The years leading up to Ottawa’s 2019 Westboro station bus tragedy were marked by rushed hiring, lenient training standards, and safety being sidelined at OC Transpo, according to testimony from Ken Gordon, a former manager at the city’s transit agency.
Anticipating the launch of Ottawa’s LRT, OC Transpo issued layoff notices to about a fifth of its bus drivers in 2018. But with delays pushing the launch to September 2019, the agency scrambled to fill gaps, often hiring back underqualified drivers or recruiting people with little to no experience.
Gordon testified during a coroner’s inquest that some candidates failed interviews and screening processes multiple times but were still admitted to training. During this hiring crunch, the agency prioritized customer service skills over professional driving experience, leading to candidates unfamiliar with Ottawa’s streets and bus operations.
Among those hired was Aissatou Diallo, the driver in the January 2019 Westboro crash that killed three passengers. Despite being in a collision the month before, she received only a single day of retraining and was cleared to drive again.
The inquest revealed that in 2018, there was no consistent policy for refresher training or limits on how many times an applicant could reapply. Drivers often worked excessive hours, lured by promises of overtime pay, a practice Gordon says compromised safety.
Since then, OC Transpo has implemented stricter reapplication rules and mandatory training hours per bus type. However, Gordon warned that training consistency and route familiarity are still lacking, with some recent hires struggling to navigate downtown or recognize major city routes.
The inquest aims to uncover lessons from the crash and ensure the safety culture at OC Transpo never again takes a back seat.
Source: Swifteradio.com
