Stage 2 Confederation Line East Extension Spring 2020 Update
Work is well underway to extend the Confederation Line from Blair Station to Trim Road. The Confederation Line East extension will see LRT continue from Blair Station to Trim Road, adding 12 kilometres of rail and 5 new stations to the O-Train network at Montreal Road, Jeanne d'Arc Boulevard, Orleans Boulevard, Place d'Orleans, and Trim Road.
The Confederation Line East will travel predominantly within the median of Highway 174 between Blair Road and Trim Road, providing stations that are equal distance from communities on either side. In 2020, crews will be focusing on relocating Highway 174 lanes to create enough space in the median for the stations and track.
(link is external)The City of Ottawa's Rail Construction Program is closely monitoring the COVID-19 situation and is in contact with the constructors about adhering to guidance provided by Ottawa Public Health and the Province of Ontario. Construction schedules and sequencing are subject to change as work progresses, at the discretion of the project contractor. Should there be any significant changes to this information, and as additional construction activities are scheduled through 2020, the public will be updated via electronic updates. Please sign-up for Stage 2 e-newsletter updates, specifying the extensions and stations of interest, to receive updates targeted for those areas.
Here is what construction you can expect to begin or occur in 2020:
Montreal Interchange Bridge WorkIn 2020, a critical component of the Confederation Line East work will be constructing two new bridges at the Highway 174 Montreal Interchange.
Montreal Station will be located above Montreal Road within the median of Highway 174. This requires two new Highway 174 bridges and a reconfiguration of the interchange to shift ramps, traffic, utilities and multi-use pathways away from where the future station will be located.
Work in the Montreal Interchange can be broken down in phases:
Phase 1 - May 2019 to March 2020:Crews have relocated the existing ramps and completed installing excavation support on both sides of the highway.
Phase 2 - April 2020 through summer (up to Labour Day) 2020:Crews are building the retaining wall in the interchange. Further to this, work on the drill shafts and additional utility relocations will take place. The new Montreal bridge substructures and deck works begin.
The north side lanes of Montreal Road in this immediate area will be closed to accommodate the work zone, and south side lanes will be used to accommodate bi-directional traffic until Labour Day 2020 or before.
Traffic impacts on Montreal Road - April 10th through summer (up to Labour Day) 2020
Northside vehicular lanes under the highway overpass will be closed, and south side lanes will be repurposed to accommodate bi-directional traffic. As a result, vehicular lanes will be reduced to one lane in each direction in order to construct the new centre bridge piers. One left turning lane from the Highway 174 eastbound off ramp will be closed, and the other will remain open. All on and off ramp movements will remain available, although moderate delays are expected at peak times.
All pedestrians and cycling movements will be maintained via the newly improved multi-use pathway on the south side of Montreal Road. The multi-use pathway on the north side will be closed.
Phase 3 - Post-2020:Once the centre pier work is complete, various widenings and realignments of the ramps will continue, along with the work on the second bridge abutments, deck works, and finishing works. Once the two new bridges have been completed, traffic will be shifted during overnight hours, and demolition of the existing bridges will begin in preparation for station construction in the median.
East Flyover Rail Bridge footprint
Later this summer, Highway 174 between Blair Station and Montreal Road will be temporarily shifted south to allow for the construction of the new rail bridge and demolition of the existing BRT bridge. Crews will be commencing construction of the new lanes on the south side of Highway 174 this spring.
Once traffic has shifted, work will begin on constructing the East Flyover's foundation and bridge columns. When complete, precast girders will be laid on top of the columns allowing for the track to span over the westbound Highway 174 lanes. Once installed, a concrete deck will lifted into place.
Highway 174 RoadworksWork will begin this year to create new lanes on the south side of Highway 174 between Blair Road and Sir George Etienne Cartier Parkway. Eastbound and westbound traffic will shift to the south side of the existing median allowing for construction of the East Flyover to commence.
In order for this to occur, new lanes will be constructed on the south side of the highway. Eastbound traffic will shift onto the new lanes and westbound traffic will be detoured onto the former eastbound lanes.
In late 2020, all traffic on Highway 174 will be shifted to its new alignment allowing for guideway construction to begin in the median of Highway 174 between Blair Road and Sir George Etienne Cartier bridge.
Jeanne d'Arc Boulevard to Trim RoadStarting this spring the existing eastbound bus lane on will be shifted and reduced in width to create a work. Two key areas for roadworks are ramp modifications at the Jeanne d'Arc Interchange, and at the intersection of Trim Road and Highway 174, to begin in Spring 2020.
