Ontario Progressive Conservative Leader Tim Hudak got a head start on his race to become premier when he rolled out a new campaign bus on Monday.

Hudak was joined by several Tory candidates and their families to officially launch his "Campaign for Change" at a Toronto bus depot.

He said he was thrilled to begin the next stage of his campaign.

Hudak was accompanied by his wife, Deb Hutton, and his three-year-old daughter Miller, who appeared in public for the first time since she was hospitalized earlier this year.

His family will be with him during the next few weeks of campaigning.

"My family defines me; it's what I'm proud of. (My) beautiful little girl, (my) beautiful, caring wife," he said.

The PC Leader said his campaign will also be all about families.

"Average hardworking families who are paying more and more in taxes, they're getting less in return and they're worried about the future of their kids and grandkids," he said.

Hudak's campaign will also be about bringing the message of "change" to Ontario. The first stop to spread the message was in Brampton on Monday, where he spoke to families about his platform.

Hudak told one family the plan was to take HST off of home heating bills and hydro bills. He also pledged to unplug time-of-use smart meters, lower income tax rates by five per cent on the first $75,000 of taxable income and allow couples to share income for tax purposes.

Hudak's candidates said they are also ready to begin the campaign.

"(I'm) really excited, this is the part of campaigning that I love. Talking to people and talking about their dreams, said Rocco Rossi, the candidate for Eglinton-Lawrence.

With only 38 days left before election night on October 6, there is only a very short time left to campaign, according to Brampton-Springdale candidate Pam Hundal.

Televised debates challenge

While the official start date for the election campaign begins on September 7, the Liberals and New Democrats are expected to begin their own campaigns after Labour Day.

NDP Leader Andrea Horwath wrote a letter to her two rivals on Monday, challenging them to agree to three televised leaders' debates instead of one. Each debate would focus on one issue, including health care, jobs and the economy, and energy policy.

"These debates are able to give people a clear sense of what politicians and their parties stand for, cutting through the attack advertisements and negative tactics that often define election campaigns," she wrote.

Neither the Tories nor the Liberals have given an official answer to the proposal.

"I think there's been some discussions already between the campaigns about the debate format, time and place," said Hudak.

"I'll let those discussions proceed. And until that happens, I keep focused on what I'm doing ... just talking about the kind of change we want to bring."

A spokesperson for the Liberals said there is already a process where networks decide on televised debate details with the parties.

"We'll continue to respect that process," said Christine McMillan in an email.

With files from CTV Toronto's Natalie Johnson and The Canadian Press.