Ottawa unveils its new Stadler FLIRT O-Train vehicles
Trains are being tested and work continues on completing the stations for Stage 2 of Ottawa's light rail transit project.
On Friday, the city of Ottawa provided a sneak peak on the trains to be used on the north-south Trillium Line.
"I’m please that to date the testing has gone very well on a four kilometre track here in the south end," Mayor Jim Watson said.
The new trains run on diesel and will travel from Bayview Station in Hintonburg to Riverside South, with a spur to the Ottawa International Airport. The trains are 80 metres long.
"A lot of room inside. It’s going to double the capacity over the existing line to 420 (passengers) on this one," says Coun. Allan Hubley. "The cabin where the driver is has better air ventilation in there. They showed us that the windows are heated. So in Ottawa winters it will run well and the driver will have good visibility."
Good visibility in the winter, and clean rails, since this train also comes equipped with a snow plow up front.
The new Stadler FLIRT vehicle includes a snow plow. The city of Ottawa purchased seven trains as part of the Stage 2 LRT project. (Dave Charbonneau/CTV News Ottawa)
"We have the propulsion system," says Stefan Baer, Stadler C.O.O. "We have four times diesel motors connected to a generator."
The Trillium Line is part of Ottawa’s stage 2 LRT project. The $4.6 billion project also includes running the Confederation Line to Trim Road in the east and Moodie Drive in the west.
However, the recent troubles of the Confederation Line have tested the trust in Ottawa’s LRT system.
"With all the troubles we had with the first one I don’t think it’s exciting," says transit user Faith Ordu. "I am skeptical. A little bit of optimism to see if things are going to work but more skeptical than optimistic."
Ottawa purchased seven, four-car multiple units from manufacturer Stadler.
The new timeline has the Trillium Line ready for passengers next spring at the earliest.
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.