O-Train Line 1 [Stage 1 | Confederation Line] | In Service

[Uhuniau]

Originally Posted by lrt's friend

how does this impact the bus network with a shortage of buses and an already reduced service level?

Not in a good way.

[lrt's friend]

I did a search of the newspaper archives and I had a hard time finding information on streetcar service interruptions beyond the Dec 1942 ice storm, and the Mar 1946 fire that severely damaged the interprovincial bridge. Everything else was very brief or planned, that I could find. Yesterday's storm was much less severe than originally thought. With 140 years of experience with catanery systems, surely there is knowledge in the world to prevent what happened.

[Dengler Avenue]

Originally Posted by OTownandDown

Surely miles and miles of catenary exist in parts of the world with freezing rain? What is it about Lees station and the area surrounding Lees? This seems to only happen over there, no?

Are the supporting cables not sized adequately to keep the line stable?

China has it for its HSR’s, but the freezing rain one recent winter required using diesel engines to haul the EMU’s.

[sseguin]

Freezing rain on March 11, 2026 caused damage to the O-Train Line 1 overhead catenary east of Lees Station, where the contact wire snapped. We visit the site to show the damage and latest repairs as crews work to remove LRV 1166 and restore service.

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Following yesterday's freezing rain weather event, we capture the recovery efforts to tow LRV 1166 from Lees Station, back to Belfast Yard for inspection and repairs.

• Video Link

[Uhuniau]

Is there anything to explain why this Lees region seems to have such recurrent issues of a similar nature?

[OCCheetos]

Originally Posted by Uhuniau

Is there anything to explain why this Lees region seems to have such recurrent issues of a similar nature?

The river below makes the air more humid in that area, and with the below-zero air temperature generally being colder than the river itself the humidity condenses and freezes in addition to the freezing rainfall.

The result is that ice builds up on the overhead lines in that area faster than it does elsewhere.

[DarthVader_1961]

Originally Posted by OCCheetos

The river below makes the air more humid in that area, and with the below-zero air temperature generally being colder than the river itself the humidity condenses and freezes in addition to the freezing rainfall.

The result is that ice builds up on the overhead lines in that area faster than it does elsewhere.

On the news this evening, there was talk of a heating wire…

[lrt's friend]

I am not entirely convinced that the river is the cause of the problem. Possibly, the trenching at Lees and exposure to east winds typical during ice storms is funneling cold air (forming a cold pocket) and freezing rain downward into this location, but even then, this is a bit of a stretch. There is likely other issues as well.

[rocketphish]

Damaged wire fixed, but Line 1 service still not back east of uOttawa
'All efforts are being made' to restore full service

CBC News
Posted: Mar 12, 2026 7:32 AM EDT | Last Updated: 2 hours ago



Ottawa's Line 1 remains closed east of uOttawa station Thursday evening after the overhead power system was damaged during Wednesday's wet, icy weather.

In a mid-afternoon update, OC Transpo's interim general manager Troy Charter said Rideau Transit Maintenance (RTM) had completed repairing the section of overheard wire between Hurdman and Lees stations that was damaged as freezing rain covered Ottawa on Wednesday.

RTM has also been removing ice buildup from the wire and was expected to continue that work into Thursday evening, he said.

"All efforts are being made to restore Line 1 service between Tunney’s Pasture and Blair stations," according to Charter's update.

At Thursday's meeting of city council's transit committee, River ward Coun. Riley Brockington pointed out that Wednesday's storm was minor and yet, "we still had a problem."

He then asked what OC Transpo did to prevent the damage.

Charter said the transit service applies glycol as an anti-icing treatment to the wires every 10 to 14 days, and that it was last done within the last couple of days.

While OC Transpo has been able to manage weather events like Wednesday's in the past, "clearly we need to look at some additional mitigations because, you know, we can't rely on that glycol treatment," Charter said.

"I'm really snowballing ideas... Was there something with that product that they use for that application? Was it...I don't know if it expires or anything. But something wasn't right. So we need to do that investigation."

R1 replacement buses are still now running between Lyon and Blair stations, extending that service into downtown.

Trains are running between uOttawa and Tunney's Pasture.

Staff reported "arcing" on trains between Hurdman and Lees stations early Wednesday afternoon, according to a memo to city councillors from interim OC Transpo general manager Troy Charter.

