Regional and Intercity Bus\Rail Transportation

[Acajack]

More info: there will be 2 downtown Ottawa stops:

University of Ottawa

Bank and Slater

[Acajack]

Originally Posted by Stacmon

Hello everyone! After years of reading the forum, I have finally decided to register and start contributing to the conversation. Thank you all for the interesting content to date!

In terms of the recent bus developments, the fact that both the new Toronto and Montreal lines are being routed to the VIA Terminal rather than our old Catherine bus station is extremely exciting to me!

Having an intermodal station that combines VIA Rail, intercity bus routes and an O-Train Station that isn't too far from the downtown core (given the ultimate extension to Trim), is a real improvement in my eyes.

I hope there will be some way to formalize this as a long term solution (e.g., with a better and more expanded facility), so that we don't find the bus routes eventually relocated to another terminus for the future that prevents us from enjoying those benefits!

Totally agree.

Ineffective or even non-existent intermodalism is one of the worst things about public transportation in North America.

[JHikka]

I recall Keolis/Orleans/Acadian being beyond dismal in the Maritimes for the years that they operated there before ceasing operations. Perhaps things aren't so bad in the ON/QC corridor.

[Acajack]

Originally Posted by JHikka

I recall Keolis/Orleans/Acadian being beyond dismal in the Maritimes for the years that they operated there before ceasing operations. Perhaps things aren't so bad in the ON/QC corridor.

No idea how good or bad their service is. Just going by the places they say they serve.

This route to Ottawa is their first foray into Ontario AFAIK.

[Stacmon]

Originally Posted by Acajack

No idea how good or bad their service is. Just going by the places they say they serve.

This route to Ottawa is their first foray into Ontario AFAIK.

I think in a lot of instances, the cross-border nature of Ottawa-Gatineau and the francophone demographics of Eastern Ontario (specifically the counties East of Ottawa like Prescott-Russell) make this part of Ontario distinct from the GTA and Southwestern Ontario. The distance also helps (2 hours versus 4.5 hours).

This can often make the Ontario part of the Ottawa-Gatineau market a natural outgrowth for Quebec based services and we see this in the Telecom sector too (people in Ottawa benefit from lower Videotron Quebec prices compared to other Ontarians that pay more for plans because of lower competition).

Often you can't serve on part of Ottawa-Gatineau, without serving all of it to do that well (like with cellular service, which needs to offer good coverage in both provinces).

That special relationship to the province of Quebec and city of Montreal is actually something I really appreciate being in our region!

[begratto]

Originally Posted by JHikka

I recall Keolis/Orleans/Acadian being beyond dismal in the Maritimes for the years that they operated there before ceasing operations. Perhaps things aren't so bad in the ON/QC corridor.

I've taken the Orléans Express bus from Montréal to Québec City many times, it's used by a lot of business people and civil servants as the schedule is more convenient than ViaRail's.

I have no complaints at all, service was what I expected : clean modern buses, on schedule, polite staff.

[Dominion301]

Originally Posted by Acajack

Orléans Express is starting intercity motorcoach service on a Montreal-Ottawa-Gatineau route tomorrow.

AFAIK stops in the region are:

Ottawa VIA Rail station

Downtown somewhere on Slater

Place du Portage

Promenades Gatineau

So does this mean they'll take the 50 to Montreal instead of the 417/40?

[Acajack]

Originally Posted by Dominion301

So does this mean they'll take the 50 to Montreal instead of the 417/40?

No they are taking the 417. The route starts in Gatineau, loops through Ottawa and then takes the 417 and 40.

[Dominion301]

Originally Posted by Acajack

No they are taking the 417. The route starts in Gatineau, loops through Ottawa and then takes the 417 and 40.

That makes more sense...especially with the Kirkland stop. So we now have establish or re-established bus links to Montreal, Kingston, Ottawa Valley/North Bay/Sudbury and Toronto. Does anyone still serve the Pontiac or upper Outaouais?

I wonder how long it'll be before the likes of Peterborough, Belleville, Brockville and Cornwall come back, if ever?

