School bus impacts in the community

Many residents have reached out expressing frustration and concern about the busing situation in our communities and the impacts of ongoing contract disputes and driver shortages impacting our communities. More information is available here.

I share these frustrations; students and parents are the ones most negatively impacted by these kinds of shortfalls despite paying for these services.

The unfortunate fact of the matter is this: City Council has neither authority or jurisdiction over the provision of school buses or student transportation. The same way that I do not have a role in immigration cases, health care policy, or what curriculum is taught in schools, the honest truth is that, as your Councillor, I have no authority over the provision of school buses or student transportation.

That being said, I am working to convene the correct elected representatives and individuals to address these challenges. I wanted to take a moment to outline the governance structure, the role of OC Transpo, and what I am doing as a Councillor to address these challenges.

Governance Structure

As school boards operate to achieve responsibilities outlined by the provincial government, they are ultimately responsible for determining school bus transportation for students. Additionally, they have the authority to negotiate agreements with transit providers, such as OC Transpo, for student transportation. School boards are governed by trustees who are elected and accountable to the public for their performance of duties outlined by the provincial government, and as such, these trustees represent the correct level of government for these matters.

In Ottawa, the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board (OCDSB) and the Ottawa Catholic School Board (OCSB) operate an independent organization that is responsible for the administration of home-to-school transportation. The Ottawa Student Transportation Authority (OSTA) is responsible for ensuring that students are transported to school; as part of their efforts, they negotiate routes with OC Transpo for the provision of certain urban routes for students.

In short: the province sets the rules, regulations, policies, and standards which school boards operate under. School boards are responsible for the provision of transportation for students, and in Ottawa, this is managed by the OSTA, which exists as an agency under the school boards. The OSTA does negotiate some routes with OC Transpo, but this is between the transit authority and the OSTA. At no point does City Council have authority over the provision of student transportation.

OC Transpo’s Role

Every summer, OC Transpo works with school boards to support their return to school plans. OC Transpo’s program with the OSTA is only operational in the Urban Transit Area of the City, which unfortunately further limits our ability to inform how buses are used for routes. Additionally, the schools that are part of this program are primarily high schools, with some grade 7 and 8 students included in the program. OC Transpo has additional information on its website which residents are encouraged to review.

Some residents have suggested that OC Transpo buses should be deployed to serve school bus routes in Ward 21. I am certainly open to the idea of deploying these resources, though again, Councillors do not have the authority to unilaterally redirect buses on demand. Moreover, OC Transpo is running a significant deficit. It is projected that OC Transpo will run a $39 million budget shortfall this year. This limits the transportation agency’s capacity to address this challenge.

Even if I had that authority and OC Transpo had the funds necessary to replace these routes, redirecting buses would replace one problem with another, as the number of buses and drivers needed to cover these routes would be substantial and would reduce bus availability for commuters elsewhere in the City. My Council colleagues would not agree to a solution that would leave other transit users in their wards waiting, so in that context, I would not be able to effect a route change to serve our students through a motion at Council.  

What I am doing

I appreciate that even though this is not a matter of municipal responsibility, jurisdiction, or authority, residents reasonably expect that all their political representatives are actively working together to address this issue. I am doing just that.

I have sent a message to the Board of Directors of OSTA, to our local school board trustees, to MPP Ghamari, and to the General Manager of the City’s Transit Services Department to request urgent attention be paid to this issue.

I have requested to MPP Ghamari that the Province intervene if to ensure that OSTA, the local school boards trustees, and the school bus drivers are brought together to address this issue promptly. I have also asked her to raise this matter with Minister Lecce’s office so that the Ministry can get involved if necessary. And I have requested that the province consider providing resources, if necessary, to resolve this issue and to ensure that students are able to get to school on time and in a manner that works for students and parents.

I have asked the OSTA and our local school board trustees to communicate transparently with the community as to their progress addressing these issues. I have also requested that they provide me and others on the email with information as to what the largest roadblocks are currently and what options could remediate them. And I have asked that the school board consider reallocating resources toward this challenge in the short term while a more long-term solution is explored.

I asked the General Manager of the City’s Transit Services Department to advise as to what options exist for the City to expand its agreement with the OSTA in the short term to serve rural routes, and what the costs of doing so might be.

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Once again, while I share the community’s frustration at this problem, I am quite limited in what I can do as a Councillor, as this is simply a matter that is outside my jurisdiction. It is my hope that by convening all the relevant parties together, we can solve this issue quickly and the school boards can once again provide the predictable and reliable services that parents and students expect and are paying for.