The Chair of the London Transit Commission (LTC), Stephanie Marentette, is expressing concerns after the city’s Strategic Priorities and Policy Committee (SPPC) recommended disbanding the LTC and temporarily appointing five councillors to oversee its operations.

Marentette, who described the move as “very disappointing,” emphasized the lack of a clear plan for dissolving the commission. She added, “It has some people really scratching their heads and not necessarily feeling very comfortable with collapsing the commission without a plan.”

In response to the recommendation, Marentette proposed an alternative. She suggested filling the three vacant seats on the LTC by appointing councillors to ensure the commission’s continued function while maintaining institutional knowledge. Her plan would allow the remaining Commissioners to work with a majority voting power (four out of seven seats) on council, providing a balanced approach without losing the expertise of the current board members.

The recent vacancies on the LTC came after the resignations of Councillor David Ferreira, Commissioner Jacqueline Madden, and David Little over the weekend. Speaking to SPPC, Madden revealed her reasons for resigning, stating, “I have certainly never felt welcome, nor have I felt like I’ve been treated as a peer. But as long as I felt I was advancing accessibility – I forged ahead.”

The SPPC debated a motion that would see the dissolution of the current LTC in favor of appointing five councillors to address key issues, including accessibility, ridership, route expansion, increased frequency, and responding to council directives.

“I think we have a governance crisis with this board,” argued Councillor Sam Trosow. “We are responsible for dealing with it.”

Councillor Jerry Pribil, one of the remaining four LTC members, cautioned against rushing into drastic changes. “We are making this decision [to] potentially dissolve this commission with no clear vision of the future,” Pribil stated, emphasizing the need for a well-thought-out plan.

Despite these concerns, SPPC members voted 9 to 6 in favor of replacing the LTC with an interim commission of five councillors.

Following the vote, Deputy Mayor Shawn Lewis assured that the appointment of councillors would be a temporary measure while a long-term solution is developed. “This [five-member interim commission] will give us a short-term oversight body while we work through some of these issues,” he explained, noting that a governance and operations audit is still underway at London Transit. This audit is expected to provide a final solution by November 2026.

Marentette voiced her concerns over the uncertainty surrounding the LTC’s future, stressing the impact this could have on public confidence in the city’s transit system. “I think that this undermines public confidence tremendously,” she said, arguing that such uncertainty could hurt the service in the long term.

The city council is set to make a final decision about the future of the LTC on April 1.