Waterloo Region Transit Developments (ION LRT, new terminal, GRT buses)

[ottbike]

I was in Ottawa a few weeks ago. The only on-surface construction work really visible on the Confederation Line is the elevated LRT guideway at Hurdman.

I live in Ottawa during the summer and was there this past week. The real action is happening in the east end beyond Lees Station, i.e. tracks laid, etc.

Work on the west side is starting now, from Tunney's Pasture to Pimisi, and into the west running tunnel.

I'll start up a thread here on UT. We'll see if the mods shut it down lol.

 

[ottbike]

Well that thread didn't last long. Check Skyrise cities for the confederation line.

 

[Markster]

Ottawa LRT thread:
http://skyrisecities.com/forum/threads/ottawa-confederation-line-lrt-city-of-ottawa-u-c.4171/page-52

That is the Urban Toronto Ottawa LRT thread, which got shuffled to Skyrise Cities during The Split.

 

[Duck]

So why is there an ion thread here then? Ottawa is just as much "not-Toronto" as the Tri-Cities area is.

 

[44 North]

Well that thread didn't last long. Check Skyrise cities for the confederation line.

Yeah, someone asked about the geology/bedrock the line was tunneling through, and I had a few maps and info on the topic I was going to post. Not sure if my UT login will work on that other site, so I'll probably refrain from sharing now.

 

[dunkalunk]

Yeah, someone asked about the geology/bedrock the line was tunneling through, and I had a few maps and info on the topic I was going to post. Not sure if my UT login will work on that other site, so I'll probably refrain from sharing now.

It works!

 

[Markster]

Skyrise Cities is basically just a different front-end for Urban Toronto.

 

[Duck]

A lot of ground work is under way along the Southern portion of the line, along Courtland Avenue.

OCS Poles are being stored behind the Schneiders Plant, next to Borden Ave.

The first two OCS Poles have gone up on Borden:

Poles up on Caroline.

 

[Duck]

Does anyone know what this is for? This one is on the "inside" of the track, so the flange would depress that black strip. Is it a sensor/detector?

This device is on the outside of the track, so the flange passes by on the right. The orange strip is about a 70A Durometer silicone rubber, but I can't figure out what it would end up touching on the train, or what its purpose could be.

A big weekend push is on to replace the old track in front of the Perimeter Institute, so that freight traffic can resume on Monday.

OCS Poles are going up along the Waterloo Spur. I can't wait to see trains testing along this stretch later this year (fingers crossed)!

 

[WislaHD]

So why is there an ion thread here then? Ottawa is just as much "not-Toronto" as the Tri-Cities area is.

There is not a K-W forum on SRC, probably the reason why the ION thread is here.

Though I would love to see WaterlooRegionConnected integrated into the SkyRiseCities format in a similar manner to UrbanToronto. WRC would keep their website, news posts and forums, but it would be integrated into the SRC forum and accessible with our UrbanToronto log-ins. @interchange42

 

[innsertnamehere]

K-W is more connected to the GTA than Ottawa is, too. GO train access and its a far closer drive. The exact definition of what is allowed on UT forums has always been sort of blurry.. Hamilton development threads are in the buildings section, and GO transit has obviously been allowed to be discussed here.. ION LRT being included is part of it, I guess. KWC Development project threads aren't allowed though, so the line is rather blurry.

 

[Duck]

By late afternoon, crews had laid a bunch of new ribbon rail down, and were attaching the ends of it to the old freight track (drilling holes in it to attach the fish plates to link up the old rails). Tamping will probably happen tomorrow, so the line can re-open for freight traffic on Monday.

 

[ottbike]

Pretty exciting to see the OCS poles in place!

 

[Duck]

Thanks again @Duck for that great tour list a few pages back. Any chance you would be able to put a google map together? I'm planning to head there this upcoming weekend.

I'm still trying to figure out how the heck to use Google Maps properly - to me, the interface is just terrible and confusing. I must be doing something wrong. I am working on it, however... unless you already came down.

Also, I'm a cardboard train/bus model enthusiast... so does anyone know a location in K/W where I might be able to find one of the ION promo paper train models?

For some reason, I can't seem to PM you - send me a message and I'll try to help you out.

 

[Duck]

The Harsco Mk IV tamper was out in full force today, precisely aligning the track which was installed yesterday near Waterloo Park at the Perimeter Institute.