End-to-end travel times on LRT longer following axle hub failure
OC Transpo is cautioning riders of the Confederation Line that an end-to-end trip between Blair and Tunney's Pasture stations will take an extra four to five minutes as the investigation into an axle hub failure continues.
Twenty vehicles were pulled for inspections last week after a wheel hub on one train failed for a reason that has yet to be determined. Rideau Transit Maintenance (RTM) says this failure is different from the axle bearing problem that led to a derailment in August 2021.
All trains with more than 175,000 kilometres of service were pulled for inspection and are to have their axle hubs replaced. In a memo Saturday, OC Transpo general manager Renée Amilcar said there were 22 vehicles, or 11 double-car trains, in operation as of Saturday. The line runs with up to 15 double-car trains during peak periods on weekdays.
However, the Rideau Transit Group and Alstom—the manufacturer of the train cars—have asked OC Transpo to reduce speeds along certain sections of the track while the investigation into the cause of the axle hub failure continues.
"Due to lower speeds, customers will see a small change in travel times; end-to-end service will be an extra four to five minutes," Amilcar wrote.
OC Transpo says its typical end-to-end time is less than 25 minutes.
The Transportation Safety Board is also investigating. The TSB was informed last week when the axle hub failure on one vehicle was discovered. Earlier this week, RTM CEO Mario Guerra said he suspects equipment fatigue may have been the cause.
"I think once we start doing non-destructive testing on the hub that failed, as well as all of the hubs we're taking off, then we'll be able to tell whether this was one event or if it's something that's permeated throughout," he told reporters Tuesday.
The axle hub failure was reported just before part of the LRT's overhead power line was damaged in Sunday's thunderstorm, cutting service to part of the line for several days. Full service was restored Friday afternoon.
TECHNICAL ISSUE ON EASTERN PORTION OF LINE
Amilcar's memo Saturday did not mention an unspecified technical issue that is also causing delays.
OC Transpo said just before 10:30 a.m. Saturday that service at Cyrville and St. Laurent stations was only available on the eastbound platforms. Customers were asked to change trains at St. Laurent.
The issue was resolved just after 12:40 p.m., but the nature of the issue has yet to be disclosed.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Maple Leafs fall to Bruins in Game 3, trail series 2-1
Brad Marchand scored twice, including the winner in the third period, and added an assist as the Boston Bruins downed the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-2 to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series Wednesday
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
New Indigenous loan guarantee program a 'really big deal,' Freeland says at Toronto conference
Canada's Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland was among the 1,700 delegates attending the two-day First Nations Major Projects Coalition (FNMPC) conference that concluded Tuesday in Toronto.
'Life was not fair to him': Daughter of N.B. man exonerated of murder remembers him as a kind soul
The daughter of a New Brunswick man recently exonerated from murder, is remembering her father as somebody who, despite a wrongful conviction, never became bitter or angry.