Confederation Line (Stage 1) | In Service 1.0

[jimmyjones]

So according to http://www.ligneconfederationline.ca/the-plan/when/ the Tremblay, St. Laurent, Cyrville and Blair stations are supposed to be completed. Suppose they are officially behind schedule on those?

[acottawa]

Originally Posted by jimmyjones

So according to http://www.ligneconfederationline.ca/the-plan/when/ the Tremblay, St. Laurent, Cyrville and Blair stations are supposed to be completed. Suppose they are officially behind schedule on those?

Cyrville looks like it is very close to completed.

[Uhuniau]

Anyone know if there's anything planned for when the final tunnel "breakthrough" happens?

Also, where, exactly, will the breakthrough take place?

[kmcamp]

Originally Posted by acottawa

Cyrville looks like it is very close to completed.

It also depends on what they mean by "Substantial completion" which is their weasel wording. Blair, St Laurent and Cryville are pretty much structurally complete, test trains are running through them. It's all "architectural finishes" now, which seems to be things like lights and glass and tile, etc.

[eemy]

I'm sure RTG has the option to adjust the schedule as they see fit provided that the system enters service at the agreed to date.

[acottawa]

Originally Posted by kmcamp

It also depends on what they mean by "Substantial completion" which is their weasel wording. Blair, St Laurent and Cryville are pretty much structurally complete, test trains are running through them. It's all "architectural finishes" now, which seems to be things like lights and glass and tile, etc.

Presumably they want to install that closer to actual operation. Unless they are going to live test the eastern stations with real passengers, the stations will be unused for 18 months and the architectural finishes would be an easy target for vandals, thieves, etc.

[Kitchissippi]

Originally Posted by Uhuniau

Anyone know if there's anything planned for when the final tunnel "breakthrough" happens?

Also, where, exactly, will the breakthrough take place?

Don't know, but I get this vision of Jim Watson's finger being the first thing to poke a hole through....

[SkeggsEggs]

Originally Posted by Kitchissippi

Don't know, but I get this vision of Jim Watson's finger being the first thing to poke a hole through....

I am sure he would involve that elf on a shelf of himself!

[TransitZilla]

Saw another test train last night moving along the tracks west of Blair Station. They seem to often be testing in the evenings... it's not the first time I have seen test trains between 7-8pm.

[rocketphish]

Construction Update
Week of January 9

With the holiday season now behind us, station construction activities ramp up along the 12.5-kilometre LRT alignment, with concrete work at Tunney’s Pasture Station continuing and, by end of the week, masonry installation at uOttawa Station getting underway.

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Pimisi Station suspended slab and station progress

West Stations

Tunney’s Pasture Station: This week, crews drill rock anchors and continue station excavation.

Bayview Station: Construction advances at the station and includes installing grade beams and duct banks as well as concrete work for the ancillary building.

Pimisi Station: Suspended slab construction, formwork and mechanical and electrical work are ongoing at the station.

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Rideau Station cavern arch concrete work

Central Stations

Lyon Station cavern: Station architectural works progress and include formwork, work on station stairs and curbs, and installation of masonry. In the west transition, work on the arch and concourse wall is ongoing.

Lyon Station west entrance: Work continues at the entrance, including on the station walls and beams. Excavation and wire saw cutting for an anticipated breakthrough to the tunnel occur at the east vent shaft.

Lyon Station east entrance : Integrated entrance construction advances with the installation of masonry at the parking level and concrete work on the ground floor mechanical room and walls. At the HVAC shaft, crews begin wire saw cutting.

Parliament Station cavern: Crews install rebar on station columns, continue working on the deck and forming the arch in anticipation of concrete pours. Concrete pours for the mud slab continue in the running tunnel.

Parliament Station west entrance: This week’s activities at the integrated entrance include work on parapets. Crews also continue hand chipping rock and excavation at the east vent shaft.

Parliament Station east entrance:
Crews begin rock support activities and install rock bolts as part of work on the integrated entrance.

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Concrete pours of the mud slab at the East Portal ramp

Rideau Station cavern: Work on the station arch continues and includes waterproofing and rebar installation in sections, followed by the beginning of the final concrete lining. Crews also pour concrete for station walls.

