Council blasts London Transit for slow rollout of bus service to industrial parks

Municipal politicians are losing patience waiting for the London Transit Commission (LTC) to launch service to some of the industrial parks around the city’s periphery.

“I know it’s been talked about for a number of years and I hope it’s on the front burner,” Coun. Skylar Franke told colleagues on the Strategic Priorities and Policy Committee after she proposed a timeline for the rollout.

“We’ve been promised this for a while,” agreed Deputy Mayor Shawn Lewis. “I’m tired of waiting.”

Last fall, there were 21,630 vacant jobs in London, a 121 per cent increase since early 2021.

Reliable transportation can be a major hurdle for Londoners seeking jobs in industrial parks.

Mayor Josh Morgan vented, “I share the frustration of a number of councillors.”

The mayor recounted a recent visit to the Maple Leaf Foods facility on Wilton Grove Road.

He was told the chicken processing plant has 1,000 employees and plans to hire an additional 600 by the end of this year.

There is still no bus service to the massive plant.

“They built their facility with the ability to have a bus loop right in there, so their employees could be dropped off there. Instead, they are dropped off over a kilometre away and then they walk,” the mayor said.

London Transit intends to launch its first industrial service pilot project this fall with limited point to point service.

Council members are requesting a presentation from LTC leadership shortly after the first three months of the pilot project are completed.

“We want the data from that pilot, and we want to move beyond the pilot as soon as we possibly can,” Morgan told CTV News after the meeting.

In 2017, the London Economic Development Corporation (LEDC) sounded the alarm after a survey of more than 200 industries found 42 percent lacked a bus route to get their employees to work.

“We need it, the community needs it, and we’re talking about thousands of jobs and that’s thousands of cars when we’re trying to deal with our climate emergency,” explained Franke following the committee meeting.

Morgan explained that a by-law prevents council from demanding operational changes from London Transit.

But the mayor says industrial service must be a priority.

“After all of the studies and engagement, to still not have it in place in a way that is to council’s satisfaction is very frustrating,” he added.

Chair of the London Transit Commission, Sheryl Rooth has yet to respond to a request for comment.