by the use of overpasses, bridges, and trench highways. Thus, they rarely intersect directly with the regular traffic, and make it possible for the buses (and emergency vehicles) to continue at full speed even during rush hour. Buses that travel on the Transitway can cross very long distances (especially outside the downtown area) without stopping for a single traffic light. Most sections of the Transitway have a speed limit of 70-90 km/h (45-55 mph) between stations, and 50 km/h (30 mph) in the station areas.

Many bus routes use parts of the Transitway, but there are three primary, high-frequency routes:

Other cross-town routes that includes significant transitway stretches include:

  • 4 - From Heron to Hurdman
  • 8 - From Lebreton to Hurdman and from Walkley to Billings Bridge
  • 84 - From Lebreton to Greenboro (peak periods only), from Hurdman to St. Laurent, and from Greenboro to the Hunt Club Loop.
  • 85 - Bayshore, Lincoln Fields and St. Laurent Stations and from Downtown (Bay) to Smyth
  • 86 - From Lincoln Fields to Baseline and from Tunney's Pasture to Hurdman
  • 87 - Greenboro and South Keys Stations and from Dominion to Heron
  • 94 - From Blair to Tunney's Pasture
  • 101 - From Place d'Orleans to Blair (via R.R. 174 - outside of peak hours), Blair to Lees, Carling/Kirkwood to Bayshore, Bayshore to Eagleson (peak periods only - via Hwy. 417).
  • 102 - Tunney's Pasture, Lees to Blair, Blair to Place d'Orleans (via R.R. 174).
  • 111 - Heron, Billings Bridge and St. Laurent stations, and from Baseline to Lincoln Fields
  • 116 - From Hurdman to South Keys (peak periods only north of Greenboro), and from Baseline to Lincoln Fields (rush-hour only except Baseline Station)
  • 118 - Terry Fox, Baseline, and Heron Stations, as well as from Billings Bridge to Hurdman (with an extension out to Place d'Orleans via the Eastern Transitway and R.R. 174 in the future).
  • 176 - Tunney's Pasture to Hurdman (peak periods only), Fallowfield
  • 182 - From Eagleson to Bayshore, from Lincoln Fields to Hurdman
  • Most express and rush-hour routes also use the transitway, mostly from downtown to the suburbs.

[edit] Future or proposed new routes

There are plans to extend Route 118 to Orleans. The new route would be considered a rapid-transit route, which would see this route renumbered to route 108.

A coalition group had launched a site (see external links section below) about a proposed new route from Barrhaven to Kanata via Bayshore and Baseline stations.

[edit] 2009 Transit Service Plan

In June 2006, the City of Ottawa released its 2009 service plan, for the O-Train route, the Transitway and new bus routes (see City of Ottawa website).

It shows new extensions. To the west, there are new Moodie, Bells Corners, Queensway-Carleton, Hazeldean and Kanata North Transitway stops. To the south, there is a new Nepean Sportsplex stop, and proposed stops for Strandherd and Marketplace. To the east, the Southeastern transitway is extended to Hawthorne, and the Eastern to Blackburn Hamlet and beyond. To the north, there is a planned stop at the Les Terrasses Complex. It also investigates the possibility of transitway buses along Baseline, another downtown location, and from further east on the Queensway from Kirkwood all the way to Eagleson.

New Routes 93, 94, 98, 101, 102, and 108 are included.

[edit] Central transitway traffic issue

In the downtown section of the central Transitway, the busway consists of a single bus-only lane on Albert and Slater Streets (one-way public streets in opposite east and west directions). Traffic congestion here, where the buses mingle with private vehicles, sometimes causes service delays and is seen by some as the main weakness in the Transitway system. The Transit Committee had planned to reduce the number of buses travelling on Albert and Slater streets by 30% when the extension of the light-rail is implemented. Other measures will be implemented during the project to avoid traffic problems when the rail is in service.

