Eglinton Crosstown had emergency braking issues, but problems not 'safety critical,' Metrolinx says
CBC
Metrolinx has confirmed that the Eglinton Crosstown recently had "some minor emergency brake occurrences" but says they that were not "safety critical" and wouldn't prevent the light-rail line from opening.
The confirmation comes after CBC News learned operators reported the Eglinton LRT’s emergency braking system would fire at random on test runs.
"The Metrolinx team has been working daily with partners at the TTC throughout the testing and commissioning phase, to identify and eliminate the causes of any unusual emergency brake applications," Lyndsay Miller, spokesperson for Metrolinx, said in a statement Friday.
"This is a common activity as you test and commission a new and modern signal and train control system and, has no impact on the start of revenue service for Line 5."
News of the issues comes as Ontario Premier Doug Ford and Mayor Olivia Chow indicated in recent days that the line would likely open on Feb. 8 — a date TTC CEO Mandeep Lali has not confirmed.
Two city councillors say the brake problems have been fixed, however there remains no official opening date for the long-delayed transit line.
Coun. Jamaal Myers, chair of the TTC board, said in a statement Friday that the TTC had brought operational concerns to Metrolinx but those concerns have been resolved.
"As we progress towards the safe and phased opening of Line 5, Metrolinx, which owns, designed and built Line 5, has remediated issues identified by TTC, the operator of Line 5, that could potentially affect its operation," Myers said.
"This includes resolving issues previously identified and those that have emerged more recently."
Myers said in the statement he is looking forward to receiving an update on the Eglinton Crosstown from Lali at the transit agency's board meeting Tuesday.
Coun. Josh Matlow, who represents Toronto-St. Paul's, said he has also been told that the emergency brake issue has been resolved.
Matlow said Lali suggested at the Toronto Region Board of Trade in a speech Tuesday that there was a concern about the emergency brakes, but Lali has "verified to his comfort level" that Metrolinx has resolved his concerns. There is no longer a need for an emergency TTC meeting, he added.
"There's been a lot of drama," Matlow said Friday.
"I can't explain why everything has been handled by different people in the way that it has been, but I'm very confident that Feb. 8 is still the opening date for the Eglinton LRT."
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