Setting a decade’s course
One plan for one connected region
The Facilities, Strategic Asset, and Service Network Master Plan is Niagara Transit’s first long-term plan since amalgamation. Developed with consultant Left Turn Right Turn, it examines our infrastructure, routes, and operations to build the best possible network for the region’s needs over the next decade.
For the first time, it treats Niagara as one unified transit system rather than separate services stitched together, and it was shaped by feedback from hundreds of residents across three rounds of engagement.
By the numbers
A $890M investment in Niagara’s future
The plan represents a major, staged investment in transit across the region over ten years.
~$890M
total 10-year capital investment
+84%
fleet growth, from 187 to 345 vehicles
25%
faster average trips
5
rapid bus routes by 2035
$251M
Fleet
$275M
Garages
$177M
Infrastructure
What changes for riders
What the plan means for you
Every improvement is designed around one goal: making it easier to get where you’re going.
More “one-seat” journeys
Fewer transfers and more direct trips, so you reach your destination with less hassle.
Faster trips
Average travel times drop by 25%, meaning less waiting and quicker journeys.
More frequent service
Higher frequency on busy routes and new high-frequency networks in urban areas.
Fewer trip denials
Expanded routes, more specialized service hours, and better policies cut trip denials for riders who depend on shared ride service.
Sunday service and more
Service hours grow, beginning with new Sunday service from 6 a.m. to midnight. By 2035, some routes run overnight.
Improved efficiency
Investments focus on value, so every dollar adds sustainable capacity to the network.
The roadmap
Three stages, ten years
The plan rolls out in three clear stages, each building on the last.
Harmonize & Optimize
- Service span 6 a.m. – midnight
- Sunday service introduced
- Express bus routes launch
- Network optimization begins
- Niagara Falls garage expansion starts
Build & Expand
- Service span 5:30 a.m. – 1:30 a.m.
- Rapid bus implementation
- High-frequency network established
- Major garage construction
- Full fixed-route coverage achieved
Grow & Connect
- Some overnight service
- Complete rapid bus network (5 routes)
- 25% microtransit increase
- Garage expansions complete
- Robust high-frequency urban networks
Behind the service
Fleet and garage growth
Delivering more service means growing the fleet and the facilities that keep it running.
Fleet growth
187 → 345 vehicles
An 84% increase by 2035 to deliver more frequent service across more of the region.
Garage expansion
~$275M investment
Niagara Falls gains capacity for 73 more vehicles, and Welland is rebuilt to add 72, so the growing fleet has somewhere to live and be maintained.
Close to home
What the plan means for your community
The plan touches all 12 municipalities, each with its own stage-by-stage changes. Open your community’s summary to see what’s coming.
Fort Erie
Grimsby
Lincoln
Niagara Falls
Niagara-on-the-Lake
Pelham
Port Colborne
St. Catharines
Thorold
Wainfleet
Welland
West Lincoln
How we got here
Built with the community
The plan was shaped over more than a year of study and three rounds of public engagement.
January 2024
Study awarded to Left Turn Right Turn
Following a competitive procurement, the Master Plan study was awarded and work began the next month.
Spring 2024
Round 1: Today and Tomorrow
Surveys and in-person pop-ups gathered residents’ views on transit today and their priorities for the future.
January – February 2025
Round 2: Exploring Possibilities
Four network options for the next decade were shared for public review and feedback.
June 17, 2025
Approved in principle
The Niagara Transit Commission approved the Master Plan in principle, setting the direction for the next ten years.
August 2025
Round 3: Presenting the Plan
A community awareness campaign shared the final plan and what it means for each part of the region.
Questions
Project contact
Heather Talbot
Manager of Integration and Transformation
1-833-678-5463, ext. 271 · heather.talbot@nrtransit.ca