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TTC: Flexity Streetcars Testing & Delivery (Bombardier)

4478 is loaded and sitting at CP Lambton Yard, headed no doubt for drydock repairs. Don’t know where it is headed, although the original report at the time of the flood was on the Southern Tier in New York state.

- Paul

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Finding it hard to understand why BBD can ship 10 units in December and coast to 4-5 max in January. They seem to want a soft start in Q1 every year. Consistancy is just as important as punctuality.

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I assume they work pretty much right up to December 24 and try to clear out any in the final stages and then take 10 days off over Christmas & New Year so they would not have as many as normal in the 'pipeline' for January shipment.
 
I assume they work pretty much right up to December 24 and try to clear out any in the final stages and then take 10 days off over Christmas & New Year so they would not have as many as normal in the 'pipeline' for January shipment.

That would reasonably explain their shortfall in January, but does not really explain how they magically manage to get 10 out in December. If they can do that in December and still miss a week, why can't they do that more often? Are they actually stockpiling finished vehicles in TB?
 
That would reasonably explain their shortfall in January, but does not really explain how they magically manage to get 10 out in December. If they can do that in December and still miss a week, why can't they do that more often? Are they actually stockpiling finished vehicles in TB?

Not just Bombardier, but also the railways may have had holiday/vacation scheduling.
 
Is everyone else reading the tea leaves the way I am about this "additional 100 car order" in "2025 to 2028" that the 204 car order is not now going to be followed by compensation cars, and instead TTC will take whatever bundle of cash BBD are offering so that Tory can keep property taxes "at the rate of inflation"? The legacy fleet is dying ahead of schedule and what's going to fill the gap?
 
Is everyone else reading the tea leaves the way I am about this "additional 100 car order" in "2025 to 2028" that the 204 car order is not now going to be followed by compensation cars, and instead TTC will take whatever bundle of cash BBD are offering so that Tory can keep property taxes "at the rate of inflation"? The legacy fleet is dying ahead of schedule and what's going to fill the gap?
Based on BBD track record for both the TR and the new fleet, its in the best interest for TTC to look at other suppliers. The ALRV's will be gone this year, leaving TTC to keep as many CLRV's on the road until 2025 and having some busing as well

The earlies TTC can get funding to start to do an RFP is 2020, time to get a prototype is about 2024, with delivery starting in 2024/25.

If NYC can get 30 cars for late delivery of only haft the fleet, TTC should be able to get 15 cars plus, assuming BBD will pickup the extra cost beyond the $50 million limit.

Hillcrest is at 100% fixing the CLRV's and ALRV's to keep them running and adding extra years of service to them not original plan.

CP did a slow down for the holidays, but normal service since Jan 2nd and has nothing to do with slow delivery from BBD. Its all on BBD end for slow delivery.
 
Deja vu for Andy Byford.

From link.

NYC transit chief slams Bombardier, halts rail car deliveries over problems

The head of the New York City Transit Authority and former chief executive at the Toronto Transit Commission says he is having "deja vu times two" with problems around trains from Bombardier Inc.

Andy Byford told the state transit authority this week that New York City Transit will halt new train car deliveries until more of the existing cars are fixed.

"It's gruelling. You have to stay on their case, you have to hold their hands, you have to cajole them," Byford said at a Metropolitan Transportation Authority committee meeting Tuesday.

He cited "depressing" issues with the HVAC system software and past problems with springs between the cars and doors that were "weeping oil."

"I've been around this cycle now twice with Bombardier -- twice in Toronto," he said, recalling the production delays and defects that plagued streetcar orders during his five years at the helm of Canada's largest municipal transit authority.

"Eventually they get the build quality right and suddenly they start to come off the production line like a well-oiled machine," he said, adding that "you end up with a very good product."

New York City Transit was expecting 13 of the cars, which cost about $2-million apiece, back from repairs this week following software issues.

Bombardier said it has delivered 160 out of about 300 cars so far, with some still in testing.

"We understand the frustration and we own the issue," spokesman Eric Prudhomme said in an email Thursday evening.

"It's not unusual in the industry to have some issues, particularly in the early stages of passenger service."

Prudhomme said he expects the technical problems with the R179 cars, which run on several lines in New York City, to be fixed "shortly," with 50 employees "working around the clock" at Bombardier's plant in Plattsburgh, N.Y.

None of the problems has jeopardized passenger safety, the company has said.

New York City Transit has representatives on site monitoring the progress, on top of bi-weekly meetings to discuss vehicles that were delivered but not fit for service, Byford said.

"Short of actually building the damn things, we're doing everything else that we possibly can do," he said.

Earlier this month, Swiss Federal Railways opted to stop taking new trains from the Montreal-based company until it fixes the ones already in service.

Bombardier is also facing a Feb. 1 deadline for delivery of the first six of 76 vehicles for Toronto's Crosstown Eglinton light rail line, with one car already at a Metrolinx site in Toronto.
 
If NYC can get 30 cars for late delivery of only haft the fleet, TTC should be able to get 15 cars plus, assuming BBD will pickup the extra cost beyond the $50 million limit.
but where do you get the impression TTC wants those 15? The number 204 keeps being repeated and I get the sense that the 100 number is being dangled (presumably at Alstom Brampton) as big enough to justify a line and all the design work to meet the curve radius, performance and other issues to build a downtown car. And at the end of it all there is no guarantee Alstom won't have their own problems.

I guess this is just frustration talking - the other day when Line 1 blew out and Line 2 slowed down due overcrowding, I waited 10 minutes at Broadview at 9am for a 504 to get downtown. There are a lot of things that will take years and years to do but we could have a fleet of 214-219 Flexities instead of 204* by end 2021 by just keeping one line ticking with compo cars.

* bearing mind welding cars coming and going so maybe not quite that many
 
4523 was out all night testing and still is. It was up on St Clair and now out in Long Branch.

4522 still not tracking nor is 4524 at this time.
 
but where do you get the impression TTC wants those 15?
The TTC board voted a long time go to accept the penalty as new cars.

It's clear though that things have changed and TTC has decided that it's okay to replace streetcars with buses until 2026. Or longer given the additional streetcar order remains unfunded.

(they've been talking a 100-car order for some time - look at the report for the June 2018 meeting for example)
 
Based on BBD track record for both the TR and the new fleet, its in the best interest for TTC to look at other suppliers. The ALRV's will be gone this year, leaving TTC to keep as many

CLRV's on the road until 2025 and having some busing as well

The earlies TTC can get funding to start to do an RFP is 2020, time to get a prototype is about 2024, with delivery starting in 2024/25.

If NYC can get 30 cars for late delivery of only haft the fleet, TTC should be able to get 15 cars plus, assuming BBD will pickup the extra cost beyond the $50 million limit.

Hillcrest is at 100% fixing the CLRV's and ALRV's to keep them running and adding extra years of service to them not original plan.

CP did a slow down for the holidays, but normal service since Jan 2nd and has nothing to do with slow delivery from BBD. Its all on BBD end for slow delivery.

Well, we all knew the ALRVs, with the refubhisment weren't
going to last long. Now the question is, how many CLRVs will be able to last to 2024?
 
None. TTC seems to keep flitting back and forth between all gone in 2019 and 2021. The announcement last week that they'll continue to run buses instead of streetcars on some runs through 2026 makes it clear they've given up.

I keep on hearing the CLRVs will last to 2024 from some sources, Drum even said it.
 

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