Quote:
Originally Posted by acottawa
I tend to agree with the gatekeeper, the Alstom Citadis is a tram, it is used in dozens of cities around the world as a tram. The fact that Ottawa has chosen to grade separate its tram doesn't make it into a metro.
Personally I always found the choice of technology bizarre. If the objective is to have a fully grade-separated service there are a number of driverless light metro technologies that may have been a better fit (and saved money in the long run).
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IMO the Confederation Line is both a metro and an LRT, it meets the criteria for both at opening.
The reason why LRT vehicles were chosen is to allow future extensions to be at-grade. The Western EA evaluated the cost/benefit of grade separating Iris, and concluded that it should be grade-separated. But if it hadn't, we had the option of saving some money by leaving it as a level crossing, as opposed to a metro system that is stuck to being grade separated forever even if crossing a road with minimal traffic. Phase 2 probably won't have level crossings, because the Orleans & Bayshore extensions will cross roads only right near freeway ramps which probably precludes level crossings (excluding Connaught Avenue but that has to be a tunnel anyway because of development), and the Western LRT study has already concluded in favour of grade seperating Iris for the Baseline extension. But in the future, if Phase 3 for example sends LRT down to Barrhaven, the existing level crossing at Berrigan could be retained. In such an event it would no longer qualify as a metro. Because it could be 'disqualified' simply with a line extension, it shouldn't be classified as a metro in the same sense that say the Toronto subway or Montreal metro should be. At least that's my $0.02.