Section of O-Train power line snapped at Blair Station on Friday, keeping east-end service halted

A cable can be seen draped over the top of a stopped train at Blair Station on March 13, 2026. (Kimberley Fowler/CTV News Ottawa)

O-Train Line 1 continues to only operate on its western end nearly two days after an overhead power line broke during Wednesday’s freezing rain.

In a memo sent late Friday morning, interim general manager of Transit Services Troy Charter said the line experienced two power issues near Tremblay Station and Blair station shortly after service started, and a section of the overhead catenary system (OCS) at Blair Station broke, meaning east-end service could not resume normally.

“Initial reports indicate that these issues resulted from Wednesday’s freezing rain event,” Charter wrote.

As a result, Line 1 service was initially only operating between Tunney’s Pasture and uOttawa stations. Shortly after 8 p.m. on Friday, OC Transpo said service would only run between Tunney’s Pasture and Parliament stations due to continuing work on the line. The R1 replacement bus is running between Lyon and Blair stations.

“This morning RTM (Rideau Transit Maintenance) completed inspections between Lees and Blair stations and has started to tow three stopped trains in this area back to the rail yard,” Charter said. “Work to repair the OCS at Blair Station will begin when all the vehicles have been removed. This will be followed by inspections and testing of the OCS to ensure no further corrective work is required. Service will then be able to resume.”

In a media availability on Friday afternoon, Charter said the power issues that occurred at Blair, Tremblay and Lees stations were all alike.

“What we’re seeing in terms of the damage to these two additional parts of the OCS, is very similar to what happened at Lees Station,” Charter said.

“So, there was some extreme arcing and I think it’s important to note that when we’re dealing with weather conditions and when there’s ice buildup on the catenary, arcing is something that does happen — it’s when it’s extreme and prolonged that it creates this problem.”

Charter said they will need to find “more efficient ways” to deal with freezing rain events in the future, including possibly shutting down service during such events.  

“If we need to make adjustments, not only to how we mitigate it, but whether or not we continue to operate, that’s something we need to consider,” he said.

“Shutting down the service is not something we take lightly, but if it means we avoid these types of situations where we’re down for extended periods of time, that’s something we need to consider.”

Charter said there is no timeline for when full service will be restored.

Early Friday morning, Charter said in a memo that RTM had completed the removal of ice buildup across the OCS, except near Lees Station, and was working to remove a stopped train at that station.

“All efforts are being made to restore Line 1 service. This process is labour intensive and is expected to take most of the day,” Charter said.

CTV News Ottawa saw a stopped train with a broken cable draped on top of it at Blair Station late Friday morning. Signs at the station say the line is currently out of service.

At the start of service at 5 a.m., OC Transpo said trains were running west between Tunney’s Pasture and uOttawa staitons and east between Tremblay and Lyon stations. About an hour later, service east of uOttawa was again cancelled.

This latest issued comes after a wire on the overhead catenary system snapped on Wednesday when a train near Lees experienced arcing. Viewer video captured the moment the line snapped in an explosion on top of one of the trains.

Speaking at Thursday’s Transit Committee meeting, Charter said the weather was the likely cause of the issue experienced on Wednesday.

“At this point, it’s pretty early in the investigation into what occurred, but I think it’s safe to assume that weather was a significant contributing factor to it,” Charter said. “At this point, all I can really commit to in saying is that it definitely seems weather related and we need to move forward with the root cause investigation. Right now, the team is focused on resuming the service as quickly as possible.”

• Sign up now for daily CTV News Ottawa newsletters
• The information you need to know, sent directly to you: Download the CTV News App