Highlights from the Jan. 12 Council Meeting

Woodstock – Woodstock City Council met Thursday evening for their first meeting in 2023. It was a pretty light agenda, despite being the only meeting in January. Council discussed:

Transit Schedule Changes

Council voted in favour of modifying the bus schedule between 3 p.m. and 5 p.m. to operate on a 40-minute cycle instead of a 30-minute cycle. Currently, buses meet at the terminal at the top and bottom of the hour to allow for transfers between routes. Because our city is growing and we’re seeing more traffic at peak times, buses are having a harder time getting through their route on time during the afternoon. The change was proposed by staff to help ensure buses consistently remain on schedule, allowing riders to make their connections and arrive at their destination on time. Staff noted that ridership for Woodstock Transit is nearly up to pre-Covid levels which is not the case for many public transit systems. In December 2022, there were over 41,000 individual trips on the City’s conventional transit service, nearly double January 2022’s trip count.

The change takes effect Monday, March 6. The new cycle will see buses leave the terminal at 3 p.m., return at 3:40 p.m., 4:20 p.m. and again at 5 p.m. before returning to their 30-minute intervals.

Strategic Planning Session

Council also voted in favour of the plan to update the City’s Strategic Plan. Initially adopted in 2013, the Strategic Plan outlined a vision for the City over the next 20 years. It identified four goals:

• Enhance the quality of life
• Create a dynamic, diversified economy
• Protect and enhance our natural environment
• Ensure long-term financial sustainability for the city

While these goals remain relevant, Council believes it would be good to evaluate the City’s progress towards implementing the actions identified in the original plan and update the priority action items. A workshop will be scheduled for Thursday, March 30 at 1:30 p.m. to receive an update from staff on the status of current action items and identify any new initiatives that would help achieve the plan’s goals. Council would then prioritize the new and remaining actions, which staff will take away and create a roadmap for moving forward. The workshop will be open to the public and there will be an opportunity for public comment on the updated list of priorities before the updated plan is presented to Council for approval.

If you would like more information about these, or any of the other topics discussed during the meeting, visit www.cityofwoodstock.ca/agendasandminutes. Council meetings are live streamed on the City’s YouTube channel and recordings of the meetings are also posted online following the meetings. 

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