OC Transpo to run single-car trains through rest of summer

Ottawa's light rail system will run single-car trains for the remainder of the summer as service gradually returns following a multi-week shutdown, OC Transpo says.

Five single-car trains returned to operation Tuesday morning along a portion of the Confederation Line, which is normally serviced by two-car trains.

"So far, we are happy with how the partial service is running," Renée Amilcar, the city's general manager of transit services, said at a Tuesday afternoon news conference.

Service resumed between Tunney's Pasture and uOttawa stations on Tuesday morning, several days ahead of schedule.

Amilcar said the partial reopening was made possible over the long weekend, as work to reposition restraining rails between those stations was completed. Restraining rails are located alongside the tracks and are intended to prevent derailments.

Work is ongoing to adjust restraining rails and prevent contact with train wheels, which is believed to be creating pressure and wearing out parts. As of Tuesday, adjustments to 10 out of 16 spots along the line had been completed.

Further adjustments are still required in the east end of the track.

'Ridership is not here'

Full service for the rest of the line is still expected to start on Aug. 14, Amilcar said. For the rest of August, OC Transpo expects to run 11 single-car trains during peak periods in the morning and 13 during peak periods in the afternoon. Nine trains will run during off-peak hours.

"To be able to constantly maintain a level of service, we need to be able to do that," Amilcar said, referring to the decision to run trains in single cars rather than pairs. "And because, as well, the ridership is not here."

Train ridership at the beginning of the year was at about 43 per cent of pre-pandemic levels, Amilcar added.

OC Transpo's service plan for September is still being worked on.

Joel Lemieux, the city's acting director of transit service delivery and rail operations, said he was unable to provide ridership numbers for Tuesday, but added R1 buses had light use in places where the train was running.

Lemieux said LRT platforms never had more than about 50 people at any time, and the trains travelled at "seated loads."

Partial return Tuesday

On Tuesday morning, service returned with five single-car trains running every five minutes. A sixth train is also available to accommodate higher volumes during peak periods.

The R1, R1 Express and Para R1 replacement buses will continue to operate alongside the trains for the time being.

R1 service will continue for "at least one day" after full LRT service resumes, Amilcar said.

Ottawa's light rail system has been shut down since July 17, when it was pulled from service during afternoon rush hour after a routine inspection uncovered a problem with a bearing.

The problem behind the current shutdown is "similar to what was found" to have caused a derailment in August 2021 and a wheel hub failure in July 2022, OC Transpo said.