It’s been a while since we last had a Transit Advisory Committee meeting so welcome back to all the transit fans and supporters out there. A lot has been happening even without a monthly meeting, so there’s a lot to discuss including the fallout of council’s budget deliberations, improvements to Guelph Central Station, ridership concerns, and a recent road trip for Guelph’s now famous electric bus!
NOTE #1: This meeting takes place at 5:30 pm in Committee Meeting Room A at City Hall and you can also watch it online via a link provided in the meeting agenda.
NOTE #2: For alternate meeting formats please contact judi.prigione [at] guelph.ca or call 519-822-1260 ext. 3863.
Guelph Central Station Transit Building Design Review – As you may know, the City of Guelph will be building an $11 million addition to Guelph Central Station starting sometime in 2028. The new building, which is actually the long promised completion of the station, will include a public waiting area, public washrooms, ticketing, passenger information and staff facilities. The plan for the building has already been discussed by the Accessibility Advisory Committee at their December meeting.
Approval of the 2024 Meeting Dates – Unless someone objects, it looks like the Transit Advisory Committee will continue to meet every third Thursday at 5:30 pm throughout 2024.
Election of the 2024 Chair and Vice Chair – Just like with the other committee meetings held this month, this being the first meeting of the year means that there needs to be a new election for the chair and vice-chair positions. Susan Carey and Frank Holden are presently the chair and vice-chair respectively.
Update on Connect-To-GO Program Feedback. – Over the course of the last couple of meetings staff and the committee have been talking about the communications around this program that allows commuters to pay one fare as they’re transferring to and from Guelph Transit and GO Trains. At the last meeting, there was discussion about signage at Guelph Central Station and using plain language to sell the program on Transit’s website.
Budget Update – Obviously, there were some big changes to Guelph Transit’s 10-year service adjustment plan before the budget, but city council also made big changes during the budget. Since this is the first meeting of TAC following the budget’s approval by council, staff will review what they still have the money to do in the next few years, and what improvements are coming between now and 2027.
TAC Members’ Feedback – This the monthly opportunity for members of the committee to ask questions about current service issues. Already noted on the agenda is a conversation about those wraps that cover the bus, usually for the purposes of advertising. (This was first raised at November’s meeting.)
Update regarding the CUTA (Canadian Urban Transit Association) Conference in Edmonton, Alberta November 2023 – The annual Canadian Urban Transit Association Conference was held in Edmonton at around the same time as the last TAC meeting in November, and Guelph Transit was there with one of the City’s electric buses. No report was provided with the agenda, but Transit General Manager Robin Gerus will provide a verbal report about the event.
General Transit Update, including Electric Buses – Management staff will be on-hand to offer updates on any pressing transit business that’s not been covered in any of the above topics and categories, and that includes the ongoing roll out of the new electric buses.
Guelph Politico 