Should the London Transit Commission be disbanded so city hall can run local bus service?

Passenger boards a London Transit bus in London, Ont. on Monday, Sept. 11, 2023. (Daryl Newcombe/CTV News London)

“Some cities run a commission, some run it in-house, I think we need to ask what’s right for London?” the deputy mayor is floating the idea of moving responsibility for operating local bus service in-house at city hall.

During a discussion about minimum parking standards, Shawn Lewis told colleagues on the Planning and Environment Committee (PEC) that bringing bus service directly under the control of city hall might lead to better coordination of transit with development.

“Right now we have a transit commission that is arms-length from city hall,” explained Lewis. “So council does have the ability, if they believe we need (London Transit) to be more closely integrated with our planning, to bring transit in-house.”

Currently, the five-member transit commission consists of two councillors (Pribil and Ferreira) and three council-appointed citizens who meet monthly with a dedicated administration.

The commission submits an annual report and budget submission to city council each year.

Following the PEC meeting, Lewis told CTV News that an opportunity to consider a governance change is coming.

“We have a Mobility Master Plan process that’s underway right now looking at all forms of mobility, we’ve heard delegations come before council and committees with concerns about paratransit service, and we have a BRT (bus rapid transit) system under construction and who’s going to operate it?” he explains. “These are timely questions.”

Earlier this summer, council sent back London Transit’s annual report for revisions after disagreeing with some self-evaluations of its performance.

Lewis says some transit services are external, like London Transit, but others are municipal departments under the direct oversight of civic administration and council.

He suggests there might be benefits to the switch.

“Whether it should be brought in-house as a city service that integrates these things so that we have more direct control as a council to respond to public needs,” Lewis said.

The deputy mayor says his mind isn’t made up, “but it’s an option we need to consider because at the end of the day transit relies very heavily on municipal tax dollars. It also has to be integrated with other modes of transportation around the city, and too often we’ve seen it siloed off on its own, and not integrated in a meaningful way”

Chair of the London Transit Commission Sheryl Rooth told CTV News that she doesn’t want to respond until hearing Lewis’ comments.