Flexity Outlook (Toronto)

The vehicle is based on Bombardier's standardized Flexity Outlook product, which is also used in cities like Brussels, Marseille, and Geneva, but tailored to Toronto's needs. Specific design requirements included use of TTC's unique broad track gauge rather than standard gauge, the ability to handle a tight turning radius of , single-point switches, the ability to climb the city's steep hills and valleys, clearance, and ability to upgrade from trolley poles to a more modern pantograph current collection system. At in length, the Flexity Outlook is almost twice as long as the TTC's older streetcars, with five articulated sections. Only one step is needed to board at any door, making accessing the streetcar easier for older people, pregnant women, people travelling with small children, or those travelling with heavy luggage. The Flexity streetcars have six Presto fare readers on them (with one reader at front and rear single doors and two readers at the middle double doors), where customers can tap their Presto card or contactless credit and debit card upon boarding to pay their fares or validate transfers. Passengers paying with exact cash in coins can use one of the two onboard fare vending machines (FVM) located at the middle double doors and obtain a single-ride paper ticket, which acts as POP and to use as a transfer on other connecting TTC routes. At the time, the Flexity streetcars were the only surface vehicles in the TTC network where this form of payment was accepted; however, this feature was removed because it caused FVMs to malfunction. media reader. Readers are located at all Flexity Outlook streetcar doors for customers using Presto, credit or debit card to pay fares or validate transfers. Audible warning signals The Flexity streetcars have both a gong and a horn. Instead of the mechanical gongs used on older vehicles, the Flexity Outlook vehicles use an amplified digital recording of a gong. They are also the first vehicles to have built-in electronic horns fleet-wide upon delivery, while most of the CLRV and ALRV streetcars had their horns installed in the late 1990s. Despite the Flexity Outlook vehicles being heavy-duty streetcars, their horns are similar to those used on TTC buses or regular automobiles. The gong and the horn can be heard from both ends of the vehicle. Destination sign The Flexity Outlook streetcars are the TTC's first streetcars to be outfitted with amber digital LED destination and run number signs rather than manually operated roller blinds used on older vehicles. The destination signs are posted at the front, rear, and sides of the vehicle, which identify the route number, name, and destination. Older vehicles only displayed the route number and destination for brevity. The Flexity streetcars also display two blue bullseye lights on the front to indicate that they are accessible vehicles. Automated voice announcement system As with all TTC vehicles, the Flexity Outlook streetcars have on-board automated audible and visual next stop announcements, which are broadcast over the vehicle's interior public address (PA) system and on overhead signs. They were also the first vehicleswhen they were introduced in 2014to be outfitted with external PA systems that announce the vehicle's route and destination, andunlike other TTC vehiclesit can be used for live operator-based public service announcements. Bicycle rack The Flexity Outlook streetcars have a bicycle rack, which is located inside the vehicle, by the third set of doors from the front and can store two standard-sized bicycles arranged parallel to the streetcar itself. The rack also has a retractable pull-out strap to help hold one of the bicycles in place. Wheel squeal The Flexity Outlook streetcars are equipped with an on-board wheel lubrication system to reduce squeal when the streetcars go around sharp curves. The TTC is also developing a wheel-mounted noise damping ring to further reduce high-pitch squeal, and hopes to begin prototype testing in the fourth quarter of 2017. The TTC is working to install improved lubrication system units at streetcar loops that are activated by the passage of a Flexity Outlook vehicle. These provide partial solutions to the problem. Other factors affecting wheel squeal on Flexity Outlook streetcars are: • The sharper the radius, the greater the chance of squealing. • Weather conditions such as rain, snow, humidity and temperature fluctuation can affect streetcar noise levels. • Rainfall and other forms of precipitation washes lubricant away. ==Selection process==

in 2011 With the TTC's former streetcar fleet nearing the end of its service life, the Commission began looking for a manufacturer to build new streetcars. In June 2007, the TTC launched a public consultation on the design of its new streetcars, including an online survey, Tram Power's product was the Citytram, a prototype of which was being tested on the Blackpool Tramway until it caught fire on January 24, 2007. The City of Toronto committed one-third of the necessary funds, and requested funding from the provincial and federal governments for the streetcars. While the provincial government agreed to fund one-third of the project, the federal government was unwilling to provide any money before the June 27, 2009, deadline approached to finalize the contract with Bombardier. Finally, Toronto City Council voted on June 26, 2009, to commit the other one-third of the funding by deferring other capital projects, such that the funding formula became two-thirds municipal and one-third provincial funding. The official contributions were announced by TTC Chair Karen Stintz at the unveiling on November 15, 2012. The Province of Ontario contributed $416.3million, the federal government indirectly contributed $108million through its gas tax fund, and the City of Toronto and TTC contributed $662million, for a total cost of $1.2billion. A partial mockup of the new streetcar was put on display at the Hillcrest Complex for tours in November 2011. ==Delivery==

