Rideau Transit Group, which is building the phase 1 of Ottawa’s light rail transit (LRT), called the Confederation Line, is coordinating the repair work for a 300-m stretch of the LRT tunnel underneath Rideau Street, where a massive sinkhole opened up on 08.06.2016. Engineers believe there will be no permanent damage to the tunnel, which is a key part of the $2.1-billion Confederation LRT line set to open in 2018. The Rideau Station is still under construction for the LRT but was not impacted.

Rideau Transit Group has been selected for design, build and to maintain the line until 2038.

The 12.5 km Confederation Line will be a significant part of the integrated transit network. It will connect to the existing Bus Rapid Transitway at Tunney’s Pasture Station in the west and Blair Road in the east, and to the O-Train at Bayview Station. Together with a 2.5-km downtown tunnel, this light rail system will move Ottawa faster and in more comfort than ever before.

Construction has been divided into three segments along the Light Rail Transit (LRT) alignment corridor:

• East Segment - which includes Blair, Cyrville, St-Laurent, Tremblay, Hurdman, and Lees stations and the Belfast Yard Maintenance and Storage Facility.
• Central Segment - which includes uOttawa, Rideau, Parliament, and Lyon stations and the 2.5 km tunnel, where this year, work on the caverns, stations and tunnel will continue. 
• West Segment – which includes Pimisi, Bayview and Tunney’s Pasture stations.

Construction on the Confederation Line began in 2013 and is on schedule. In 2016 the Belfast Yard Maintenance and Storage Facility will be completed, the last section of running tunnel between Rideau and Parliament stations will be excavated and construction of stations in the east segment and integrated stations in the central segment will continue. Station construction will also begin in the west segment, work on the guideway will continue across the O-Train Confederation Line alignment  and the Queen Street renewal works will begin. Click here and ca/31 for tunnelbuilder archive. For more detailed information please visit http://www.ligneconfederationline.ca/. 24/16