O-Train Line 1 ‘may be’ at full capacity by end of May
Posted Apr 10, 2026 12:10:16 PM.
Last Updated Apr 10, 2026 04:06:37 PM.
Staff gave members of the transit committee an update on the ongoing issues plaguing Ottawa’s Line 1 light rail transit (LRT) system, noting when the vehicles could be fully restored.
The meeting heard from senior staff at OC Transpo who walked councillors through what has been going on with the spalling issue that was first discovered in January on many of the LRT vehicles. This is a new issue with the cartridge bearing assemblies on the trains, forcing the agency to pull all trains with mileage higher than 100,000 kilometres from its fleet.
Since then, the line has been operating with 70 per cent of the vehicles out of the system, which means the LRT has not been running at peak capacity during peak times.
“OC Transpo confirmed that every effort is being made to accelerate this work safely. Based on current information, Line 1 capacity will continue to increase and may be fully restored by the end of May,” a press release states.
Committee members heard that the transit agency has been planning with Rideau Transit Group (RTG), the operators of the LRT, and Alstom, the contractors who designed the vehicles. “Incremental progress” was made on the containment plan, which focused on implementing a monitoring system to ensure this issue doesn’t happen again, replacing the cartridge bearing assemblies and conducting a technical analysis of the mechanics.
It is one of the priorities for the agency to address the problem, along with how environmental factors also cause disruptions to the system.
Sam Berrada, light rail regulatory monitor and compliance officer with OC Transpo, said that the overhead catenary system is high on the priority list for the agency to address this year after the city received 22.7 mm of rain and freezing rain, which coated wires, vehicles and roadways.
There was “extreme arcing” seen on the east portion of the system, something that happens when the wires along the line have ice built up on them, creating gaps where electricity travels. If prolonged, the sparks and arcing damage the wires,
“Freezing rain is a significant environmental event…It clearly has an impact on LRTs,” Berrada said.