[Acajack]

Originally Posted by Dominion301

That makes more sense...especially with the Kirkland stop. So we now have establish or re-established bus links to Montreal, Kingston, Ottawa Valley/North Bay/Sudbury and Toronto. Does anyone still serve the Pontiac or upper Outaouais?

Autobus Gatineau runs from Gatineau-Ottawa up to Grand-Remous past Maniwaki. It seems to be a subsidiary of Autobus Maheux which is Abitibi-based.

The two systems link up at Grand-Remous where the Abitibi-Montreal route runs down the 117.

So in theory you can transfer between the two routes there.

In the Pontiac, TransCollines which is the exurban transit operator in the MRC des Collines (Chelsea, Cantley, etc.) has begun offering bus service outside its core territory along the 148 corridor all the way from Ile-des-Allumettes to Gatineau. Not sure if they go into Ottawa. It's only one run day in and another run out.

East of Gatineau in the Petite-Nation I think there is an on-demand accessible and regular public transport service with minibuses.

How does this compare with Eastern Ontario?

I know there is or was a service in Clarence-Rockland called CRT but it always seemed on the brink of shutting down.

Embrun and Russell may have a service too but I don't think there is anything else in Prescott-Russell, is there?

[Dominion301]

Originally Posted by Acajack

Autobus Gatineau runs from Gatineau-Ottawa up to Grand-Remous past Maniwaki. It seems to be a subsidiary of Autobus Maheux which is Abitibi-based.

The two systems link up at Grand-Remous where the Abitibi-Montreal route runs down the 117.

So in theory you can transfer between the two routes there.

In the Pontiac, TransCollines which is the exurban transit operator in the MRC des Collines (Chelsea, Cantley, etc.) has begun offering bus service outside its core territory along the 148 corridor all the way from Ile-des-Allumettes to Gatineau. Not sure if they go into Ottawa. It's only one run day in and another run out.

East of Gatineau in the Petite-Nation I think there is an on-demand accessible and regular public transport service with minibuses.

How does this compare with Eastern Ontario?

I know there is or was a service in Clarence-Rockland called CRT but it always seemed on the brink of shutting down.

Embrun and Russell may have a service too but I don't think there is anything else in Prescott-Russell, is there?

Ah yes Autobus Gatineau. Now that the old bus terminal on Catherine is boarded up, I'm guessing their trips now depart from Hull? I wonder if they'll relocate to the train station too that that there seems to be momentum in place for all the bus lines to either terminate there or at least stop there?

For Clarence-Rockland (contract with Leduc on behalf of Clarence-Rockland), Embrun, Russell, Casselman, Kemptville, and even Cornwall, etc., the "OC" rural partner routes to bring commuters into downtown, I wouldn't really count them. I wonder how many of those will still be viable post-pandemic? Rockland surely will, albeit at a reduced frequency. All the 200 series OC routes at rush hour these days have zero to 10 passengers on them mostly. Haven't seen one even half full in ages. The 'busy' OC routes are the centretown routes like the 7, 12 - the latter is the only one that I've seen a trip on throughout the pandemic that actually had standees on the bus.

[eltodesukane]

Is there currently a bus doing Ottawa-Toronto?

[OCCheetos]

Originally Posted by eltodesukane

Is there currently a bus doing Ottawa-Toronto?

Megabus and Rider Express are both currently running Ottawa-Toronto trips.

[Dominion301]

Originally Posted by OCCheetos

Megabus and Rider Express are both currently running Ottawa-Toronto trips.

Rider Express from out west are now serving Ottawa? Are they also at the train station? What's their frequency?

[eltodesukane]

Rider Express -- Toronto/Ottawa
In front of Entrance 3 St Laurent Shopping Center
https://riderexpress.ca/schedules/toronto-ottawa/

[Acajack]

Originally Posted by Dominion301

Ah yes Autobus Gatineau. Now that the old bus terminal on Catherine is boarded up, I'm guessing their trips now depart from Hull? I wonder if they'll relocate to the train station too that that there seems to be momentum in place for all the bus lines to either terminate there or at least stop there?
.

