City Council Update

Your guide to what happened at City Council
September 9, 2009

City Council Meeting Highlights

City Council removes age restrictions on student transit passes

City Council has responded to concerns expressed by the Pedestrian and Transit Advisory Committee, as well as a number of student groups and associations, and rescinded its decision to cap the age of students eligible to purchase student transit passes. As a result, any full-time student, regardless of age, is now eligible to purchase a student pass.

The change in OC Transpo’s policy will take effect immediately. Students over the age of 27 who have purchased a regular adult photo ID along with a regular adult pass may present themselves to an OC Transpo Pass and Ticket office. They will have two options:

• They may present their adult pass and photo ID to receive a reimbursement of the difference between the adult fare and the student fare along with a new student photo ID and student pass, with proof of age and registration of full-time status at an educational institution.
• They may present their adult pass and photo ID the following month and receive a further discount on their new photo ID and student pass, with proof of age and registration of full-time status at an educational institution.

The refunds to students over the age of 27 who have already purchased their passes vary depending on the selection of pass. For instance, the difference in price between an Adult Regular Pass and a Student Regular Pass is $19.50, the difference in price between an Adult Express Pass and a Student Express Pass is $29.50 and the difference between an Adult Rural Pass and a Student Rural Pass is $28.75. There would also be a small refund of $2.50 for changing an adult photo ID to a student photo ID. It was originally estimated that the age cap of 27 years would impact approximately 2,500 students who take transit. It is unlikely that all older students would require a refund at this time.

In 2008, Council had capped the age of students eligible to receive the passes at 27 years or younger. The revised age limit would have resulted in additional revenue of $220,000 to the City. The revenue lost as a result of Council’s decision will be covered out of Transit Services’ general accounts.

For more information on OC Transpo, visit octranspo.com or call 613-741-4390.

OC Transpo’s red-and-white fleet gets greener

Council approved a strategy that will result in a smaller carbon footprint for OC Transpo’s fleet of more than 1,000 vehicles. The updated Transit Vehicle Emissions Reduction Strategy outlines short-, medium- and long-term measures that will be applied over the next 20 years to improve fuel economy and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

The strategy outlines a number of measures the City will take over the next four years, such as:

• Examining the cost of bio-diesel as an alternative fuel
• Providing annual greenhouse gas emission reports for buses and trains
• Completing the implementation plan for 177 diesel-electric hybrid buses, which will be used on low-speed transit routes with frequent stops
• Converting the fleet to more environmentally friendly No.2 diesel fuel
• Preparing to use urea as an exhaust after-treatment agent in buses with Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) 2010 certified engines
• Completing a study on tire pressure monitoring and tracking
• Finalizing the testing and evaluation of its three double-decker buses

Over the next five to 10 years, the City’s Transit Vehicle Emissions Reduction Strategy includes expanding the City’s rapid-transit network with near-zero emissions rail vehicles, as well as continuing to monitor developments and advances in fuel-cell technology and alternate vehicle power sources. In the longer term, over the next 11 to 20 years, the City will be focused on converting the bus fleet to near-zero emission technology.

For more information on OC Transpo, visit octranspo.com or call 613-741-4390.

City releases its latest Performance Report

City Council received the Quarterly Performance Report to Council for the first quarter of 2009 (January to March). The report is part of the City’s commitment to accountability and transparency. It provides performance information for branches that deliver services to the public and that are of high interest to Councillors.

A few highlights from the first quarter of 2009 include:

• Solid Waste Services: Three per cent less waste was collected and the amount of waste recycled remained constant, compared with the first quarter of 2008, indicating a higher percentage of waste recycled.
• Building Code Services: The five wards accounting for the greatest building permit activity (49.3 per cent) are Barrhaven, Cumberland, Somerset, Gloucester-South Nepean, and Kanata North. The percentage of applications determined within legislative timeframes improved by 5 per cent compared with Q1 2008, largely due to the implementation of the eFootprint Applications portal process.
• Police Services: In the first quarter, emergency calls across the City of Ottawa requiring an immediate on-scene police presence have stabilized over the past three years at approximately 15,500. Emergency call volume citywide has declined marginally with the exception of West Division, which saw a 3 per cent (160) increase from the same period last year. Overall call volumes have been declining steadily throughout 2008 and Q1 2007 due to a variety of factors, including the addition of 36 Patrol Constables, which has allowed more proactive enforcement.
• Fire Services: the number of incidents responded to by Fire Services increased by 8.1 per cent from Q1 2008 and by 12.1 per cent from Q1 2007.
• Social Housing and Shelter Management: The average nightly bed occupancy rate in emergency shelters during the first quarter of this year decreased 8.05 per cent from the last quarter of 2008. This, however, represents a 7.21 per cent increase from Q1 2008, indicating a yearly increase in overall shelter usage.
• By-Law and Regulatory Services: There was a 7 per cent decline in call volumes of all types between Q1 2008 and Q1 2009, due mainly to the relaxation of overtime parking enforcement as a result of the transit strike.
• Transit ridership decreased in the first quarter of 2009 from the same period in 2008 due to the labour disruption that carried over into 2009 from the previous year.
• Communications and Customer Service: Call Centre volumes increased 9.4 per cent in Q1 2009 from the same period in 2008, due mainly to the transit strike. While call volumes increased, 81 per cent of calls were answered within 120 seconds, exceeding the target of 80 per cent. Visits to ottawa.ca in Q1 2009 increased 6 per cent from the same period in 2008.
• Public Health Information Line: There was a 26 per cent increase in the number of calls for service in Q1 2009 compared with Q1 2008, with a significant volume of enquiries related to flu shots and the newly released Human Papillomavirus vaccine.

The full Q1 2009 Quarterly Performance Report to Council is available at ottawa.ca.

City bids for Sustainable Cities Conference

Council endorsed the City’s bid to host the Sustainable Cities PLUS Network Biennial Conference 2010. The conference is expected to bring about 150 delegates from cities across Canada and around the world together to exchange experiences and ideas on long-term urban sustainability. The conference will also provide an opportunity to showcase Choosing our Future, an innovative joint planning initiative of Ottawa, the City of Gatineau and the NCC, which takes an integrated approach to building a sustainable and resilient National Capital Region. The City will be approaching both Gatineau and NCC to help cover the cost of the conference, which is expected to be about $70,000.

Other items of interest

Childhood Cancer Awareness Day

Mayor O’Brien recognized Wednesday, September 9, 2009, as Childhood Cancer Awareness Day in the City of Ottawa and presented Ms. Jocelyn Lamont, Executive Director, Candlelighters Childhood Cancer Awareness Program with a framed proclamation.

Launch of the 2009 City of Ottawa United Way / Centraide Employee Campaign

The City of Ottawa officially launched its United Way Employee Campaign. Last year, the City raised $579,392 for the United Way through employee donations and special events, which made it the second largest community campaign. This year’s campaign goal is $580,000, up from last year’s campaign goal of $575,000.

A presentation will be made at City Council early in 2010 to announce the results of the City’s campaign. The United Way funds more than 200 programs and partnerships throughout Ottawa that help residents in need.

[top]