OC Transpo Route 95
OC Transpo Route 95 is the Ottawa transit network's busiest route as it sails through mostly the Transitway segments across the city. It starts in Barrhaven at the Fallowfield Station (which is also one of two VIA Rail stations in the city) and ends in Orleans, generally at the Place d'Orleans. Several trips during the weekdays continues until Trim Station a few minutes east of Place d'Orleans. On the other hand, several trips also start/ends at Baseline in the west end and a few during rush hour starts/ends at Tunney's Pasture.
Route's Description
The description below is a typical trip starting in Barrhaven and goes north towards downtown and east towards Orleans/Cumberland.
Nepean South/Barrhaven
Some of the 95 trips starts at Fallowfield Station in Nepean South using stop 2A [1]. However starting late this year or in early 2007, some its trips will be extended further south towards Barrhaven's main commercial district which includes many big-box retail store and a small shopping centre called Riocan Marketplace which all is located in the vicinity of Strandherd Drive and Greenbank Road. The 95 will use a new transitway segment that will be parallel to the existing VIA Rail line that links Ottawa and Toronto. A new Park & Ride facility will be built just north of Strandherd Drive and will offer for some an additionnal way to travel to work downtown. It is possible that for a short period that the 95 may run on Greenbank Road and then on Fallowfield before the inauguration of the new Southwest Transitway segment. The new terminal may at the same location as the extended North-South light rail line that will be completed to Barrhaven by 2009.
From Fallowfield it runs along a new portion of the Southwest Transitway parallel to Woodroffe Avenue. This new segment was built during the fall of 2005 but was done virtually at the same time as the city was widening Woodroffe Avenue from 2 to 4 four lanes of traffic. At the exit of the station it crosses the VIA Rail line - a first in the Transitway network.
Nepean Centre
At the Nepean Sportsplex, the 95 joins Woodroffe Avenue and runs along designated lanes from the Southwest Transitway to Baseline Station doing limited stops at major intersections or near neighborhoods such as Craig Henry, Centerpointe and Tanglewood, that are lining on each side of the road.
At Baseline Station, the 95 is near several key locations such as the former city of Nepean city hall building which is now called Ben Franklin Place. Algonquin College's Woodroffe Campus is one of the biggest college schools in the National Capital Region. Several big box stores beside the college represents the main commercial district in the vicinity of the station. This is also a major hub for several key routes. One of the main connector buses with the 95 is the 118, a long east-west transit route that links Kanata to a large section around the Baseline Road area and to Hurdman Station.
Ottawa West
After serving Baseline's stop 2C (or 1E towards Barrhaven)[2], the 95 uses an existing and isolated portion of the Southwest Transitway that was built in the early 1980's. It travels through Iris, Queensway and Lincoln Fields stations. The 95 does connections to the 99 (101 in September) at Queensway Station and to the 85 and 97 at Lincoln Fields.
After serving Lincoln Fields the 95 goes north and east along the Ottawa River Parkway which is mixed with regular traffic with a great view of the Ottawa River and parts of the Deschenes Rapids. On Sundays during the summer season its westbound trips between 9AM and 1 PM are deverted because of the Alcatel's Sunday Bikedays event in which the westbound lanes are closed as bikes and rollerblades uses those lanes. The 95's are deverted at Westboro Station then travels on Scott Street, Churchill Avenue and Richmond Road through the heart of Westboro Village before running on Woodroffe Avenue until Carling Avenue, near Carlingwood Shopping Centre before heading west to Lincoln Fields. At Lincoln Fields it uses stop 4B (like the 96) on the local platform instead of its regular stop 2A on the main transitway route. [3].
After travelling on the Ottawa River Parkway, the 95 runs along the Central Transitway which goes through Dominion, Westboro, Tunney's Pasture, Bayview and Lebreton stations.
Near Dominion, lies the Westboro Beach, one of the four city-operated public beaches (and three along the Ottawa River). Tunney's Pasture is a large complex of federal government office buildings, much of which are from the Ministry of Health as well as Statistics Canada. There is a large number of public servants working at that complex and many 95 trips during the rush hour ends/starts at that station. The Bayview stop connects with the O-Train which travels from Bayview to Greenboro. Presentely, the 95 connects at the northern edge of the O-Train line but when the expension will be completed, it will be one of two connection points between the 95 and the light-rail. At Lebreton, there is only a short walk towards the north to the newly built Canadian War Museum located at corner of Booth and Wellington Streets. In the long term, a new urban village will be built on the north side of the Transitway on the Lebreton Flats and may represent additionnal ridership and traffic in that area.
Downtown
After Lebreton, the 95 enters the downtown core and travels on Slater (eastbound) or Albert (westbound) and serves the main employment area of the city which consists mainly government offices buildings such as Place de Ville, Constitution Square, L'Esplanade Laurier, the World Exchange Plaza, the Clarica Complex, Minto Place, Place Export Canada, the West Memorial buildings, and the Jean Edmonds Towers. Place Bell Canada is also another major building located nearby.