It's not the first time that system has been the source of problems on the LRT network, with others in 2022, 2023 and 2024.

Brockington pointed out that the section of Line 1 where the damage occurred Wednesday is "unique."

"We know from past investigations there is a special microclimate that exists between Lees station and the river, that there's additional humidity, that condensation freezes on the line. It's a unique area compared to other points in the line."

The Ottawa-Gatineau area was under a freezing rain warning at the time of the issue.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa/ottawa-lrt-line1-r1-replacement-wire-trains-closure-9.7125340

[rocketphish]

New LRT wire problem, same partial closure
Overhead wire seen draped over train at Blair station

CBC News
Posted: Mar 13, 2026 7:43 AM EDT | Last Updated: 38 minutes ago

OC Transpo is dealing with another downed overhead wire Friday, this time at Blair station. The line remains closed east of uOttawa station with replacement buses in service.

A wire broke on the overhead power system near Lees station during Wednesday's freezing rainstorm, triggering the partial closure.

That wire was fixed Thursday and crews set to work clearing ice from the wires in the closed section, according to OC Transpo's interim general manager Troy Charter.

OC Transpo had said Thursday night that it expected full Line 1 service to be back some time on Friday.

Between memos from Charter at 10:10 p.m. Thursday and 6:40 a.m. Friday, there was what Charter called "a new issue with the Overhead Catenary System (OCS ) in the east end of Line 1."

CBC News saw an overhead wire draped on a stopped train at Blair station around that time.

Stittsville Coun. Glen Gower, the chair of Ottawa's transit committee, said Friday on CBC Radio's Ottawa Morning that Charter mentioned another possible power-related problem near Tremblay station in an email just before 7 a.m.

The email from Charter said trains had been running overnight to test the cleared cables, Gower said.

Trains are running between Tunney's Pasture and uOttawa stations.

Replacement buses are serving stations between Lyon and Blair, with the usual shuttle between Cyrville and St-Laurent.

It's not the first time that overhead power system has been the source of problems on the LRT network, with others in 2022, 2023 and 2024.

Service on Line 1 is also reduced because of a wheel problem detected in January.

With files from Joseph Tunney and CBC Radio's Ottawa Morning

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa/ottawa-lrt-wire-problem-closure-line1-9.7127040

[lrt's friend]

Meanwhile in Montreal, similar problems.

This is why Montreal built a completely underground Metro in the 1960s replacing an extensive streetcar network with overhead wires.

This was not a major ice storm, not even close. So, would there have been an alternative to run electric trains that would have worked in this climate? Certainly, third rail was out of the question.

• Video Link

[Kitchissippi]

CAF makes battery-powered tram trains that get fully charged in about 30 seconds. In the future maybe we should get similar technology and simply charge the trains during station dwell times and in the tunnel sections. Not having to maintain these exposed catenary wires would be a huge cost savings.

[lrt's friend]

Toronto anti-icing truck in operation to prevent ice build up on streetcar wires.

• Video Link

[rocketphish]

Why is OC Transpo 'shifting focus' to fully restore the O-Train fleet?
OC Transpo has "shifted" its focus from incrementally increasing the number of available train cars to restoring the full fleet.

By Aedan Helmer, Ottawa Citizen
Published Mar 13, 2026 | Last updated 13 minutes ago | 6 minute read

OC Transpo executives said they are making progress in efforts to return the O-Train fleet to full capacity as councillors vented their frustration over the slow pace of repairs for a “spalling” issue that was identified in January.

Interim general manager Troy Charter said OC Transpo has “shifted” its focus from incrementally increasing the number of available train cars to a strategy that involves removing the 100,000-kilometre threshold “so we can get the entire fleet back.”

The transit authority removed 41 of its train cars from service in January after the Rideau Transit Group discovered the issue in the cartridge bearing assemblies within the train cars’ axles.

The spalling, or the flaking of the surface material, was discovered during an inspection into a separate “fretting” issue with the cartridge bearing assemblies that led to a derailment in 2021.

OC Transpo removed from service all of the trains with axles that had exceeded 100,000 kilometres for inspection and repairs related to spalling.

That left the O-Train with 18 available train cars, leading OC Transpo to run one single-car train every three to four minutes in peak periods to meet demands and to mitigate overcrowding at stations.

