iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Derrick Simpson @derricksimpson.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

There has sadly been lots of confusion!

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Derrick Simpson @derricksimpson.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

I’ve asked them to update it. Here’s hoping!

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Derrick Simpson @derricksimpson.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

Spoke with the Ottawa Citizen about the perceived lack of parking downtown. “It’s more valuable to provide housing than it is to have surface level parking lots,” he said. “We can have buildings; we can have houses; we can have restaurants; we can have parks.” ottawacitizen.com/public-servi...

ottawacitizen.com

Public servants need parking. Downtown Ottawa has lost 3,000 spots

Downtown Ottawa has 3,000 fewer off-street parking spots than it did a decade ago, according to City of Ottawa data.

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It's Jamie @sjamieit.bsky.social · 14/09/2026

Shocked. Shocked, I say. How could this have happened? The water main there under O'Connor Street is only 123 years old (1903). Practically brand new! /s I'm sure the city was hoping to kick that can down the road for at least another decade. It's not even on the planned 5 year construction map.

cbc.ca

Broken water main soaks O'Connor and Albert streets in downtown Ottawa | CBC News

A broken water main at a downtown Ottawa intersection filled the vicinity with water and is forcing lane closures on nearby roads on Monday morning.

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Sean Devine @seandevine9.bsky.social · 11/09/2026

Why do I have the feeling that I’m about to become a GIF?

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It's Jamie @sjamieit.bsky.social · 10/09/2026

"Sean Devine publicly supported the introduction of a congestion tax. This is part of his War On Cars strategy."

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Derrick Simpson @derricksimpson.bsky.social · 05/09/2026

The Ottawa Urbanism Book Club will be meeting at Sunnyside Public Library at 6:15pm on September 28 to discuss Walkable City by Jeff Speck. One of the best and most accessible urbanism books I've ever read. No RSVP required, and reading is optional.

Walkable City: How downtown can save America, One step at a time by Jeff Speck

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Derrick Simpson @derricksimpson.bsky.social · 02/09/2026

The Centretown Community Association is disappointed by the lack of consultation and true solutions included in Ottawa’s return to office traffic plan. Ottawa’s RTO traffic plan will lead to more traffic congestion, more road safety concerns, and more unreliable public transit in Centretown.

Dear Mayor Sutcliffe,

The Centretown Community Association is disappointed by the lack of consultation, and true solutions included in Ottawa’s return to office traffic plan, officially known as the Transportation and Mobility Strategy and Action Plan.

The plan provides very little real solutions for addressing traffic congestion and an influx of cars in the downtown area. Many of the plan’s areas of focus are redundant, or identify projects a functioning city should already be doing, like ensuring bike lanes are well maintained and swept. On a plan that aims to implement all feasible measures by September 1, 2026, two thirds of the plan's funding is being spent on the Suburban Bowesville Park and Ride expansion that will not be complete until 2027.

We are especially concerned by the lack of consultation for what is being presented as a significant plan. This plan was not originally presented at a city committee, meaning residents were not given the opportunity to delegate or consult on the project. Changes like allowing private driveway rentals will have a profound and lasting impact on our neighbourhood, and deserved to be discussed ahead of time. Return to office is not a surprise development; proper consultation with local residents and commuters should have been an essential part of a functional plan.

We are also concerned by the lack of investments in Centretown and across downtown that this plan provides. Somerset Ward residents will bear the significant brunt of the additional traffic, air pollution, and road safety concerns. We are disappointed to see no significant investments in cycling infrastructure, bus lanes or similar transit priority measures, or road safety measures included as part of the plan. Instead, critical infrastructure works downtown, like on Bay Street, are being delayed so more commuters can drive past our doors.

Ottawa’s return to office traffic plan doesn’t serve downtown residents, and will lead to more traffic congestion, mor…

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Derrick Simpson @derricksimpson.bsky.social · 18/08/2026

The Ottawa Urbanism Book Club’s social meet up and book swap is happening tonight at the Bank and Waverley Street Seats. Starts at 6:30, and there will be a lot of free books being given away. Bringing a book or RSVPing is not required!

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Derrick Simpson @derricksimpson.bsky.social · 13/08/2026

The Ottawa Urbanism Book Club is hosting a social meet up and book swap this Tuesday, August 18 at 6:30 pm at the Bank and Waverley Street Seats. Already had people let me know they’re bringing a big selection of architecture and urbanism books to give away. Bringing a book is not required!

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Derrick Simpson @derricksimpson.bsky.social · 31/07/2026

Ottawa is so cooked on return to office. We spent an hour and 10 minutes in traffic for what’s a 12 minute drive outside of rush hour. Makes me sad that OC Transpo has gotten so much worse, and people are not being allowed to work from home more often. God help all of us in September.

