Trillium Line will not be open for first day of classes at Carleton University

The Trillium Line will not be open for the first day of classes at Carleton University, as testing and trial running continues on the new north-south light rail transit line.

OC Transpo and its partner TransitNEXT are in the midst of an eight to 10 week testing and trial running period ahead of the launch of the LRT, which includes a 21-day testing period.

When CTVNewsOttawa.ca asked OC Transpo on Tuesday whether the 21-day trial running period is underway on the Trillium Line, city staff said, "a memo will be sent once trial running begins."

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The Light-Rail Transit Subcommittee is scheduled to receive an update on testing and trial running during its Aug. 29 meeting. Staff say headway and vehicle testing with nine trains continues, and "final construction activity, as well as final testing and commissioning is well underway."

"Overall, project progress is going well as the City and TransitNEXT move to the trial running," staff say in the report for the committee.

"Prerequisites for trial running include obtaining building occupancy permits at all stations, track acceptance, and ensuring the operational reliability of the system. Testing and commissioning activities are advancing, including testing of vehicles, signals, train control systems, and switches. Both the City and TransitNEXT have worked together, along with oversight and input from the Independent Certifier, to ensure a thorough framework is in place for Substantial Completion that satisfies the requirements of the Project Agreement."

The report says all 13 stations have obtained occupancy permits and certificates have been issued for elevators.

"Concurrently, the closeout of deficiencies on all Trillium Line stations is progressing, elevator adjustments and inspections are completed, cleanup, final glazing installation at the stations, and final communications device commissioning are ongoing," the report says.

This will be the third September the new north-south line will not be running at the start of the school year. The Trillium Line was originally scheduled to open in August 2022, but construction delays have pushed back the opening until September at the earliest.

The 21-day trial running period will be the final step before the Trillium Line launches for passengers, and is included in the eight-to-10 week window before a possible launch.

As part of the pre-launch, OC Transpo and TransitNEXT are required to do a 21-day testing period before the system can launch. The testing period includes a 14-day service reliability test with the Trillium Line running a full regular service schedule to simulate passenger service and a seven-day "failure scenario management" period.

OC Transpo and TransitNEXT began testing and commissioning in June, which includes demonstrating required headways and trial running performance testing, checking vehicle systems and communications systems and train controls.  The Trillium Line is now running 18 hours a day during the week, matching planned schedules when the system launches for the public.

"Now we want to run that full schedule for eight to 10 weeks and make sure nothing new arises during that period," Michael Morgan, Director of Rail Construction, told councillors on July 18.

Staff say the prerequisites for trial running include obtaining building occupancy permits at all stations, track acceptance, and ensuring the operational reliability of the system.

"Both the City and TransitNEXT have worked together, along with oversight and input from the Independent Certifier, to ensure a thorough framework is in place for Substantial Completion that satisfies the requirements of the Project Agreement," the report says.

"Execution is underway for collection of documentation, tracking of deficiencies (including the resolution of those that would impede Substantial Completion according to the Project Agreement), and planning for the requirements necessary for the application of Substantial Completion itself."