There is also several tourist attractions in the vicinity including the Sparks Street Mall, an outdoor shopping mall, the Bank Street Promenade, which is a series of boutiques located along that particular street, Parliament Hill which is the siege of Canada's government and major events during Canada Day and the National Arts Centre. Many hotels are located near the Central Transitway, including the Ottawa Marriott, the Minto Suites, the Crown Plaza, the Albert & Bay, the Radisson and many more. At the eastern edge of downtown are two of the most famous hotels : the Lord Elgin and the Chateau Laurier located near Parliament Hill.
There are four main stops in the downtown segment which includes those near Bay, Kent, Bank and Metcalfe streets. It travels on a designated lane on both streets - the lanes are available for buses only between 6 AM and 6 PM on weekdays. In the future term (likely in 2009) the North-Sorth light-rail line will travel on these two streets.
Rideau Centre/University of Ottawa
After travelling downtown the 95's goes on a designated lane over the Rideau Canal on the MacKenzie King Bridge before serving the Rideau Centre, one of the biggest and buisiest shopping malls across the city. After 1 AM, trips are detoured via Elgin, Rideau, Nicholas and Waller Streets instead of the Mackenzie King Bridge as the shopping centre's hallways are barred from public access until sunrise. These buses rejoin the transitway at Waller Street before Laurier Station.
From Mackenzie King Station, it is a short walk to the Byward Market, the most famous and historic outdoor market in the Ottawa area. It is also a short walk to the Rideau Street shops that are located to the east of the Rideau Centre.
Between Laurier and Lees station, the 95 serves the University of Ottawa's main campuses, residential buildings and sports facilities located to its east. The university is by far the biggest of its kind in the city and represents a large ridership. At Campus and Laurier stations it is also serving Sandy Hill residents which are located east of the University complex. With the addition of a pedestrian overpass from Campus Station across the Rideau Canal towards Somerset Street in Centretown, it will provide a quick access to transit to the area.
Ottawa East/Gloucester North
After travelling through the University Complex and Lees Station, the 95 serves Hurdman station , a major transit hub in which residents of various communities such as Vanier and Ottawa South transfer on the Transitway or other cross-town routes routes such as the 3, 4, 8, 85, 86, 87 and 118. Numerous appartment buildings are located around the station as additionnal trip generators
From Hurdman, the 95 joins the East transitway as it splits in two distinct routes (East and Southeast) until Blair Station. Early morning trips makes a detour at Train Station and travels on Belfast Road in order to serve the St. Laurent's OC Transpo offices (often dropping off drivers who are working for the rush hour trips). It then goes off north on St. Laurent before reentering the East Transitway after serving stop 4B.
Train Station is the second stop in which the 95 connects to the Via Rail line that connects Ottawa to other major cities in the Windsor-Quebec corridor. There is also a possiblity that a pedestrian bridge would link the station over nearby Highway 417 towards Jetform Park, home of the Ottawa Lynx, an International Baseball League baseball club, the nearby Coventry Road commercial district as well as the Overbrook community.[4] St. Laurent Shopping Centre is another major shopping centre located at St. Laurent Station. Regular stops oustide the early morning trips are 1B (Orleans) and 2B (Downtown, Baseline and Barrhaven). [5] Blair Station is also home to a major shopping and commercial district with the Gloucester Centre located north of the station. Office buildings (including the former city of Gloucester city hall) are located around. It also serves a community south of Highway 174 with a pedestrian overpass over it.
Orleans/Cumberland
After serving Blair, the bus runs on a designated lane on Regional Road 174 but in fact it is actually the shoulder lane and cars (usually disabled ones) can stop on the bus lane/shoulder. There is two stops between Blair and Place d'Orleans. The first one is located at Montreal Road /St. Joseph Boulevard off-ramp (request only stop). A special signal indicates whether a passenger wants to board the 95 at that stop. Another stop is located at Jeanne d'Arc Boulevard in the western edge of Orleans. Recentely, a Park And Ride facility has been opened south of Highway 174, which is just a short walk from the bus stop located north of Highway 174. After serving Jeanne d'Arc buses goe east and ends at Place d'Orleans (most trips). Late-night eastbound trips exits at Montreal Road and travels on St. Joseph through the commercial strip of Orleans all the way to Place d'Orleans Shopping Centre. Routes that continues to Trim Station continues east on the 174 and then turns south on Trim Road and enters the Park And Ride facility and also serves the nearby industrial area. There are no trips to Trim when they are detoured via St. Joseph.
Frequencies
This road is considered the buisiest as it travels to two booming communities in Barrhaven and Orleans and also serves key stations such as Mackenzie King, Lincoln Fields, Baseline, St. Laurent and Blair all major hub points not to mention it goes right through the heart of the tourism area and the biggest employment zone. It also serves three of the biggest shopping centres of the city as St. Laurent, Place d'Orleans and the Rideau Centre are all served by the 95. Soon, the heavily commercial area of Barrhaven will be added on the 95's route.
