OC Transpo boss floats possible return to LRT service on Aug. 14

The head of OC Transpo says she believes LRT service could resume by the middle of this month if everything goes according to plan, but she admits that the latest return to service date is a best case scenario.

The head of OC Transpo says she believes LRT service could resume by the middle of this month if everything goes according to plan, but she admits that the latest return to service date is a best case scenario.

Service was initially expected to resume July 31, but OC Transpo later said another 10 days of work would be needed and then said it had no timeline for a return to service. Now, in a memo, transit services general manager Renée Amilcar has floated a possible return to service on Aug. 14.

"This is an early estimate, based on projected timelines for these action items. As work progresses, we will provide an update on the potential timing to gradually restart service," Amilcar wrote in a memo.

If service does resume on Aug. 14, it would put this latest shutdown at 27 days, the second-longest interruption to service since the 54-day closure following the Sept. 19, 2021 derailment.

The LRT has been offline since July 17, when OC Transpo made the abrupt decision to stop all train service in the middle of the afternoon after a routine inspection discovered an issue with one of the wheel hub assemblies on one of the trains.

The issue has been confirmed to be similar to what caused the derailment in August 2021 and a wheel hub failure in July 2022. 

The work outlined to return to service includes the finalization of a new risk assessment, which is due Thursday, and 10 days of work to reposition the restraining rails on the line, which can only commence after the acceptance of the risk assessment. There must also be trial running of the line, but the start and end dates have yet to be confirmed.