ION - Waterloo Region's Light Rail Transit

[Rainrider22]

I cant believe it isn't front and centre on The Record

[ac3r]

I think train incidents stopped making the news because they're like a built in feature of the system now.

[Bytor]

So how long did it take to get the bus bridge running this time, and how often is it running?

[ijmorlan]

Yeah, doesn't seem like a split issue.

In fact, the split should allow them to run trains in reverse direction through downtown (perhaps with reduced frequencies), but I'm guessing they're not doing that because they're petrified of ... well..their own shadows but in this case, not unreasonably of drivers not looking the other way for trains.

That being said, please tell me the road is closed? If the road is not closed, then there is zero justification for the LRT being shut down.

My understanding is that the signalling systems and operating rules allow for reverse running, which was fully tested during the testing phase.

However, because most of the crossovers are single crossovers only (trailing point), it’s inconvenient to get onto the “wrong way” track — you would have to go past the crossover, reverse over it, and then proceed forward again. Oddly, the Toronto subway which until recently had a signalling system which did not support reverse running in most areas, has almost entirely double crossovers even though only one half (preferably the trailing point half) is needed to reverse directions.

[ijmorlan]

Makes sense — I didn’t think the clearance was all that much lower than normal for a roadway. Does anybody know what the now-hilariously-destroyed Max Height sign said?

Max. Height: 4.35m / 14'-3"

Thanks! I don’t know why it didn’t immediately occur to me to check Streetview… it’s only been around for about 15 years!

[taylortbb]

Yeah, doesn't seem like a split issue.

In fact, the split should allow them to run trains in reverse direction through downtown (perhaps with reduced frequencies), but I'm guessing they're not doing that because they're petrified of ... well..their own shadows but in this case, not unreasonably of drivers not looking the other way for trains.

That being said, please tell me the road is closed? If the road is not closed, then there is zero justification for the LRT being shut down.

My understanding is that the signalling systems and operating rules allow for reverse running, which was fully tested during the testing phase.

However, because most of the crossovers are single crossovers only (trailing point), it’s inconvenient to get onto the “wrong way” track — you would have to go past the crossover, reverse over it, and then proceed forward again. Oddly, the Toronto subway which until recently had a signalling system which did not support reverse running in most areas, has almost entirely double crossovers even though only one half (preferably the trailing point half) is needed to reverse directions.

The issue may not have anything to do with signalling, and instead have to do with de-energizing the OCS. Once they had crews on lifts under the bridge they stopped ION service, I'm assuming that's not a coincidence. Certainly today there's a very visible OCS to rail bond cable, ensuring the OCS doesn't get energized. Given both directions are fed from the same TPSSs at either end of DTK, it may not be possible to only de-energize one direction.

[clasher]

I saw the ion go under the 'bridge' tonight so I guess it's not going to fall down.

[taylortbb]

I saw the ion go under the 'bridge' tonight so I guess it's not going to fall down.

Yep, service resumed after 8pm. They'd declared the bridge structurally sound by mid yesterday, I'm pretty sure the closure was just for the safety of the cleanup crews.

[Bytor]

meanwhile we're still waiting to hear about the reason for the all day outage last week.

[SF22]

The June 6, 2023 Planning and Works agenda for the region includes a map (pg 53) that marks Ottawa St from the Sunrise Centre out to Breslau as a regional intensification corridor. The other sections marked as this are the existing and planned LRT routes; the Ottawa route shows a shared station at Mill.

https://pub-regionofwaterloo.escribemeet...entId=4036

[ac3r]

That has long been the most desired plan. When I was working with the RoW and others on researching TOD, the east-west spine running between the Boardwalk and Breslau had always made the most sense.

Would be nice if they scrapped the Cambridge Line and just took the money and saved it for an east-west line because it would be much more beneficial to the region.

[ZEBuilder]

The June 6, 2023 Planning and Works agenda for the region includes a map (pg 53) that marks Ottawa St from the Sunrise Centre out to Breslau as a regional intensification corridor. The other sections marked as this are the existing and planned LRT routes; the Ottawa route shows a shared station at Mill.

https://pub-regionofwaterloo.escribemeet...entId=4036

Ever since the 2019 Official Plan came out Ottawa has always been marked as such so it seems very likely that it will be phase 3 of the LRT instead of Victoria, the only really difficult aspect of putting an LRT on Ottawa would be how to navigate the roundabouts at Homer Watson and Ottawa, everything else doesn't seem all that awful to deal with. Plus the Ottawa Corridor has a lot of large properties for densification such as Sunrise, Laurentian Center, Stanley Park Mall, the Food Basics plaza at Lackner. Plus with the provincial government opening up alot of land around the airport having a LRT station in Breslau central to all that employment land would make a ton of sense.

[ac3r]

Well they had the brilliant job of putting the LRT through a roundabout in Cambridge, so they could just replicate that nonsense here. :'P

Actually I'd hope by the time they construct an east-west line, they spend the money to elevate or bury it where necessary. They are certainly not going to be constructing any new lines for at least 20 years, so maybe by then we'd have the budget to allocate to better construction.

[Bytor]

According to the emails I got back today from Regional counselors and staff, there was vandalism to the tracks last week, which took numerous hours to repair, and that's why the LRT was pretty much totally offline for the whole day on the 26th.

[SF22]

The June 6, 2023 Planning and Works agenda for the region includes a map (pg 53) that marks Ottawa St from the Sunrise Centre out to Breslau as a regional intensification corridor. The other sections marked as this are the existing and planned LRT routes; the Ottawa route shows a shared station at Mill.

https://pub-regionofwaterloo.escribemeet...entId=4036

Ever since the 2019 Official Plan came out Ottawa has always been marked as such so it seems very likely that it will be phase 3 of the LRT instead of Victoria, the only really difficult aspect of putting an LRT on Ottawa would be how to navigate the roundabouts at Homer Watson and Ottawa, everything else doesn't seem all that awful to deal with. Plus the Ottawa Corridor has a lot of large properties for densification such as Sunrise, Laurentian Center, Stanley Park Mall, the Food Basics plaza at Lackner. Plus with the provincial government opening up alot of land around the airport having a LRT station in Breslau central to all that employment land would make a ton of sense.

The only map I've ever seen showed either Victoria/Highland or that weird King St/University switchback down to the Boardwalk as option Phase 3 options. This is the first time I've seen Ottawa mentioned.

At any rate, I'd be all for it. Elevate that thing over the roundabouts, put an LRT station in front of the Aud, fix the weird new bike lanes by the highway while you're pulling everything up anyway, and build a new connection across the Grand to Breslau/the airport/that really good ice cream place I can't reach by bike.