Rideau Station west entrance: Construction of the station entrance continues to ramp up with 24/7 activities. This week, work includes excavation, spraying shotcrete, and installing whaler beams and struts as part of station reinforcements. Crews begin line drilling and rock excavation at the HVAC shaft.

Rideau Station east entrance: The integrated entrance continues to progress with crews waterproofing walls, forming the elevator pits and stairs, in addition to installing rebar on the exterior station walls.

Rideau Street remains open to buses and taxis only. Regular traffic continues to be prohibited on this portion of Rideau Street until the Confederation Line begins operation in 2018.

uOttawa Station: Crews prepare to install masonry at the station at the end of the week and continue forming stairs as well as mechanical and electrical work.

East Portal: Construction of the ramp is ongoing. This week, crews continue pouring the mud slab, waterproofing and shotcrete activities, as well as installing whaler beams during the daytime and overnight.

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Work on station roof at Tremblay Station

East Stations

Lees Station: Crews continue micro-piling and working on the auxiliary building.

Hurdman Station: Station construction progresses with roofing, glazing, the installation of structural steel and masonry, as well as concrete work on stairs and suspended slabs in sections. At the bus operators’ building, crews install porcelain panels and work on the ceiling, in addition to beginning tiling activities.

Tremblay Station: Construction progresses at the station with mobilization to begin the next phase of roofing this week. In addition, work occurs on parapets, elevators and interior rooms.

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Panel installation, Blair Station

St-Laurent Station: Ceiling hanger work advances at the station and final steel installation occurs for the plenum.

Cyrville Station: Work advances at the station and includes porcelain panels installation on the auxiliary building, composite panel work, sub framing for the ceiling and glazing in sections.

Blair Station: Crews frame the ceiling and install composite and porcelain panels in the station. At the bus operators’ building, work includes final mechanical rough-ins and ceiling framing.

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Tunnel reinforcements-running tunnel west of Rideau Station

Excavation and reinforcements are ongoing.

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Preparing crossover tracks on guideway-east of Tunney's Pasture Station

Guideway

Tunney’s Pasture Station to West Portal: Guideway activities in this section include saw cutting and removals of the parapets along Bayview Bridge, work on the retaining walls and drilling for the crossover tracks.

Mann Avenue Bridge: Crews continue constructing the bridge’s wing walls in anticipation of a concrete pour by the end of the month.

Mann Avenue Bridge to Blair Station: Work resumes this week, including drilling dowels for plinths, part of trackwork along this section of guideway and construction of the traction power sub station foundation west of Lees Station. Vehicle testing, including dynamic testing, continues between Cyrville and Blair stations.

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Upcoming Construction Activities

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

• Pimisi Station structural steel installation.
• Lyon Station west vent shaft work resumes.
• Ongoing overnight work at the Rideau Station west and east entrances, and at the East Portal.
• Structural steel installation at uOttawa and Lees.
• Masonry installation at uOttawa Station.
• Overnight bracket installation at the Mann Avenue bridge; lane restrictions will occur during this work.
• Installation of the traction power sub station on the guideway west of Lees Station.
• Fencing installation on guideway just west of Tremblay Station.

Overhead Catenary System energized in phases for ongoing vehicle testing from Belfast Yard and Blair Station.

http://www.ligneconfederationline.ca...on-update-106/

[Richard Eade]

Originally Posted by rocketphish

Construction Update
Week of January 9

...

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Tunnel reinforcements-running tunnel west of Rideau Station

Excavation and reinforcements are ongoing.

...

By “Tunnel reinforcements-running tunnel west of Rideau Station”, I assume that they might mean EAST of Rideau Station since last week the tunnel west of Rideau Station was still being dug and looked like this:


Excavation in running tunnel west of Rideau Station ongoing
[From the Dec. 26, Jan. 2 Construction Update of www.ligneconfederationline.ca]

This excellent photo shows that, after Christmas, the running tunnel west of the Rideau Station cavern was little more than a short stub. It also shows the transition area and west end of the station cavern, indicating that they were still in a very rough condition, appearing to have no finishing after shotcrete on the rough cuts of the roadheader.

