Canadian Light Rail Vehicle
Encyclopedia
Tram
A tram is a passenger rail vehicle which runs on tracks along public urban streets and also sometimes on separate rights of way. It may also run between cities and/or towns , and/or partially grade separated even in the cities...
that is used by the Toronto Transit Commission
Toronto Transit Commission
-Island Ferry:The ferry service to the Toronto Islands was operated by the TTC from 1927 until 1962, when it was transferred to the Metro Parks and Culture department. Since 1998, the ferry service is run by Toronto Parks and Recreation.-Gray Coach:...
(TTC) in Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
.
Background
Towards the end of the 1970s and the beginning of the 1980s, TTC's fleet of PCC streetcarPCC streetcar
The PCC streetcar design was first built in the United States in the 1930s. The design proved successful in its native country, and after World War II was licensed for use elsewhere in the world...
s had approached (or exceeded in some cases) the end of their useful life. Many Toronto citizens, and a group known as "Streetcars for Toronto" had fought successfully against the TTC's plans to convert its remaining streetcar lines to buses, and thus necessitated a new streetcar to replace the aging PCCs. The "Canadian Light Rail Vehicle" was an attempt at a new, standardized streetcar design to be used in Toronto as well as other new streetcar developments throughout the country. There was also a similar attempt of the concept
US Standard Light Rail Vehicle
The US Standard Light Rail Vehicle was an attempt at a standardized light rail vehicle promoted by the United States Urban Mass Transportation Administration and built by Boeing Vertol in the 1970s...
made in the United States around the same time, with cars built by Boeing Vertol for Boston's Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority
Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority
The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority, often referred to as the MBTA or simply The T, is the public operator of most bus, subway, commuter rail and ferry systems in the greater Boston, Massachusetts, area. Officially a "body politic and corporate, and a political subdivision" of the...
and the San Francisco Municipal Railway
San Francisco Municipal Railway
The San Francisco Municipal Railway is the public transit system for the city and county of San Francisco, California. In 2006, it served with an operating budget of about $700 million...
.
Production
The first ten cars were to be manufactured by SIGSchweizerische Industrie Gesellschaft
Schweizerische Industrie Gesellschaft , or SIG, is the former name of SIG Holding AG, a Swiss company that has been active in various businesses during its more than 150 years of operation. Since the year 2000 the Society has undergone strategic refocus, concentrating on its core compentence in...
of Zurich, Switzerland and used as templates for Urban Transportation Development Corporation
Urban Transportation Development Corporation
The Urban Transportation Development Corporation, or UTDC as it was commonly known, was an Ontario, Canada, Crown corporation created in the 1970s as a way to enter what was then expected to be a burgeoning market in advanced light rail mass transit systems...
(UTDC) (now Bombardier
Bombardier Transportation
Bombardier Transportation is the rail equipment division of the Canadian firm, Bombardier Inc. Bombardier Transportation is one of the world's largest companies in the rail-equipment manufacturing and servicing industry. Its headquarters are in Berlin, Germany....
) to manufacture the rest at the Hawker-Siddeley Canada Ltd. Thunder Bay
Thunder Bay
-In Canada:Thunder Bay is the name of three places in the province of Ontario, Canada along Lake Superior:*Thunder Bay District, Ontario, a district in Northwestern Ontario*Thunder Bay, a city in Thunder Bay District*Thunder Bay, Unorganized, Ontario...
works. However, as a cost-saving measure this number was later reduced to six, accounting for no CLRVs numbered 4006-4009. These cars are used by the TTC and are numbered 4000 to 4005, and 4010-4199. They are the primary type of streetcar currently used by the TTC, along with the Articulated Light Rail Vehicle.
In 1980, cars 4027, 4029 and 4031 were leased and tested by the Massachusetts Bay Transit Authority (MBTA). During this time, the cars were occasionally operated as two- and three-car trains.
