LRT maintenance, expansion work to disrupt service this summer

UPDATE: On Thursday, June 12, the city said that night's early closure was no longer needed because work was ahead of schedule.

Ottawa's Confederation Line will be out of service for several days this summer as the east-west light rail track undergoes routine maintenance and other work related to its Stage 2 expansion.

In a memo to the mayor and council on Friday, Renée Amilcar, the city's general manager for transit services, said Line 1 will be closed intermittently throughout June and July "for planned annual maintenance and required O-Train East Extension integration activities."

Replacement buses will be in service during any shutdowns. 

June's maintenance work will include replacing rails in some locations, upgrades to the overhead catenary system and inspection of the tunnel at St-Laurent station.

Line 1 will be closed from Tunney's Pasture to Hurdman station after 9 p.m. on June 6. Trains will continue to run between uOttawa and Blair stations.

Service will resume the following day at Tunney's Pasture, but will end at uOttawa station after 10 p.m. Replacement buses will run between Rideau and Blair stations. The same is scheduled for June 8 after 7 p.m. and June 12 after 10 p.m.

There will be no Line 1 train service on the weekend of June 14 and 15, or on June 22 and 29 between 8 a.m. and noon.

In July, additional work on the Stage 2 extension will affect Line 1 service on the weekends of July 5 and July 26. Amilcar promised more detailed information on those service adjustments closer to those dates.

Amilcar warned additional disruptions are expected towards the end of summer and into the fall as the eastern extension undergoes testing.

Anyone who needs assistance getting around during the disruptions can visit OC Transpo's online travel planner or call 613-560-5000.