Confederation Line (Stage 1) | In Service 1.0

[pico]

uOttawa station, and campus. MacDonald Hall is gone!

[acottawa]

Originally Posted by Uhuniau

Not all green spaces, plazas, or monuments are wastes of space.

But most of them are, especially the junk green spaces that Ottawa's been building in the post-war period and in the suburbs. And the endless monuments-by-committee are stultifying, dull, anywhereseville place-killers. I'd rather have another Tim Hortons than street-killing, life-sucking, pointless empty space.

Everyone who wants anything to be replaced with space (cf. the debate over the Daly site) should be forced to spend two hours some winter Saturday watching how people use one of the existing pointless open spaces.

(Hint: they don't.)

I tend to agree. While in some places spaces are done really well (the courtyards in the market, the plaza in front of WEP) or ok (city hall, National Gallery) in most cases they are windswept and boring. In Europe (or much of North America) public spaces are full of activity (markets, buskers, patios, people selling food) in Ottawa they tend to be a bunch of grass or pavement with maybe a 14-pack of flags and not much else going on (Confederation Square, the foot of the portage bridge, the war museum, york street, the future national geographic pavilion, bank of canada, nelson mandela square, sparks street, Tunney's pasture).

[Uhuniau]

Originally Posted by acottawa

I tend to agree. While in some places spaces are done really well (the courtyards in the market, the plaza in front of WEP) or ok (city hall, National Gallery) in most cases they are windswept and boring. In Europe (or much of North America) public spaces are full of activity (markets, buskers, patios, people selling food) in Ottawa they tend to be a bunch of grass or pavement with maybe a 14-pack of flags and not much else going on (Confederation Square, the foot of the portage bridge, the war museum, york street, the future national geographic pavilion, bank of canada, nelson mandela square, sparks street, Tunney's pasture).

York and Sparks are OK, and have the key to a successful open space: that it actually be closed. That is, enclosed; surrounded by tightly-knit, dense, fine-grained non-open spaces. Buildings. Things human beings use and do.

That's why parks like Dundonald or Minto are so great. It's also why edge-vacuum parks and plazas are so dull and city-killing. Some of them may have other merits, such as shoreline protection or other environmental values, but people places, they are not.

[McC]

so about that light rail transit system we're building...

[rocketphish]

Construction Update
Week of December 5

This week, crews mobilize to begin concrete final lining pours in Parliament Station cavern, drill micro-piles at Lees Station, and begin installing the composite panels at Cyrville Station. The Overhead Catenary System continues to be energized in phases for ongoing vehicle testing along the guideway between Belfast Yard and Blair Station.

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West Stations

Tunney’s Pasture Station: Crews continue drilling caissons in preparation for the next phase of station construction.

Bayview Station: Station foundation construction activities are progressing with crews forming columns, continuing underground mechanical and electrical work, and building the retaining wall.

Pimisi Station: Crews continue forming and pouring the lower concourse slab, installing grade beams, backfilling and constructing footings.

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Lyon Station cavern: The station continues to take shape with crews forming outside walls, installing steel posts and beginning to layout the masonry block walls in the mechanical room, part of architectural work. In the transition, rebar is installed for the concourse wall.

Lyon Station west entrance: Crews continue constructing station and elevator walls by installing formwork and rebar, followed by concrete pours. Work at the east vent shaft is ongoing and includes rock removals, rock bolt installation and concrete work.

Lyon Station east entrance: Construction of the station entrance progresses with concrete work for the ground floor slab and beams for the escalators. Work at the HVAC shaft includes insulation and installation of the winter protection.

Parliament Station cavern: Work includes installing rebar for footing and walls, and ongoing formwork on the columns, which are followed by concrete pours this week. Concrete final lining mobilization also occurs. In the running tunnel, crews continue final work on the invert and construction of the starter wall.

Parliament Station west entrance: Crews continue to mobilize for future masonry and glazing for the station’s head house. Rock support and installation of rock bolts occur at the east vent shaft.

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Rideau Station cavern: Station construction progresses and includes rebar installation and concrete work for station walls in addition to waterproofing activities. Clean-ups also take place to begin the next phase of concrete work in the station.

Rideau Station west entrance: Crews build insulated walls inside the Rideau Centre, part of integrated entrance construction and begin shoring. Excavation and installation of reinforcements occur outside at the HVAC shaft. Shoring also begins for the west vent shaft.

Rideau Station east entrance: Concrete pours are ongoing at the entrance, including for station and elevators walls, as well as slabs and stairs.

