O train
| Basic data | |
| Country | Canada |
|---|---|
| city | Ottawa |
| opening | October 15, 2001 |
| Lines | 2 |
| Route length | 20.3 |
| Stations | 18th |
| Tunnel stations | 4th |
| use | |
| operator | OC Transpo |
| Gauge | Standard gauge |
O-Train is the light rail system of the Canadian capital Ottawa . It is operated by the transport company OC Transpo and consists of two lines.
Lines
- Trillium Line : Runs in a north-south direction from Bayview to Greenboro. Since it was opened in 2001, low-floor diesel multiple units have been running on the 8.0 km long, single-track line. Part of the route was originally used by freight trains.
- Confederation Line : The 12.5 km light rail line for electric low-floor cars runs from Tunney's Pasture in the west to Blair in the east and opened in 2019. In the city center there is a 2.5 km long tunnel section with three stations.
Brand name
The brand name O-Train was developed by Acart Communications, an advertising agency working for the transport company OC Transpo . Since Ottawa is a bilingual city, the name needs to make sense in both English and French . In English it is a reference to the song Take the “A” Train by Duke Ellington , which refers to the A line of the New York subway . In French, the pronunciation is similar to au train , which means “to train”. After construction of the Confederation Line began, the O-Train brand was transferred to the entire future route network in September 2014, while the original line was named Trillium Line.
Pilot project
The Trillium Line, the original O-Train line, was introduced on October 15, 2001 as part of a pilot project . It was designed to offer an alternative to the busways that have been the backbone of Ottawa's public transportation since the 1980s . On the pre-existing railway line, which has been adapted with relatively little effort, run since low-floor - DMUs . From a legal point of view, it is considered the main line despite its predominant use for local traffic . Nevertheless, it is often referred to as a light rail - on the one hand because there were plans to extend it as a tram train into the city center, and on the other hand because the rolling stock of the Bombardier Talent type that was initially used is much smaller and lighter than most trains in North America.
Failed expansion project
On July 12, 2006 the city council decided with 14 votes to 7 to commission the Siemens / PCL Construction / Dufferin consortium to extend the north-south route. With the project that was ultimately not implemented, the (later called) Trillium Line would have been replaced by a double-track electric light rail. According to the plans, the line should have run from its northern end point in an easterly direction through the city center to the University of Ottawa , as well as from its southern end point Greenboro in a south-westerly direction to Barrhaven. The latter section would have opened up the Riverside South area near Ottawa Airport , but not the airport itself. Construction was scheduled to start in autumn 2006. The previously used type trains Bombardier Talent would by tram -vans type Siemens Avanto been replaced.
With electric traction , more frequent intervals and street-level routing in the city center, the extended line would have been much more similar to trams than the pilot project (and would have been much closer to the term light rail ). The costs were to 778 million Canadian dollars estimated. The federal and provincial governments had each pledged 200 million, while the city of Ottawa wanted to contribute the rest.
Cancellation of the project
The planning became a political plaything and was an important topic during the mayoral and city council elections, which took place on November 13, 2006. The incumbent mayor Bob Chiarelli had long been the main proponent of the light rail system. Terry Kilrea, runner-up mayoral candidate in 2003, was convinced that the project was far too expensive and posed a safety risk for drivers. He called for the entire light rail project to be stopped. The mayoral candidate Alex Munter was in favor of light rail vehicles, but said that the project was insufficient and the true final costs had been kept secret. He wanted to cancel the section to Barrhaven and invest the blocked money in the city center instead. Campaigning late businessman Larry O'Brien wanted to postpone the project for six months before making a final decision. During the election campaign, candidates and interest groups presented various, divergent concepts.
On December 1, 2006, Larry O'Brien became the new mayor. The city council then began to discuss three possible options: continuation of the previous project, abandoning the section to Barrhaven or cancellation of the contract with the consortium. The Ottawa Sun newspaper warned on December 5 that the cancellation would result in a lawsuit from Siemens that could cost the city up to a billion dollars in the worst case scenario.
O'Brien wanted to keep the section to Barrhaven, but cancel the section in the city center. The city council then brought the possibility of building a tunnel in the center into play. The cost of building the tunnel was estimated at around $ 500 million. In the end, the city council decided with 12:11 votes to continue the project, but without the section in the city center. A request to review the project at a later date failed. The cost contributions from the federal government and the province of Ontario totaling 400 million dollars were not secured before the contractually agreed deadline of December 15. O'Brien then withdrew his approval for the project. At the December 14th session, the city council voted 13:11 to cancel the project. At this point, costs of $ 65 million had already been incurred.
In February 2007, Siemens presented the city with two options in a letter: The first was to pay $ 175 million in damages to settle the legal disputes and cancel the contract. The second option was to relaunch the project at an additional cost of 70 million over the original plans. A survey showed that the majority of residents along the north-south route did not agree with the cancellation of the project; however, only a third of those questioned wanted to revive the project in its previous form. In September 2009, the city agreed with plaintiffs to pay compensation in the amount of $ 36.7 million.
Replanning
In January 2007, Mayor Larry O'Brien convened a special commission to assess the city's transportation needs and prepare a report for the city council. In June of the same year the report was received and presented to the media. The commission chaired by former House of Commons David Collenette recommended the expansion of the light rail system by using existing routes ( Via Rail , Canadian Pacific Railway , Ottawa Central Railway ) and the construction of new stations and a tunnel through the center. The use of multi-system vehicles with electric drives in tunnels and diesel drives on the outside routes was also recommended, in order to be able to use fallow railway lines as quickly as possible. The Commission proposed the creation of six lines over the next thirty years, including connections to Gatineau and the airport, with the lines being electrified as needed.
