City website crashed due to swimming lessons

A flood of young swimmers registering for city-run lessonswas too much for the City of Ottawa website Monday night as it crashed because of record-setting registration.

Ottawa mother Nicole Duguay says she could not register her young son and daughter because the page would not open.

The reason, according to the city, was more than one child was being registered per second at that time. That is a record for the highest number of users on the site at one time.

Duguay was able, though, to register her children for swimming lessons online Tuesday morning. The problem, she said, was that the best time slots were already gone.

"There's only so much time that's open on a weekend, so it's a little frustrating when those that stay up get rewarded, I guess," Duguay said.

Swimming lesson registrations jump in 2012

Coun. Mark Taylor, who represents the Bay Ward and chairs the community and protective services committee, said the city registered 1,500 more people for aquatic lessons this year compared to last.

He said the city's new website still needs some work due to the overwhelming interest in lessons.

"One of the things we're going to do is go away between this registration and the next registration to see if there's a way that we can space [registration] out a little more," Taylor said.

"But at the same time, build it in such a fashion so that everybody has equal opportunity."

University course registration is one example where there is a set plan for smaller groups to register for classes at different times.