Rideau Street, currently closed 24/7 to vehicular traffic to permit works to advance, including jet grouting activities, is anticipated to reopen as early as December 16.

uOttawa Station: Foundation work, electrical rough-ins, and construction of station walls and slabs are ongoing, in anticipation of structural steel installation in the new year.

East Portal: Crews mine the ramp and begin installing rebar and formwork the next section of mud slab.

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East Stations

Lees Station: Station construction advances with crews micro-piling, installing rebar and pouring concrete for foundation walls.

Hurdman Station: This week, crews mobilize to begin installing structural steel for the station, and continue welding and installing steel on stairs. Other station activities include electrical and mechanical work, as well as work on the roof. The bus operators’ building continues to take shape with ceiling framing and panel installations.

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Tremblay Station: Crews begin working on the station roof, in addition to painting the basement rooms and ongoing mechanical rough-ins.

St-Laurent Station: The station continues to take shape with ongoing steel installation for the plenum, work on the elevators and final work on the hydro room.

Cyrville Station: Station construction progresses with crews installing metal composite panels this week, working on the station elevators, continuing glazing and installing porcelain panels on the auxiliary building.

Blair Station: Crews waterproof the stairs and install porcelain tiles in sections as well as continue framing and installing composite panels. Other station activities include electrical work on the elevators and escalator and conduit installation at the platform level. Roofing begins at the bus operators’ building.

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Tunnel Excavation and Support

Reinforcements and mining of the last section of running tunnel west of Rideau Station is ongoing.

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Guideway

Tunney’s Pasture Station to West Portal: Guideway construction advances and includes the installation of Overhead Catenary System foundations, electrical work for the traction power sub stations, and ongoing removal of parapet walls just west and east of Bayview Bridge.

Mann Avenue Bridge: Bridge construction is ongoing and includes work on parapet and wing walls

Mann Avenue Bridge to west of Tremblay Station: Crews complete the Overhead Catenary System foundations west of Lees Station, install concrete ties, pull rail and continue tamping in sections along the guideway.

The Overhead Catenary System continues to be energized in phases for ongoing vehicle testing along the guideway between Belfast Yard and Blair Station.

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Upcoming Construction Activities

In the coming weeks, the following construction activities are scheduled to occur:

• Lyon Station west vent shaft work resumes.
• Rideau Street reopens to bus traffic
• Structural steel installation at uOttawa Station.
• Installation of the traction power sub station on the guideway west of Lees Station and east of Hurdman Station.
• Fencing installation on guideway just west of Tremblay Station.

http://www.ligneconfederationline.ca/construction/construction-update-102/

[kmcamp]

Originally Posted by rocketphish

Construction Update
Week of December 5

---

Guideway

Tunney’s Pasture Station to West Portal: Guideway construction advances and includes the installation of Overhead Catenary System foundations, electrical work for the traction power sub stations, and ongoing removal of parapet walls just west and east of Bayview Bridge.

Mann Avenue Bridge: Bridge construction is ongoing and includes work on parapet and wing walls

Mann Avenue Bridge to west of Tremblay Station: Crews complete the Overhead Catenary System foundations west of Lees Station, install concrete ties, pull rail and continue tamping in sections along the guideway.

The Overhead Catenary System continues to be energized in phases for ongoing vehicle testing along the guideway between Belfast Yard and Blair Station.

http://www.ligneconfederationline.ca/construction/construction-update-102/

I'm hoping it's just the angle that this photo was taken from, but this picture makes it look like the platform is going to be too high for the doors on the train. A normal person would say "there's no way they could make such an obvious mistake", but the cynic in me noticed it.

[Uhuniau]

Some of these photos should be printed off and sent to any other city that's building a BRT system on the false promise of its cheap-and-easy future conversion to LRT.

[Kitchissippi]

Originally Posted by kmcamp

I'm hoping it's just the angle that this photo was taken from, but this picture makes it look like the platform is going to be too high for the doors on the train. A normal person would say "there's no way they could make such an obvious mistake", but the cynic in me noticed it.

It's an optical illusion. The bottom half below the dark line is a horizontal surface, only the part above is the vertical rise.

Having said that, they really should invest in better cameras to document a $2.1 billion project

[kmcamp]

Originally Posted by Uhuniau

Some of these photos should be printed off and sent to any other city that's building a BRT system on the false promise of its cheap-and-easy future conversion to LRT.

Counter-point, we didn't actually have to go to a full-scale-metro-with-lrt-vehicles, we could have kept the original transitway stations, and gone with a Citadis model meant for tighter curves. We could have even kept it dual mode with buses. We chose (rightly or wrongly) to go the path with the most extensive conversion.

[swimmer_spe]

Originally Posted by Uhuniau

Some of these photos should be printed off and sent to any other city that's building a BRT system on the false promise of its cheap-and-easy future conversion to LRT.

