O-Train Line 1/3 [Stage 2 | West Extension | Tunney's to Baseline/Moodie] | U/C

[Uhuniau]

Originally Posted by J.OT13

I think it's still mostly combined in the urban west end, hence the common basement flooding issues.

I think those problems are related to stormwater-as-stormwater drainage issues. Anything built since about 1960 was "born separated", and most of the fringes of the pre-1960 city have been retrofitted since then. Centretown South (old Stewarton, largely) and the Glebe are the core of the area that is still combined, with isolated patches elsewhere.

[ponyboycurtis]

That's a great post Richard. Thank you.

I wonder if there is something they can do at this point to mitigate that happening in the future.

It's no big deal at this moment as the damage is more superficial than catastrophic. But going forward when that yard will be in service that would be completely different from a services provided prospective.

[skyscraperaccount]

Perhaps building a LRT railyard at the bottom of a hill in a place known to have drainage requirements (see pre existing supports) wasn't the best of planning.

[ponyboycurtis]

Originally Posted by skyscraperaccount

Perhaps building a LRT railyard at the bottom of a hill in a place known to have drainage requirements (see pre existing supports) wasn't the best of planning.

Well thats Ottawa and RTG for you. They didn't send their best!

[lrt's friend]

Good grief, washed out track. LRT is cursed in Ottawa ever since the first sink hole on Waller Street.

[J.OT13]

Originally Posted by ponyboycurtis

Well thats Ottawa and RTG for you. They didn't send their best!

Rare time we can't blame RTG. They weren't involved in Stage 2 planning I don't think.

[ponyboycurtis]

Originally Posted by J.OT13

Rare time we can't blame RTG. They weren't involved in Stage 2 planning I don't think.

Fair enough. Let's see how we move forward on this.

[Richard Eade]

Well, there are still MANY months before the line is to begin testing. I think that there is still plenty of time to get the connection to the Corkstown Yard LMSF fixed. And by ‘FIXED’, I mean also putting in proper drainage in that area. As I mentioned, they need to reinstate a path for water to get to the Stillwater Creek.

Here is my suggestion:



These ditches need to be sized to handle ‘LARGE’ storms – but they will still be inadequate for ‘EXCEPTIONAL’ storms. There is no way to economically prevent problems from exceptional storms.

These ditches direct stormwater into the already existing ditch along the west side of Corkstown Road, that flows to the creek. It might need to be widened.

[J.OT13]

I hope the City s ready to put in the investment now while there's still time before opening.

[kwoldtimer]

I noticed today that the service building to the west of Sherbourne Stn, where the trench reverts to tunnel, has a staircase running up the north side and that railings have been installed around the perimeter of the roof. Is this intended to be some sort of public space? I doubt it, but it does look like it at the moment.

[Richard Eade]

Doubtful that it would be public space. However, I believe that some of the fan equipment and ducting (for keeping the tunnel ‘fresh’) might be included in that building. If so, then the stairs and railing may for maintenance crews.

[kwoldtimer]

Originally Posted by Richard Eade

Doubtful that it would be public space. However, I believe that some of the fan equipment and ducting (for keeping the tunnel ‘fresh’) might be included in that building. If so, then the stairs and railing may for maintenance crews.

That would make more sense.

[lrt's friend]

CTV News Ottawa has reported the extent of flood damage to the west extension including what Richard Eade has reported but the flood damage is more extensive and not limited to the area of Moodie Station.

There will be additional costs to repair the damage and likely further delays for the opening of the west extension.

I am sure there will be a link to the news story but it has not been posted yet that I could find.

[J.OT13]

Originally Posted by kwoldtimer

I noticed today that the service building to the west of Sherbourne Stn, where the trench reverts to tunnel, has a staircase running up the north side and that railings have been installed around the perimeter of the roof. Is this intended to be some sort of public space? I doubt it, but it does look like it at the moment.

Those are public park features. A few years back, there was a presentation with more detail and renderings for both Sherbourne and New Orchard, but that could be hard to find. For now, here's from OC's website:

A renewed Byron Linear Park

As we approach the end of the project, work will take place to restore Byron Linear Park which will be enhanced to include more trees, less pavement, more public art, and additional plaza space for local events.

Stay up to date on the O-Train West Extension progress by signing up for our newsletter or visiting the project website.

Originally Posted by lrt's friend

CTV News Ottawa has reported the extent of flood damage to the west extension including what Richard Eade has reported but the flood damage is more extensive and not limited to the area of Moodie Station.

There will be additional costs to repair the damage and likely further delays for the opening of the west extension.

I am sure there will be a link to the news story but it has not been posted yet that I could find.

• Video Link

[OCCheetos]

One of the recent city memos published by the city regarding the rainfall shows localized estimates for the total amount of rainfall across the entire city.



Moodie was basically smack in the middle of the highest amount of rainfall at nearly 200mm, which is almost double the amount of rainfall that was reported at the airport (111mm).

For comparison, the project agreement specifies a maximum 24 hour rainfall of 135mm, which is equal to the highest ever recorded amount of rainfall at the airport (which happened in 2004). Suffice it to say that Moodie was definitely not spec'ed to handle as much rain as it appears to have received.

Is it a failure of the specification in hindsight? or an unfortunate consequence of climate change? I'm sure there will be many rational and nuanced discussions about this.

My two cents: it seems futile to try and spec out a system to account for every possible aspect of a climate that is increasingly impossible to predict.

[golfguy9]

Settling how all the contractors get paid for repairing their work will probably delay the opening 6 months to a year in my experience. Unfortunately we can't have nice things.

[AuxTown]

Living not far from that location, I can say this was an exceptional weather event. I think they should make some reasonable mitigation efforts but they can't plan the entire system to be able to cope with something like this. I can't imagine it's going to be that big of a repair that it would delay things by 6 months!

[lrt's friend]

We are fortunate that the western extension was not open. We would be facing months of closure without enough bus resources to make up for it. This project has faced soome weird scenarios.

[Richard Eade]

I stand corrected about the stairs to the west of Sherbourne Station. There is to be a terraced public area, as J.OT13 pointed out. Thanks, J.OT13, for that information.



You can see a full plan here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1zkhCnAp0wcNbH3NvwJSfI4wWDW2x8uw3/view

[OCCheetos]

Originally Posted by lrt's friend

We are fortunate that the western extension was not open. We would be facing months of closure without enough bus resources to make up for it. This project has faced soome weird scenarios.

It may take more time to complete repairs up to the requirements of "substantial completion", but that does not necessarily mean it would take just as long to restore service in some capacity if the extension were in operation.

e.g.

• You can repair track washouts enough to allow trains to pass over at reduced speeds without needing to complete a full repair right away
• The washed out track was also not on the mainline, but rather in the tail tracks towards Corkstown Yard. You could still maintain [reduced] service without access to that yard.
• Flooded stairs or platforms can still be used once the water is drained, but may require additional remedial work after the fact.

etc.

The city obviously won't accept mitigatory measures for the handover of the extension, but mitigations can be perfectly fine to keep the service operational.