Transit committee chair Glen Gower says OC Transpo will be ready for the expected influx of riders if and when the federal government’s rumoured return-to-office mandate comes into effect.
OC Transpo general manager Troy Charter told the transit committee on Nov. 24 that he was “not aware of any conversations” with the federal government on its return-to-office plans or on the possibility of a bulk transit pass purchase for federal public servants.
“In terms of readiness, it will have an impact, but OC Transpo says that they’re ready,” Gower said this week amid rumours of a five-day return-to-office mandate.
Most federal public servants have already returned to the office three or four days a week, Gower said, and staff are already seeing a positive impact on ridership numbers.
The transit authority reported “significant increases” in its recent ridership stats, with 7.4 million trips in September (a six-per-cent increase from the same month last year) and 7.8 million trips in October, representing a 17-per-cent increase over 2024.
“Now we’re seeing some days that are busier than others, like the midweek days, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, that are busier than Monday and Friday,” Gower said. “Our expectation is that, with people who are heading back to office four or five days a week, we would see the rest of those weekdays as busy as the other ones.
“There are some individual bus routes that are busier than others, but we’ve got lots of capacity on the O-Train, and OC Transpo is continuing to monitor from September onwards here, as more people have headed back to the office, to make sure they’re ready to adapt.”
According to a La Presse report, the federal government plans to mandate all public servants back to the office five days a week. Executives would be back in the office full-time as early as January 2026 and other public servants would move to four days per week in July.
All public servants would report to the office five days a week as of Jan. 1, 2027, the report said.
Charter said the LRT East Extension was expected to be completed in the first quarter of 2026, which would bring service to Orléans and extend the rail line from Blair Station to Trim Station.
“We’re going to have the east-end LRT launching early in 2026, so that certainly would be welcome in terms of improving capacity and service levels,” Gower said. “And then early 2027 is when we’re looking at the West Extension for the LRT to reach Moodie Drive and Algonquin Station. So, with those extensions in place, it will be roughly in line with those (return-to-office) dates.”
OC Transpo staff told the committee that bus procurements and long-delayed e-bus deliveries were helping alleviate pressure on the aging bus fleet and should help to improve bus reliability metrics.
There were 31 e-buses in service for OC Transpo as of Nov. 27 and that number was expected to rise to 50 by the end of December. The city has also purchased 11 second-hand diesel buses that are expected to join the fleet by the end of 2025, and another 50 articulated diesel buses are coming onboard in 2026.
“Compared to where we were six months ago, I think there’s a lot more comfort that we’re getting back on track in terms of the schedule of deliveries,” Gower said. “So that’s good because some of the buses that are on the road now are ready to be retired.”
Gower said he expected the return-to-office mandate would have a bigger impact on traffic congestion on the highway, on city streets and in parking lots near federal government buildings.
“That’s where there’s going to be some capacity issues,” he said. “I think having a balance of in-office and work-from-home makes a lot of sense going forward, so I’m not really happy to hear that the government might be pushing for an entire end to hybrid work.
“It’s worked out really well for a lot of families. And, beyond the transportation issue, there’s still a real gap in the social infrastructure, like child care, for example. We’re still not where we were at pre-pandemic, so there’s going to be a lot of issues coming from that.”
Gower was among several councillors who expressed similar sentiments when city manager Wendy Stephanson announced a return-to-office mandate for City of Ottawa staff in September.
“Having that extra bit of flexibility for people is really, really important, and I’d hate to lose that,” Gower said.
“Frankly, I’d like to see the full return to office only if they feel it’s absolutely necessary. I would prefer that they hold off ’til after all the LRT is built, but that’s not up to me. But, in terms of transit readiness, yes, OC Transpo will be ready for whatever the needs are.”