Alternatively, it could be far west of the Rideau Station - so far west that it is just east of the Parliament Station. Except that we have not been getting many updated pictures from the tunnel section east of Parliament Station since that section of tunnel was flooded during the Rideau Street Wash-out. We also have heard nothing about the two roadheader machines that were working in that section at the time of the flood. I suggest that RTG had to wait until the ground-augmentation was complete before they could even start to clear out the muck in that tunnel segment. At this point, there is too much 'finishing' work going on west of there to be trucking the muck through. I suspect that all of the remaining muck will be coming out of the East Portal - including muck (and dead equipment) from the cleaning of the flooded tunnel segment.

However, based on the relative size of the cement truck, I assume that the posted photo is actually a picture of one of the caverns being lined.

[McC]

Breakthrough

Jim Watson ‏@JimWatsonOttawa ·
19 minutes ago

Let there be light! We’ve connected both ends of the LRT tunnel under Rideau St. / Nous avons rejoint les 2 bouts du tunnel sous Rideau.

link to pic: https://twitter.com/JimWatsonOttawa/...94827483492352

[rocketphish]

Ottawa LRT tunnel connected below Rideau Street: Watson

Peter Kovessy, OBJ
Published on January 19, 2017 | Updated at 12:41



Construction of the city’s light-rail line has crossed a major milestone after crews connected both ends of the 2.5-kilometre tunnel beneath downtown Ottawa, Mayor Jim Watson said Thursday morning.

“The tunnel is completely excavated,” Mr. Watson said during a National Capital Commission board meeting.

Rail officials were later quoted as saying complete excavation would be finished by February.

He said there is still a significant amount of work to do, such as fitting up the stations and planning how both OC Transpo and Gatineau’s STO buses will connect to the rail line.

“We don’t want to get rid of our all our buses on streets like Wellington and Queen and Albert and Slater just to have them replaced with even more buses from STO,” Mr. Watson said. “But at the same time, we have to respect that STO customers don’t want to have an extra transfer or two extra transfers.”

He told the NCC board that Ottawa and Gatineau municipal officials are working on a compromise “that will satisfy both sides.”

The first stage of Ottawa’s new light-rail line will run for 12.5 kilometres between Tunney’s Pasture in the west and Blair station in the east when it opens to passengers in 2018.

Testing on the 13-station line started late last year.

A second phase is envisioned to extend the line to Trim Road in Orleans as well as Bayshore and Baseline in the west by 2023.

http://www.obj.ca/Local/City-Hall/20...te%3A-Watson/1

[rocketphish]

A big day for Ottawa's current — and future — LRT projects

Matthew Pearson, Ottawa Citizen
Published on: January 19, 2017 | Last Updated: January 19, 2017 7:05 PM EST



On the same day Mayor Jim Watson tweeted a photo showing both ends of Ottawa’s Confederation LRT tunnel meeting somewhere under Rideau Street, the National Capital Commission signed off on the city’s proposed alignment and functional design for the future western LRT extension along the Sir John A. Macdonald corridor.

Digging of the 2.5-kilometre LRT tunnel beneath downtown began at both ends and met somewhere in the middle, east of the Rideau Canal. There’s a western portal near the future Pimisi station, a central portal below Queen Street and an eastern portal at the University of Ottawa.

Watson’s tweet shows a muddy tunnel where workers first joined the two sides.

He said the photo was taken on Monday, but the first punch through actually happened a few days after Christmas.

“Obviously this is an important milestone in the progress of light-rail transit,” he said Thursday.

Only about 50 metres of LRT tunnelling remained when a massive sinkhole opened up on Rideau Street on June 8, throwing a wrench into plans to join the two ends.

Work eventually resumed but it was slow going throughout the summer and fall.

Meanwhile, the NCC’s approval of the western LRT alignment and functional design is another step forward for the city’s long-term transit plans.

The city and the NCC signed an agreement in principle last May that would see a future LRT line tunnel under the eastbound lanes of the realigned Sir John A. Macdonald Parkway between the existing Dominion and proposed Cleary stations.

