City services and 311

Canadian municipalities concentrate non-emergency contact in a single service line. Where a city runs 311, that number reaches every municipal department, and the people answering can route a request to the right one. For Ottawa that is City of Ottawa.

Numbers and contacts

• City services (311)311, or 613-580-2400 from outside Ottawa

  Ottawa operates 311; the 613-580-2400 line is its published number for callers outside the city. Emergencies are 911.

  Official page

• Police non-emergency (Ottawa Police Service)613-236-1222

  The Police Reporting Unit is 613-236-1222 extension 7300, open daily 8 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.; reports can also be filed online.

  Official page

• OC Transpo customer service613-560-5000

  Fares, passes, refunds and Para Transpo bookings all route through this line and its options.

  Official page

• OC Transpo next-arrivals line613-560-1000

  Automated schedule and next-arrival information by four-digit stop number; text 560560 does the same.

  Official page

• OC Transpo Special Constable dispatch (transit safety)613-741-2478

  For safety or security concerns on transit; life-threatening situations are 911.

  Official page

Official city services

These go directly to the municipality’s own pages for the services residents use most. Fares, fees, hours and collection schedules change, so each link is the live source rather than a snapshot copied here.

• OC Transpo fares — Per-ride, DayPass, monthly and reduced fares, including the Presto and O-Payment options.
• OC Transpo travel planner — Official trip planner for buses and the O-Train.
• OC Transpo alerts — Detours, route changes and station impacts; individual alerts can also be subscribed to.
• Ottawa Public Library — The library is an independent board; biblioottawalibrary.ca redirects to this site.
• Garbage and recycling — Collection is run by the City of Ottawa; see the caveat at the top of this file.
• Snow clearing and road conditions — City snow plowing and clearing information; see the caveat at the top of this file.

Getting a request acted on

A municipal request is only as useful as its location. Whatever the issue — a pothole, a broken streetlight, missed collection, a water main leak, an unshovelled sidewalk — the details that get it fixed are the same:

• The exact address, or the nearest intersection, plus which side of the street.
• What the problem is and when you first noticed it.
• A photo, where the problem is visible — most cities accept attachments online.
• Whether it is on public property or private. Cities can only act on what they own, and this is the most common reason a request is closed without action.
• A reference number. Keep it: it is what you quote when you follow up.

What is not the city’s job

A surprising share of complaints go to the wrong body. In most Canadian cities, the following are handled by someone else entirely:

• Police, fire and medical emergencies — 911. Not the city service line.
• Highways and provincial roads — the province, not the municipality. City crews maintain local roads only.
• Electricity, natural gas and telecoms — the utility or the provider. See the driving and utilities information for who regulates them in Ontario.
• Landlord and tenant disputes — a provincial tribunal, not the city.
• Schools and hospitals — school boards and regional health authorities.