Comité du transport en commun
and Council / et au Conseil
20 October 2009 / le 20
octobre 2009
Submitted by/Soumis par : Nancy Schepers, Deputy City Manager/Directrice
municipale adjointe,
Infrastructure Services and Community
Sustainability/Services d 'infrastructure et Viabilité des collectivités
Contact Person/Personne
ressource : Alain Mercier, General Manager/Directeur général, Transit Services/ Services de Transport en commun
613-842-3636 x2271, alain.mercier@ottawa.ca
SUBJECT:
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OBJET :
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RAPPORT SUR LA SELÉCTION D’UN SYST ÈME
FERROVIAIRE
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That Transit Committee recommend that Council
approve that the Rail technology for the City’s Rapid Transit Plan be Light
Rail Transit (LRT).
Que le Comité du transport en
commun recommande au Conseil d’approuver que la technologie ferroviaire pour le
Plan de transport en commun rapide de la Ville soit celle du transport en
commun par train léger sur rail (TLR).
The selection of the appropriate rail system technology for the City of
Ottawa is a major component of the 2008 Transportation Master Plan (TMP)
process.
To select the appropriate transit system for the City of Ottawa a set
of principles that reflect the goals of the Council approved TMP were applied.
The recommended rail system technology must:
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Accommodate the predicted passenger volumes: Ensuring
that operational efficiency and running costs are optimized.
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Provide conditions to easily implement the first
increment and all subsequent phases of the system.
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Fit into Ottawa’s urban environment: Ensuring that the
vehicle and system design support achieving the City’s urban and environmental
vision.
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Minimize capital costs: To ensure that stakeholders
and citizens have a good return on investment.
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Minimize the lifetime operating and maintenance costs
while maximizing ridership: Ensuring low fares and taxes.
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Be able to respond to future land use changes within
the City: Providing flexibility of operations to accommodate future city
planning and operational changes.
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Take advantage of the most current proven
technologies: Providing operational efficiencies and high reliability.
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Be proven in service: Minimizing implementation risk
and increasing operational reliability.
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Be suitable for the climate in Ottawa: Ensuring that
the vehicle can withstand the weather extremes in Ottawa.
June Technology Forum
On
June 19 and 20, 2009 the City hosted a LRT Technology Forum to discuss light
rail transit technology options in the development of the new transit vision.
The Forum brought together representatives of manufacturers and transit
agencies from across North America to discuss various types of transit systems,
best practices and lessons learned, with the objective of identifying optimal
rail technology solutions for Ottawa. This event was attended by a number of
City Councillors, senior City staff, and a number of key stakeholders from various federal, provincial and municipal
agencies (NCC, Transport Canada, Infrastructure Ontario, Société de transport
de l’Outaouais, etc)
This
forum also gave an opportunity for the public to participate in mini-workshops
to help define the goals and requirements of the system that helped form the
principles necessary for successful rail technology selection.
The
result of this technology forum was the identification of the two rail
technology options appropriate for City of Ottawa for further consideration:
Light Rail Transit (LRT) and a Light Metro technology.
To determine which rail technology will best serve the City’s future
transportation needs the City commissioned Delcan to undertake a study to
examine the rail technology options – LRT and Light Metro – and also to
consider whether the systems should incorporate a driverless or driver-based
operational control technology.
DISCUSSION
The Delcan rail technology study compares the
two rail technology options based on a set of criteria that reflected the above
noted principles. The following table summarizes the comparison of the
technology options:
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Criteria |
Description |
Light Metro |
LRT |
Manual Driver |
Automated Driverless |
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Maximum passenger capacity in the core |
>20,000 pphpd |
Best |
Fair |
Poor |
Best |
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Low passenger capacity in the extensions |
>5,000 pphpd |
Good |
Best |
Good |
Poor |
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Ability to build a non-segregated system in low-density
areas |
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Poor |
Best |
Required |
N/A |
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Comparative total system capital cost |
All Phase 1 network, infrastructure and vehicle fleet |
Good |
Best |
Good |
Fair |
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Comparative life time operating and maintenance costs |
All Phase 1 network, infrastructure and vehicle fleet |
Best |
Good |
Poor |
Good |
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Proven in service |
At least 5 years in revenue service |
Good |
Good[1] |
Good |
Good1 |
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Suitable for the climate in Ottawa |
Operated in a climate similar to Ottawa |
Good |
Good |
Good |
Good |
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The study
reveals that the implementation of a high capacity Light Metro style system
could, as LRT is implemented in suburban areas, divide Ottawa’s transportation
network which would result in a fragmented network. This dual mode network is
not desirable given the overall associated costs.
The choice
of a Light Metro system would effectively increase overall lifecycle costs due
to the higher capital costs of segregation in the western corridor, which would
offset any operational efficiencies.
In
contrast, an LRT system permits a more efficient capacity match for the
ridership prediction throughout the main core and outlying regions maximizing
the overall flexibility in continuing to grow the system up to and beyond 2031.
The LRT
system provides capacity in the downtown core, but will necessitate the use of
automatic operation to maintain operational efficiency with higher ridership in
later years.
The rail
systems technology recommendation also reflects Council’s direction in
approving the North-South LRT EA and the Riverside South Community Design Plan
(CDP). These documents identified the technology selection for the future North
South Corridor as LRT. The integration of this technology to the Tunney’s
Pasture to Baseline corridor was an important consideration in the development
of a technology recommendation.
In
conclusion, Light Rail (LRT) is recommended as the preferred technology choice
for deployment in Ottawa as it:
Public
consultation on the design principles was sought as part of the June 2009 LRT
Technology Forum. At the same forum, representatives of manufacturers and
transit agencies from across North America were consulted. Tabling this report
will provide an opportunity for the public to comment on the recommendation as
part of the October 26, 2009, DOTT Open House and at the November 18, 2009,
Transit Committee meeting.
LEGAL/RISK MANAGEMENT IMPLICATIONS
There are no
legal/risk management impediments to the tabling of this report at the
Transit Committee meeting of October 21, 2009.
Once implemented, as shown in the Transit Services 10-Year Tactical Plan, the implementation of the rapid transit plan will realize $25 Million annual operational saving.
The rapid transit plan, in concert with future Council decisions, will combine to realize the $100 Million in annual operating savings identified in the Transit Services 10-Year Tactical Plan and the goal set out in the City’s fiscal framework of moving to a 55 per cent revenue/cost ratio.
Document 1 October 2009 Rail System
Selection Study prepared by Delcan
With Council approval, staff will continue the development of the
City’s Rapid Transit Plan with LRT as the technology for implementation.
[1]
In order
to meet the 2031 core capacity requirement, the vehicles associated with the
LRT
system will require operation with less distance between them. This requires a modern Automatic Train Control (ATC) system based on a Communications Based Train Control (CBTC) system.