March 5, 2026: Stage 2 O-Train Line East Extension Achieves Substantial Completion

To	Mayor and Members of Council
From	Troy Charter, Interim General Manager, Transit Services Department
Subject	Stage 2 O-Train Line East Extension Achieves Substantial Completion
Date	March 5, 2026

The purpose of this memo is to inform the Mayor and Members of Council that the Independent Certifier has issued the Certificate of Substantial Completion for the Stage 2 East Extension.

Substantial Completion is an important contractual milestone and confirms that the constructor, EWC, has delivered all new system infrastructure and that it is functional and can be safely operated and maintained. This comes after the City and the Independent Certifier conducted a detailed review of EWC’s submission.  

Having achieved Substantial Completion, Rideau Transit Maintenance (RTM) now assumes responsibility for the maintenance of the new East Extension. There will be a period of startup and familiarization for RTM, as they take over the maintenance of the new infrastructure. This familiarization period is a best practice from the preparations to successfully launch O-Train Lines 2 and 4.

As with any major construction project, there will be activities that will continue after Substantial Completion. On the East Extension, these include:

• Updates to the train control system software prior to Revenue Service
• Adjustments to the platform edge cameras to optimize their performance
• Landscaping, final paving on Highway 174 and other final works

This milestone is a significant step towards connecting east end communities to downtown and western neighbourhoods through the existing train system. Over the coming days, we will continue to work with RTM during the handover and their startup phase.

In parallel, work continues to safely restore full capacity and fleet availability on the existing Line 1 for our customers. OC Transpo and Rideau Transit Group are working to complete new containment and monitoring measures for the Cartridge Bearing Assemblies (CBAs) that would allow the full fleet to be safely returned to operations. This will also allow Trial Running to commence.

These are critically important steps, and the work will continue as we apply lessons learned to date. A technical briefing will be held to provide further information and timelines once plans are finalized. At this time, we continue to be on track to launch the East Extension in Q2 2026, as previously stated at Transit Committee. An update will be provided at the Transit Committee on March 12.

If you have any questions, please contact Richard Holder, Director, Rail Construction Program, [Personal information redacted] or me at [Personal information redacted].

Original signed by
Troy Charter

cc:Senior Leadership Team
Transit Services Departmental Leadership Team
Chief Communications Officer, Public Information and Media Relations