Draft 2027 Service Plan

The draft recommended service changes for 2027 were selected based on recommendations in the 5-Year Service Plan, as well as opportunities to address schedule adherence, customer feedback or operational concerns identified in the annual service review. The recommendations are broken down between the two categories.

Recommendations Originating from the Five Year Service Plan

The following recommended changes were included for consideration as part of the 2025-2029 Conventional Transit Service Plan Framework.

ROUTE 7

Proposed Service Changes:

  1. All Service Periods – Extend Route 7 to service the Cranbrook neighbourhood currently covered by Route 15B

Issue/Rationale:

As part of a future re-alignment of routes in the Byron and Westmount area, the 2025-2029 conventional service plan recommends interdependent routing changes to Routes 7, 15 and 24. With this re-alignment, Route 15 is proposed to have a more direct path from Westmount Mall to Colonel Talbot & Southdale, however, this would remove the A and B branches and require another route to cover the neighborhood northwest of Westmount.

To maintain service in the Cranbrook neighborhood, an extension to Route 7 is proposed to cover the current 15B branch. This configuration would maintain travel from the mall into Cranbrook, and from the neighborhood to retail and employment areas at Commissioners & Wonderland as well as downtown. Further, Route 7 is not a branched route, meaning frequency for passengers on the current 15B branch would be the same or improved depending on the service period by switching the alignment of Route 7.

The map shows the proposed new routing of Route 7. After leaving Westmount Mall, the route is proposed to follow Viscount, Cranbrook and Commissioners and then continue the current routing to Downtown and Argyle Mall

ROUTE 15

Proposed Service Changes:

  1. All Service Periods – Extend Route 15 to service North Talbot Via Wonderland and Southdale

Issue/Rationale:

With significant development in North Talbot and along Southdale, the 5-year service plan proposed a change to Route 15 that would remove the branches and extend the service from Westmount to cover the Tillman, Raleigh and Colonel Talbot loop via Wonderland and Southdale.

With this realignment, residents in North Talbot would gain a one-seat ride to downtown, and a direct transit option to travel east or west along Southdale between Wonderland and Colonel Talbot.

Although the removal of the route branches will reduce the coverage of Route 15 northwest of Westmount, it should be noted that this change works in coordination with other changes to Routes 7 and 24. The 15B branch through Cranbrook is proposed to be covered by Route 7, and most riders of the 15A along Dalhousie would remain with 400m of the new routing.

The map shows the proposed new routing of Route 15. The current A and B branches would be removed and instead after leaving Westmount Mall the route would follow Wonderland, Southdale, Tilman, Raleigh, Colonel Talbot and Southdale. The route would then return back to Wonderland via Southdale and continue along the current routing at Viscount to Downtown and the Huron Heights neighbourhood.

ROUTE 24

Proposed Service Changes:

  1. All Service Periods – Modify Route 24 to turn around in the roundabout at Southdale and Colonel Talbot.

Issue/Rationale:

Within the phased implementation of the 5-year service plan, Route 24 is ultimately intended to service Byron via Southdale and Boler Rd. This extension is planned to take place in 2028 to balance service hours and fit within the approved budget of 18,000 annual service hours each year.

For 2027, a related routing modification is proposed for Route 24 to avoid duplication of service through North Talbot if the Route 15 extension is approved. For the year between the 15 extension and the 24 extension in 2028, Route 24 is proposed to turn around in the Colonel Talbot and Southdale roundabout. This would maintain service to the plaza at Colonel Talbot and is expected to help improve on-time performance and reliability along the rest of the route.

The map shows the proposed new routing for Route 24. Current service along Tilman, Raleigh and Colonel Talbot would be removed (replaced by proposed changes to Route 15) and instead the route would use the round about at Colonel Talbot and Southdale to turn around. The remainder of the route would stay the same as it is currently. 

ROUTE 25

Proposed Service Changes:

  1. All Service Periods – Extend Route 25 into the Cedar Hollow neighbourhood in the form of a 25A branch.

Issue/Rationale:

Leading up to the development of the 2025-2029 conventional service plan, numerous requests were received for transit service in the Cedar Hollow neighbourhood. In particular, residents were looking to travel south toward Highbury and Huron as well as Fanshawe College.

To address these requests and bring additional residents within 400m of transit service, the 5-year service plan recommended a branch to Route 25 that operates along Fanshawe Park Rd, Cedar Hollow Blvd and Killarney Rd. The proposed extension would also bring transit service closer to Cedar Hollow Public School and the Henley Place nursing home.

As part of the extension of service coverage, the 25A branch qualifies for assessment growth, however, only the proportion of the route that covers new service area is eligible. This leaves 1,436 service hours to operate the additional bus along the existing section of Route 25.

This extension to Route 25 is expected to be implemented in early 2028 when assessment growth buses arrive and are ready for service.

The extension of service into Cedar Hollow via Fanshawe Park Road, Cedar Hollow and Killarney, was approved as part of the 2026 Assessment Growth Business Case and is to be implemented in early 2028. The map confirms this routing. 

