Tech Woes Slow Line 1 Light Rail
This is a release from the City of Ottawa:
Mayor and Members of Council,
The purpose of this email is to provide an update on O-Train Line 1 service.
Early this morning, an issue was encountered with a switch near Tremblay Station that delayed the start of service and caused delays to customers. To allow Rideau Transit Maintenance (RTM) technicians to safely troubleshoot the issue with the switch, Line 1 trains operated at a slower speed while service continued on one track as trains diverted around the impacted area. This increased travel time for trains and resulted in higher customer volumes at some station platforms.
To support customers during the morning commute, supplemental bus service was put in place from Tunney’s Pasture to downtown to help keep customers moving. Service gaps on Line 1 have now been reduced and passenger volumes at stations are normal.
Following the morning rush hour, technicians returned to the impacted switch and a brief system hold was put in place as further troubleshooting work took place which was not able to resolve the issue.
Service on Line 1 has now resumed using one track in the impacted area. It is anticipated that this will be required for the remainder of today’s service. Customers are unlikely to experience delays during the mid-day period, but during the afternoon commute customers may experience longer wait times at stations and travel times as trains wait to pass through the area near Tremblay Station.
RTM continues to troubleshoot the issue and, if not resolved, will conduct repairs to the switch during the overnight hours while Line 1 is not in operation in order to restore service on both tracks in this area.
We will continue to provide updates to customers through social media, text messages, and announcements at stations.
Many thanks,
Renée Amilcar
General Manager, Transit Services Department
Directrice générale, Services de transport en commun
City of Ottawa | Ville d’Ottawa
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– The Bulldog – News Feed Enter 
All the excuses the public hears from Renee Amilcar concerning OC Transpo remind me of the title of Gilda Radner’s autobiography “It’s Always Something”.
Let me get this straight.
I’m often confused by the goings-on at OC Transpo but this is one of their better ones.
1. There’s a problem at Tremblay which, according to my map and the evidence I’ve accumulated over many years using my eyes, is east of downtown. (For those who aren’t familiar with the train, Tremblay Station is beside the VIA Rail station in the vicinity of the Vanier Parkway/Riverside Drive and the 417.)
To deal with it, OC put on supplemental buses from downtown to Tunney’s Pasture in the west to increase overall service. What about the people trying to use the service from downtown to/from the eastern reaches of the city?
2. Mme Amilcar doesn’t mention putting buses on to supplement service in the evening rush hour although she says there will be delays then as well. What’s the difference between the morning and evening rush hours? Other than that people are going in a different direction, of course? Is it more important to get people to work in the morning quickly than getting them home at night?
If there’s a problem at Tremblay, why aren’t they running trains between Tunney’s Pasture and Hurdman plus between Blair and St Laurent with the supplementary buses running between St Laurent and Hurdman as well as the express bus from downtown to Orleans? The trains could run at their normal* frequency and speed which would mean that people not having to pass Tremblay should not be affected by the problem.
Oh dear! I must apologize – it seems that, once again, I’ve resorted to applying logic to the operations of OC Transpo which is an exercise in futility and impossibility. I shall now go to my room and write my lines 1000 times:
“Logic is not to be used when discussing OC Transpo. In most instances, they are mutually exclusive.”
* “normal” is used in the OC Transpo meaning of the word, not in the usual dictionary meaning. It doesn’t necessarily indicate the train or bus will be on time or even appear.