Trillium Line

Main Line

• Bayview station provides an interchange with the Transitway and will provide an interchange to the Confederation Line which is under construction. The station is located on a stub-end track branching off from the railway line, immediately under the Wellington Street and Transitway overpasses. It is currently the closest Trillium Line station to downtown Ottawa.
• Gladstone station had a passing loop added in 2013 to increase train frequency and line capacity.^[6] It is the site of a future station that will feature two platforms.^[7]
• Carling station is located at Carling Avenue and Preston Street. South of Carling, the train enters a tunnel to pass under Dow's Lake.
• Carleton station serves Carleton University and has separate tracks and platforms for each direction. Until the upgrade of the line in 2013, this station had the only passing loop along the line. South of Carleton, the train crosses over the Rideau River on a bridge.
• Mooney's Bay station is located at Heron Road and Bronson Avenue, and primarily serves Government of Canada offices in the Confederation Heights area.
• Walkley station had a passing loop added in 2013 to increase train frequency and line capacity.^[6] It is the site of a future station immediately South of Walkley Road and near the existing Transitway station.^[7]
• Greenboro station provides an interchange with a large Transitway station, which has a large park-and-ride lot and is located next to the South Keys Shopping Centre. The Trillium Line platform is level with the pedestrian overpass crossing the Transitway.
• South Keys station is a station that will be added as part of Stage 2 and will be adjacent to the existing Transitway station. This station will connect the Airport Spur to the main line. It will be the only station on the line with an island platform.
• Leitrim station is a station that will be added as part of Stage 2 and will be adjacent to the existing station and park-and-ride lot. This station will feature two platforms.
• Bowesville station is a station that will be added as part of Stage 2. It located just east of Bowesville Road, will feature two platforms, and will be the site of a new park-and-ride lot.
• Limebank station is a station that will be added as part of Stage 2. It will be located just West of Limebank Road and will service the Riverside South community. It will be one of the only stations to feature a public washroom.

Airport Spur

• Uplands station is a station that will be added as part of Stage 2. It will be built East of Uplands Drive next to the EY Centre and will feature two platforms. It will be the location of the only passing loop on the spur.
• Airport station is a station that will be added as part of Stage 2. It will be located at the Macdonald–Cartier International Airport.

At the station

Carleton is the only station with two platforms.

The Trillium Line opened in 2001 with five stations which are, from north to south, Bayview Station, Carling Station, Carleton Station, Mooney's Bay Station and Greenboro Station.

Before the 2013-2015 line upgrade, Carleton Station was the location of the only passing loop on the route, with the consequence that Carleton is the only station with separate tracks and platforms for each direction. The schedule was timed such that the southbound train arrived first and moved onto the platform siding, and then proceeded once the northbound train had entered the station. (Today the line has three passing loops between Bayview and Greenboro stations.)

The trains stop at every station and all trains run directly from one end of the line to the other.

Carleton is the only Trillium Line station with separate platforms for both directions; at Carling and Confederation one can tell where a train is headed by the direction from which it enters the station and by its electronic destination sign.

Ticketing on the Trillium Line originally worked entirely on a proof-of-payment basis; there were no ticket barriers or turnstiles, and the driver does not check fares. Occasionally, OC Transpo Special Constables or other employees checked passengers for proof of payment. Tickets can be purchased from a vending machine on the platform, and certain bus passes are also valid for the Trillium Line. Trillium Line tickets were exchanged for bus transfers upon boarding a bus. Although bus transfers can be used to board the O-Train, prepaid bus tickets cannot. As of 2018, ticket barriers (turnstiles) have been installed in all stations except Bayview, serving as a beta test of these systems which will also be used in all stations on the Confederation line when it opens.

Paper schedules rather than electronic signs were originally posted at the stations to supply departure information. At the Carling and Confederation stations, signs are posted indicating the direction of travel for northbound and southbound trains; Carleton has separate platforms, and from Bayview and Greenboro trains travel in only one direction.

The Trillium Line stations have sheltered waiting areas for passengers, but at three stations these are only large bus-style shelters beside the tracks. The exceptions are Carling, where an elevator building is required since the tracks are below street level, and Greenboro, where a covered walkway extends towards the nearby South Keys Shopping Centre. All stations have level boarding platforms to allow for wheelchair access and easier boarding for all passengers.

The European trains are narrower than the North American standard. In order to enable night-time use of the line by standard-width freight services, retractable platform extenders are mounted at each station (other than Bayview which is constructed on its own private rail spur). Passengers gain access to the Trillium Line on these extenders, three sets of which are visible in the above photo (at the location of the solid yellow platform markings). If the line is used for freight, the extenders are retracted allowing a wider train to pass through the station. The extender interface with the train has been refined over time, and cyclists and wheelchair users now have no trouble accessing the train.

On board the train

This section is a historical description of the Bombardier Talent diesel units that were retired in 2015. The Trillium Line operates with Alstom Coradia LINT 41 units.^[6][11]

The interior design of the Bombardier Talent carriages shows their mainline railway heritage.

Ottawa’s three Talent units were built by Bombardier Transportation as part of a larger order for Deutsche Bahn’s regional network. The only significant difference between them and the German units is that their on-board toilets have been decommissioned. As well, the luggage racks have been blocked, although this seemed not to be a problem with the train's operation in Germany. Deutsche Bahn’s red-and-white colour scheme was similar enough to OC Transpo’s livery that the trains did not need to be repainted. The trains were purchased under an agreement under which they could be sold back to Bombardier if they were replaced or retired, but the agreement has since expired.