Prototypes The first vehicle arrived in Toronto on September 25, 2012, by rail from the Thunder Bay plant to Canadian Pacific Railway's Lambton Yard near Runnymede Road and St. Clair Avenue West. It was loaded on a flatbed trailer and arrived at Harvey Shop at the Hillcrest Complex a few days later. Streetcar 4400 was the first of three test vehicles delivered for testing and technology verification. The carset has the same number as the wooden mockup streetcar. The new vehicle was unveiled to the public at the TTC's Hillcrest complex during a media conference on November 15, 2012. Prototype vehicles 4401 and 4402 underwent almost a year of extensive testing in Toronto. That testing triggered a change to the design of the loading ramps, over which a wheelchair used to tilt. The vehicles would only become TTC property when their ramps are retrofitted to the new design. Delivery problems In December 2014, Bombardier was behind schedule in delivering new vehicles. That goal was only achieved one year later at the end of 2016. By mid-October 2015, Bombardier admitted it had another production problem at its Ciudad Sahagún plant in Mexico, the same one responsible for faulty under-frames and sides on the new streetcars. The new problem is the "crimping of electrical connectors" causing new production and delivery delays. To correct the crimping issue, Bombardier has to effectively check 20,000 wires per vehicle requiring about 13 to 16 extra shifts per vehicle. Bombardier hopes to make up for the delay in 2016, when it would produce one streetcar every five days. However, Bombardier backed off this promise, saying it would only deliver 16 new streetcars in 2016, that is, 13 more than had already been delivered by April 25, 2016, an average of fewer than two deliveries per month. Bombardier says it will use a second manufacturing plant in La Pocatière, Quebec, along with an additional assembly line in an unspecified location to help with production being completed in Thunder Bay. Bombardier hopes that the La Pocatière site will address the "dimensional issues with some parts and sub-assemblies" that delay delivery. On September 28, 2016, TTC CEO Andy Byford said that there were 22 of the new streetcars in operation, and expressed doubts that Bombardier would be able to meet its promise of 30 total deliveries by the end of 2016. However, Bombardier shipped the 30th vehicle on December 14, which arrived in Toronto on December 21. With the TTC's permission, Bombardier shipped the last four Flexity Outlook streetcars of 2016 to the Hillcrest Complex in an almost-finished state and completed them at the Leslie Barns. This allowed Bombardier to meet its 2016 delivery promise. However, according to Bombardier's original delivery plan, there should have been 100 Flexity streetcars in Toronto at the end of 2016. In January 2017, the TTC claimed that delays in delivery of the Flexity Outlook streetcars had resulted in both streetcar and bus shortages. Because the old CLRV and ALRV streetcars required extra maintenance, only 170 of the 200 old streetcars could be put into service. This shortage led to the replacement of streetcars by buses on some routes, which in turn led to a reduction of service on some bus routes. According to its revised plan issued in May 2016, Bombardier would deliver 40 streetcars in 2017, 76 in 2018 and 58 in 2019 to complete the 204-vehicle order. On October 12, 2017, Bombardier stated that it would deliver 35 Flexity Outlook streetcars by the end of 2017 instead of the planned 40. The company cited supply chain problems and that, to address these problems, it was setting up a second production site in addition to Thunder Bay, seeking additional suppliers and asking existing suppliers to increase their production. On January 1, 2018, the TTC announced that Bombardier had delivered 59 streetcars to date instead of the 65 it had predicted in October 2017 or the revised prediction of 63 from December. Thus, Bombardier delivered 29 streetcars in 2017 instead of the 35 predicted in October. In a December 21 email to the Toronto Star, Bombardier said it was still "mitigating issues in our supply chain". However, according to Bombardier's original delivery plan, there should have been 150 Flexity streetcars in Toronto at the end of 2017. TTC interim CEO Rick Leary revealed that the TTC was working on a contingency plan in the event that Bombardier missed the 2019 deadline. In February 2018, Bombardier announced it would set up a second production line in Kingston, Ontario to complement production at its Thunder Bay plant. The Kingston production line would require at least 100 new Bombardier employees and would start production of Toronto Flexity streetcars in the third quarter of 2018. With two production lines, Bombardier plans to deliver 65 streetcars in 2018, and 77 in 2019. By December 2018, the TTC had 117 Flexity streetcars available for revenue service with four more approved for delivery. Bombardier had promised to deliver 121 streetcars by the end of 2018. Bombardier had invested $20million to increase production capacity and began to produce Flexity streetcars at its Kingston facility in December 2018 (three months later than planned) as well as at Thunder Bay. At a TTC board meeting on October 24, 2019, Bombardier said it lost money on the TTC order for Flexity streetcars, as