Articulated Light Rail Vehicle
The Articulated Light Rail Vehicle (ALRV) is a lengthened version of the Canadian Light Rail Vehicle design, and, as the name suggests, features an articulated joint. A pantograph-equipped prototype, numbered 4900, was built in 1982 and used by the TTC for testing. It was returned to UTDC in 1987 and later scrapped.The cars were built by two contractors, MAN of Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
for bogies and articulation and UTDC at the Thunder Bay
Thunder Bay
-In Canada:Thunder Bay is the name of three places in the province of Ontario, Canada along Lake Superior:*Thunder Bay District, Ontario, a district in Northwestern Ontario*Thunder Bay, a city in Thunder Bay District*Thunder Bay, Unorganized, Ontario...
Plant.
ALRV streetcars are used regularly on the 501 Queen, 504 King (Rush Hour Periods) 511 Bathurst (During the Canadian National Exhibition
Canadian National Exhibition
Canadian National Exhibition , also known as The Ex, is an annual event that takes place at Exhibition Place in Toronto, Ontario, Canada during the 18 days leading up to and including Labour Day Monday. With an attendance of approximately 1.3 million visitors each season, it is Canada’s largest...
) and 508 Lake Shore routes
508 Lake Shore
The 508 Lake Shore is an east-west streetcar route in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, operated by the Toronto Transit Commission. The route serves the downtown financial district from the western limit of the city, and operates as a rush hour service only...
.
The cars are numbered 4200-4251.
Impact and legacy
The attempt made in the United States to design a standard light rail car design was unsuccessful, and the cars proved troublesome to both transit systems that had purchased them. While the CLRV had fared relatively better for Toronto's streetcar system, other cities expressed little interest in the design, and they remained exclusively Toronto's streetcars. Consequently, this has made the cars much more difficult and costly to maintain, as they required specially made parts. This, combined with the fact that the cars are not wheelchair accessible, has prompted the TTC to consider replacing them, preferably with a more "off the shelf" design (one having widespread usage and popularity). In 2009, TTC announced the car's successor.See also
- Hawker Siddeley CanadaHawker Siddeley CanadaHawker Siddeley Canada was the Canadian unit of the Hawker Siddeley Group of the United Kingdom and manufactured railcars, subway cars, streetcars, aircraft engines and ships from the 1960s to 1980s.-History:...
proposed their version of a streetcar in the 1970s known as the Municipal Service CarMunicipal Service CarMunicipal Service Car was a concept streetcar being considered by the Toronto Transit Commission in the 1970s to replace their ageing PCC fleet.The project began in 1972 and was a co-operation between Hawker Siddeley Canada and the Toronto Transit Commission...
, but the bus-like car lost out to the CLRV. - US Standard Light Rail VehicleUS Standard Light Rail VehicleThe US Standard Light Rail Vehicle was an attempt at a standardized light rail vehicle promoted by the United States Urban Mass Transportation Administration and built by Boeing Vertol in the 1970s...
, a similar attempt to build a standardized PCC successor in the US which, unlike the CLRV, failed. - Santa Clara VTA Light-railSanta Clara VTA Light-railVTA Light Rail is a light rail system serving San Jose, California and its suburbs in Silicon Valley. It is operated by the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority, or VTA, and consists of of standard-gauge track on two main lines and a spur line...
, which used a somewhat similar car design also produced by UTDC. - Flexity Outlook (Toronto LRV)Flexity Outlook (Toronto LRV)The Toronto Flexity Outlook is the planned light rail vehicle replacement for the Toronto Transit Commission's fleet of CLRVs and ALRVs on its streetcar system...
(planned successor of Toronto's fleet of CLRV/ALRVs) - Toronto streetcar systemToronto streetcar systemThe Toronto streetcar system comprises eleven streetcar routes in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, operated by the Toronto Transit Commission , and is the largest such system in the Americas in terms of ridership, number of cars, and track length. The network is concentrated primarily in downtown and in...
- Light Rail Vehicle