OC Transpo head doubles down on Trillium Line opening in spring
The head of OC Transpo is standing firm that the north-south Trillium Line will open sometime this spring, despite the transit authority having extended the timeline for opening until at least early summer.
- Sign up now for our daily CTV News Ottawa newsletters
- The information you need to know, sent directly to you: Download the CTV News App
"I'm confident that it will be this spring as I have already said," OC Transpo general manager Renée Amilcar told Coun. Riley Brockington during questions at Monday's transit commission meeting.
Brockington asked Amilcar for an update on the opening, after OC Transpo officials said during last month's LRT sub-committee meeting that the opening of the Trillium Line would be delayed until at least early summer, with officials saying training and trial running would need to go smoothly over the next four months before launch.
"We are not expecting the Trillium Line opening until at least the summer of 2024 is that correct?" Brockington asked Amilcar.
Amilcar insisted the training was going 'very well' and they are working to debug any glitches in their systems.
"I think you would agree with me that we don’t want another unfortunate story as the Confederation Line, so we will open the system when were ready," Amilcar said.
A report for the LRT sub-committee shows OC Transpo has given themselves a wider timeline to launch customer service, with the window extending from May to September.
OC Transpo has updated its timeline for the Trillium Line's opening. (OC Transpo)A delay into August would make the Trillium Line opening two years behind schedule.
OC Transpo officials had previously said the O-Train Line 2 would open in the spring of 2024, but Ottawa's director of rail operations Michael Morgan told councillors last month that training and trial running will delay the launch until late June or early July at the earliest.
"If we say three months for the operations and maintenance training to wrap up, three months from today. So based on that, if that goes well – it has to go well, things have to go right - we go into trial running," Morgan told councillors at the LRT sub-committee meeting.
Construction on the Trillium Line was originally scheduled to be completed in August 2022, but was delayed until September 2023. Last September, Amilcar said that based on the progress to date, a fall launch was no longer possible and would be delayed until the "spring of 2024."
Amilcar says a formal update to council on the Trillium Line will be provided during April's transit commission meeting.
With files from CTV News Ottawa's Josh Pringle
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Air Canada walks back new seat selection policy change after backlash
Air Canada has paused a new seat selection fee for travellers booked on the lowest fares just days after implementing it.
Province boots mayor and council in small northern Ont. town out of office
An ongoing municipal strike, court battles and revolt by half of council has prompted the province to oust the mayor and council in Black River-Matheson.
3 law officers serving warrant are killed, 5 wounded in shootout at North Carolina home, police say
Three officers on a U.S. Marshals Task Force serving a warrant for a felon wanted for possessing a firearm were killed and five other officers were wounded in a shootout Monday at a North Carolina home, police said.
'Shocked and concerned': Calgary principal charged with possession of child pornography
A Calgary elementary school principal has been charged with possession of child pornography, authorities announced Monday.
Health authority confirms cockroaches at B.C. hospital, insists they 'do not bite'
The Vancouver Island Health Authority is downplaying what staff describe as a cockroach infestation in a medical unit of Saanich Peninsula Hospital.
Toronto police arrest 12 people, lay 102 charges in major credit card fraud scheme
Toronto police say 12 people are facing a combined 102 charges in connection with an investigation into a major credit fraud scheme.
Winner of US$1.3 billion Powerball jackpot is an immigrant from Laos who has cancer
One of the winners of a historic US$1.3 billion Powerball jackpot last month is an immigrant from Laos who has had cancer for eight years and had his latest chemotherapy treatment last week.
Britney and Jamie Spears settlement avoids long, potentially ugly and revealing trial
Britney Spears and her father Jamie Spears will avoid what could have been a long, ugly and revealing trial with a settlement of the lingering issues in the court conservatorship that controlled her life and financial decisions for nearly 14 years.
WATCH 'Double whammy': What happens if you don't file your taxes by the deadline
The clock is ticking ahead of the deadline to file a 2023 income tax return. A personal finance expert explains why you should get them done -- even if you owe more than you can pay.