The City of Ottawa’s 3.75 per cent property tax increase for 2026 does very little for the elephant that has long been in the room: OC Transpo’s crippling deficits.

Year after year, we agonize over OC Transpo’s balance sheet. We constantly complain about low ridership, which is clearly at the heart of the problem, but we can’t make changes to attract more riders. Then we hope for federal and provincial bailouts that never come.

Last year, the city included $36 million from the province and the feds in the budget. It never materialized. So what does this city do with this budget? It includes $47 million from the province as part of the promised upload of LRT, even though there is no signed agreement. Often, it looks as if we have no clue how to run public transit.

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