{"id":136140,"date":"2026-07-20T04:26:16","date_gmt":"2026-07-20T04:26:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/136140\/"},"modified":"2026-07-20T04:26:16","modified_gmt":"2026-07-20T04:26:16","slug":"the-train-to-nowhere-revisits-ottawas-transit-vision-and-asks-what-comes-next","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/136140\/","title":{"rendered":"‘The Train to Nowhere\u2019 revisits Ottawa\u2019s transit vision and asks what comes next"},"content":{"rendered":"

More than a decade after Ottawa\u2019s original light rail plans were derailed by political decisions and years after the city\u2019s current LRT system was plagued by breakdowns, a new documentary is encouraging residents to reconsider how the capital arrived at its transit crisis \u2014 and what lessons can be learned as Ottawa continues to expand its transit network.<\/p>\n

Dozens gathered at the ByTowne Cinema on July 11 for a screening of The Train to Nowhere, a 46-minute documentary by Ottawa filmmaker Gio Petti. Hosted by Good Golly Zines, the event also featured a panel discussion with Petti, researcher Benjamin McLellan-Campbell, Tom Ledgley of Horizon Ottawa, Meg Herod of the City for All Women Initiative and Marko Miljusevic of Strong Towns Ottawa.<\/p>\n

\"\"The promotional poster for The Train to Nowhere, a documentary by Ottawa filmmaker Gio Petti exploring the history of the city\u2019s O-Train and the political decisions that shaped Ottawa\u2019s transit system. [Photo \u00a9 Marjan Massoom]<\/p>\n

The documentary examines the history of Ottawa\u2019s O-Train, revisiting the original north-south line, the cancellation of the city\u2019s 2006 light rail project under former mayor Bob Chiarelli, and the decisions that shaped today\u2019s transit network.<\/p>\n

Petti said the project evolved far beyond what he first envisioned.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was originally not supposed to be a documentary,\u201d he told the audience after the screening. \u201cIt was supposed to be a 15- or 20-minute video talking about Line 2.\u201d<\/p>\n

As research progressed, however, he and McLellan-Campbell realized Ottawa\u2019s transit history had never been fully pieced together.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe story of Ottawa\u2019s north-south LRT wasn\u2019t really told,\u201d Petti said. \u201cBy having the archival footage and putting the story together, people would better understand it.\u201d<\/p>\n

McLellan-Campbell said uncovering that history required digging through newspaper archives, old election footage and personal recordings that documented debates over the city\u2019s transit plans.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt definitely made me appreciate how Ottawa doesn\u2019t really save a lot of its contemporaneous political information,\u201d he said. \u201cOtherwise, we\u2019d be totally dependent on newspaper clippings.\u201d<\/p>\n

The filmmakers said those historical decisions remain relevant today as Ottawa prepares for future transit expansion and another municipal election this October in which transit is expected to be a key issue.<\/p>\n

\"\"Panelists (left to right) Laura Blanchette of Good Golly Zines, filmmaker Gio Petti and researcher Benjamin McLellan-Campbell, Marko Miljusevic of Strong Towns Ottawa, Tom Ledgley of Horizon Ottawa and Meg Herod of the City for All Women Initiative take part in a discussion following a screening of The Train to Nowhere at the ByTowne Cinema in Ottawa on July 11. [Photo \u00a9 Marjan Massoom]<\/p>\n

While the film looks backward, the discussion afterward focused squarely on the future.<\/p>\n

Ledgley, coordinator of the grassroots political advocacy group Horizon Ottawa, said reliable public transit is critical for both mobility and civic engagement.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur group does a lot of work trying to get people more engaged with municipal politics,\u201d he said. \u201cBut when you have a volunteer base living in the urban area, trying to convince people to get down to Kanata or Barrhaven is very difficult.\u201d<\/p>\n

Without reliable transit, he said, community organizing, public meetings and civic participation become less accessible for residents across Ottawa.<\/p>\n

Herod connected transit to broader issues of equity and caregiving.<\/p>\n

\u2018It\u2019s very important to talk and listen to the needs of people and what that transit can do for them. It\u2019s important to canvass the people that live there.\u2019<\/p>\n

\u2014 Gio Petti, filmmaker, \u2018The Train to Nowhere\u2019<\/p>\n

Working with the CAWI, a non-profit that advocates for gender equity and inclusive municipal policies, Herod said the organization\u2019s research consistently finds transportation at the centre of conversations about affordability, housing and access to essential services.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe cannot have a single conversation without talking about transit,\u201d Herod said.<\/p>\n

She pointed to research showing that roughly half of Ottawa caregivers travel outside their neighbourhoods to access childcare, arguing that unreliable transit places a disproportionate burden on those who cannot choose another mode of transportation.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo many folks in our neighbourhoods do not have that choice,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\"\"In a scene from the documentary film \u201cThe Train to Nowhere,\u201d then-prime minister Justin Trudeau is shown surrounded by OC Transpo employees and municipal and provincial officials at the launch of Ottawa\u2019s $4.6-billion O-Train extension project in 2020. [Image \u00a9 \u201cThe Train to Nowhere\u201d\/Gio Petti\/City of Ottawa]<\/p>\n

Herod said improving transit means recognizing it as more than a way to commute. For many residents, she said, it is essential for accessing childcare, groceries, employment and health care.<\/p>\n

Miljusevic argued that many of Ottawa\u2019s transit challenges begin with how suburban neighbourhoods are planned.<\/p>\n

\u201cDecent transit is linked to land use,\u201d he said. \u201cIf you build another car-dependent suburb and then add transit afterward, the city can\u2019t justify having enough frequency to entice people to depend on it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Instead, he said, cities should build neighbourhoods around transit rather than treating transit as an afterthought, creating denser, mixed-use communities that make frequent transit viable.<\/p>\n

\"\"The title shot of Ottawa filmmaker Gio Petti\u2019s \u201cThe Train to Nowhere\u201d features a commuter train\u2019s arrival at Limebank Station in south-end Ottawa. [Image \u00a9 The Train to Nowhere\/Gio Petti] <\/p>\n

The screening also attracted municipal political hopefuls. Mayoral candidates Neil Saravanamuttoo and Jeff Leiper were among those in attendance and participated in the audience Q&A, asking panelists how the city can better engage residents in transit planning and ensure future decisions reflect the needs of riders. Their questions centred on public consultation, civic engagement and how Ottawa can avoid repeating past planning mistakes.<\/p>\n

Audience members also questioned the role of developers, public consultation and political decision-making in shaping major transit projects, prompting a broader discussion about who should have a voice in planning the city\u2019s transportation network.<\/p>\n

Petti said future transit projects should begin by listening to the people who use them.<\/p>\n

Although The Train to Nowhere revisits some decisions made decades ago, Petti said the goal was never simply to criticize the past.<\/p>\n

Instead, he hopes the film encourages residents to become more involved in conversations about the future of public transit.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s fantastic to have this discussion and talk to so many people,\u201d he said. \u201cTo be in this space and share this is incredible.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"More than a decade after Ottawa\u2019s original light rail plans were derailed by political decisions and years after…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":136141,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[61,8225],"class_list":["post-136140","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-ottawa","tag-ottawa","tag-transit"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/136140","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=136140"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/136140\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/136141"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=136140"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=136140"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=136140"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}