At Jeanne d'Arc, ramp access will be changed to near perpendicular turns, rather than the existing slip lanes. This will reduce speeds and increase safety for all road users. The westbound on-ramps will be removed; and the southbound and northbound lanes of Jeanne d'Arc Boulevard will both have signalized right turns. The westbound on-ramp from Jeanne d'Arc southbound is two lanes wide, meaning that traffic will turn into the southern lane, while buses serving customers will use the bus stop in its existing location in the north lane.
This ramp reconfiguration work has been expeditated in order to create a safer connectivity.
During this time, the multi-use pathway at the Champlain Interchange will begin excavation. The work on this MUP will continue from Spring 2020, through to the end of Summer 2020.
The second key roadwork area is at Trim Road starting in summer of 2020. The intersection of Trim Road and Highway 174 will be shifted farther east to allow for station construction to occur safely in the median. Please see Trim Station and Park and Ride Facility, under Station Construction, for further details.
Utility WorkBefore construction can begin, various utilities such as sewers, hydro lines, watermains, and telecommunications infrastructure must be relocated to an area where they will be accessible and unimpacted by future operations. Various utilities need to be moved out of the way, replaced or upgraded.
This work will be ongoing throughout 2020 and 2021 at various locations from Blair Road to Trim Road:
- East of Blair Road – Crews will be extending the storm sewer along the north side of OR 174 and the culverts on the south side. Doweling, rebar installation, and formwork erection for the reworked concrete collar will continue in the spring of 2020.
- Shefford Road – Crews are replacing and relocating a watermain just south of Shefford Road, which continues south under OR 174. Temporary removal of a small section of sound attenuation wall is required until fall 2020.
- Green's Creek – Crews will be reconstructing the culvert within the centre median, and just south of OR 174. The Constructors will be starting operations at the beginning of May.
- Jeanne d'Arc – Crews are replacing and relocating a watermain located within the interchange at OR 174.
- Orleans Boulevard – Crews will be relocating a watermain, replacing a sanitary line and extend a storm sewer.
- Champlain Street – Through May 2020, crews will be excavating rock at a depth of several meters in order to install drainage pipe and manholes on both sides of Highway 174, on the east and west sides of Champlain Street.
- Alignment Wide – Hydro Ottawa crews are relocating/providing power supply connections in various places along the HWY174 alignment. These utilities are either being relocated or replaced in order to support the LRT infrastructure. The works include, various gas main relocations and raising overhead Rogers and Hydro Ottawa Lines. This is to take place from Spring 2020 to end of 2020, intermittently.
Traction Power Substations (TPSS) are plain box shaped buildings (approximately the size of shipping container) housing equipment which converts electricity from Hydro Ottawa to a lower voltage required for LRT vehicles to operate. Several TPSS structures will be dispersed along the LRT route.
In 2020, preparatory works for installation of a TPSS structure at Orleans Boulevard will begin. This includes installation and relocation of utilities, as well as framing and pouring a concrete pad.
Station ConstructionIn 2020, preparatory works for station construction will only occur in a few select areas. Given the focus of construction through this year includes road, utility, and bridge work, most station construction will occur in 2021 and beyond.
Place d'OrleansIn order to begin Place d'Orléans Station construction, excavation and site preparation will begin in early fall 2020. Following this, concrete will be placed for the start of foundation, wall and platforms.
Trim Station and Park & RideSeveral phases of work are required to create the newly realigned Trim Road and intersection. In (season) 2020, work will begin with the new eastbound ramp, along with the relocation of Highway 174 eastbound and westbound lanes. This will allow for excavation of the realigned Trim Road to occur. Construction of the new bus facility will also begin late in the year. Existing bus service and park and ride spaces will be maintained throughout this work.
Sound Attenuation WallsOperations of trains along the East Extension are not expected to raise ambient noise levels for any residential areas along the route. Sound attenuation walls will be installed at the following locations:
- East Acres Road to the existing wall at the Montreal Interchange (north side)
- Jeanne d'Arc Boulevard to Orleans Boulevard (north and south side)
- Orléans Boulevard to Champlain Street (north side, and small section on south side)
- Champlain Street to Tenth Line Road(north side)
- Tenth Line Road to Trim Road (small section on south side only)
Site grading and other preparatory works for installation will begin at select locations late in 2021. Sound attentuation wall installation is estimated to occur in 2022.
Guideway ConstructionThe LRT guideway includes fixed dual-track and track switches used for all train movements. Preparatory civil works for guideway construction will be begin late fall 2020 or early winter 2021.
Overnight WorkIn order to avoid impacting peak traffic hours on Highway 174, there will be ongoing night work at station locations from Blair Road to Trim Road. Project teams are aware of residential homes in these areas and will sequence the work to manage and minimize impacts to residents.
Motorized equipment and vehicles used on the project are equipped with white noise-type broadband back-up alarms, which can be less disruptive to surrounding communities.
Night work can only occur with a valid City of Ottawa Noise By-law Exemptions permit.