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A CTV Ottawa commute stress test found the return trip from the ByWard Market to Kanata took about 75 minutes by transit versus under an hour by car, with a delayed Route 60 bus highlighting ongoing reliability issues.
A return-to-office commute stress test in Ottawa has found the trip from the ByWard Market to Kanata took roughly 75 minutes by transit, compared to under an hour by car.
The test began at 4 p.m., with CTV's Peter Szperling driving to McCurdy Road in Kanata near Hazeldean while a reporter took OC Transpo. Peter's GPS estimated his drive at 53 minutes while avoiding the highway. He arrived in Kanata after nearly an hour behind the wheel. The transit route started with the LRT from the ByWard Market to Tunney's Pasture, where a transfer to Route 60 was required.
Transit Frustration Begins At Tunney
There appeared to be plenty of buses heading west from Tunney's Pasture, but only one would take the reporter to the needed street. That is where the familiar transit frustration began. Route 60 was delayed by about 20 minutes as hundreds of commuters crowded the station waiting for buses. A bus eventually arrived, but by then it was only a few minutes behind schedule.
It was an articulated bus, but only about half a dozen people boarded. The rest of the trip was uneventful. The reporter was not stuck waiting any longer after boarding. Roughly 20 minutes after Peter arrived in Kanata, the reporter arrived.
The total travel time was about 1 hour and 15 minutes. The result was similar to last week's reverse commute, when the trip from McCurdy Road to downtown took 68 minutes. Over the past two weeks, the commute tests have shown that transit can get you where you need to go, but reliability remains a key issue. That is particularly true when a bus connection is delayed.
Transit Reliability Remains Key Issue
A single missed or late bus can add significant time to a trip. For many commuters, the question is not whether transit works on a good day. It is whether it works reliably every day. The test is the final installment of the return-to-office commute stress test series.
It compared driving and transit on the same route at the same time. The driving route avoided the highway and was estimated at 53 minutes by GPS. The actual drive took nearly an hour. The transit route required an LRT ride and a bus transfer.
The bus delay added about 20 minutes to the wait. Hundreds of commuters were at Tunney's Pasture waiting for buses when Route 60 was delayed. The station was crowded during the evening peak. When the bus arrived, only a few minutes late, only about half a dozen people boarded.
Bus Connections Pose Recurring Challenges
The reporter described the trip as otherwise uneventful. The total transit time of about 75 minutes was similar to the 68-minute reverse commute measured last week. That consistency suggests the issue is not a single bad day, but a recurring challenge with connections and reliability. The commute tests have shown that transit can be a viable option, but it can also be slower and less predictable than driving.
Commuters who depend on buses to connect with the LRT face the greatest uncertainty, especially when routes run infrequently. For many, the key question remains whether the system can deliver the same trip time day after day, not just on good days. Readers can sign up for daily newsletters of top local stories and subscribe to breaking news alerts from CTV News Ottawa. The CTV News app is also available for download.
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CTVToronto:This story was compiled and edited by the HeadTopics newsroom and HT AI from the reports above.
Kanata Commute OC Transpo Route 60 Delay Commute Stress Test
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