Traffic blocking the intersection at Elgin and Laurier

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It's Jamie @sjamieit.bsky.social · 21/07/2026

Point #3 in Sutcliffe's 48 point plan to improve traffic flow: "Ensure pathways, multi-use pathways (MUPs), and cycling infrastructure (including bike lanes) are well maintained, swept and not unnecessarily impacted by nearby construction." Um, shouldn't the city be doing all those things already?

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Derrick Simpson @derricksimpson.bsky.social · 22/07/2026

Among a lot of issues I think my biggest issue is #27, restricting road closures downtown for events. Whether they are going to do it or not is one thing, but to do it with no consultation, not even discussing at a committee meeting first is unacceptable.

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Derrick Simpson @derricksimpson.bsky.social · 20/07/2026

the Bowesville park and ride is already in service! It's currently 800 spaces of free parking

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Derrick Simpson @derricksimpson.bsky.social · 20/07/2026

Where was this energy at council last week? $20 million of the $30 million RTO plan is going to expanding a suburban park and ride. No additional service for major downtown routes like the 6, 7, and 14. No significant urban bus priority measures like bus lanes.

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Derrick Simpson @derricksimpson.bsky.social · 20/07/2026

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Derrick Simpson @derricksimpson.bsky.social · 13/07/2026

Went to the beach in a very car dependent area in Southern Ontario and a person that joined us spent 30 minutes looking for parking. All the parking was free. If parking was priced based on demand, finding parking would be easy!

A full parking lot at the beach in Leamington, Ontario

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Derrick Simpson @derricksimpson.bsky.social · 07/07/2026

I can’t recommend The Years of Lyndon Johnson book series by Robert Caro highly enough. Just finished the 2nd book and so far it’s shaping up to be even better than The Power Broker. The best piece of media I’ve ever read on the extent some people will go to acquire power.

Robert A Caro, The Years of Lyndon Johnson, Means of Ascent

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Derrick Simpson @derricksimpson.bsky.social · 02/07/2026

Looking like a really good book so far. It’s available at Perfect Books on Elgin

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Derrick Simpson @derricksimpson.bsky.social · 02/07/2026

The next Ottawa Urbanism Book Club will be July 27 at 6:15pm at Sunnyside Public Library. We’ll be discussing Emergent Tokyo: Designing the Spontaneous City by Jorge Almazán. Reading is optional and RSVP is not required.

Emergent Tokyo: Designing the spontaneous city by Jorge Almazan

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Derrick Simpson @derricksimpson.bsky.social · 29/06/2026

I mostly like Ottawa’s E-Scooter system, but I can’t stop thinking about how much better bike share would be. Makes me sad that Ottawa is showing no real urgency in setting up a bike share program. Most major Canadian cities have bike share, we should too!

Two orange e-scooters parked on the sidewalk on O’Connor in downtown Ottawwa

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Derrick Simpson @derricksimpson.bsky.social · 28/06/2026

Finally visited the Chinatown Street Seats early this morning and man it’s nice. Best part is definitely the ping pong table, the shade is a nice touch too.

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Oh The Urbanity! @ohtheurbanity.bsky.social · 18/06/2026

“Bike Share Toronto is an impressive success story: a public policy that for a relative pittance has blossomed into a substantial way to move people around Ontario’s biggest city in a way that doesn’t add to car congestion or require billion-dollar decades-long construction projects.”

tvo.org

ANALYSIS: Bike Share Toronto is a huge success. Imagine if we tried harder | TVO Today

The network already moves more passengers than some major transit lines, for a fraction of the cost. It could be so much more.

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Strong Towns Ottawa @strongtownsottawa.ca · 25/04/2026

We're honored to be recognized by an organization doing such important work such as @ecologyottawa.bsky.social ! This couldn't have been done without all of the members who helped out along the way. None of this is a one person job! Thank you to all of our wonderful members!

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Strong Towns Ottawa @strongtownsottawa.ca · 20/04/2026

CBC had a great episode about parking in downtown! We need to give people good alternatives to driving so that we can get people to where they need to go. Parking is some of the worst land usage we can have in the downtown core of the city. www.cbc.ca/listen/cbc-p...

cbc.ca

Lot full: why parking downtown Ottawa is such a gong show | This is Ottawa | CBC Podcasts | CBC Listen

Demand for downtown parking exceeds supply on certain weekday mornings. To score a spot, some commuters have a strategy. Robyn Bresnahan hung out in some downtown parking garages to hear why commuters...

