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Riverside South

South

Nimiq Park in Riverside South.
Photo: Markwrogers, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Fast Facts

  • Population: 10,942 (City of Ottawa Neighbourhood Study ("Riverside South - Leitrim", combined))
  • Size: 24.3 km² (Computed from the City of Ottawa Neighbourhood Study boundary polygon ("Riverside South - Leitrim", combined))
  • Distance from Parliament Hill: About 16.7 km south (straight-line distance)

Overview

Riverside South is one of Ottawa's newest suburbs, transformed from farmland into a rapidly growing planned community since the mid-1990s. Bounded by Leitrim Road, Rideau Road, the Rideau River and Bowesville Road, it is connected to Barrhaven across the Rideau River by the Vimy Memorial Bridge, opened in 2014 and named in commemoration of the Battle of Vimy Ridge.

Boundaries

The Ottawa Neighbourhood Study's "Riverside South - Leitrim" boundary is used here; it is bounded by Leitrim Road to the north, Rideau Road to the south, the Rideau River to the west, and Bowesville Road to the east, and includes both Riverside South and the rural community of Leitrim.

Map

History

The land that became Riverside South was farmland and small settlements through most of the 19th and 20th centuries, with what is now River Road once a mere trail. Settlement quickened in the second half of the 19th century as immigration, prompted partly by the Rideau Canal's construction, brought population growth to the area.

The first suburban-style homes in Riverside South were built around 1996, and the community has grown at a pace comparable to Barrhaven, Kanata and Orléans since, transforming from farmland to a major planned suburb within about three decades.

The Vimy Memorial Bridge, connecting Earl Armstrong Road in Riverside South to Strandherd Drive in Barrhaven across the Rideau River, opened on July 12, 2014, and was formally named on November 8, 2014, in commemoration of the Battle of Vimy Ridge.

Nearby Leitrim is home to Canadian Forces Station Leitrim, established in 1941 and Canada's oldest operational signal intelligence collection station. The Rideau Carleton Raceway, a harness racing track that opened in 1962 on the area's outskirts, closed in March 2026.

Claim to Fame

Riverside South's defining feature is its transformation from farmland into one of Ottawa's fastest-growing planned suburbs since the mid-1990s, linked to Barrhaven by the Vimy Memorial Bridge, a war memorial and river crossing completed in 2014.

Surrounding Neighbourhoods

Barrhaven lies across the Rideau River to the west via the Vimy Memorial Bridge, Findlay Creek and Leitrim lie east, and South Keys and Hunt Club lie north.

Architecture

Riverside South's housing is almost entirely late-1990s-to-present suburban construction — single-family homes, townhomes and low-rise condos built in planned phases as the community grew from farmland.

Restaurants

  • Punjabi Canteen — Indian

    Indian restaurant at 665 Earl Armstrong Road, Unit 10, known for bhindi, chole bhature and tandoori chicken.

Pedestrian and Cycling

The Vimy Memorial Bridge carries a dedicated cycling lane across the Rideau River to Barrhaven, and Riverside South's newer subdivisions include an extensive network of neighbourhood pathways.

Schools

Amenities

Transit Options

OC Transpo bus routes run along Earl Armstrong Road and River Road, connecting across the Vimy Memorial Bridge to Barrhaven and to Leitrim Station on the O-Train Trillium Line. Check octranspo.com for current route numbers, since the network is periodically redesigned.

Nearby on This Site

No listings yet in this area.

Official Information

Last verified: August 27, 2026