Leslie Barns Explained

Leslie Barns
Style:TTC
Address:1165 Lake Shore Boulevard East
Borough:Toronto, Ontario
Country:Canada
Structure:Flexity Outlook streetcar maintenance and storage facility
Owned:City of Toronto
Operator:Toronto Transit Commission
Status:Active

Leslie Barns is a streetcar maintenance and storage facility at the southeast corner of Leslie Street and Lake Shore Boulevard[1] in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It has been built to house and service the majority of Toronto Transit Commission's fleet of Flexity Outlook light rail vehicles.[2]

Background

While the existing Roncesvalles Carhouse and Russell Carhouse will house some of the vehicles, these older facilities cannot accommodate the entire fleet of Flexity streetcars, which are considerably longer than the Canadian Light Rail Vehicle/Articulated Light Rail Vehicle fleet.[3] [4] [5] [6]

The maintenance facilities at the Harvey Shops within the Hillcrest Complex, as at the two carhouses, are designed for cars with underfloor equipment and maintenance access from pits under the vehicles. The Flexity streetcars have their equipment on the roof, and require a different shop layout for maintenance. Another problem at the Harvey Shops is that most of the service bays can only be accessed by a transfer table that is only 15m (49feet) long while the Flexity cars are 30m (100feet) long. Thus, the Harvey Shops are unsuitable for the new fleet.

The TTC has ordered 204 Flexity streetcars. The plan is to house 60 of them at the west-end Roncesvalles Carhouse, 40 of them at the east-end Russell Carhouse, and the remaining 104 at the Leslie Barns.

The TTC has been considering adding 60 more Flexitys to the current 204-car order to handle growth in demand and possible new streetcar lines along the Waterfront. The Leslie Barns is designed with enough storage so that it plus the two existing carhouses could handle a fleet of 264 vehicles.[7]

Sites considered

The TTC considered six sites for the new facility.[8] They were:[9]

Site 1 was the TTC's preferred site. Site 2 was rejected because of its proximity to the Film Studio district and the need for an access track through a residential neighbourhood. Sites 3–6 were rejected because they were further from the existing streetcar system than sites 1 and 2.After the TTC announced its choice, local councillors asked the TTC to investigate additional sites away from their wards. (A local complaint was that the Ashbridges choice would deny the community future additional parkland, and there were concerns about streetcar traffic on Leslie Street.) Thus, four additional sites were briefly studied:[10] [11]

In 2020, with respect to a carhouse at the Hillcrest Complex, the TTC somewhat reversed its previous opinion and proposed a carhouse there for 25 vehicles in order to provide more storage space for future fleet expansion and to eliminate the travel time between Roncesvalles Carhouse and the 512 St. Clair line.[12] [13]

Connecting track

The Leslie Barns has a double-track, non-revenue streetcar line connecting the facility to the rest of the streetcar network. The line runs about along Leslie Street from Queen Street East south to North Service Road where the facility entrance is located.[14]

The track on Leslie Street is specially designed to minimize noise and vibration. The track is laid within a concrete channel or "tub" which has vertical concrete wings along a concrete base. This tub will contain a rubber-like substance that will provide vibration isolation between the track and the roadbed.[15]

Before City Council approved the Leslie Street connection, there were community concerns about introducing streetcar traffic on that street which is residential between Queen Street and Mosley Street. Thus, an alternative was suggested to run the connecting track further east through the Russell Carhouse and via the industrial Knox Street to Lake Shore Boulevard.[16] The TTC rejected this proposal because of lower storage capacity at the Russell Carhouse, extra street and bicycle path crossings, extra time for streetcars to enter and leave service and project delays to switch plans.

As of April 2016, most streetcars enter service via Leslie Street at about 7:25a.m. and return to the carhouse around 9p.m.

Facilities

The facility will consist of four buildings: the Carhouse 17510sqm, the Traction Power Substation 685sqm, the Yard Control Huts 16sqm, and the Irrigation Hut 25sqm, for a combined floor area of 18236sqm. The plot of land for the facility occupies 26000sqm. The facility has indoor service bays for 30 Flexity streetcars and can store 100 more in the yard. It can provide fleet repair services for up to 20 vehicles at a time. Outside, there is a 250m (820feet) long braking test track.[17] [18] In all, there are 8.3km (05.2miles) of track on the property.

Service bays in the Leslie Barns accommodate a two-tiered maintenance system. The undersides of the low-floor streetcars are accessed via pits. TTC workers access the HVAC and propulsion systems, which are built into the roof of the low-floor Flexity Outlook vehicles, via overhead catwalks. The carhouse is wired with the overhead catenary system that supplies power to the vehicles. The exception is the paint booth, into which the streetcars are "muled" or pushed.

Leslie Barns has an electronic streetcar-dispatch system to show the position of streetcars in the yard. With the electronic system, operators coming on shift can monitor the location of their assigned streetcar from the lounge. A maintenance worker or "yard jockey" delivers the vehicle to the operator on the west side of the barn.

About 200 TTC maintenance and operations workers will work at the Leslie Barns once all the new streetcars are delivered. The facility will also be the site for all streetcar operator and maintenance training.

The carhouse building has a north-sloping green roof, and a stormwater management pond at the east end of the yard to irrigate the rooftop plantings, a mix of alliums and sedums. Three hundred native trees will also be planted on the property. The carhouse building has specially glazed windows striped to deter birds from flying into the building.