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Strong Towns Ottawa @strongtownsottawa.ca · 10/04/2026

Such an amazing turnout last night at our monthly meeting! Great conversations about next steps for bus lanes on Bank Street, the upcoming election, and our future advocacy! If you're looking to join in on the fun, check out our next events at luma.com/STO We look forward to seeing you there!

Members of Strong Towns Ottawa pose for a picture after the April Monthly Meeting

Members of Strong Towns Ottawa introducing themselves to each other during the ice breaker

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Strong Towns Ottawa @strongtownsottawa.ca · 08/04/2026

Disappointment at council today. Council just passed a motion from Councillor Menard for the Bank Street bus lane study which will restrict bus lanes even further from staff's proposed 3 hours to 2 hours. This means we will get no data about how parking affects bus flow in the area.

Motion brought forth to council by Councillor Menard, which sought to restrict the bus lanes on Bank Street from 3 hours in each peak direction to 2 hours.

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Better Transit Ottawa @bettertransitottawa.ca · 08/04/2026

After 30+ people showed up to the Public Works commission last week in support of expanding bus lanes on Bank Street, City Council has now passed a motion to reduce the scope of the bus lanes even further This motion was passed with absolutely no debate Passed without a single question

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Derrick Simpson @derricksimpson.bsky.social · 08/04/2026

Another example of how it takes forever to do anything in Ottawa And how that makes life way worse for residents.

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Toon Dreessen @toondreessen.bsky.social · 28/03/2026

Here’s my issue: this is obvious that it makes sense: there’s zero reasons to not implement this. Why does it take grassroots orgs, deputations, endless discussions, debates and reviews to implement good policy, make decisive leadership decisions. We are buried in bureaucracy for the sake of 1/

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Strong Towns Ottawa @strongtownsottawa.ca · 25/03/2026

We have sent a letter out with our 4 key asks for the upcoming Bus Lanes on Bank Street report coming to PWIC on March 30th. You can read the asks here : strongtownsottawa.ca/2026/03/24/o... The letter is also attached in the post. Want to delegate? strongtownsottawa.ca/2026/03/23/f...

The first page of a letter from Strong Towns Ottawa to the Public Works and Infrastructure Committee, sent on March 24th, 2026. The letter makes the argument that our transit system is in a crisis and our city needs to be bold because of that. The asks are to implement the pilot project by summer of 2026, not 2027, to extend dedicated bus lanes to weekends and events, to operate bus lanes in both directions, and to extend the hours to at minimum 6am-6pm, and ideally to 24/7.

The full letter can be found here : https://strongtownsottawa.ca/2026/03/24/open-letter-bus-lanes-on-bank-street.html

The second page of a letter from Strong Towns Ottawa to the Public Works and Infrastructure Committee, sent on March 24th, 2026. The letter makes the argument that our transit system is in a crisis and our city needs to be bold because of that. The asks are to implement the pilot project by summer of 2026, not 2027, to extend dedicated bus lanes to weekends and events, to operate bus lanes in both directions, and to extend the hours to at minimum 6am-6pm, and ideally to 24/7.

The full letter can be found here https://strongtownsottawa.ca/2026/03/24/open-letter-bus-lanes-on-bank-street.html

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Derrick Simpson @derricksimpson.bsky.social · 23/03/2026

It's going to be a marathon. Even more people will be arguing and delegating about bus lanes on bank. Putting them both in the same meeting makes absolutely no sense.

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Strong Towns Ottawa @strongtownsottawa.ca · 21/03/2026

Thank you to the @natashabaldin.bsky.social at the Citizen for covering such an important issue! We need reliable transit not only to get people to and from work, but at all times of day! Students at Carleton, mothers picking up groceries, kids getting to the movies ottawacitizen.com/news/bus-lan...

ottawacitizen.com

Bus-only lanes to be considered for Bank Street in the Glebe

A report about the proposed 15-month pilot project will go before a City of Ottawa committee on March 30.

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Derrick Simpson @derricksimpson.bsky.social · 21/03/2026

The tulip festival used to be a huge event in Ottawa. Had concerts, events, and lots of programming. It stopped being as great as it once was because we stopped funding it.

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Better Transit Ottawa @bettertransitottawa.ca · 19/03/2026

The current plan calls for changes not to take effect for more than a year from now (Summer 2027) This is unacceptable when we are facing a severe bus shortage and bus reliability crisis. Any bus wasted sitting in traffic means a bus cancelled elsewhere in the network.

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Strong Towns Ottawa @strongtownsottawa.ca · 19/03/2026

City staff has released the agenda for the PWIC March 30th meeting, where Bank Street Bus Lanes will be discussed (item 5.2). Please consider signing up to delegate in favour of expanding bus lanes further. On-street parking is extremely underused here and is standing in the way of real progress.