The NCC decision also gave the thumbs-up to using NCC land at Lincoln Fields and in the Pinecrest Creek corridor between Richmond and Baseline roads.

The city needed the NCC to approve the western LRT alignment and functional design before it can issue a request for proposals (RFP) for the project, which it is expected to do in May or June.

The city previously altered the design last spring when organizations at the Unitarian campus on Cleary Avenue opposed the tunnel cutting through their property.

In September, a further tweak, roughly between Cleary and Woodroffe avenues, moved the LRT tunnel from under Richmond Road in this 650-metre stretch to under the Byron Avenue linear park.

The $3-billion second phase of LRT is to be constructed after the first phase opens in 2018.

[email protected]
twitter.com/mpearson78

http://ottawacitizen.com/news/local-...e-lrt-projects

[rocketphish]

Construction Update
Week of January 16

Foundation construction progresses at Bayview Station as crews continue to install grade beams this week. Along the guideway, the traction power sub station west of Lees, the seventh of the nine required to power the Confederation Line, is being installed at the end of the week. Work on interior finishes also occurs at the bus operators’ buildings at Hurdman and Blair stations.

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Tunney's Pasture Station

West Stations

Tunney’s Pasture Station: Station construction ramps up and includes work on stairs, footings and walls, as well as drilling of rock anchors.

Bayview Station: This week, underground mechanical and electrical work continues at the station. Crews also install grade beams, backfill and work on the ancillary building’s foundation.

Pimisi Station: Crews continue concrete work, including rebar installation, in anticipation of concrete pours for the platform track slab by end of the month. Other station activities include stripping slabs and working on elevator pits.

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Ongoing architectural work - Lyon Station cavern

Central Stations

Lyon Station cavern: Crews continue pouring concrete for the concourse walls and architectural work advances in the station. Work includes masonry installation, reinforcing and curbs. In the west transition, rebar and conduits are installed as part of initial work for the track slab and final shotcrete lining installation also occur.

Lyon Station west entrance: Entrance construction is ongoing and includes forming the roof of the adit and pouring walls along the lower level stairs. Crews install the winter enclosure at the station’s east vent shaft and continue wire saw cutting for an anticipated breakthrough to the tunnel.

Lyon Station east entrance: Crews form and pour concrete for the ground floor knee walls* and begin forming the lower escalator slabs. Mechanical rough-ins also occur. At the HVAC shaft, crews continue wire saw cutting for an anticipated breakthrough to the tunnel.

Parliament Station cavern: Work on station decks and columns is ongoing and includes the installation of rebar, followed by concrete pours. Final arch concrete lining pours also begin in sections inside the cavern, and in the running tunnel, crews build starter walls and pour mud slabs.

Parliament Station west entrance: Activities at the integrated entrance will resume in the next weeks with architectural work for the parapets. At the east vent shaft, hand chipping and excavation are ongoing for the next weeks.

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Concrete pours_walls + arch work - Rideau Station

Rideau Station cavern: The station continues to take shape with arch waterproofing and rebar installation followed by concrete arch final lining pours. Work on bulkheads and concrete pours for the station walls also occur this week.

Rideau Station west entrance: Construction continues 24/7 in this area with excavation and shotcrete work in phases. The removal of the existing shoring, waterproofing and the installation of rebar for the raft slab also take place. Rock excavation is ongoing at the HVAC shaft.

Rideau Station east entrance: Waterproofing, the installation of rebar on exterior walls and concrete work for slabs, stairs and escalator pits are ongoing for the next weeks as part of this phase of entrance construction.

Rideau Street is now open to bus traffic and taxis.

uOttawa Station: Station construction progresses and includes installation of masonry at one end of the station, while crews excavate at the other end of the station to continue the next phase of foundation work. Work also occurs on station walls and slabs.

East Portal: Crews continue waterproofing, installing rebar and formwork, and pouring mud slabs in sections along the ramp during the daytime and overnight. Conduits are installed and ramp reinforcements and insulation work also occur.

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Concrete stair work Hurdman Station

East Stations

Lees Station: This week, crews begin installing duct banks and continue micro-piling, as well as rebar and formwork, as part of station foundation work.

