Tory expresses frustration with Bombardier, threatens lawsuit
Posted December 15, 2016 5:51 pm.
Last Updated December 15, 2016 7:06 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
Mayor John Tory has penned a letter to the president of Bombardier, expressing concern and frustration over the delivery of 204 new streetcars and threatening legal action as a result.
A new report from the TTC says the transit commission fears Bombardier may miss its 2019 target to deliver the new streetcars.
In the letter, signed by Tory and TTC Chair Josh Colle, they say the delay is preventing the transit system from sustaining its current level of service to customers.
“The delay of new streetcars has now reached a critical tipping point,” reads the letter sent to Benoit Brossoit. “We have had to initiate a recovery program worth millions of dollars just to extend the life of these streetcars that much further.”
Tory adds surface routes will see a negative impact as a result of pulling legacy streetcars off the road, which leads to longer wait times and overcrowding. That in turn creates a negative perception of the TTC meaning fewer people are choosing to take transit, forcing them to find alternatives which contribute to increased traffic congestion.
“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.”
Meanwhile, Bombardier CEO Alain Bellemare said they have put the resources in place to try and meet its commitment to deliver the streetcars by the end of 2019.
“We are very confident that we will get close to this,” he said while speaking to investors in New York on Thursday in response to the TTC report.
Colle says the difficulties experienced with Bombardier will force the TTC to look at the possibility of having different manufacturers build future projects, so the city isn’t dependent on just one company for everything.
Files from The Canadian Press were used in this report