ROUTE 37

Proposed Service Changes:

  1. Weekday Peak Periods – Extend Route 37 from Sovereign Rd to White Oaks Mall via Veterans Memorial Pkwy, Hamilton / Commissioners Rd, Jackson Rd and Bradley

Issue/Rationale:

Route 37 currently provides service to the industrial areas along Sovereign Rd east of Veterans Memorial. The service operates during peak periods at a 30-minute headway and sees most riders transferring onto the bus from connecting lines at Argyle Mall. As part of the 5-year service plan, it was recommended that the route be extended via Veterans Memorial and Commissioners to the Summerside neighborhood and White Oaks Mall. The proposed extension would add fixed route service to Commissioners east of Summerside where residents of the Sheffield neighborhood have long been requesting service. It would also create a 1 seat ride for passengers in the Summerside neighborhood to employment opportunities along Newbold and the north end of Innovation Park, while offering Mall to Mall service during peak periods.

As part of the extension of service coverage, the 37 qualifies for assessment growth, however, only the proportion of the route that covers new service area is eligible. This leaves 2,321 service hours to operate the additional vehicle along the existing section of Route 37

This extension to Route 37 is expected to be implemented in early 2028 when assessment growth buses arrive and are ready for service.

The modification to extend Route 37 to White Oaks Mall via Veteran's Memorial Parkway, Commissioners, Chelton, Bradley, Newbold, Bessemer, Exeter and Wellington was approved as part of the 2026 Assessment Growth Business Case, to be implemented in early 2028. The map confirms this routing.

Recommendations Originating From the Annual Service Planning Review Process

The following recommendations are the result of public feedback and operator input. The proposed changes are intended to address overcrowding concerns, improve schedule adherence and/or, increase frequency. While these recommendations were not directly proposed in the 2025-2029 Service Plan Framework, they are consistent with the strategic directions of the Service Plan Framework given changing ridership demand and network conditions.

ROUTE 1

Proposed Service Changes:

  1. All Service Periods – Return to previous southbound routing through Grey and South Street neighbourhood via Wellington, South, Colborne and Grey.

Issue/Rationale:

With a signalized intersection added at Wellington and South Street, an opportunity exists to return Route 1 southbound to its previous path along Wellington, South St, Colborne & Grey. The route was previously changed from this configuration due to concerns turning left across Wellington without a traffic light. With the new traffic signal, these concerns have been resolved.

In the time since the route was changed to Horton, significant redevelopment has taken place near the corner of South and Colborne. Moreover, operational challenges making the right turn from Horton into the neighborhood have been raised by operators. Returning Route 1 southbound to its previous alignment would eliminate the turn causing operational challenges, and bring southbound service closer to the higher density residential buildings opening on South Street.

With no service hours associated, this service change could be implemented sooner than the standard September service change timeline. If approved, the route could be updated for the Spring 2027 signup.

The proposed routing change for Route 1 would follow the Wellington, South, Colborne and Grey loop in both the northbound and southbound directions. This would remove Route 1 service from Horton and Maitland. 

ROUTE 3/5

Proposed Service Changes:

  1. Weekday – Separate interlined routes in all Service Periods
  2. Sunday – Separate interlined routes in all Service Periods

Issue/Rationale:

Route 3 is currently experiencing significant schedule adherence issues in the weekday evenings and on Sundays. As an interlined route, Route 3 has a combined round trip time with Route 5. however, with limited space to layover downtown, and the need to evenly space Route 3 and 5 trips along the shared Hamilton Rd corridor, the timing of each route relative to the other leads to long stretches of travel without schedule recovery time at a terminal point. This causes delays to accumulate throughout each round-trip and frustrates both operators and passengers. Adding a bus and separating the interlined routes would allow the round-trip time to be extended for Route 3 while maintaining the even spacing between Routes 3 and 5 on the shared Hamilton Road corridor.

ROUTE 27

Proposed Service Changes:

  1. Weekday Early AM – Extend service span on Weekdays during the Spring and Summer signups.

Issue/Rationale:

With a significant proportion of Western and Fanshawe students departing London between May and August, Route 27 has a summer schedule with reduced frequency to match the reduced passenger volume. During the transition to summer schedules, customer contacts from year-round riders raised concerns with early morning transit options being limited in the summer months. In particular, eastbound travel from the Sarnia and University area on Route 27 begins an hour later.

Extending service span in the early AM would allow for the first few trips to more closely match the fall and winter start time. If approved, this extension of service span could make transit a year-round option for residents in the Capulet, Sarnia or University area commuting along the Huron corridor in the early AM.

ROUTE 33

Proposed Service Changes:

  1. Weekday – Increase the frequency from 30-35 minutes to 20 and extend the round-trip time to 40 minutes during the Spring and Summer signups

Issue/Rationale:

Similar to Route 27, Route 33s summer schedule was built with the assumption of reduced passenger volume and quicker average operating speeds while most university students are out of town for the summer. In recent years, greater traffic near the Wonderland and Oxford side of the route, and more consistent summer riders have challenged this assumption and impacted the performance of the existing schedule. This has led to customer contacts upset with the reduced summer service, and operators struggling to keep the bus on-time. If approved, a round trip time adjustment and frequency increase would have a positive effect on reliability of Route 33 and bring the summer service closer to the level of frequency expected by riders.