Ottawa LRT expected to return in early November, city says

Ottawa's light rail line is expected to partially resume operations at some point in early November, according to a memo from the city's manager.

Rideau Transit Group (RTG), the consortium that built the Confederation Line, proposesrunning up to seven trains plus one spareas early as Nov. 1, Steve Kanellakos told councillors Monday afternoon.

However, those plans are contingent on RTG carrying out an "intensive inspection program on the vehicle fleet," Kanellakos wrote, meaning a partial return to service will likely happen "within the first two weeks of November."

The linehas been shut down since atrain derailed on Sept. 19 before entering Tremblay station.

The Transportation Safety Board of Canadahas said the train came off the rails before arriving at the station. It thentravelled across a rail bridge while a wheel remained off the track.

On the day of the derailment, the maintenance arm of the consortiumsaid the line wouldlikely remain out of service for at least a week, which thenchanged to an estimated three weeksthe very next day.

"RTG has also committed to providing the City with a date to return to full service by the end of this week," Kanellakos wrote in his memo.

"The [line] will only resume service once the City deems RTG can relaunch light rail service safely and reliably."

How long has the LRT been out of service?

Testing days expected

The city has hired Philadelphia-based firm Transportation Research Associates (TRA) to review any proposal to resume service on the Confederation Line.

• Take 2: City of Ottawa hires new firm for LRT review

Kanellakos said TRAhad already completed its"preliminary assessment" of the derailment and would now turn its focus towardthe plan submitted by RTG.

Once TRA recommends the trains are ready to run again, the city will take steps to "verify RTG's ability to safely and reliably relaunch LRT," Kanellakos said.

That includes one or two days' worth of testing, he said.

As the line remains out of service, the city is escalating its legal dispute with RTG,whileOttawa's auditor general will examine the lead-up to the contract.

Transit riders, meanwhile, haveexpressed frustration with the cramped shuttle busesused to ferry people around during the shutdown.A month of free transit is expected to comeafter trains are back.