Transit boss pleads for patience with LRT

OC Transpo boss John Manconiappeared to lose his patience with members ofOttawa's transit commission Wednesday, urging them to take a deep breath before rushing out to investigate issues reported at keyLRT stations.

"Let the system relax, let it find its equilibrium.... Let staff do their thing.I'm going to caution you,you're going to come back with a list a mile long.And then you're going to come to me and I'm going to go, 'No, no, no, no, no. Bad idea, bad idea, bad idea,' and you're going to set yourself up for failure."

Ottawa has pulled off something that people dream of.- John Manconi, GM, transportation service

Manconiwas responding to a suggestion by Coun.Riley Brockingtonthat commission members tour Blair and Tunney's Pasture stations to look into complaints of overcrowding ahead of Oct. 6, when bus passengers will no longer have a choice about transferring onto the Confederation Line.

"It would be beneficial to me, and I would suggest to the commission members, if, after the dust settled, we toured Tunney's and Blair station at afternoon rush hour to see how things are working, the flow, the transition not to dissect and nitpick," Brockington said, noting he had concerns "with the layout" at Tunney's Pasture even before the Confederation Line opened on Saturday.

Some avoiding afternoon LRT trips due to bus backlog

5 years ago

Duration 1:50

Some commuters say the afternoon trip home on the LRT has been frustrating, with long lines for buses at Tunney's Pasture.

Complicated system

"I would caution you against going out early," Manconi replied. "Unless you're a transit operations planning expert,with all due respect, you will not understand the algorithm and the interlining you have now and what's coming Oct. 6."

Manconi urged the commission to trust the transportation experts who designed the transfer points.

"It is a complicated operation. It's taken me sevenyears to even understand a 10th of it. We have experts from around the world that have planned that bus loop. That bus loop was in design mode for yearsand it changed 20 to 30 times.I'm not pushing back, I'm just trying to save you some grief."

While hedescribedthe Confederation Line's first few days in operation as "seamless,"Manconi did acknowledge some overcrowding at Blair and Tunney's Pasture stations.

'I'm happy for the city'

Coun. Allan Hubley, chair of the transit commission, also encouragedBrockingtonto wait before passing judgment.

Brockington said his primary concern is that passengers will be stuck on crowded platforms in cold weather.

"Mr. Chair, both you and Mr. Manconi have prejudged what my intent is," Brockington clarified. "I didn't sayI'm going to have a list of 40 items and dissect every little design issue with these transition stations."

Following the meeting, Manconidenied feeling frustrated.

"I'm the happiest general manager intransit in North America. I truly am," Manconi said. "I'm happy for the city, the customers, the counciland the commission. Think about how many people said that this team couldn't pull this off, that this city could not pull this off.Ottawa has pulled off something that people dream of."