Canadian Light Rail Vehicle

"CLRV" and "ALRV" redirect here. For other uses, see CLRV (disambiguation).

CLRV
A Carlton car crosses the Main Street Bridge
Manufacturer	L1 - SIG L2 - UTDC
Constructed	1977-1981
Number built	196
Number in service	191
Number scrapped	5
Fleet numbers	L1 - 4000-4005 L2 - 4010-4199
Capacity	42-46 seated*, 132 crush load *during rebuilds 4 seats removed
Operator(s)	Toronto Transit Commission
Depot(s)	Roncesvalles, Russell (Connaught)
Line(s) served	Toronto Streetcar System
Specifications
Car length	15,226 mm (49 ft 11.4 in)
Width	2,540 mm (8 ft 4 in) (2,591 mm or 8 ft 6.0 in over rub rails)
Height	3,625 mm (11 ft 10.7 in)
Floor height	1,125 mm (44.3 in)
Platform height	curb height or level with rail head
Entry	4 steps (3 risers inside plus step up from outside)
Doors	2 (1 dual bi-fold front door; 2 paired double leaf rear doorways)
Articulated sections	(Rigid Body)
Maximum speed	80 km/h (50 mph)
Weight	22,685 kg (50,012 lb)
Power output	2 x 136 kW (182 hp) continuous
Acceleration	1.47 m/s2 (4.8 ft/s2) (= 5.3km/h per second or 3.3 mph per sec.)
Deceleration	1.6 m/s2 (5.2 ft/s2) (3.46 m/s2 or 11.4 ft/s2 emergency) (respectively 3.6 mph per sec. and 7 mph per sec.)
Electric system(s)	600 V DC Overhead trolley wire
Current collection method	Trolley pole
Braking system(s)	Air (Westinghouse Air Brake Company)
Track gauge	4 ft 10 7⁄8 in (1,495 mm) - TTC Gauge

CLRV

Specifications Minimum curve 36 ft (10.973 m) Traction motors DC

ALRV
A Queen car pauses at Spadina Avenue
Manufacturer	MAN and UTDC Urban Transportation Development Corporation
Constructed	1982 1987-1989
Number built	1 prototype 52 standard
Number in service	0 (p) 50 (s)
Number scrapped	2 (p) 2 (s)
Fleet numbers	4900 (prototype) 4200-4251 (standard)
Capacity	61 seated, 205 crush load
Operator(s)	Toronto Transit Commission
Line(s) served	Toronto Streetcar System
Specifications
Car length	23,164 mm (76 ft 0 in)
Width	2,540 mm (8 ft 4 in) (2,591 mm or 8 ft 6.0 in over rub rails)
Height	3,626 mm (11 ft 10.8 in) to roof; roof equipment additional
Floor height	1,125 mm (44.3 in)
Platform height	curb height or level with rail head
Entry	4 steps (3 risers inside plus step up from outside)
Doors	3
Articulated sections	2
Maximum speed	80 km/h (50 mph)
Weight	36,745 kg (81,009 lb)
Power output	4 x 65 kW (87 hp) continuous
Acceleration	1.2 m/s2 (3.9 ft/s2)
Deceleration	1.6 m/s2 (5.2 ft/s2) (3.13 m/s2 or 10.3 ft/s2 emergency) (respectively 3.6 mph per sec. and 7 mph per sec.)
Electric system(s)	600 V DC Overhead trolley wire
Current collection method	Trolley pole
Braking system(s)	Air (Westinghouse Air Brake Company)
Track gauge	4 ft 10 7⁄8 in (1,495 mm) - TTC Gauge

ALRV

Specifications Minimum curve 36 ft (10.973 m) Traction motors DC

The Canadian Light Rail Vehicle (CLRV) and Articulated Light Rail Vehicle (ALRV) are two types of streetcars that are used by the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) in Toronto, Canada.

Background

Towards the end of the 1970s and the beginning of the 1980s, TTC's fleet of PCC streetcars had approached (or exceeded in some cases) the end of its 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 and in other new streetcar developments throughout the country. There was also a similar attempt of the concept made in the United States around the same time, with cars built by Boeing Vertol for Boston's Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority and the San Francisco Municipal Railway.

Production and operation

The first ten cars were to be manufactured by SIG of Zurich, Switzerland, and used as templates for Urban Transportation Development Corporation (UTDC) (now Bombardier) to manufacture the rest at the Hawker-Siddeley Canada Ltd. Thunder Bay works. However, as a cost-saving measure this number was reduced to six, accounting for the absence of CLRVs 4006-4009. These cars are used by the TTC and are numbered 4000 to 4005, and 4010-4199.

Car 4000 had a pantograph when being tested by SIG on the Orbe–Chavornay Railway and was converted to trolley pole before being delivered to Toronto.

