Federal government giving Ottawa Airport $6.4M toward future LRT station
The federal government is chipping in just under half of what the Ottawa Airport says it needs to build a future LRT station.
Transport Minister Omar Alghabra announced $6.4 million in funding to the airport for its Trillium Line LRT station, which is set to be completed in 2022.
The Ottawa Airport had previously said it could not afford the cost of building the station after revenues plunged severely when the COVID-19 pandemic began and air travel came to a near standstill. The airport authority said last year it needed $13.5 million to cover the costs. The total cost of the airport LRT station is $16.9 million. The government says it "remains committed" to seeing the project through to completion.
In a news release Wednesday, Mark Laroche, president and CEO of the Ottawa Macdonald-Cartier International Airport Authority, expressed gratitude for the funding.
"Today’s announcement and the confirmation of funding for the Airport Terminal Station is welcome news. It will help us fulfill our commitment to build the station and ensure that YOW’s passengers, airport employees and surrounding communities are well served by reliable, predictable light rail service well into the future," he's quoted saying. "Connecting the airport with the city centre and beyond by rail will be an important selling feature as the aviation and tourism industries recover and we work to bring major events and conferences back to Canada’s Capital Region."
The $6.4 million will come from Transport Canada’s Airport Critical Infrastructure Program.
"The construction of the light rail transit station at the Ottawa Macdonald-Cartier International Airport will reduce traffic congestion and improve accessibility and connectivity to the airport by offering an environmentally sustainable direct link between downtown Ottawa and the airport,” Alghabra said.
The federal government is also giving the Airport Authority $5.7 million from Transport Canada’s Airport Relief Fund to help maintain continued airport operations.
The Trillium Line extension will bring the north-south O-Train line to Riverside South with a spur to the airport. TransitNEXT, a wholly owned subsidiary of SNC-Lavalin, is building the extension. While the line is still expected to be completed in 2022, the City of Ottawa said it was reviewing possible delays caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. John Manconi, the city's outgoing manager of transportation services, told councillors in May that a full update on the construction timeline wouldn’t be available until the end of this year.
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.