Since mid-January, only three trains have rejoined the fleet, leaving OC Transpo with 21 train cars, a number that has remained unchanged in weekly updates to council and the media.

Transit committee chair Coun. Glen Gower acknowledged the mounting frustration among councillors and riders at the seemingly slow progress.

<more>

https://ottawacitizen.com/news/why-is-oc...-strategy-to-fully-restore-o-train-fleet

[rocketphish]

Councillor calls for independent review after new issue keeps O-Train LRT service closed in east end
Coun. Tim Tierney wants an independent review of the latest issue to halt OC Transpo's LRT trains in the east of Ottawa.

By Aedan Helmer, Ottawa Citizen
Published Mar 13, 2026 | Last updated 17 minutes ago

Coun. Tim Tierney is renewing his call for an independent third-party review after a new issue with the LRT’s overhead power lines partially shut down service following Wednesday’s ice storm.

The power line snapped after a buildup of ice from the storm on March 11 and OC Transpo said crews would continue with “labour intensive” work to restore Line 1 service in the eastern section of the rail system.

“Shortly after the start of service (Friday) morning, Line 1 experienced two power issues near Tremblay and Blair stations and a short piece of the overhead catenary system (OCS) was damaged and fell at Blair Station,” said OC Transpo interim general manager Troy Charter in an update to council.

Charter said initial reports indicated the freezing rain on Wednesday resulted in the new issues with the power lines.

Line 1 service continued to operate between Tunney’s Pasture and uOttawa stations Friday, with replacement buses running between Lyon and Blair stations in place of the trains.

Rideau Transit Maintenance completed inspections between Lees and Blair stations and had started to tow three stopped trains back to the rail yard, Charter wrote in the memo on Friday afternoon.

Repair work on the overhead power lines at Blair Station was scheduled to begin when all the vehicles have been removed, Charter said, followed by inspections and testing of the OCS “to ensure no further corrective work is required.”

Passenger service would then resume following the inspections and testing.

Tierney visited Blair Station shortly after 9 a.m. on Friday and said he was surprised to see no crews onsite from the city or from RTG.

“I saw wires hanging down off the trains and not one person from RTG or anybody, just a series of yellow tape roping off the train. It was a ghost town for 45 minutes,” Tierney said Friday.

“That’s concerning, and that’s why my continued push is for the province to help us with their commitment and get a third party, somebody independent of RTG, to do this evaluation. I’ve been calling on this for at least a year,” Tierney said.

“Every day with this train, it’s like something else doesn’t work. Let’s strap lube, grease, scrape, do something different,” he said.

“I’m not comfortable with that. I feel we need someone with an engineer stamp that will come in and will actually sign off on something that will tell us where the challenges are. And the only way to achieve that is have the province step up and get this resolved.”

On Wednesday, OC Transpo staff reported electrical “arcing” on trains between Hurdman and Lees stations.

On Thursday, Charter said Rideau Transit Maintenance (RTM) had completed the removal of ice buildup across the power system, except near Lees Station, and continued to work to remove a stopped train.

“All efforts are being made to restore Line 1 service,” Charter wrote on Friday. “This process is labour intensive and is expected to take most of the day.”

https://ottawacitizen.com/news/new-issue-stalls-return-of-lrt

[J.OT13]

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[DarthVader_1961]

Originally Posted by J.OT13

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So glad we spent billions on this partially work lemon…

I assume diesel train sets are not an option because of the tunnel sections?

Something has to give here

[Dengler Avenue]

^ I asked my friend who used to work for the City. He said that the signalling system only works for that particular type of trains.
That said, I do think that it’s about time to make Line 1 compatible with DMU’s.
Electrification has been a joke in this country. REM also had the same issue.

[DarthVader_1961]

Originally Posted by dengler avenue

^ i asked my friend who used to work for the city. He said that the signalling system only works for that particular type of trains.
That said, i do think that it’s about time to make line 1 compatible with dmu’s.
Electrification has been a joke in this country. Rem also had the same issue.

dmu?

[lrt's friend]

Precautionary LRT service suspension when freezing rain is predicted.

I-N-S-A-N-E

https://www.ctvnews.ca/ottawa/article/oc...ce-ahead-of-future-freezing-rain-events/