[edit] Type of buses

The Transitway routes generally use low floor "accessible" buses, with an aim to improve access to the service by the elderly and handicapped, and to speed up boarding by other passengers; most of these are high-capacity articulated buses. Route 96 has used the new Invero low-floor buses since September 2005 and route 101 (formerly known as route 99) since the start of spring 2006.

[edit] Extension projects

There have been plans to expand the transitway to reach other parts of Ottawa; currently it only runs along the North edge of the city for most of the central area, leaving large parts of the city with only a system of local buses.

Some future extensions would included :

[edit] O-Train

Main article: Ottawa O-Train

Since 2001, Ottawa has operated a light rail transit system called the O-Train as a pilot for the full rollout of light rail transit technology. The pilot has been deemed a success, exceeding its ridership targets significantly; it carries 10,000 passengers per weekday. The pilot route utilizes former Canadian Pacific Railway track running south from the Ottawa River a distance of 8 km to the South Keys shopping plaza, slightly to the west of the downtown core. The system is used extensively by Carleton University students who have long complained about poor bus service relative to University of Ottawa students (who have two bus stations on the central transitway).

The current line is to be replaced, and then extended south-west. It will have two parallel tracks, and be electrified. Full operation may not begin until 2010. It will have a total length of 27 km.

The route of the extension has been chosen to service areas of future city growth (although some feel that it would have been better to focus on current problem areas). As a part of the extension, the service will also be routed directly into the downtown core at the north end. The trains will run on the downtown streets currently devoted to the rapid transit corridor, in dedicated lanes. There will be a reduction in the number of buses passing through the downtown core to accommodate the train lanes. (See animation of downtown traffic flow.)

A formal environmental assessment is underway to examine providing a second line for east-west service. Although the idea is to improve Ottawa's capacity problems for east-west transportation, critics of the process (including light rail supporters) believe the preferred route will not address these problems successfully.

The O-Train will be shut down from May 2007-December 2009 to allow improvements on the current track that runs between Bayview and Greenboro. A proposal for a replacement bus route is already in the works. Route 100 would operate between South Keys and Tunney's Pasture via the Transitway, Bronson, Carleton, Carling, and Holland, and would only serve limited stops along the route, and would operate more frequently than the current O-Train to cut down wait times for customers along the route.

[edit] Rapid transit stations

[edit] Transitway

[edit] South-west (95)

Future extensions will move the western terminus (initially only for some weekday trips) further into Barrhaven, to a new station, named "Marketplace", south of the the corner of Greenbank Road and Strandherd Drive, later in 2006. Another station north of the intersection will be called " Strandherd" which will include a park and ride facility. Initially, buses will travel west on Fallowfield Road then south on Greenbank. [1]
  • Fallowfield - Located at Woodroffe Avenue and Fallowfield Road in Barrhaven, beside VIA Rail's Fallowfield Station. Western terminus of Route 95.
Fallowfield to near Nepean Sportsplex is along a newly-opened (as of December 13, 2005) $10 million isolated bus-only road [2], although that section has no stations and features a railway level crossing, the first on the Transitway. From Nepean Sportsplex to Baseline, buses run along Woodroffe Avenue in a dedicated lane, making several stops at regular bus stops.
  • Baseline - Located on Woodroffe Avenue across from Algonquin College of Applied Arts and Technology. Occasional western terminal of Route 95.
Beyond Baseline, the Transitway is fully isolated to Lincoln Fields.
  • Iris - Located on Iris Street in Kenson Park.
  • Queensway - Located at the Queensway and Woodroffe in the Whitehaven neighbourhood. Also serves eastbound Route 96.

