Winnipeg Mayor and Council Rushed Transit Changes to Avoid Election Heat

As you may know, I had the honour of serving on Winnipeg City Council, and in my experience, politicians often push difficult decisions through early so they don’t have to deal with the fallout as election season approaches. That appears to be what has happened with Winnipeg’s Primary Transit Network. Mayor Scott Gillingham and most councillors approved the changes, and now the backlash is here. It is loud, it is broad, and it is coming from the very people who rely on transit the most.

Doctors, patients, disability advocates, and labour leaders are voicing the same concern: the new system forgot about the people who depend on it the most. The stories coming forward are not just about inconvenience; they are about access to medical care, safety, and the dignity of being able to move around one’s own city.

Councillor Sherri Rollins put it plainly when she asked if residents really have to call 311 to beg for their bus stops back. She said, “Getting to healthcare should not mean taking three buses, walking painful blocks with hip and knee issues, or paying for taxis just to make appointments.” That is not a partisan statement. That is a description of reality.

At the Winnipeg Clinic, a stop that once served the Dynacare lab was removed. Dr. Andrew Lodge at Klinic Community Health said many of their patients cannot drive and cannot afford taxis. Cuts to late night transit, he explained, are not simply an inconvenience, but a barrier to health and safety.

The Independent Living Resource Centre’s Patrick Stewart said the results were predictable. The plan did not streamline service; it sidelined the people who use it most. Residents are telling the same story. Valerie Wolbert, a senior who advocates for people with intellectual disabilities, now takes taxis with her husband to Seven Oaks Hospital because the bus they relied on is gone. Meggie, who lives in South Osborne, described a three-bus trip with a long walk just to get an ultrasound at Misericordia. A Wolseley resident said the removal of the Victoria General Hospital bus loop forces patients, visitors, and staff to cross six lanes of Pembina traffic. That is not access, that is an obstacle.

When the stories pile up, you see the pattern. Fred Morris, who helped fight for Grace Hospital service decades ago, said he was deeply disappointed to see the same battle being fought all over again. He reminded people that more than 9,000 residents once stood up to secure that service. It has now been undone under the watch of a Mayor who was once their St. James councillor. A legally blind senior downtown said the loss of bus stops near the Winnipeg Clinic leaves them unsafe and exhausted. That is the human cost of this plan.

The frustration is not only about healthcare. It extends to daily life, jobs, and education. A Corydon resident described how even their bank teller struggles to get back home to Garden City, dealing with late buses and back pain while waiting. A grandmother downtown explained that her daughter, a single mother working late shifts, can no longer get home safely without taking multiple buses and long walks. Osborne Village resident Charmagne said the bus she depends on simply fails to show up or runs 45 minutes late, forcing her to miss work and medical appointments.

Disability advocates say this is more than poor planning. David Kron of the Cerebral Palsy Association of Manitoba said scaling back routes increases barriers to work, school, and healthcare for Manitobans living with disabilities. He urged Council to put accessibility at the forefront, warning that people with disabilities should not be left behind. Labour organizations are saying the same. Gord Delbridge of CUPE 500 called transit equity a labour issue, since service workers and health aides depend on reliable routes. Sandra DeLaronde tied the issue directly to public safety, noting that transportation failures put Indigenous women and girls at greater risk. Jeff Lieberman of the Jewish Federation of Winnipeg pointed out how late-night cuts are leaving cleaning staff and other shift workers stranded.

Chris Scott of the Amalgamated Transit Union captured it best: “When they designed the system, they forgot about the people.”

I was the only councillor to vote against the Master Transit Plan. I did not oppose it because I am against improving transit, but because it was clear the plan had too many gaps and would fail the very people who need it. What we are seeing today is exactly why. Instead of working through the plan in stages, consulting with the people who ride the buses every day, Council rushed it through. They followed the leader, they voted in a block, and now Winnipeggers are paying the price.

This isn’t the first time City Hall has made this mistake. They did the same with the so-called transit safety officers. Instead of strengthening policing on buses, Council voted for a program that has proven to be inadequate. And they did it with Portage and Main. First, they opened the intersection, claiming it was more cost-effective than maintaining the underground concourse. Now, they say the underground must stay open as well, but to avoid backlash they moved the decision to just after the next election. Do you need more evidence? In the end, taxpayers are left covering even higher costs than before. Each of these decisions drains trust, wastes money, and chips away at Winnipeg’s reputation as a place to live and work.

Business leaders know this. A city’s transit system is not just a service for those without cars. It is a marker of whether a city is prepared to grow. Companies deciding where to locate a plant, a warehouse, or even a new office ask if their employees can get to work easily and safely. Right now, Winnipeg cannot answer yes to that question. That is not a climate or infrastructure issue; it is about whether we can provide a basic, reliable service.

The failure here is not just bad planning. It is a symptom of politics at City Hall. Councillors and the Mayor did not want to be accused of dragging their feet, so they forced the plan through. The backlash now proves they knew this day was coming and wanted it behind them before the complaints piled up. That is how politics works. In my time at City Hall, I saw it up close. Every decision has a motive. And the motive is rarely what is best for the city. It is usually what is best for re-election.

That is why voters cannot afford to forget. Council hopes residents will move on, get distracted by the next issue, and vote them back into six-figure salaries, parking perks, and guaranteed benefits. Meanwhile, riders are stuck waiting for buses that do not come, or paying for taxis they cannot afford.

We need to change how decisions are made. Smart leadership means doing more research, listening longer, and making sure the plan works before it is forced into law. Smart people take the time to understand the consequences. That did not happen here. Instead, politics and pressure won the day.

This is also why I wonder if we need term limits. As long as the Council is filled with career politicians focused on the next election, decisions will be driven by self-preservation rather than service. When transit changes are rushed through without proper consultation, when safety programs are rolled out without real enforcement, when infrastructure decisions flip back and forth, we see the cost of that mindset.

Winnipeg deserves better. Transit riders, workers, families, and business owners deserve a system that works. That begins by admitting this plan is broken and demanding accountability from those who pushed it through. The backlash is not noise; it is evidence. The plan forgot about the people, and the people are not staying quiet.