Hurdman Station: Construction includes falsework for the station’s suspended slab, roofing, the installation of the next phase of structural steel, rebar and concrete pours for the station stairs. In addition, crews continue electrical work and waterproofing at the ancillary buildings. Finishing work is ongoing at the bus operators’ building with tile and ceiling work occurring inside and porcelain panel installation taking place outside.

Tremblay Station: Station progress continues with work on the roof, framing of the soffit, flooring, painting, the installation of cable trays in secondary rooms, as well as work on walls and elevators.

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Ongoing panel installation at Blair Station

St-Laurent Station: Crews continue working on the station’s head house, elevators and plenum, in addition to painting and pouring concrete for the mezzanine.

Cyrville Station: The station continues to take shape; this week, crews install porcelain and composite panels as well as frame ceilings and work on the finishes for the auxiliary building.

Blair Station: The installation of composite and porcelain panels and ongoing systems wiring take place at the station. At the bus operators’ building, rough-ins and interior finishes such as tile installation are ongoing.

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Progress of work in the running tunnel - west of Rideau Station

Tunnel Excavation and Support

Tunnel reinforcements and mining are ongoing in the last remaining section of running tunnel west of Rideau Station.

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Tunnel breakthrough occurs

Tunnel breakthrough

A small punch-through occurred on December 28th, meaning the western portion of the tunnel has now met the eastern portion. There is now a contiguous 2.5-km tunnel. This picture shows the opening as it was completed this week. Complete tunnel excavation is on track for the end of February 2017.

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Crossover tracks installation - guideway near Tunney's Pasture Station

Guideway

Tunney’s Pasture Station to West Portal: Work on the guideway includes the removal of the parapets along Bayview Bridge and drilling for the crossover tracks in phases.

Mann Avenue Bridge to Blair Station: At the end of the week, crews deliver and install the traction power sub station on the guideway west of Lees Avenue. Teams also continue testing vehicles on tracks between Cyrville and Blair stations and at the Belfast Yard connector.

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Upcoming Construction Activities

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

• Pimisi Station structural steel installation.
• Lyon Station west vent shaft work resumes.
• Beginning of trackwork in the west running tunnel.
• Ongoing overnight work at the Rideau Station west and east entrances, and at the East Portal.
• Structural steel installation at uOttawa Station requiring overnight lane restrictions.
• Overnight bracket installation at the Mann Avenue bridge requiring lane restrictions.
• Ongoing Mann Avenue bridge reconstruction work through end of 2017.
• Structural steel installation at Lees Station.
• Fencing installation on guideway just west of Tremblay Station.
• Overhead Catenary System energized in phases for ongoing vehicle testing from Belfast Yard and Blair Station.

http://www.ligneconfederationline.ca...on-update-107/

[Kitchissippi]

I was walking around downtown last night and noticed how the corner of Rideau and Colonel By has been tidied up a bit. Much of the hoarding is gone and it almost looks like you can walk right into the LRT station doors.

[Richard Eade]

Good observation. I also was at that corner last night (after the NCC Urban Lab) and noticed that the entrance is much more open.

When I look at your picture, though, the empty space below what looks like a solid platform, makes it appears, to me, that the building has bee raised up on stilts. The lighting of the arch windows (missing the light on the left) makes it seem as if that should have been the ground floor. (Of course, I know that the building has not been levitated, but it looks like it has, for me, at night.)

[roger1818]

Originally Posted by Richard Eade

When I look at your picture, though, the empty space below what looks like a solid platform, makes it appears, to me, that the building has bee raised up on stilts. The lighting of the arch windows (missing the light on the left) makes it seem as if that should have been the ground floor. (Of course, I know that the building has not been levitated, but it looks like it has, for me, at night.)

As a comparison, you can see what it looked like in 2014 in Google Street View here. It has always looked like it was on stilts.

[acottawa]

Wasn't the whole building jacked up when the Rideau Centre was built in the 80s?

[J.OT13]

Major mods to the ground floor and basement (I assume), but not jacked up.


https://www.flickr.com/photos/rdb466/23778776170