[edit] West (96, 97)

  • Stittsville - Western terminus of some route 96 trips. Park and Ride facility located in Stittsville.
  • Terry Fox - Located adjacent the Kanata Centrum shopping centre at Kanata Avenue and Earl Grey Drive (near 417 and Terry Fox Drive. Most eastbound 96 trips begin here. Entered service in September 2004 with construction still having been underway at that time; it officially opened on February 22, 2005. Previously, a small terminal at Kanata Town Centre, on Katimavik Road, was used.
To this point the route is on non-dedicated street lanes along collector and arterial roads, much like a standard bus route. Regular stops are made between Stittsville and Eagleson. However, in the long range, there are possible plans to built a Transitway segment between the two stations.
  • Eagleson - Park and Ride located at Eagleson Rd. and Highway 417.
The Transitway proper starts past Eagleson, with a dedicated lane on the 417. One stop is made (on request only via a special signal) at the Moodie Drive interchange.
The Transitway leaves the 417 at Bayshore and takes Richmond and Carling streets to Lincoln Fields. Eastbound 96 returns to the 417 (now the Queensway) to go via Queensway station, with one stop at the Pinecrest Road interchange. By the end of this year a new extension of the West Transitway will be built using the northern edge of the 417 and will go towards Pinecrest Road with one new station : Dumaurier Station. There is no date on when the section between Pinecrest and the Southwest Transitway will be built.[3]

[edit] Central (all routes)

At Lincoln Fields, the West and South-west branches merge.
From Lincoln Fields to Dominion, the Transitway travels the Ottawa River Parkway in a shared traffic lane.
  • Dominion - Located off Dominion Avenue on the Ottawa River Parkway.
From Dominion to just past Tunney's Pasture Station, the Transitway runs in an isolated, below-grade road.
From just past Tunney's Pasture Station to Booth Street, the Transitway runs in an isolated, at-grade road. Main western terminus for routes 94 and 102. It also serves as an occasional terminus for route 97 as well as some rush hour trips of route 95.
Just past Lebreton, the isolated transitway ends and eastbound buses take Slater Street, while westbound buses are on Albert Street; there are dedicated lanes on both streets, but traffic is generally slow in the dense downtown core. This arrangement continues to just past Metcalfe.
  • Bay - Located on Albert and Slater Streets at Bay Street.
  • Kent - Located on Albert and Slater Streets at Kent Street.
  • Bank - Located on Albert and Slater Streets at Bank Street.
  • Metcalfe - Located on Albert and Slater Streets at Metcalfe Street.
Over the Mackenzie King Bridge, the Transitway continues in dedicated lanes. The isolated Transitway resumes at Waller Street.
Just past Hurdman, two isolated routes branch off: the East Transitway and South-East Transitway.

[edit] East (95)

Past Train, the dedicated Transitway parallels the Queensway to beyond Blair.
The Transitway joins the Queensway a short stretch past Blair, running in a dedicated lane. Route 95 buses exit at Montreal Road and at Jeanne d'Arc Boulevard and stop on the ramps at ordinary bus stops; these will be upgraded to full Transitway stations by 2009, tentatively named Montreal/St. Joseph and Jeanne d'Arc Stations. On their 2006-2007 system map OC Transpo had included Jeanne d'Arc as a transit station. [4]
  • Place d'Orleans - Located at the Place d'Orleans shopping complex in Orleans and is the main East terminus of route 95 as well as new route 101 (outside of peak periods) and new peak-only route 102.
There is no dedicated bus lane from Place d'Orleans to Trim, buses run in mixed traffic. However, in the long range there could be a separate route built.
  • Trim - Located at Trim Road. This park-and-ride station is used by Route 95 on weekdays.

[edit] South-east (97)

The isolated Transitway ends at Hunt Club road; 97 buses continuing to the Airport take the Airport Parkway. Note: Buses heading towards the airport after approximately 10:00 PM use Hunt Club and Uplands rather than the Airport Parkway.

[edit] Ottawa O-Train

For more information see O-Train route

The Ottawa O-Train pilot service has five station stops. Bayview (at which it interfaces with the central transitway), Carling (interfacing with major bus routes), Carleton (serving Carleton University), Confederation, and Greenboro (at which it interfaces with the south-east transitway).

[edit] External links

Retrieved from "http://en.wikivisual.com/index.php/Ottawa_Rapid_Transit"
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