LRT service disrupted downtown after water leak at Rideau Station

Ottawa LRT service was briefly disrupted downtown because of a water leak in the tunnel at Rideau Station. Service has since been restored.

ONGOING, Line 1: Rideau Station is CLOSED due to a water leak. Full service is running, but trains will NOT stop at Rideau Station. R1 service available between Tunney's Pasture and Hurdman. Staff on site to assist.

— OC Transpo Live (@OCTranspoLive) February 7, 2023

Service was restored about 30 minutes after the initial alarm. A fire alarm was ringing and Rideau Station was closed to commuters and special constables were turning commuters away, directing them to R1 buses. 

R1 service was in place between Tunney's Pasture and Hurdman stations while Rideau Station was closed.

OC Transpo director of transit service delivery and rail operations Troy Charter told CTV News in a statement Tuesday evening a pipe had burst around the time a fire alarm was activated.

"Around 3 p.m. today a fire alarm was activated at Rideau Station and a significant water leak was detected near the westbound platform. Rideau Station closed to allow Ottawa Fire Services to conduct an investigation," Charter said. "Preliminary reports indicate that the cause of the water leak was a burst sprinkler system pipe."

Transportation Services GM Renée Amilcar said Wednesday the recent temperature fluctuations caused condensation to build up inside the station dry sprinkler system that subsequently froze causing a pipe to burst.

"RTM is reviewing its proactive maintenance procedures, specifically the intervals at which the system is drained of excess water, to prevent similar incidents from occurring," she said.

Charter said R1 service was issued between Hurdman and Tunney's Pasture stations, while train service ran from Blair to Hurdman because of the work required to safetly address the leak at Rideau Station.

"Throughout the disruption customers were kept informed through announcements made on trains and at stations, direct text messages, and updates shared on our social media platforms," said Charter.

OC Transpo's own communications through tweets, text alerts and emails, however, said full service was running but trains would not stop at Rideau Station.

In fact, trains were stopped between Hurdman and Tunney's Pasture during the disruption, as the statement attributed to Charter said.

Full train service was restored just after 4 p.m.

Video taken by a Twitter user shows the leak in the tunnel.

pic.twitter.com/tk5zQuMxPR

— Craig (@Craig58346270) February 7, 2023

The user, Craig, told CTV News by DM that he was waiting for the westbound train when the alarm began to sound and water started gushing onto the tracks.

The video he posted was taken at 3:22 p.m., he said, after the water had been pouring for about five minutes. An OC Transpo special constable asked him to leave the platform and he said he waited upstairs for about 15 to 20 minutes before R1 service was announced. During that time, the water continued to pour from the wall.

CTV's Michael Woods was taking the R1 bus from Rideau during the disruption and said it took passengers to Lyon Station before passengers were told to disembark.