Memo : Rideau Transit Group Submits Notice of Substantial Completion for the O-Train Confederation Line

The purpose of this memorandum is to advise Members of Council and the Transit Commission that the Rideau Transit Group (RTG) has submitted a notice for Substantial Completion.

The Substantive Completion Notice, received by the City on July 22, 2019, signifies that RTG is of the opinion that the project has advanced to the point where construction and testing is effectively complete. This applies to all fixed components (stations, rail, etc.) and vehicles, and means that there is no restriction on the City's public use of the system.

The City has 5 days to provide to the Independent Certifier its opinion as to whether the conditions of the Substantial Completion have been met. Once the City has provided its opinion, the Independent Certifier has 5 days to determine whether RTG has satisfied the conditions of Substantial Completion. Should the Independent Certifier determine that conditions for Substantial Completion have been achieved, RTG will begin Trial Running.
The objective of Trial Running is to complete 12 consecutive days of regularly scheduled service and to confirm system readiness for passenger service by exercising the Confederation Line system at full functionality.

Critical elements include:
➢ Safety of the system;
➢ Operations of the system, including end-to-end travel times and intervals between trains during different operation scenarios (peak and off-peak periods);
➢ Maintenance activities;
➢ Vehicle performance;
➢ Customer systems (public address systems, escalators, elevators, etc.); and,
➢ Other systems (CCTV, Tunnel Ventilation Systems, etc.).

A Trial Running Review Team made up of representatives from RTG, Rideau Transit Maintenance (RTM), City staff and the Independent Certifier will review the performance of the system throughout the Trial Running period. The Independent Certifier will confirm whether the requirements of Trial Running have been achieved as part of finalizing the requirements for Revenue Service Availability (RSA). Once RTG has achieved all Trial Running requirements, staff will inform Council and members of the Transit Commission.

On occasions during Trial Running, the public may not see trains running on the Confederation Line. This is normal as there are many different systems being tested at different times throughout this period.

Following successful completion of Trial Running by RTG and approval by the Independent Safety Auditor of compliance with all safety requirements, RTG will be in a position to submit a Revenue Service Availability (RSA) notice. This notice will be reviewed by the City and the Independent Certifier and requires final confirmation by the Independent Certifier.

Subsequent to the Independent Certifier confirming the achievement of RSA, the City will then need up to 4 weeks to conduct final preparations for our launch of the system to our customers.

During that time, we will be conducting operational training, drills and exercises, bus/rail planning and service changes, and the Ready for Rail campaign will be enhanced to ensure a safe and reliable transition for our customers.

Source : City of Ottawa