customizing the Flexity Outlook model for Toronto's environment was not as easy as Bombardier had expected. The difficulties were adapting the vehicle to the non-standard track gauge, grades and sharp curves of the system, and replacing the type of steel used in order to resist salt corrosion. Another problem was the inadequate knowledge transfer of skills from Germany to the Bombardier plant in Mexico. At the time of this announcement, Bombardier had shipped 188 streetcars to Toronto and expected to ship the remaining 16 by the end of the year. However, Bombardier admitted that one of its suppliers, that produced doors and braking systems among other components, was having production difficulties. On January 24, 2020, the TTC took delivery of the last of the 204 ordered from Bombardier. Streetcar 4603 was delivered by rail to the Hillcrest Complex from Thunder Bay. The last streetcar was a little over three weeks late, as Bombardier had promised to deliver the last car by the end of 2019. Just eight of the vehicles had been completed in Bombardier's Kingston plant; Bombardier had planned to have 30 vehicles manufactured there. On September 7, 2018, Flexity Outlook 4400 was the first to be pulled from service and sent by rail to La Pocatière. Bombardier expects to return it in June 2019. After fixing the first four or five vehicles, Bombardier expects a quicker turnaround for subsequent vehicles. Prototype 4401 had already been sent to La Pocatière in May 2018, but it was never in revenue service as Bombardier had not yet modified it to TTC requirements. Originally, the last affected streetcar was to be returned to Toronto by 2023. However, due to the decline in ridership in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the TTC was able to send 22 instead of 7 streetcars at a time back to Bombardier for warranty repairs. The TTC expects all warranty work to be completed by the end of 2021 based on the revised schedule. Legal action against Bombardier On October 16, 2015, the TTC announced that it has asked its board to consider legal action against Bombardier. TTC staff is recommending that the TTC board "commence legal action, or make a claim allowed for already in the contract, of $50million for late delivery" against Bombardier. Bombardier had committed to delivering 67 streetcars to the TTC by October 2015, but only ten were in service at the time. On October 28, 2015, the TTC board voted in favour of a lawsuit against Bombardier "for at least $50million to recoup lost costs", according to Chair Josh Colle, because of the company's failure to deliver the additional Flexity streetcars. TTC chief executive Andy Byford indicated that he was not interested in the money per se, and simply wants the streetcars. In a statement late that afternoon, Bombardier responded that it would not comment on the TTC's plan and would not offer "any speculation on potential impacts" on their operations. In April 2019, the TTC and Bombardier reached a settlement for an undisclosed sum. Order options As early as June 2013, TTC CEO Andy Byford expressed the need for the TTC to order an additional 60 vehicles. According to a 2015 TTC report, the extra vehicles would address rising streetcar demand due to residential growth downtown. The option for 60 additional vehicles would cost of $361million. The TTC can purchase an additional 60 vehicles at the current price, if the additional vehicles are ordered before the 60th vehicle is delivered. In September 2016, the TTC Board rejected the recommendation citing the Bombardier Flexity delivery delays, the extra cost of keeping the old fleet running, and the possibility of buying buses at a lower price with federal funding. Byford said that using buses instead of streetcars was inefficient due to capacity differences. TTC Chair Josh Colle said not considering the option is part of "our ongoing dramas and pressures with Bombardier." According to the Bombardier contract, the option for an additional 60 streetcars expired when the 60th car of the original order was delivered. The Flexity contract originally specified the installation of pantographs only for the first 60 vehicles. On February 24, 2014, the TTC exercised an option to put pantographs on the remaining 144 vehicles at a cost of $4.5million. Additional options In January 2018, the TTC Corporate Plan noted that 150 additional streetcars could be purchased by 2022 to increase system capacity, as well as to serve extensions along the city waterfront. In October 2020, the TTC board approved the purchase of 13 additional Flexity streetcars for $140million, with an option to purchase up to 60 streetcars if additional funding became available. In May 2021, an agreement was reached to order 60 streetcars and expand the Hillcrest Complex at a cost of $568million, with the cost shared between the three tiers of government. The Flexity streetcars would be built at the former Bombardier plant in Thunder Bay. Delivery of the vehicles was estimated to begin in 2023. These streetcars are to be built by Alstom following their acquisition of Bombardier Transportation in 2021. The TTC put the first vehicles of the 60-vehicle order into service on the 504 King route on November 17, 2023. The TTC expected the remaining vehicles to be delivered by 2025. The cost of the order comes out of a $568million streetcar program, which also covers reconfiguring the Hillcrest Complex to store at least 25 streetcars. The program cost was jointly funded by the federal and provincial governments ($180million each), and the City of Toronto ($208million). ==Operational history==

