OC Explained: Lost and Found
Transit is about getting from point A to point B, but what about when you arrive at your destination only to realize that your umbrella is still on the bus taking a longer trip?
Over the years, customers have left thousands of items in various places across the transit network. Many have been reunited with their owners thanks to the work of Heartwood House, who ran the Lost and Found program until recently.
We’ve made a few changes to our Lost and Found process to make it easier to reunite you with your items. Join the Next Stop Blog team to learn more about what happens when you leave something behind and the steps you should take to get your missing item back.
How can I find my item?
- The first thing you’ll want to do if you’ve lost an item is to open a ticket using our online Lost and Found tool, which you can find here. Bookmark that page for future reference!
When you enter your item, be as descriptive as possible in the prompts. The more detail we have, the easier it is for us to identify your item.
Enter as many details as you can about your lost item.
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Once you’ve submitted your ticket online, you’ll receive an automated reply letting you know that the ticket was submitted.
If you arrive directly at the St-Laurent Lost and Found office looking for your item without submitting a ticket first, staff will prompt you to submit one using the online Lost and Found tool. If you need assistance submitting a ticket online, you can call 613-560-5000 option 6.
- If a match comes up in the online tool, you’ll receive another email letting you know that an item matching your description has turned up and that you can come in to pick it up.
- If it’s been three days and we haven’t seen an item come in matching your description, an automatic email will be sent asking for additional details.
While we can’t guarantee that every item will be found, we’ll do our best to reunite each item we receive with its owner.
How do items get turned in?
A lost bag might be picked up by a customer, or a pair of mittens might be found by an OC Transpo staff member. If you’ve found an item you think someone may be missing, you can give it to an OC Transpo employee or bring it directly to the Lost and Found office at St-Laurent Station. OC Transpo staff also keep their eyes open for lost items on the system, and these items are also sent to the Lost and Found. In some cases, it might take a few days before the item is turned in.
Caption: An umbrella waits for the next train.
Each day, Lost and Found staff go through the new items, catalogue them in the software system and organize them by date. This helps them keep track of how long items have been unclaimed at the Lost and Found. Items are kept for 21 days before they are sent to Heartwood House for their unclaimed items sale.
The Lost and Found does not keep any hazardous items, drugs, alcohol, large sums of money, or personal identification. Any school or workplace IDs turned in will be returned to the school or workplace listed on them.
Let us know
Did you enjoy this story? Do you have a question about the Lost and Found? Let us know by emailing thenextstopblog@ottawa.ca.
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