Toronto Mayor John Tory and TTC Chair Josh Colle say they’re deeply frustrated over delays in receiving new streetcars from Bombardier and are asking for further legal advice on the issue.
“We emphasize this frustration upon learning that we are at risk of a further delay that would take streetcar delivery beyond the 2019 deadline,” Tory and Colle said in a letter to Benoit Brossoit, president of Bombardier Transportation in the Americas, that was released Thursday afternoon. “This explanation has caused us to request advice on further legal action we could undertake to recover additional damages for this complete failure to perform.”
“We implore you to explore whether what you are doing is enough. The TTC simply cannot afford to bear anymore financial or service burdens that have resulted from this delay. TTC customers have been patient enough – they should not have to accept further delays,” they said.
In a report to be considered by the TTC board on Tuesday, transit agency staff said based on supporting documentation and an assessment of production readiness at Bombardier’s plants, “there is a risk that Bombardier may not meet the revised delivery schedule for contract completion of 204 new streetcars by 2019.”
TTC staff said they’re continuing to work with Bombardier and it has become a challenge to maintain the current fleet of streetcars, which is between 32 and 37 years old.
“The service life for new vehicles of this type vehicle is typically specified to be only 30 years. A life of 32-37 years without a major carbody rebuild is unheard of for a streetcar of this type operating in the conditions experienced in Toronto.”
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READ MORE: Delivery of new Bombardier manufactured TTC streetcars to be delayed again
The TTC board and staff have been dealing with streetcar delays for the past couple of years. In 2015, the TTC began a claim for damages against Bombardier.
Bombardier spokesman Marc-Andre Lefebvre said in a statement to Global News Thursday afternoon that the company’s commitment to the streetcar order “remains strong and solid.”
“Bombardier has full confidence that it has deployed all of the necessary resources (second production line in Thunder Bay, transfer of work to Kingston, additional resources from our La Pocatière site and our global centres of excellence for LRV) to deliver all 204 streetcars by the end of 2019,” the statement said.
READ MORE: Bombardier misses deadline on test vehicle delivery for Eglinton Crosstown
Lefebvre said Bombardier committed to delivering 30 streetcars to the TTC by the end of 2016 and that the 30th streetcar is expected to arrive in Toronto from Thunder Bay next week.
“We said we would improve deliveries, and we have. We are in constant discussions with the TTC and all of our partners to finalize the detailed project schedule, and will provide it to the TTC in January,” he wrote.
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