The number 6 bus is shown driving along Bank Street in front of a sign at the Mayfair Theatre. The sign reads

"Mayfairtheatre.ca
Support bus lanes on bank st
Strongtownsottawa.ca"

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Derrick Simpson @derricksimpson.bsky.social · 20/03/2026

Spoke with CTV Ottawa about the need for bus lanes on Bank Street. “We really think that considering the transit crisis right now in Ottawa, that bus lanes are a really great way to speed up transit and to reduce costs,” www.ctvnews.ca/ottawa/artic...

ctvnews.ca

Ottawa to test bus-only lanes on Bank Street in the Glebe

Three-hour bus-only lanes will be installed on a stretch of Bank Street to improve OC Transpo movement on a busy transit route in the Glebe.

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Derrick Simpson @derricksimpson.bsky.social · 19/03/2026

The Centretown Community Association has sent a letter suggesting changes and improvements to the Bank Street Transit Study. As the busiest bus corridor in Ottawa, Bank street needs to prioritize moving people over cars.

Dear Lise Guèvremont,

While we are optimistic for the Bank Street Active Transportation and Transit Priority Feasibility Study, we believe the most recent public proposal does not go far enough to prioritize public transportation and move as many people as possible.

The Centretown Community Association would like to make the following suggested changes to the Bank Street Transit Study:
Bus lanes should be bi-directional whenever in use and the city should consider expanding the duration of active bus lanes.
The number of 24/7 bus lane sections should be expanded.
There should be more frequent use of transit priority signals throughout Bank Street.
The definition of large events requiring bus lanes should be expanded to include events like 613flea and Ottawa Charge games.
Signage should be improved to direct drivers to the 2nd Avenue parking garage.

As OC Transpo faces reliability and confidence issues, we need to prioritize fast and reliable public transit. Bus lanes are a great way to reduce operating costs, speed up travel times, and increase the number of people that will ride the bus.

We would also love to see the city lean into the pilot project aspect of the Bank Street Transit Study. Once implemented, we believe the project should be reviewed within the first six months with consideration taken to increase bus lane durations and to expand bus lane locations, including into Centretown.

As the busiest bus corridor in the city, we need to be maximizing the efficiency of bus travel to ensure traffic flows smoothly and reliably. A reminder that the City’s own data collected outlined that 77% of respondents want more space for people outside of private vehicles on Bank Street.

Thank you,
Robert Dekker
CCA President

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Strong Towns Ottawa @strongtownsottawa.ca · 15/03/2026

An amazing member of ours put together this graphic that really encapsulates perfectly the situation on Bank Street. There is only so much space available, and we must use it as efficiently as possible. Parking isn't that. Please sign up to delegate on March 30th in favour of bus lanes!

An OC Transpo #6 bus in a bus lane. Inside of the bus there are multiple people, each with a text showing what they're going to be doing. They say "Grabbing a bite to eat", "Going to Lansdowne", "Getting a haircut", "Bought groceries", and "Can finally fit on the bus". The final one was a user in a wheelchair.

Beside the bus there is a single person in a truck in the regular travel lane. Pointing to him it says "Just driving through". They have a thought bubble coming out from their head saying "That bus lane is going to ruin local business!".

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Strong Towns Ottawa @strongtownsottawa.ca · 15/03/2026

Apologies, just wanted to correct a small thing. The second figure, 25, is not how the owners got there, but actually what the owners THINK that customers primarily use to get to their stores. So again just showing that owners heavily overestimate how many customers drive.

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Strong Towns Ottawa @strongtownsottawa.ca · 15/03/2026

The Glebe BIA had a report done about the area. We think this image perfectly encapsulates the reason for hesitancy by the business owners to get rid of parking. While 86% of the respondents who come to shop said they get there by means other than driving, 94% of the owners said they drove.

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Derrick Simpson @derricksimpson.bsky.social · 09/03/2026

Any update on when the bike share study will be presented? It was identified in 2023 and was supposed to be done in 2025 (which is already super slow).

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David Roberts @volts.wtf · 07/03/2026

One thing I feel ought to be discussed more is the fact that basically all rural and suburban places in the US are subsidized by cities. They resent cities. They insult cities. They elect politicians who abuse cities. But none of them could survive without cities.

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Ariel Troster @arieltroster.bsky.social · 03/03/2026

Thanks to Mary Huang from the Centretown Community Association for coming to Finance Committee today, to voice support for the city’s acquisition of the hotel at O’Connor and Gladstone for family transitional housing.

Ariel with Mary Huang and Marty Carr in Council chambers

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Derrick Simpson @derricksimpson.bsky.social · 23/02/2026

This is amazing news. As someone who lives in Centretown, I’m happy to say “yes in my backyard!”

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