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Ottawa Confederation Line LRT (City of Ottawa, U/C)

gweed123 said:
The N-S LRT is actually still part of Phase 1 of the TMP. It's 3rd in line in terms of priority projects (DOTT, West LRT extension, N-S LRT). They're trying to keep the N-S LRT plan as close to the original plan as possible, so that when funding does come through, only a minimal amount of updating will be needed in order to get it shovel-ready.
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Very good to hear! How is planning for the West LRT going? I remember there was something of an alignment controversy. I'm not really that clear on the details and I'm not as familiar with Ottawa West as I am with other parts of the city.
 
unimaginative2 said:
Very good to hear! How is planning for the West LRT going? I remember there was something of an alignment controversy. I'm not really that clear on the details and I'm not as familiar with Ottawa West as I am with other parts of the city.
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They had a preliminary open house about 6 months ago. They're at the stage now where they're evaluating 3 different alignment options: Ottawa River Parkway, Richmond/Byron Corridor, and Carling Ave. My guess would be that because the DOTT project is 100% grade-separated, that they would want to continue with that. This pretty much rules out the Carling Ave option, as the TMP already has an in-median LRT running along there in Phase 2 of the TMP.

The cheapest option would be the ORP, however the NCC may not want them building LRT on their lands (this has definitely been raised as an issue). If they did Richmond/Byron, it would almost definitely be in a trench or in a C&C tunnel. No way would the residents allow at-grade.

No details yet on when the preferred alignment will be made public, but here's the link to the page on the City of Ottawa website: http://www.ottawa.ca/residents/public_consult/lrt_west_corridor_ea/index_en.html

This project is definitely running under the radar compared to the DOTT project. Given the lower complexity of the project itself, and the fact that it was only started a few years behind the DOTT, I realistically see the two projects being under construction at the same time, with the West LRT extension opening only a few years after the DOTT. That will definitely put a dent in the arguments of the "the line is too short" crowd.
 
You know, that is an interesting point. We're told that a main reason for sticking with LRT technology on Eglinton is that contracts have already been signed for the LRVs. Maybe the province could transfer them to Ottawa if they take a broader look at which technology makes the most sense on Eglinton and conclude with something other than LRVs.
 
nfitz said:
Perhaps they need some slightly used Transit City LRTs cheap ...
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It would certainly make sense to piggy-back Ottawa's order on Toronto's. I mean, same buyer (the Province), and same seller (Bombardier). I wonder if Toronto will give a few bucks to Ottawa in the deal, seeing as how we may bail Toronto out of a lawsuit, haha.
 
unimaginative2 said:
You know, that is an interesting point. We're told that a main reason for sticking with LRT technology on Eglinton is that contracts have already been signed for the LRVs. Maybe the province could transfer them to Ottawa if they take a broader look at which technology makes the most sense on Eglinton and conclude with something other than LRVs.
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Even if all the LRT proposals in the province move ahead (Ottawa, Waterloo, Hamilton, Mississauga), I still don't think that's as many vehicles as the TC order was.
 
unimaginative2 said:
You know, that is an interesting point. We're told that a main reason for sticking with LRT technology on Eglinton is that contracts have already been signed for the LRVs. Maybe the province could transfer them to Ottawa if they take a broader look at which technology makes the most sense on Eglinton and conclude with something other than LRVs.
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I thought the main reason wasn't to delay the project. With construction about to begin, changing vehicles could change tunnel sizes, and delay the construction start from 2011 to 2012, 2013 ... or who knows which decade if Hudak is elected.
 
For the O-Train extension it seems to me that an add-on order for the Sumitomo DMUs to be purchased for Pearson-Union would work (assuming the DMUs themselves work). Those DMUs are FRA compliant (so they could use mainline track/rules as necessary) and are supposed to be convertible to electric. The question would then become could the existing trains co-exist with the Sumitomos or would they fall afoul of TC rules. That said, the O-Train Bombardier cars are regional ones in Germany and maybe they could either be resold back to Deutsche Bahn or used on a rural service like White River-Sudbury.

It boggles the mind though that the O-Train will no longer stop merely short of the airport but will actually pass right by it! And when are you guys going to get a GO Train on the line from Brockville :D
 
It all depends on what they're trying to accomplish with the extension. Is it supposed to be about airport connectivity? Or is it supposed to be for a park and ride? These are clearly different goals.

Don't worry too much about the airport. When they're done with the east/west line, the next phase will be converting the north/south line to electric, and that's the time for the airport connection to be made.
 
Markster said:
It all depends on what they're trying to accomplish with the extension. Is it supposed to be about airport connectivity? Or is it supposed to be for a park and ride? These are clearly different goals.

Don't worry too much about the airport. When they're done with the east/west line, the next phase will be converting the north/south line to electric, and that's the time for the airport connection to be made.
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The extension is still going to be diesel, which makes it significantly harder to connect to the airport (needs dedicated ROW, etc). The plan is to create an airport spur once the line is double-tracked and electrified. That way they have much more flexibility in the design leading into the airport.

Plus the frequencies on a single-tracked O-Train line wouldn't be very friendly to a branched service. It would be a logistical nightmare to try and plan that.
 
By the way, I was at Baseline Station today, and the new station looks like it's nearly done. The entranceway into the tunnel just north of the station has been gravelled, and they are starting to do the landscaping elements on top of the station (which doubles as a courtyard for the Algonquin College Trades building).

For those who don't know, Baseline station is being rebuilt as an underground station, which has been coupled up with the Algonquin College Construction Trades Building. The station has been designed to accommodate BRT now, but be completely upgradable with minimal work to LRT once the line is extended to there.

The station is supposed to open sometime this summer, with the trades building opening for the fall semester. Once the station opens, I'll be sure to post some pictures.
 
gweed123 said:
Plus the frequencies on a single-tracked O-Train line wouldn't be very friendly to a branched service. It would be a logistical nightmare to try and plan that.
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I'm not so sure it would be that impossible. Their current plans are to halve headways to around 8 minutes. Either branch would only be one stop long, and I'm sure that 15 minute service would be adequate for the airport and the Leitrim park and ride. The question is how many people would either destination serve. I'm sure there'd be a strong surge in the peak period generated by the park and ride, but the airport would probably generate steadier traffic throughout the day.
 
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