LRT could be ready by 2018: report

Ottawa's light rail system could be up and running by spring 2018, a year earlier than originally scheduled,according toa city report released Friday morning.

Councillors had been urging the city to move up the completion date of the $2.1 billion project from its original 2019 timeline. Some have suggested a completion date of 2017 to coincide with the country's 150th anniversary.

Mayor Jim Watson confirmed the report would outline ways to reduce the time to complete the project by one year.

The report prepared by city staff says the shorter timeline can be achieved by shortening the tendering process and speeding up construction.

The system could even be ready for testing and station tours by 2017, but it won't be ready for passengers by then, city staff said.

Notsoon enough: advocate

David Jeanes, the president of Transport Action Canada, a transit advocacy group, said the shortened timeline isn't good enough.

"That's not soon enough because Canada is going to be celebrating the 150th anniversary of Confederation in 2017, and we could be in a situation where not only is light rail not ready, but most of our transitway is shut down due to the conversion."

Watson said that won't be an issue, however, as the expansion of the Queensway will be completed sooner than expected thanks to a boost inprovincial funding.

The province added funding in the 2011 budget to allow the city to add one lane in each direction between Nicholas Street and the Regional Road 174 split. The extra lanes are expected to accomodate buses during LRT construction and then be turned into high-occupancy vehicles lanes.

That will take thepressure off the Transitway during construction,Watson said.

The 12.5 kilometre rail line LRT project also calls for a 3.2-kilometre tunnel to run between LeBreton Flats and the University of Ottawa campus, with four underground stops.