O-Train operators now required to 'immediately answer' emergency calls onboard trains
O-Train operators are now required to "immediately answer" all emergency calls onboard the Confederation Line.
A report for the Transit Commission outlines the new policy for operators responding to emergency calls on the Passenger Emergency Intercom two months after an assault on an O-Train vehicle at Rideau Station.
Ottawa police officers responded to an assault on the O-Train at Rideau Station on Dec. 8. OC Transpo special constables arrested one person in connection to the assault.
There were comments on social media and Reddit that suggested the emergency intercom wasn't working or that no one picked up during the incident on the train.
In an inquiry to transit staff, Coun. Rawlson King asked about the protocols for the emergency intercom button, noting witnesses to the assault said the button for the Passenger Emergency Intercom button was pressed, but there was no response.
"Just a dial tone," King said.
In response to King's inquiry, Transit Services General Manager Renee Amilcar said records show that 30 seconds elapsed between the button being pushed to the call being answered by the operator.
Amilcar says all calls on the Passenger Emergency Intercom go directly to the O-Train operator on board the train.
"If conditions allow for safe communication while the train is moving, the Operator will continue to the next station while communicating with the caller and then contact Main Line Control on arrival," Amilcar said, adding operators are trained to treat each call as an emergency "requiring immediate attention."
Operators are responsible for contacting OC Transpo's transit operations control centre, and a response is then dispatched for special constables, emergency services or a supervisor.
Amilcar says "as part of our lessons learned", emergency intercom procedures have been updated to state that operators "must now immediately answer all PEI calls".
"If operating conditions are unsafe, passengers may be asked to stand by briefly until the Operator can safely support."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Trump confronts repeated boos during raucous Libertarian convention speech
Donald Trump was booed repeatedly while addressing Saturday night’s Libertarian Party National Convention.
This type of screen time has the worst effect on kids: experts
According to some experts, there is one type of screen time that is continuously excessive, and it's having a severe effect on our children.
Family of toddler found dead at small-town Ont. daycare no closer to answers after year of investigation
A year has passed since two-year-old Vienna Irwin was found on the property of a home-based daycare in small-town Ontario, but her family says they are no closer to answers of what happened that day.
Grayson Murray, two-time PGA Tour winner, dead at 30
Two-time PGA Tour winner Grayson Murray died Saturday morning at age 30, one day after he withdrew from the Charles Schwab Cup Challenge at Colonial.
Humboldt Broncos crash victims and families react to decision to deport truck driver
The family of one of the victims of the Humboldt Broncos bus crash in 2018 says they are 'thankful' for a decision by a Calgary immigration board to deport the driver of the truck involved.
Fatal plane crash reported near Squamish, B.C.
The Transportation Safety Board of Canada has confirmed it is working with local Mounties and the BC Coroners Service after a plane crash near Squamish, B.C. Friday night.
'God forgives but we don’t': Loud outburst from stabbing victim’s family during sentencing hearing
An emotional outburst in a London, Ont. courtroom Friday disrupted the sentencing hearing of a woman who pleaded guilty for her part in the death of 29-year-old Mohammed Abdallah.
Three dead after vehicle plunged down a 100-foot embankment in Shediac, N.B.
Three people have died after a vehicle veered off the road in Shediac N.B., Friday morning.
Appeal denied for Edmonton soldier accused of trying to kill her 3 children
An Edmonton woman found guilty of trying to kill her three children has been denied an appeal.