Ottawa should move ahead with light rail expansion: report
By STAFF REPORT
Asphalt Bridges Construction Financing Infrastructure LEED P3s Risk Management RoadsCost estimated at $3 billion for 19 stations, 30km of track
The City of Ottawa should move ahead with building the east, west and south extensions of its light rail system, a new report recommends.
The Stage 2 LRT Environmental Assessment and Functional Design Report confirmed that extensions to the existing north-south O-Train (renamed the Trillium) line and to the east-west Confederation line, now under construction, could be built for $3 billion; the same amount that was estimated in the city’s two-year old transportation master plan.
The latest report sets out the functional design of the alignment and stations for each of the three Stage 2 LRT extensions: the Confederation Line West extension from Baseline and Bayshore to Tunney’s Pasture, the Confederation Line East extension from Blair to Place d’Orléans, and the Trillium Line extension to Bowesville/Riverside South.
The report also confirms the functional design and costs for a potential future extension to the Ottawa Macdonald-Cartier International Airport in the south.
When completed in 2023, Stage 2 will add 19 new stations and 30 kilometres of rail to Ottawa’s O-Train system, and bring LRT to within five kilometres of almost 70 per cent of the city’s residents.
“This report is the culmination of years of planning and community consultation on Stage 2,” said Councillor Keith Egli, chair of the Transportation Committee. “The results of the EA process to date have created a solid foundation for the work we have ahead of us to implement Stage 2.”
The report was to be considered by Ottawa City Council during its regular meeting on July 8.
