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Ottawa·TRAFFIC

Light morning commute after awful afternoon

No doubt there's more than a few people who earned a "me day" today and took the city's advice to stay home if possible.

No doubt there's more than a few people who earned a "me day" today

Doug Hempstead · CBC ·
R1 replacement buses had to take commuters further east from Hurdman station Jan. 16, 2020, replacing stopped trains. (Hugo Belanger/CBC)

Good morning commuters!

Shout out to the crews who worked through the night to get the LRT back up and running through St-Laurent station. That's one heck of a long, cold night.

Service resumed around 5 a.m.

But what a commute yesterday afternoon.

People crashing into each other. People crashing into things.

And just an awful sea of humanity at Hurdman station, where people heading both east and south had to switch to buses.

People getting off trains to go further east at Hurdman swelled crowds of people who usually get off trains there to transfer further south. (Hugo Belanger/CBC)

One woman was stuck in an elevator for more than a half hour with more than 12 people, emailing me for updates.

No doubt there's more than a few people who earned a "me day" today. Yesterday city officials were also asking people to stay home if they could.

The traffic volumes to start the morning commute certainly suggest that.

Have a great day!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Doug Hempstead

CBC Ottawa's traffic specialist

Doug Hempstead is CBC Ottawa's traffic specialist and can be heard on CBC Radio's Ottawa Morning and All In A Day. Sometimes, he even sleeps. Originally from the Ottawa Valley, he is a musician and family man - married with two daughters. Doug is an award-winning journalist with more than 20 years experience in the region covering all types of news. He welcomes your input on traffic issues and can be called directly while the shows are airing at 613-288-6900. Tweet him at @cbcotttraffic or @DougHempstead. His e-mail is doug.hempstead@cbc.ca.

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