Autobus Gatineau still has Catherine St. as the terminus for their routes. According to the latest schedule published this past spring. They also have a few stops in downtown Ottawa.

TransCollines' service from the Pontiac (which actually starts and ends not too far from Pembroke) has the CEGEP in Hull as its terminus. That's a bit odd but not as a bad as it sounds, as many STO routes to various parts of Gatineau and Ottawa converge there.

[Uhuniau]

There will be no revival of interurban bus transportation without seamless transfers, common points of service in convenient, central locations in cities, interlining, and an end to the bureaucratic bullshit that was instituted for no good reason other than security kabuki.

Thank you for coming to my talk.

[BenYOW]

CBC News has published an update on bus routes on the Ottawa-Gatineau-Montreal corridor.

Bus companies vie for coveted Ottawa-Gatineau-Montreal route
Social Sharing
Quebec's transportation regulator to select new carrier after Greyhound ceased Canadian operations

Four transportation companies are vying to become the main bus carrier for the Ottawa-Gatineau-Montreal corridor.

The widely coveted route has been up for grabs since Greyhound announced it would cease its Canadian operations in May — a year after it paused service due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Currently, Montreal-based Autocar Orléans Express is licensed to carry riders between Ottawa, the Outaouais and Montreal on a temporary basis.

In addition to Orléans Express, three other companies have applied for permits from the Commission des Transports du Québec (CTQ), the province's transportation regulator.

The companies are: Rider Express Transportation Corp. of Calgary; Trentway-Wagar Inc., which operates Megabus in Canada; and Groupe Autobus Maheux, located in the town of Rouyn-Noranda in the Abitibi-Témiscamingue region of western Quebec.

Hearings underway
The CTQ will select one or more carriers after holding public hearings where the companies can make their pitch and answer questions from officials.

In an email, the commission said hearings to consider Rider Express's application took place in June and July.

For Orléans Express, hearings are scheduled for Aug. 18, 19, 20, 24 and 25 and for Trentway-Wagar on Aug. 26 and Sept. 27 to 30. As for Autobus Maheux, the CTQ said hearings have yet to be scheduled.

The commission normally renders its decision within 90 days of the end of a hearing. A decision authorizing the issuance of the bus transport permit takes effect on the date it is rendered, the CTQ said.

Autobus Maheux wants to set up in Gatineau
In a press release, Autobus Maheux said it wants to set up a direct, express route between Gatineau and the cities of Laval and Montreal, without buses having to make a detour via Ottawa and Highway 417.

The company said it intends to provide a separate service on the Ontario side, connecting Gatineau and Ottawa to the Montreal-Trudeau International Airport.

In an interview with Radio-Canada, the president of the company confirmed his intention to establish facilities in Gatineau, including a bus station, if the company obtains the requested permits.

"We want to make Gatineau our base of operations for these new services, hire local staff, have local suppliers and have our own facility for staff and vehicles," Pierre Maheux said in French.

Autobus Maheux also intends to offer a regional service along Route 148, with daily stops in Masson-Angers, Thurso, Plaisance, Papineauville, Montebello, Fassett, Grenville, Lachute and Saint-Eustache.

"Although they have suffered service cuts over the years, these communities have always been served by the Quebec interurban transport network," said Maheux.

"We intend to maintain and improve the service, and we are the only carrier offering to do so."

[phil235]

I get the appeal of a direct Gatineau-Montreal route, but it's a bit puzzling that Maheux is planning a Gatineau-Ottawa-Trudeau airport route. Surely the bulk of the ridership is Ottawa downtown to Montreal downtown.

[J.OT13]

Originally Posted by phil235

I get the appeal of a direct Gatineau-Montreal route, but it's a bit puzzling that Maheux is planning a Gatineau-Ottawa-Trudeau airport route. Surely the bulk of the ridership is Ottawa downtown to Montreal downtown.

That is strange, but I do like their proposal for a second route down the 148 to serve the small Quebec side towns along the Ottawa River.

If they do get the license with an Ottawa-PET Airport route, it would bode well for VIA.