It is the bus that is used the more frequently during every day as it travels every 4-5 minutes (10 from Fallowfield and 11-12 to Trim) on weekdays and only each 2-4 minutes during rush hour. During Saturdays, the intervals are as short as 5 minutes (10 from Fallowfield) and on Sundays as short as 7-8 minutes (13-15 from Fallowfield). It runs every 15 minutes until midnight on most days and starts even before 4 AM on weekdays and ends at 2:30-3:00 AM each day.
Destination Signs
The 95 has several different destinations depending on the trip
EASTBOUND DESTINATIONS
95 ORLEANS
Most eastbound trips on route 95 end at Place d'Orleans Station, which is located just across from the Place d'Orleans Shopping Centre in Orleans. It connects route 95 with routes 125, 127, 130, 131, 135, 136, and 137. All the routes numbered in the 130's travel locally in Orleans, meanwhile, routes 125 and 127 head west towards Gloucester.
95X CUMBERLAND
Selected trips on route 95 are extended to end at Trim Station, which is located just off of Trim Road at Regional Road 174 in Cumberland. Trim Station is basically just a Park & Ride lot for now, which was built in order to ease the congestion at Place d'Orleans. Service currently only operates on weekdays from about 6:00a.m.-midnight, with a frequency of approximately 10-15 minutes. In the future, more local routes in Orleans and Cumberland will use Trim as either a timepoint, or a terminus, to provide residents in the area with improved transit connections.
95X HURDMAN
There are a couple of morning peak-period trips which end at Hurdman Station, due to demand at that time of morning coming from the west end.
WESTBOUND DESTINATIONS
95 FALLOWFIELD
Selected trips on route 95 are extended from Baseline Station to Fallowfield Station via Woodroffe and the recently-opened Southwest Transitway between the Nepean Sportsplex and Fallowfield. In the near-future, which looks to be about winter, route 95 will be extended southwest via Fallowfield, Greenbank, and the future Strandherd Park & Ride to a new bus loop that will open up at the Riocan Marketplace located at the corner of Greenbank and Strandherd in Barrhaven.
95X BASELINE
Most trips on route 95 end at Baseline Station, which is located across from Algonquin College and the College Square shopping complex on Woodroffe Avenue. This station provides transfer connections to service in Nepean Centre, as well as route 118, which is a crosstown route that operates 7 days/week between Hurdman and Terry Fox via the Transitway, Confederation Heights, Baseline Road, Bells Corners, Hazeldean Road, and Terry Fox Drive. It also provides college students with a direct connection to other areas in the west, downtown, and the east end.
95X TUNNEY'S PASTURE
There are a few supplementary trips that operate between Tunney's Pasture and Orleans, which follow the same routing as the regular route 95 via R.R. 174 and the Transitway. By having these trips, it provides passengers with an alternative to express service, which would require a premium fare.
NOTES
1. Eastbound trips after midnight travel via Jeanne d'Arc and St. Joseph instead of R.R. 174.
2. After 1:00a.m., trips in both directions travel via Rideau Street instead of MacKenzie King Station.
3. Early morning trips travel via Belfast and St. Laurent instead of the Transitway between Train and St. Laurent.
Major Attractions/Locations along the route
- Via Rail Station at Fallowfield Station
- Nepean Sportsplex at the corner of Woodroffe Avenue and Hunt Club Road
- Ben Franklin Place/Centrepointe Theatre
- Algonquin College near Baseline Station
- Deschens Rapids/Westboro Beach
- Westboro Village
- Tunney's Pasture government complex
- Canadian War Museum (north of Lebreton Station)
- National Library
- Parliament Hill (north of Metcalfe Station)
- Major's Hill Park
- National Arts Gallery (a short 5 minute walk from Metcalfe Station)
- Rideau Canal & Rideau Canal Locks
- Gloucester Centre
Major Transfer Points
- As it consists mainly of Transitway stops only the main transfer point stations will be mentioned here
- Fallowfield : 70, 71, 73, 76, 77, 170, 173, 176, 186
- Baseline : 55, 57, 70, 71, 73, 76, 77, 86, 111, 116, 117, 118, 156, 172, 174, 178, 179, 188
- Lincoln Fields : 15, 16, 18, 59 through 77, 85, 86, 96, 97, 111, 116 (peak), 151, 152, 154, 156, 167, 172, 178, 179, 188
- Rideau Centre/Mackenzie King : 1 through 97, 124, (AM peak), 126 (Am peak), 156 (peak), 172 (peak), 178 (peak), 182, 306, 316
- Hurdman : 3,4, 8, 20 through 103, 116 (peak), 118, 124, 125, 126, 128, 129, 140, 146, 148, 149, 156 (peak), 172 (peak), 178 (peak), 182, 190, 191, 192, 221, 231, 232, 262, 263, 283, 825
- St. Laurent : 5, 7, 14, 18, 20 through 39, 84, 85, 95, 99, 111, 123, 124, 125, 126, 127, 128, 129, 190, 191, 192, 221, 231, 232, 824, 825
- Blair: 2, 15, 20 through 28, 30 through 39, 99, 123, 124, 126, 127, 128, 129, 221
- Place d'Orleans : 20, 21, 22, 27, 30, 35, 36, 125, 127, 130, 131, 135, 136, 137, 221