ION - Waterloo Region's Light Rail Transit

[Square]

Just had a thought.   Does any one know, when they installed the FIE, was it installed in both cabs?   Thank you.

The in-cab signalling and other displays certainly have to be. We don't have turnaround loops at the line ends, just crossovers, so the trains will run both directions on the line. The equipment is more than just the in-cab part though, so there would be components like computers that are in neither cab.

Thank you for the reply.   Just occurred to me that when the photos were shown here with the empty hole in the cab, was the empty hole in both A and B cab?

[Square]

I might have used the word "could" instead of "would" - in order to minimize the rework required for the installation, the clever thing to do would be to put the majority of the equipment in one cab (you have to tear it apart, anyway) and make the other cab HMI a "slave" to it, rather than have a whole third area of the vehicle that needs to have the brains installed with equal installations at each cab.

...that being said, from what I understand, the entire train essentially needed to be torn apart to fit it all in and get it wired up, so...

Fun Reminder:  "Free-Issued Equipment" is a generic, non-industry, non-Waterloo/ION specific term.  It's a very common way for customers to take control of an aspect of a project and manage certain hardware aspects with a supplier or manufacturer.  In this case, Bombardier is using the terminology more publicly I think in an attempt to make it very clearly known that this is the case - that the Region Free Issued this equipment to them, and so it's not their fault this time that things have pushed on so late.

Thank you for the details.

[Canard]

Thank you for the reply.   Just occurred to me that when the photos were shown here with the empty hole in the cab, was the empty hole in both A and B cab?

Given that the cabs should appear identical to an operator, I would think it is safe to assume that both cabs were modified, and thus, were delivered with a hole in the right console.

(the final configuration has been re-designed where the additional equipment was installed in the centre console, with the display that was in the centre being moved to the right console.)

[tomh009]

Given that the cabs should appear identical to an operator, I would think it is safe to assume that both cabs were modified, and thus, were delivered with a hole in the right console.

(the final configuration has been re-designed where the additional equipment was installed in the centre console, with the display that was in the centre being moved to the right console.)

So do some trains have the FIE on the right, then, and others in the centre?

[Square]

Thank you for the reply.   Just occurred to me that when the photos were shown here with the empty hole in the cab, was the empty hole in both A and B cab?

Given that the cabs should appear identical to an operator, I would think it is safe to assume that both cabs were modified, and thus, were delivered with a hole in the right console.

(the final configuration has been re-designed where the additional equipment was installed in the centre console, with the display that was in the centre being moved to the right console.)

Thank you for the new detail in bold.   Always want to check out the vehicle when it's on display, but not had a chance yet.

[Canard]

So do some trains have the FIE on the right, then, and others in the centre?

N...no, they all are the same. Original HMI on the left, HMI that was delivered in the centre has been moved to the right, and the equipment which was Free-Issued to Bombardier by the Region is installed in the centre.

[ijmorlan]

...that being said, from what I understand, the entire train essentially needed to be torn apart to fit it all in and get it wired up, so...

Does anybody else find this weird? While our equipment is somewhat specific to our system, it seems to me that most of the functions for which it is responsible will be common to most systems. Suppose it needs to tie in to the door sensors, for example. If so, this would be true of most such systems.

So why doesn’t the stock design include cables running from where the sensors or devices are to where the FIE goes? Installing specific FIE should just be a matter of plugging in within the console.

This leaves aside that in the Ontario context, proper design would have identical FIE used by all LRT systems, or at least all LRT systems in the GTA. It should be possible to take a vehicle from our system, pop it on a flatcar, deliver it to the Eglinton line OMSF, spend 5 minutes making a database entry, and have it in service an hour later. Is there any indication that our FIE is standardized for Ontario?

[Canard]

It would have been standard, if Metrolinx had spec’d it in a timely manner.

They did not. This is the whole reason the project is so woefully delayed!

They dragged their heels so much with it that finally the Region had no choice but to strike it out on their own. And they did so a year after the system was originally supposed to be in revenue service.

But, the media and the public? “It’s all Bombardier’s fault.”

/rant

PS, Bombardier makes their own system called CITYFLO. Our trains could have been standard, as you say, but the choice was by others not to go this route.

[Spokes]

Loving this vibe.

Thanks for posting this!  Love it!

[trainspotter139]

It would have been standard, if Metrolinx had spec’d it in a timely manner.

They did not. This is the whole reason the project is so woefully delayed!

They dragged their heels so much with it that finally the Region had no choice but to strike it out on their own. And they did so a year after the system was originally supposed to be in revenue service.

But, the media and the public? “It’s all Bombardier’s fault.”

/rant

PS, Bombardier makes their own system called CITYFLO. Our trains could have been standard, as you say, but the choice was by others not to go this route.

Not only just this, but the Region knew about the equipment requirement almost 5 years ago and waited to act on that knowledge until the vehicles were all assembled (which in my opinion makes no sense considering what kind of work needed to be done). It would have been faster and easier if the Region asked Bombardier to install the equipment during assembly of the vehicles.

[trainspotter139]

Mike Farwell let slip today on his show on 570 News that news of the Launch Date will be coming soon

[Spokes]

Predictions?

[Bob_McBob]

And make sure you include the year 

[trainspotter139]

April 2019 seems pretty realistic to me.

[KingandWeber]

Predictions?

June 1, 2019