Liberal Party officials have always promised their leader would conduct an open campaign with lots unfiltered access to the public.

They said that unlike Conservative Leader Stephen Harper, Michael Ignatieff won't stick to carefully controlled crowds where all the attendees have been carefully vetted.

The risks of such an approach are that you sometimes meet people who don't like you or don't know who you are. On the other hand you also get genuine moments where members of the public offer kisses, compliments and words of encouragement.

Ignatieff experienced all of the above today while mainstreeting in the NDP-held riding of Outremont in Montreal.

He also bumped into another politician who had strategically staked out his territory at Cafe Olympico. City councillor Alex Norris button-holed Ignatieff on an important local issue, dedicated federal funding for public transit. Here is a transcript of their conversation:

Ignatieff: I think it's crucial to have a national strategy on this, if you go to the lower mainland, Vancouver they need dedicated transit money, you go to Calgary, Winnipeg, you go to Toronto and especially Montreal. We have to sit down. I got a $56 billion deficit I gotta bail you out of. But the key thing here is to give people choices. The thing that bothers me most about the way we live is people are locked! They gotta be in their cars and we gotta renew public transport. We've got to have a plan. Ottawa can't tell Montreal how to do this stuff but...

Norris: Are you prepared to commit to a dedicated, recurring, reliable source of federal money for public transit?

Ignatieff: I'm prepared to commit to federal investment in public transit. You'll see it in the next platform.

Tags: canada votes 2011, michael ignatieff, montreal