On November 28, 2007, the city council announced the expansion of the rail service to Riverside South, as well as the construction of a central tunnel. A little over three months later, on March 3, 2008, the city council presented four different options for its transportation master plan and held public hearings that same week. All variants included a central tunnel and envisaged completion of the project around 2031. The total cost in all cases was estimated to be at least $ 3 billion, including $ 1 billion for the tunnel.
In the hearings, option 4 emerged as the preferred one: This envisages the conversion of the central section of the transitway (the route for Bus Rapid Transit that has existed since 1983 ) between the Blair stations in the east and Baseline in the west, while the pilot route is expanded to double lanes to be extended to the airport. The cost of this option is estimated at $ 3.82 billion. On April 16, 2008 the Commission recommended the implementation of this option. The city council followed this recommendation on May 28, 2008 with 19: 4 votes.
Further development
After the fundamental project changes, a new tendering process had to be carried out. The pilot line would no longer be led into the city center, but would be supplemented by a new west-east line, the Confederation Line , which partially runs in the tunnel . Mayor Jim Watson presented the shortlist of the remaining consortia on October 21, 2011 . These were Ottawa Transit Partners (led by Vinci and Bombardier ), Rideau Transit Group (led by SNC Lavalin and Veolia ) and Rideau Transit Partners (led by Bouygues ). The Rideau Transit Group consortium was awarded the contract to build the Confederation Line on February 15, 2013 . The contract has a value of 2.1 billion dollars . Construction work on the 12.5 km long route began two months later and should take five years.
In November 2013, the city council unanimously approved a revised traffic master plan, which, among other things, provides for an extension of the light rail routes by 30 km and 19 new stations by 2031. This second phase includes the extension of the Confederation Line west to Bayshore (with a branch to Baseline) and east to Place d'Orléans, as well as an extension of the Trillium Line to Riverside South. Construction should begin immediately after the completion of the first phase in 2018 and be completed in 2023. In July 2015, the federal government approved a $ 1 billion funding contribution. Further funds are made available by the province. The opening of the first stage of the Confederation Line was delayed by more than a year and finally took place on September 14, 2019.
Web links
- OC Transpo (English, French)
- Project website 2nd stage (English, French)
Individual evidence
- ↑ O-Train name approved for Ottawa light rail system. CBC News , September 17, 2014, accessed on August 12, 2015 (English).
- ↑ John Baird, Light Rail Killer. The Tyee, January 23, 2006, accessed August 12, 2015 .
- ↑ Chiarelli attacks Munter's light-rail alternative. Ottawa Citizen, October 25, 2006, accessed August 12, 2015 .
- ↑ Derek Puddicombe: City fears $ 1B LRT lawsuit . Ottawa Sun, December 5, 2006.
- ^ Council talks LRT one more time. (No longer available online.) Ottawa Business Journal, December 5, 2006, archived from the original on September 24, 2015 ; accessed on August 12, 2015 .
- ↑ Derek Puddicombe: project Mayor's vote saves LRT . Ottawa Sun, December 6, 2006.
- ^ Ottawa council kills light rail project. CBC News, December 14, 2006, accessed August 12, 2015 .
- ^ Ottawa's light rail gets another chance. CBC News, February 14, 2007, accessed August 12, 2015 .
- ^ Ottawa's light rail deal dead for good. CBC News, February 23, 2007, accessed August 12, 2015 .
- ↑ Ottawa LRT settlement reached for $ 36.7M. CBC News, September 11, 2009, accessed August 12, 2015 .
- ^ Jake Rupert: Council sets $ 2-billion transit priorities . The Ottawa Citizen, November 29, 2007.
- ↑ a b $ 1B tunnel worth the cost, mayor says. (No longer available online.) Ottawa Citizen, March 4, 2008, archived from the original on November 4, 2012 ; accessed on August 12, 2015 .
- ↑ $ 4B transit plan. (No longer available online.) Ottawa Citizen, April 16, 2008, archived from the original on March 24, 2016 ; accessed on August 12, 2015 .
- ↑ Passed. (No longer available online.) Ottawa Citizen, May 28, 2008, archived from the original on November 7, 2012 ; accessed on August 12, 2015 .
- ^ Three consortia shortlisted for the Ottawa light rail project. Railway Gazette International, October 25, 2011, accessed August 12, 2015 .
- ↑ Ottawa awards $ 2bn light rail transit project to Rideau Transit Group. Railway Technology, February 15, 2013, accessed August 12, 2015 .
- ↑ Rideau Transit Group starts construction on Ottawa light rail project. Railway Technology, April 23, 2013, accessed August 12, 2015 .
- ^ Transportation Master Plan. City of Ottawa, 2013, accessed August 12, 2015 .
- ^ Federal Tories pledge $ 1 billion for Ottawa's rail plans. Ottawa Citizen, July 22, 2015, accessed August 12, 2015 .
- ↑ David Reevely: Wynne promises to pay $ 158M for extra-east and south LRT extensions. Ottawa Citizen , June 3, 2016, accessed June 4, 2016 .
- ↑ LRT arrives in Ottawa today. CBC News, September 14, 2019, accessed September 14, 2019 .