OC Transpo bus route 76 to be replaced with route 72
Change comes into effect Sept. 2 out of respect for victims of Sept. 18, 2013 bus-train crash
OC Transpo bus route 76 will make its last trip on Aug. 29, nearly a year after six people on a double-decker route 76 bus were killed in a crash involving a passenger train.
Route 76, an express bus that runs from Barrhaven to downtown Ottawa, will be replaced with route 72.
The new route's first trip will take place Sept. 2.
The decision was made after consulting the families involved, said Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson in July.
"My desire was to find ways to remember loved ones lost in a manner that all families could comfortably share," Watson wrote in an email to councillors at the time. "I believe that a complete understanding and concurrence is necessary, as we do not want to do anything that could put any one family into an uncomfortable situation at any point in time."
The crash happened on Sept. 18, 2013, and killed Michael Bleakney, Connor Boyd, Karen Krzyzewski, Rob More, Kyle Nash and bus driver David Woodard.
This year, flags at city facilities will be lowered to half-mast on Sept. 18 and a minute of silence will be observed during a transit commission meeting currently scheduled for Sept. 17.
The city also said it will install a commemorative plaque to mark the first anniversary of the crash. A location for the plaque has not yet been announced.
The Transportation Safety Board of Canada's investigation into the fatal crash continues.