Metrolinx says it’s monitoring problems that have affected Ottawa’s new LRT in recent days but isn’t concerned the glitches will spell trouble for future transit projects in the GTA, despite the fact the agency plans to use the same vehicles here.

Thousands of commuters on Ottawa’s Confederation Line were stuck waiting in overcrowded stations during rush hour three days in row this past week when technical failures with the vehicles, which are made by French multinational Alstom, caused major service disruptions.

According to OC Transpo, Ottawa’s transit agency, the delays on the Confederation Line Tuesday and Wednesday morning were caused by faults with the vehicle doors believed to have been instigated by passengers holding or prying them open, resulting in delays of up to 90 minutes. On Thursday morning, a train’s on-board computer had to be reset, leaving it stalled at a station and causing delays of 20 to 30 minutes.

The $2.1-billion line only opened Sept. 14, and the disruptions have prompted at least one local councillor to ask OC Transpo to consider shutting down the LRT until it can sort out the bugs.

The trains used on the Confederation Line are Alstom’s Citadis Spirit model, up to 46 of which Metrolinx, the provincial agency responsible for transportation in the GTA, has agreed to buy from the company.

Metrolinx plans to run the Alstom cars on Mississauga’s Hurontario LRT and the Finch West LRT in northwest Toronto, which are expected to open in 2022 and 2023, respectively.

The 18-kilometre Hurontario line would connect the Port Credit GO station to Brampton Gateway Terminal, and its cost has not yet been finalized. The 11-kilometre Finch line would run between Finch West TTC station and Humber College, and cost $1.2 billion.

Metrolinx wouldn’t disclose how much it’s paying for the trains, but previous announcements suggest the 46 cars would cost about $400 million.

Agency spokesperson Anne Marie Aikins said Metrolinx is keeping an eye on the situation in Ottawa, but isn’t worried.

“We’d be remiss if we weren’t watching what’s happening with other very similar projects. That’s our job, to look at and benefit from the lessons that they’re learning, and make any adjustments,” she said.

By the time the Hurontario and Finch lines open, the Alstom vehicles will have been in service in Ottawa for two to three years, Aikins noted, which will give Metrolinx the chance to “identify and address any issues.”

She said Metrolinx has faith in Alstom, which the agency turned to after encountering problems with an earlier order from Bombardier. (Bombardier disputed Metrolinx’s claims that it had fallen behind on the original order, and the two sides later reached a settlement.)

“Alstom has a proven track record building LRVs (light rail vehicles) around the world and we have confidence in their work,” Aikins said.

Alstom is setting up a factory in Brampton to build the vehicles for Metrolinx and, according to company spokesperson Michelle Stein, assembly for the first cars for the GTA projects will start in March.

Stein said Alstom had inspected the doors across its Ottawa fleet and “has not found any problems, defects or abnormalities,” but she noted doors are among the most sensitive components of any train and are designed not to injure passengers.

She described the Citadis model as a “proven” vehicle, more than 2,000 of which are in service in 20 countries.

“We are a committed partner that stands behind its product,” she said.

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In an open letter to customers Thursday, OC Transpo said it was working to fix problems with its trains. The organization said it is reviewing the settings of the vehicle doors, deploying more employees to stations, and installing barriers to address crowding.

“We are focused and committed to doing what is necessary to ensure that we provide the reliable O-Train service that Ottawa expects and deserves,” the agency said.

Ben Spurr is a Toronto-based reporter covering transportation. Reach him by email at bspurr@thestar.ca or follow him on Twitter: @BenSpurr

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