Barrhaven West: Chadha — We can create a faster, more reliable, more affordable transit system

The Citizen invited candidates in the Oct. 24 municipal election to share their thoughts:

If the last four years at city hall have taught us anything, it’s that there’s a deep need for transparency and accountability around the council table. Unfortunately we haven’t seen much of that.

Public confidence in city officials is at an all-time low, we have a record debt, and a transit system that isn’t meeting the needs of its riders. We are in the middle of adapting to a “new normal” after the COVID-19 pandemic, and many major projects are coming up for a review. There is no doubt the next term of council will have to make many crucial decisions, ones that will drastically change the landscape of this city.

My name is Jay Chadha and I am running to be your next city councillor in ward 3: Barrhaven West. I’ve worked at OC Transpo for the last 20 years, most recently in rail operations. I’ve seen first-hand the inner workings of our transit system. I am the only candidate in Barrhaven West who can bring my years of background and knowledge to the council table to create a faster, more reliable and more affordable bus and train system.

There is no doubt we need to do a complete overhaul of the system. Ridership habits have changed following the pandemic and we need to put a greater emphasis on localized routes. We must also ensure we have enough bus drivers on staff so we don’t see hundreds of bus cancellations per day. Additionally, I’ve heard far too many times from people who say their commute from home to work is over an hour by public transit compared to only 20 or so minutes by car. If we aren’t creating a fast and reliable system, how can we expect people to use it?

There are a number of infrastructure projects I would also like to see complete in Barrhaven West. The Greenbank Road realignment is a prime example of a project that has been delayed for well over a decade. While all candidates agree this needs to be completed sooner rather than later, I am the only candidate who has a plan to fast-track the process. There is by no means an easy solution to getting the timelines moved up from 2030, but I believe there has never been a push from current elected officials to make this a priority. I have developed working relationships with the other levels of elected officials in our community, and I would work with them to secure funding for the realignment.

The City of Ottawa is spending taxpayer dollars we don’t have on projects that we could hold off on, and not investing in aging infrastructure in our communities. Our debt has tripled to $3.5 billion and interest costs have doubled to $240 million.

This is a crucial election for our city and one that will shape Ottawa’s future for the next generations. To learn more about me and my platform, please visit jaychadha.ca

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