Like Mississauga and Winnipeg?

[passwordisnt123]

Originally Posted by Uhuniau

Some of these photos should be printed off and sent to any other city that's building a BRT system on the false promise of its cheap-and-easy future conversion to LRT.

If you think $2.1 billion for a 12 station line that's fully grade separated is expensive, you should go visit Toronto and ask them about a little something called the "one stop Scarborough subway."

We're doing not so bad in the grand scheme of things.

[J.OT13]

Originally Posted by acottawa

I tend to agree. While in some places spaces are done really well (the courtyards in the market, the plaza in front of WEP) or ok (city hall, National Gallery) in most cases they are windswept and boring. In Europe (or much of North America) public spaces are full of activity (markets, buskers, patios, people selling food) in Ottawa they tend to be a bunch of grass or pavement with maybe a 14-pack of flags and not much else going on (Confederation Square, the foot of the portage bridge, the war museum, york street, the future national geographic pavilion, bank of canada, nelson mandela square, sparks street, Tunney's pasture).

I agree on a few fronts, but Confederation Square is an iconic part of Ottawa. And out of respect for what the War Memorial represents, there isn't much we can do to "activate" the space.

Bank of Canada's Square was an empty, barren area, but with the new additions like the museum's entrance, it is greatly improve.

[acottawa]

Originally Posted by J.OT13

I agree on a few fronts, but Confederation Square is an iconic part of Ottawa. And out of respect for what the War Memorial represents, there isn't much we can do to "activate" the space.

Bank of Canada's Square was an empty, barren area, but with the new additions like the museum's entrance, it is greatly improve.

That is a good point, the northern part of the square could be treated differently than the southern half, with "animation" going south of sparks.

[FFX-ME]

Originally Posted by swimmer_spe

Like Mississauga and Winnipeg?

And Quebec city now.

[swimmer_spe]

Originally Posted by FFX-ME

And Quebec city now.

I didn't think they started construction yet.

[Kitchissippi]

I'm a little puzzled by the discrepancy between the Lyon station renders and the construction photos. In the renders they show bulky columns down the centre but it seems like they're not building it that way. Or is this a different part of the concourse?

[swimmer_spe]

Originally Posted by Kitchissippi

I'm a little puzzled by the discrepancy between the Lyon station renders and the construction photos. In the renders they show bulky columns down the centre but it seems like they're not building it that way. Or is this a different part of the concourse?

Maybe those columns are not going to actually support anything. Or, maybe, they no longer need them and will not have them.

[Uhuniau]

Originally Posted by J.OT13

I agree on a few fronts, but Confederation Square is an iconic part of Ottawa. And out of respect for what the War Memorial represents, there isn't much we can do to "activate" the space.

Agree. There's space in a city, esp. a capital, for monumental space, and apart from the horriblosity that is the NAC, Confederation Square serves that purpose quite admirably. (There's nothing wrong with the NAC that the current renovation will fix.)

Bank of Canada's Square was an empty, barren area, but with the new additions like the museum's entrance, it is greatly improve.

I'm not convinced. The Bank square did OK during the summer when office workers ate their lunches there. Could have been improved, but not sure that the renos are the answer. An outdoor restaurant - perhaps on a rotating basis, with different kitchens or different culinary themes - might have been a good project there.

[Uhuniau]

Originally Posted by passwordisnt123

If you think $2.1 billion for a 12 station line that's fully grade separated is expensive, you should go visit Toronto and ask them about a little something called the "one stop Scarborough subway."

We're doing not so bad in the grand scheme of things.

I don't think $2.1-billion for the current Ottawa LRT is expensive; it's actually a pretty cost-effective project, esp. considering a good chunk of it is actually thinly-veiled road projects.

The issue is that the 1980s-era BRT that is the foundation of the LRT project was sold as cheap-and-easy-to-convert-to-rail, which it was neither. Ottawa ought to have gone with LRT from the beginning, and not wasted so much cash or three decades of city-building.

[HighwayStar]

Originally Posted by Uhuniau

I don't think $2.1-billion for the current Ottawa LRT is expensive; it's actually a pretty cost-effective project, esp. considering a good chunk of it is actually thinly-veiled road projects.

The issue is that the 1980s-era BRT that is the foundation of the LRT project was sold as cheap-and-easy-to-convert-to-rail, which it was neither. Ottawa ought to have gone with LRT from the beginning, and not wasted so much cash or three decades of city-building.

Well.... I would suspect that a very healthy chunk of the $2.1B is for the tunnel, which is absolutely the correct thing to do now, but would have been completely impractical and infeasible back in the 1980s.