Six new state-of-the-art diesel electric trains were officially handed over to the city on June 22 to service the O-Train line from Greenboro to Bayview stations.
Ottawa is the first municipality in North America to receive the advanced Coradia Lint 41 trains from the French transport company Alstom.
“The O-Train has been an incredible success story for the city,” Gloucester-Southgate Coun. Diane Deans, chair of the transit commission, said in a news release.
“Since 2001, it has carried more than 21 million riders, and the current expansion project will enable the O-Train to carry even more passengers, more frequently and in greater comfort,” she said. “I am particularly pleased with the high-efficiency, low-emission design of these new trains. This will help limit future transit operating costs, reduce our dependence on fossil fuels and minimize environmental impacts.”
The new train set is part of the $59-million O-Train Service Expansion Project.
OC Transpo is running a replacement bus service during the construction period.
Regular O-Train service will resume on Sept. 3, in time for the fall semester at Carleton University. The new trains will enter service in 2014.