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Mayor Jim Watson and the chairs of the transit and transportation committees are asking staff to provide updates on the Confederation Line LRT construction each month until the $2.1-billion system opens in November.
Council members received memos Wednesday morning with a bit more information on the financial impact of the LRT delay, but it could take several months, possibly more than a year, until taxpayers learn the full extent of the extra costs.
Until now, the final payment to the Rideau Transit Group for building the LRT system has been secret. City manager Steve Kanellakos told council members in one memo that RTG will get $200 million when the consortium achieves “revenue service availability,” which essentially means handing the keys over to the city. The final payment is part of the $2.1 billion.
So, as long as the handover is delayed, RTG won’t get that major, final payment.
However, the big hit to property taxpayers might be the cost to maintain a cross-core Transitway service for about five months more than expected. The LRT contract identified May 24 as the handover date, but council learned recently that the June 2016 sinkhole on Rideau Street set back RTG.
The new handover date is Nov. 2, with the city expecting to welcome its first fare-paying passengers by the end of that month.
Kanellakos told council that the LRT-related detours cost about $1.9 million monthly, but there will be additional costs that won’t be fully known until construction is finished.
“The project agreement serves as a framework for the city to seek direct delay costs from the contractor,” Kanellakos said in his memo. “It is the city’s position that RTG needs to cover our costs for the delay. The city will protect the interests of its taxpayers against extra costs — be it to keep buses running, for our costs for monitoring the construction, for the costs associated with disruption in lane closures and for the additional strains on our transit resources.”
Kanellakos estimated RTG is absorbing between $8 million and $10 million in extra costs each month because of the delay, not including costs associated with fixing the sinkhole.
The city can also hold back money under the contract until “milestone” work is complete. Kanellakos says the city is discussing the timelines with RTG.
“The contract is working just as it was designed to work,” Kannellakos said in his memo. “Unexpected events occur, such as the sinkhole, in multi-billion dollar projects with this level of complexity. Council was prudent to transfer this risk and responsibility to the private sector. Staff will work with RTG to deliver a system that will provide both great value for money to taxpayers and great service for transit users.”
Transit chair Stephen Blais, transportation chair Keith Egli and Watson want staff to provide LRT updates at monthly finance and economic development committee meetings. The next meeting is scheduled for March 6.
Updates haven’t been as frequent over the course of construction. The city has largely relied on written summaries after each quarter to keep politicians in the loop.
jwilling@postmedia.com
twitter.com/JonathanWilling
查看原文...
Council members received memos Wednesday morning with a bit more information on the financial impact of the LRT delay, but it could take several months, possibly more than a year, until taxpayers learn the full extent of the extra costs.
Until now, the final payment to the Rideau Transit Group for building the LRT system has been secret. City manager Steve Kanellakos told council members in one memo that RTG will get $200 million when the consortium achieves “revenue service availability,” which essentially means handing the keys over to the city. The final payment is part of the $2.1 billion.
So, as long as the handover is delayed, RTG won’t get that major, final payment.
However, the big hit to property taxpayers might be the cost to maintain a cross-core Transitway service for about five months more than expected. The LRT contract identified May 24 as the handover date, but council learned recently that the June 2016 sinkhole on Rideau Street set back RTG.
The new handover date is Nov. 2, with the city expecting to welcome its first fare-paying passengers by the end of that month.
Kanellakos told council that the LRT-related detours cost about $1.9 million monthly, but there will be additional costs that won’t be fully known until construction is finished.
“The project agreement serves as a framework for the city to seek direct delay costs from the contractor,” Kanellakos said in his memo. “It is the city’s position that RTG needs to cover our costs for the delay. The city will protect the interests of its taxpayers against extra costs — be it to keep buses running, for our costs for monitoring the construction, for the costs associated with disruption in lane closures and for the additional strains on our transit resources.”
Kanellakos estimated RTG is absorbing between $8 million and $10 million in extra costs each month because of the delay, not including costs associated with fixing the sinkhole.
The city can also hold back money under the contract until “milestone” work is complete. Kanellakos says the city is discussing the timelines with RTG.
“The contract is working just as it was designed to work,” Kannellakos said in his memo. “Unexpected events occur, such as the sinkhole, in multi-billion dollar projects with this level of complexity. Council was prudent to transfer this risk and responsibility to the private sector. Staff will work with RTG to deliver a system that will provide both great value for money to taxpayers and great service for transit users.”
Transit chair Stephen Blais, transportation chair Keith Egli and Watson want staff to provide LRT updates at monthly finance and economic development committee meetings. The next meeting is scheduled for March 6.
Updates haven’t been as frequent over the course of construction. The city has largely relied on written summaries after each quarter to keep politicians in the loop.
jwilling@postmedia.com
twitter.com/JonathanWilling
查看原文...
