RUSSELL TOWNSHIP: Russell Township's transit study is examining ways to connect Embrun, Russell and the 417 Industrial Park, as councillors and candidates debate whether public transportation could make it easier and cheaper to live without relying on a car for every local trip.
“We’re hearing that affordability for getting around locally is a huge priority,” said Russell Township councillor and candidate Lisa Deacon.
She said input from housing work, seniors and teenagers has shown that the cost of owning a vehicle can become part of the larger question of whether people can afford to remain in the community.
Russell Executive Director of Planning and Infrastructure Services Jonathan Bourgon has confirmed that the feasibility study is focused primarily on service within Township boundaries between Embrun, Russell and the 417 Industrial Park and that different service models are currently being reviewed. The study does not include service to Ottawa. Bourgon said that market is currently served by a private provider.
In a Sept. 25 response to The Rustler, the Township said it had not discussed integrating its work with neighbouring The Nation Municipality, which was also developing a transportation master plan.
The consultant's report is scheduled to be presented to Russell council in December.
Council's Sept. 14 discussion showed that the study is looking beyond conventional fixed-route buses. Councillors discussed access to groceries, medical appointments, recreation, libraries, municipal services and employment, as well as the needs of seniors, young people and residents with disabilities. Staff reported 745 survey responses, along with workshops and input from community organizations and businesses.
Deacon said that Russell has never operated the kind of local, universally accessible service she has in mind. She said she is particularly interested in examining an on-demand model used in Kenora, where passengers request trips and use nearby pickup points rather than relying entirely on conventional fixed routes.
Deacon hasn’t yet decided what she’d be prepared to fund but said she’s been taking a close look at what the City of Kenora has been doing to develop a transit program which looks somewhat like what Russell is considering.
“And one that I’m particularly interested in looking at as a model is Kenora’s, where they have a similar size population, about a similar size geography. They are an isolated, a very remote community, but they have some key indicators in common with us here in Russell. And they launched a pilot a year and a half ago or so on, that was on demand, what they call closest-corner pickup. And so that’s a system that I’m really interested and curious about because it seems to be convenient, designed for small-town use and small trips. And also looking, of course, they’ve been very helpful in sending me their data, their measuring in terms of the investment that they’ve made and how much of the subsidy ultimately has to come from their municipality to support it long term. So I can’t answer today what service I would be prepared to fund, but I can tell you that that’s a model that I’m really interested in looking at more and that I’ve actually been tracking with them every six months.”
In the 2021 census, Kenora had 14,967 residents and a land area of 211.65 square kilometres. Russell Township had 19,598 residents across 198.78 square kilometres.
Mayor Mike Tarnowski likewise described the study as open-ended rather than a decision in favour of a particular transit system.
“Maybe there's a model there where it's a multi-pay type thing where we have industry supporting that or commercial supporting,” he said.
“So at this point it's wide open.”
He said the Township needs to see the options and costs and determine what residents actually want before deciding what, if anything, should proceed.
For now, the December report is the next major decision point. Council will then have substantially more information about what a local system might look like, who it would serve and what it would cost.