The Talent units can be coupled together to form longer trains, but current ridership levels do not require this extended service, which in any case would require more trains and longer platforms at the stations. Each of the three carriages has a plug-type doorway for each side of the train. Rather than all doors opening at each station, passengers must individually open the door of which they intend to board or disembark by pressing a button.

Despite their diesel engines, the trains are quite comfortable; even for passengers sitting directly above the motors, the ride is quiet and smooth. Seats are arranged with two on each side of the carriage, and the rows alternate facing directions, such that half the seats are facing forward in either direction of travel.

The interior is clearly one designed for a mainline train; there are only a few poles for standing passengers, mostly located around the doors and closely integrated into the train’s overall design. There are no advertisements on board the trains despite the available space on what are in fact plastic covers over what traditionally would be overhead storage areas; viewable through the slats from below. These areas were presumably cordoned off in order to reduce litter and to improve safety however this often means more cramped quarters, especially during peak travel times. Although the trains consist of three carriages, they are connected such that it is possible to walk from one end to the other; the only noticeable divisions between the carriages are a short articulated section in the walls and a slight ramp over the dividing line. The trains have low floors, but the half-carriages at the ends of the trains have high floors with several steps up, to provide room for under-floor motors. The doors into the cabs are clear, allowing passengers to see in, but some drivers prefer to pull curtains across.

There are no maps posted on the trains, but electronic screens in each carriage and recorded voice messages announce the stations as they come up. The station announcements and all signs are bilingual in English and French; a few features of the trains, such as the buttons touched to open the doors, are also marked in German as a result of their design heritage.

Awards

In June 2002 the O-Train Light Rail Transit project received the Canadian Urban Transit Association’s Corporate Innovation Award.^[12]

On January 16, 2003 the Ontario Chapter of the American Public Works Association presented the City of Ottawa, Canadian Pacific Railway and Morrison Hershfield, with the APWA’S Public Works Project of the Year award in the Transportation Category. This award was established to highlight the excellence in the management and administration of public works projects by recognizing the alliance between the managing agency, the Consultant and the Contractors who working together, complete public works projects.^[13]

A third award the Trillium Line light rail transit project received was in May 2003, in the sustainable transportation category of the FCM-CH2M Hill Sustainable Community Awards.^[12]

Criticism of pilot project

The main complaints about the Trillium Line pilot have revolved around its placement and ridership levels. The Trillium Line's route was determined by existing railway tracks, rather than the parts of the city that needed public transport, which would have required new tracks to be laid. Carleton University students, however, benefit from the Trillium Line pilot project, as it connected the university to the busy Ottawa Rapid Transit system.

The other criticism is that there is very low ridership the trains compared to some very crowded bus lines such as the 90-99 series routes. One fully loaded Trillium Line train carries 285 passengers compared to 131 passengers for an articulated bus.^[14] The O-Train schedule is limited by track capacity.

Better train frequency

On May 18, 2011, OC Transpo approved a CA$200,000 study to expand the Trillium Line. The $59 million proposal included the purchase of six new trainsets and track improvements that would increase headways to eight minutes from fifteen.^[10] The project would finally cost $60.3 million.^[5]

In mid-2013, service on the Trillium Line was suspended for four months to implement service and track improvements such as new station platforms and two new passing tracks (near Brookfield and Gladstone).^[5][6] Upgrades were also made to the signal system, train controls, stations, tracks and train yard. A new Centralized Traffic Control system was installed to improve safety and efficiency.^[5]

Six new Alstom Coradia LINT trainsets (purchased to replace the three older Bombardier Talent units) and the two extra passing loops allow the number of trains on the line to double to four thus reducing wait times. The goal is to cut wait times from 15 to as low as 8 minutes for peak times. Service will run every 10 to 12 minutes. Signals and operations would be adjusted to increase frequency to approximately every 8 to 10 minutes. With more trains and a higher frequency of service, the line will be able to carry more people.^[5]

Expanded service began on March 2, 2015, but suffered numerous problems during the first week.^[8]

Stage 2

In a project called "Stage 2", the Trillium Line would be extended 8 km (5.0 mi) southwards with four stations at South Keys, Leitrim, Bowesville and Limebank in Riverside South. There would be passing loops at South Keys and Leitrim, and grade separations at Lester and Leitrim. In addition, two more stations are proposed along the existing portion of the line at Gladstone and Walkley.^[7]

The City of Ottawa is also considering a separate 3 km (1.9 mi) O-Train line from Macdonald-Cartier International Airport to South Keys Station where riders would need to change trains to continue to Bayview Station. Mayor Jim Watson said he doesn’t want the Trillium Line slowed down by interlining trains going to the airport. If the airport link is built, the preferred station location at the airport would be between the terminal building and the parking garage. The project would cost about C$100-million.^[7][15]

Future Fleet

On May 3, 2018^[19] it was announced that the city would be purchasing seven new Stadler FLIRT trains to use on the extended Trillium Line after the completion of Stage 2. These trains will be approximately 80 m (262 ft) long which is double the 41 m (135 ft) length of the current Coradia LINT trains. The new trains will operate alongside coupled pairs of the existing LINT trains on the main line as part of a mixed fleet.