Ontario government holding $60 million in funding for Ottawa’s LRT system

Written by RT&S Staff
image description
Ottawa light rail.
City of Ottawa

The problems with the Ottawa light-rail system now may carry over to the budget.

The Ontario government has sent a letter to Ottawa stating it will hold $60 million in funding due to the ongoing issues with Stage 1 construction and service.

A senior ministry of transportation official says the Ontario government would like assurances that funding is being used for assets and infrastructure that are safe and meet industry standards. The safe reference could possibly relate to a pair of derailments on Ottawa’s light-rail system.

Ottawa now must meet three requirements to get the funding back: the Transportation Safety Board investigation on cracked wheels must be complete and Ottawa must show it has addressed the recommendations or will address them; the TSB investigation in the derailments must be complete and Ottawa must show it has addressed recommendations or will address them; and there must be attestation from an independent engineer.

Ottawa is calling the letter government due diligence and says it is already addressing all of the issues.

Read more articles on passenger rail.

Tags: , , , ,

Media