Introduction into service The Flexity Outlook streetcars were first introduced on the 510 Spadina line on August 31, 2014, On September 12, 2017, 509 Harbourfront became the first streetcar route to operate Flexity streetcars with electrical pickup by pantograph instead of trolley pole. However, carhouse movements still had to be made using the trolley pole with the changeover at Exhibition Loop. Rollout The following table presents the rollout dates for Flexity Outlook streetcars by route. However, it does not give the current vehicle status for a route; for current streetcar route status, see . 2018 On February 20, 2018, the use of trolley poles on Flexity Outlook streetcars led to dewirements and damaged overhead infrastructure at the grand union intersection of King Street and Spadina Avenue, and along St. Clair Avenue. The trolley pole shoe contains a carbon insert to provide electrical contact with the overhead wire and to lower the shoe to clear overhead wire hangers. Carbon inserts wear out and must be periodically replaced. The inserts on Flexity Outlook vehicles quickly wore out in rainy conditions, lasting less than eight hours instead of the expected one to two days for rainy weather. Flexity Outlook streetcars draw more current than the older CLRV and ALRV fleet, and this also shortened the life of the carbon insert. Eventually, all overhead wires will be converted for pantograph use, resolving this problem. In a heavy rainstorm on the evening of August 7, 2018, nine Flexity streetcars were damaged by flooding. Two streetcars were severely damaged after being partly submerged under a flooded underpass on King Street west of Sudbury Street after a flash flood blew a manhole cover. These two streetcars were sent to Bombardier's plant in Kanona, New York for restoration and replacement of damaged electrical components. Two other substantially damaged Flexity streetcars would be stored at the Leslie Barns for few months to effect repairs by Bombardier staff. Five others had only minor damage and were repaired within a few weeks. None of the damage was due to manufacturing problems. The TTC has since revised operating procedures to avoid flood damage to streetcars. On November 27, 2019, the TTC replaced all 35 Flexity streetcars operating on route 501 Queen with approximately 90 buses because of damage to the emergency brake system on 25 streetcars serving the route. The Flexity emergency brake system has metal bars that sit parallel to the rails and drop to the rails during hard braking in order to supplement the streetcar's disc brakes. A stationary object on the ground struck the metal bars on the left side of 22 streetcars travelling on route 501. Some metal bars were knocked off the streetcar, raising the risk of a derailment. The problem was compounded by an insufficient supply of replacement parts to repair all damaged vehicles. On November 28 and 29, 2019, the TTC ran test vehicles along the line with cameras pointed at the metal bar and determined that a piece of broken rail was the cause of the problem. The TTC suspected that the problem might have resolved itself during routine track maintenance. Route 501 service resumed on November 30, 2019, with spare CLRVs used to offset Flexity Outlook streetcars yet to be repaired. In December 2019, the Canadian Light Rail Vehicle was retired from service, with the last of the 204 Flexity streetcars ordered delivered in January 2020. By January 2020, after the retirement of the older CLRV and ALRV fleet, there were insufficient streetcars to service all streetcar routes for the foreseeable future, and the continued use of replacement buses was required. On routes that did use streetcars, buses may have supplemented streetcars during busy periods. On December 16, 2025, the last of the 60-vehicle order went into service. ==Maintenance==

maintenance and storage facility, which opened in 2015 The two existing carhouses had been designed to service the older high-floor streetcars with most equipment located under the vehicle floor, as opposed to low-floor vehicles with equipment located on the roof. They also did not meet the sufficient capacity to store all of the Flexity streetcars. On November 22, 2015, the TTC opened the Leslie Barns maintenance and storage facility, at the corner of Leslie Street and Lake Shore Boulevard East, exclusively to service the Flexity vehicles. A new building was also constructed at Roncesvalles Carhouse on the Queensway at Roncesvalles Avenue at the southern end of Roncesvalles Village to service the Flexity vehicles. In May 2021, it was announced that the Hillcrest Complex will be expanded and upgraded, allowing 60 additional streetcars to be delivered. ==Training==

To train drivers on the Flexity Outlook vehicles, a customized vehicular driving simulator is used, allowing navigation of the TTC's entire streetcar network using controls similar to those on the vehicles themselves. About a dozen landmark buildings and structures are depicted in the simulation, such as the CN Tower, Toronto City Hall and El Mocambo live music and entertainment venue at the northern end of Chinatown with most of the buildings along the simulated route being generic. The simulator features a full-scale Flexity Outlook cab with the windshield replaced by a curved computer graphics screen. The trainee in the cab can hear simulated street sounds. Connected to the simulator is a nearby trainer's station, from which a trainer can simulate problems for the trainee such as traffic interference, weather conditions, power outages and random passenger conversations. The simulator can track trainee errors. Initially installed at Hillcrest Complex, the simulator was later moved to Leslie Barns, the main streetcar maintenance facility. ==References==