In 1980, cars 4027, 4029 and 4031 were leased and tested by the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA). During this time, the cars were occasionally operated as two- and three-car trains. However, the MBTA did not adopt the CLRV design for its light rail fleet.

CLRVs and ALRVs have two green bull's-eye lights in the upper corners of the front, above the destination sign, which uses back-lit roller boards.

When the CLRVs and ALRVs were delivered in the 1970s and 1980s respectively, they were equipped with gongs as an audible warning signal. Most cars were retrofitted with horns in the late 1990s when the 510 Spadina line opened. The horns were salvaged from retired H1 and M1 subway cars. However, in 2011-2012 the CLRVs and ALRVs were equipped with new air horns or automobile-type electric horns.

As of 2015, the only CLRV to be retired was #4063. The car was intended to be the first prototype for the TTC's CLRV overhaul program, which was to include a complete reconstruction of the body as well as new propulsion and control systems. However, after the car was stripped, the overhaul program was cancelled. Because of a diminishing supply of spare parts for the active fleet, it was decided that the unit would be scrapped and all usable parts be salvaged for repairs to the existing fleet. The shell was sold for scrap in March 2009 to Future Enterprises of Hamilton, Ontario.

The ALRV is a double-module version based from the CLRV design, it 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. Following a test run, it was rear-ended by another streetcar on the test track, suffering extensive damage, and was scrapped.

The production cars were built by two contractors, MAN of Germany for bogies and articulation, and UTDC at the Thunder Bay Plant. The cars are numbered 4200-4251.

Impact and legacy

The previous attempt (made in the United States) to design a US standard light rail car design was unsuccessful, and the resulting cars proved troublesome to both transit systems that had purchased them. While the CLRV had fared better for Toronto's streetcar system, other cities expressed little interest in the design, which thus remained exclusive to Toronto's streetcar system. This made the cars increasingly difficult and costly to maintain, as they required specially-made parts, including electronic modules no longer available.

The fact that the cars are not wheelchair accessible, and the passage of the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act mandating all public transport to be fully accessible by 2025, triggered the TTC to replace them with a version of the Bombardier Flexity Outlook, a low-floor vehicle.

Final years of service

The CLRV and ALRV streetcars are being withdrawn from service and will be replaced by accessible Flexity Outlook vehicles as more arrive and enter service. It is expected that the complete replacement of the CLRVs and ALRVs will not be finished until the entire Toronto streetcar network is equipped with Flexities by 2019.

In June 2015, Stephen Lam, head of the TTC's streetcar department, said 30 of the 52 ALRV streetcars will be renovated with the option available for another 10. The remaining 12 ALRVs will be stripped of useful parts and scrapped. The renovations will include new energy-efficient LED lights, upgraded floors and fresh seats. This is part of a $2.4 million overhaul to extend the life of the vehicles to 2024. The first renovated vehicle of the ALRV streetcar fleet #4217 entered service on October 15, 2015.

The TTC has started the process to scrap its least reliable CLRV streetcars. Some will be auctioned off in bulk to museums and collectors but most will be broken up for scrap over the next few years starting from 2015.

Winter operational issues

During the winters of 2013/2014 and 2014/2015, many of the CLRV and ALRV streetcars broke down operating in temperatures below -20C due to their age. On one of the worst days in January, 2014, 48 streetcars fail to run for the morning rush hour. The older streetcars use pressurized air passing through tubes and valves to operate such things as suspension, braking, windshield wipers, doors and the rail sander (for traction under icy conditions). Condensation can freeze and block the air tubes causing a variety of malfunctions. Over time, salt erodes the air tanks and the tubing gets brittle and leaks leading to less efficient air flow which may cause the compressor beneath the tail of the car to overheat and break down. To address these problems, the TTC performed fixes taking 2-3 days per streetcar to implement. These included the installation of new air tanks and filters, the replacement of old tubing to the windshield wipers, repairs on the valves controlling air flow to the rail sanders, overhaul of the brake valves, and the correction of any suspension system deficiencies.

See also

• Hawker Siddeley Canada proposed their version of a streetcar in the 1970s known as the Municipal Service Car, but the bus-like car lost out to the CLRV.
• US Standard Light Rail Vehicle, a similar attempt to build a standardized PCC successor in the US which, unlike the CLRV, failed.
• Kawasaki Heavy Industries Rolling Stock Company K LRV for SEPTA to replace PCC streetcars and similar to the CLRV
• Santa Clara VTA Light-rail, which used a somewhat similar car design also produced by UTDC.
• Flexity Outlook (Toronto LRV) (successor of Toronto's fleet of CLRV/ALRVs)
• Toronto streetcar system
• Toronto streetcar system rolling stock
• Light Rail Vehicle

External links

• Media related to at Wikimedia Commons
• Media related to at Wikimedia Commons
• The Canadian Light Rail Vehicles (The CLRVs)
• The Articulated Light Rail Vehicles (The ALRVs)