OC Transpo
executives said they are making progress in efforts to return the O-Train fleet to full capacity as councillors vented their frustration over the slow pace of repairs for a “spalling” issue that was identified in January.
Interim general manager Troy Charter said OC Transpo has “shifted” its focus from
incrementally increasing the number of available train cars
to a strategy that involves removing the 100,000-kilometre threshold “so we can get the entire fleet back.”
What is spalling and how many trains are affected?
The transit authority removed 41 of its train cars from service in January after the Rideau Transit Group discovered the issue in the cartridge bearing assemblies within the train cars’ axles.
The spalling, or the flaking of the surface material, was discovered during an inspection into a separate “fretting” issue with the cartridge bearing assemblies that led to a derailment in 2021.
OC Transpo removed from service all of the trains with axles that had exceeded 100,000 kilometres for inspection and repairs related to spalling.
That left the O-Train with 18 available train cars, leading OC Transpo to run one single-car train every three to four minutes in peak periods to meet demands and to mitigate overcrowding at stations.
Since mid-January, only three trains have rejoined the fleet, leaving OC Transpo with 21 train cars, a number that has
remained unchanged
in weekly updates to council and the media.
Transit committee chair Coun. Glen Gower acknowledged the mounting frustration among councillors and riders at the seemingly slow progress.
“I just want to acknowledge what we have all been hearing from customers, from councillors, from the media: It is frustrating to look at the number of trains week to week and not see that number change,” Gower said at the March 12 transit committee.
“It is frustrating. I know there’s a ton of work happening behind the scenes,” Gower said. “It’s like the the metaphorical duck who, on the surface of the water looks pretty calm, not doing much, but underneath those legs are flapping. There’s a lot happening.”
Why is OC Transpo stuck on 21 available trains?
Charter had initially estimated Rideau Transit Maintenance could repair one train car approximately every five days.
During a technical briefing on Jan. 27, staff explained there are 10 axles per vehicle and each axle has two cartridge bearing assemblies.
Charter said at the technical briefing that RTM could replace two axles per day and said there was an available inventory of 68 cartridge bearing assemblies.
Two weeks later on Feb. 12, that repair timetable was downgraded to one axle per day, “but there’s all the other maintenance activities that need to happen in managing the fleet of vehicles and this is where you get a bit of a compounding effect,” Charter said.
During the March 12 committee session, Charter said the strategy had shifted to a “multi-layered” containment plan that involves removing the 100,000-kilometre threshold.
“We’re maintaining the number of trains that we have available for service (at 21) because we’re trying to manage both the kilometres on the vehicles as well as the supply of the cartridge bearing assemblies,” Charter said. “We know that they have a supply (and) they receive cartridge bearing assemblies on a monthly basis, but it is something that we need to manage. It’s not something that’s readily available that you can purchase off the shelf… we need to manage that supply.
“So we shifted our focus early on from ‘Let’s try to increase the fleet with the 100,000-kilometre restriction in place,’ to ‘What are the measures that we need to completely remove the 100,000-kilometre restrictions so we can get the entire fleet back?’”
Charter said those are ongoing conversations that are “progressing” with RTM and manufacturer Alstom, along with independent experts.
“Things are looking positive in terms of our ability to reassess that restriction and then allow for a return of the fleet,” Charter said.
How has this impacted the LRT east extension?
The LRT east extension was initially planned for the first quarter of 2026, but those plans were pushed back after the spalling issue was detected.
OC Transpo recently reached the “substantial completion” milestone in its plan for the east extension, which will extend rail service from Blair Station to Trim Station in Orléans. The next phase in the project involves a minimum 21-day testing period, but OC Transpo has previously said it will require 46 train cars to launch the testing phase.
Charter told the committee OC Transpo will hold a technical briefing to update councillors on its revised plan to contain the spalling issue. No date has yet been set for the briefing, but Charter said the transit authority remains on track to extend the rail service east to Orléans by the end of June.
Gower asked that OC Transpo provide “as much information as possible about what that work has been over the last 12 weeks…. Who’s been involved, who you’ve spoken to, the third party experts that OC Transpo has been working with, the other transit agencies that you’ve been conferring with.
“I really want to see what that work has been and the public needs to see that at the technical briefing.”
Beacon Hill-Cyrville Coun. Tim Tierney, the only east-end councillor to sit on the transit committee, has long expressed his doubts that the LRT east extension would meet its target for opening.
“That’s why I keep pressing (with questions to OC Transpo). The east end needs to know what the plan is here,” Tierney said. “I’m greatly concerned. I don’t think they could achieve passenger service by the end of (June). What if, on day 20 out of the 21-day testing phase they run into another problem like what’s happened (Wednesday) with the lines going down?
“That technical briefing is critical because that’s going to outline if this is actually achievable or not.”
What’s the latest timeline for the LRT west extension?
OC Transpo has also shifted its timeline for the LRT west extension to Moodie Station and to Algonquin College.
Director of rail operations Richard Holder told the committee on March 12 the timeline for opening the west extension could be about six months later than was forecast at the last update in September 2025.
Staff told the committee the entire 36-kilometre length of track has been installed from Lincoln Fields west to Moodie Station, with another track extending to Algonquin Station.
Crews have installed all the 314 poles required to power the rail system through the overhead catenary system and staff said work on installing the power lines is about 65 per cent complete.
“There has been a shift from previous timelines” with the installation of those systems, Holder said, which has, in turn, prolonged other timelines for opening the west extension.
The completion of the track and systems installation is now set for the third quarter of 2026 and systemwide commissioning is now set for the first quarter of 2027. That now places the handover to the city in the second quarter of 2027.
That will push the preparations for opening the west extension, including the mandatory 21-day testing phase to the third quarter of 2027.
“This change reflects updated planning that incorporates the remaining scope of work, including ongoing construction, system installation, integration and extensive testing, which is required before the extension can safely and reliably enter our service,” Holder said.
