Take OC Transpo to the Canada Day festivities and fireworks and get a free ride home after 10 p.m.

    With transit, you’ll avoid downtown street closures, parking restrictions and traffic congestion. A Sunday schedule will operate on July 1, with extra service added during the day and after the fireworks.

    Be sure to head out by 8 p.m. if you’re going downtown to see the fireworks. Plenty of free parking will be available at Park & Ride lots across the city.

    Plan your return trip in advance, as the last local buses will depart Transitway Stations at around 11:30 p.m. or midnight.

Fares

• Free service after 10 p.m. on all OC Transpo and STO bus routes and the O-Train. Regular fares will apply until 10 p.m. Kids aged 5 and under ride free all day.

• Free transit all day on July 1 for seniors, including seniors with a ticket to the Mayor’s Breakfast at Lansdowne Park.

• Families can travel all day with one $7 DayPass available on the bus. A family includes up to six people, with a maximum of two aged 12 or older.

Thousands of free Park & Ride spaces

• Thousands of spaces will be available at eight OC Transpo Park & Ride lots served by high-frequency Transitway routes 95, 96, 97 or 98.

• Many more spaces will be available courtesy of Bayshore Shopping Centre, Billings Bridge Plaza, Carlingwood Shopping Centre, Place d’Orléans Shopping Centre, South Keys Shopping Centre and St. Laurent Centre, as well as Algonquin College, Carleton University and Canada Post (Heron/Riverside).

Leave early and arrive in time

• Due to the crowds, plan to leave home early to arrive in time for the fireworks.

• Bus detours will be in effect downtown due to road closures.

• Mackenzie King Bridge will be closed to pedestrians after 7 p.m., so no passengers can be picked up or dropped off at that station in the evening.

• After the fireworks, buses will be available on Slater, Albert and O’Connor.