O-Train Line 1 to be offline 2 weekends this fall for maintenance, Stage 2 work

An LRT vehicle at Cyrville Station along O-Train Line 1. (Andrew Adlington/CTV News Ottawa)

OC Transpo says there will be two upcoming weekends with no service on O-Train Line 1 as the launch of the Stage 2 East Extension gets closer.

An opening date for the extension of the Confederation Line from Blair Station to Trim Station in Orléans has yet to be announced, but in a memo Thursday, acting general manager of Transit Services, Troy Charter, said OC Transpo is aiming for a significant milestone in September.

“The successful completion of integration activities on Aug. 31 will allow performance testing to be conducted on the entire system between Tunney’s Pasture and Trim stations on Sept. 13 to 14. This milestone involves confirming that the integrated system can achieve the expected service levels upon public launch and in the future, as outlined in the Project Agreement,” he wrote.

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The work scheduled for Aug. 31 will delay the launch of Line 1 until noon on Sunday, with R1 buses running between Tunney’s Pasture and Blair stations that morning.

On Sept. 13 and 14, there will be no Line 1 service between Tunney’s Pasture and Blair, with R1 buses in place all day. Shuttle bus service will run between St. Laurent and Cyrville stations. Trains will still be visible on the line on those days, but it will be for testing purposes.

Staff will also use the weekend to conduct further work on the St. Laurent Station tunnel, Charter said.

September and October maintenance

There will be some additional disruptions in September and October for maintenance work, Charter says.

Line 1 service will end at 8 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 26, with R1 buses running between Tunney’s Pasture and Blair stations until the end of service at 2 a.m. On Sept. 27 and 29, and on Oct. 2, service will be reduced to only one platform “at some stations” after 11:30 p.m.

The weekend of Oct. 4 and 5 will have no Line 1 service all day. R1 buses will be in place.

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During this time, Rideau Transit Maintenance will conduct various activities including rail replacement between Rideau and uOttawa stations, rail grinding across the entire system, ongoing upgrades of the supporting cables of the overhead catenary system to make them more resilient and durable, and general station maintenance and seasonal cleaning, said Charter.

“Every effort was made to streamline and coordinate work to minimize customer disruptions. Should any changes occur, notifications will be provided. OC Transpo thanks customers for their patience as this work is completed and positive progress is made as we prepare for the opening of the O-Train East Extension,” Charter wrote.

More details are expected at the Sept. 11 Transit Committee meeting.

With files from CTV News Ottawa’s Josh Pringle