A noise reduction wall was erected around the perimeter of the Leslie Barns to meet Ontario Ministry of the Environment noise limit requirements. The wall will include decorative features such as a red panel design and greenery.[19]

The facility also has a Flexity simulator consisting of the interior of the operator cab for training operators.[20]

Parkland

Outside the facility walls, along Leslie Street and Lakeshore Boulevard, there is a linear park incorporating the Martin Goodman Trail, wide multi-use paths, grass, plants and benches. Grading will also reduce the perimeter wall's perceived height. Peek-a-boo panels will permit passersby to watch activity inside the yard. Vines will be trained up mesh panels on the wall.[21]

History

In June 2009, the Ashbridges Bay Streetcar Maintenance & Storage Facility (now the Leslie Barns) was projected to cost $345million CAD, but this did not include provision for soil removal and site remediation, nor for the connection track to Queen Street.[22] Site remediation was complicated by the site's prior history as landfill of Lake Ontario.[23]

On November 11, 2009, Toronto City Council chose the site for the Ashbridges Bay Streetcar Maintenance & Storage Facility at the southeast corner of Leslie Street and Lake Shore Boulevard.

In November 2012, the TTC decided to change the name of the carhouse from the "Ashbridges Bay Streetcar Maintenance & Storage Facility" to the more colloquial "Leslie Barns" at the request of the local community and councillors.[24]

By June 2013, the capital cost of the facility was budgeted at $497million CAD.[25]

By June 2013, the TTC had a contingency plan to store up to 22 older CLRV streetcars at Exhibition Loop in 2014 to make space for Flexity streetcars arriving before the availability of Leslie Barns.[26]

In September 2013, construction began on the spur along Leslie Street from the facility to Queen Street East.[27] [28] The construction was projected to require 12 weeks of road closures.

On January 28, 2015, Natalie Alcoba wrote in the National Post that the facility was expected to be almost empty when it opened later in 2015 because Bombardier had fallen far behind delivery of the new vehicles. As of October 2015 only ten new Flexity vehicles were in operation, when the delivery schedule said 43 vehicles should have been delivered.

In May 2015, 60m (200feet) of track was laid 9cm (04inches) too high by the contractor and had to be rebuilt, resulting in delays to the track project time line to mid-July 2015.[29]

With the opening of the Leslie Barns on November 22, 2015, the temporary storage of cars at Exhibition Loop ended.[30] Although the Flexity streetcars started operating out of the facility on November 22, 2015, the barns were still under construction and would not be fully occupied by the TTC until early 2016.[31]

On May 28, 2016, the TTC officially opened the Leslie Barns in a ceremony starting off a Doors Open event with the public visiting the facility.[32] However, the Leslie Barns had been in at least partial operation since November 22, 2015.

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Project History Leslie Barns . . September 7, 2014 . August 11, 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20140811095355/http://ttc.ca/About_the_TTC/Projects/Leslie_Barns/project_history.jsp . live .
  2. Web site: Leslie Barns Streetcar Maintenance & Storage Facility . . September 7, 2014 . September 13, 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20140913115446/http://www.ttc.ca/About_the_TTC/Projects/Leslie_Barns/index.jsp . live .
  3. News: TTC moving ahead with new facility in Leslieville . . Alcoba . Natalie . February 2, 2011 . April 11, 2013 . live . https://archive.today/20130411111230/http://news.nationalpost.com/2011/02/02/ttc-moving-ahead-with-new-facility-in-leslieville/ . Staff are willing to look at housing some of the vehicles at the Hillcrest yard, or the Exhibition Loop, but say the Ashbridges site is necessary for, at the very least, maintenance. The plan is already nine months delayed, and deferring Wednesday's decision by 90 days means the soil removal work cannot begin until August because of migratory birds..
  4. Web site: New Light Rail Vehicle (LRV) Maintenance & Storage Facility . . February 22, 2012 . March 15, 2012 . https://web.archive.org/web/20130622061926/http://www.toronto.ca/involved/projects/lrv/ . June 22, 2013.
  5. Web site: TRANSIT: TTC looking to Portlands for its storage facility . . June 11, 2009 . March 16, 2012 . Nickle . David . https://web.archive.org/web/20160304070550/http://www.durhamregion.com/print/36960 . live . March 4, 2016.
  6. News: EAST TORONTO: Residents not happy with possible LRV facility . . June 18, 2009 . March 16, 2012 . Nickle . David . https://web.archive.org/web/20180312211351/http://www.insidetoronto.com/insidetoronto/article/74464 . live . March 12, 2018.
  7. Web site: Below The Line . Steve . Munro . Steve Munro . January 27, 2015 . November 9, 2015 . February 3, 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160203081646/http://stevemunro.ca/2015/01/27/below-the-line/ . live .
  8. Web site: Map with locations of sites considered . November 11, 2015 . February 3, 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160203081646/https://swanboatsteve.files.wordpress.com/2009/05/carhousesites2c.jpg . live .
  9. Web site: Port Lands Carhouse and Maintenance Facility . Steve Munro . Munro . Steve . May 29, 2009 . November 11, 2015 . February 3, 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160203081646/http://stevemunro.ca/2009/05/29/port-lands-carhouse-and-maintenance-facility/ . live .
  10. Web site: The Ashbridge Carhouse Debate . Steve Munro . Munro . Steve . February 9, 2011 . November 11, 2015 . February 3, 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160203081646/http://stevemunro.ca/2011/02/09/the-ashbridge-carhouse-debate/ . live .
  11. Web site: The Route to Ashbridge Carhouse . Steve Munro . Munro . Steve . July 7, 2011 . November 11, 2015 . March 4, 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160304092709/http://stevemunro.ca/2011/07/07/the-route-to-ashbridge-carhouse/ . live .
  12. Web site: TTC Fleet Procurement Strategy and Plan . . October 22, 2020 . October 17, 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20201019101440/http://ttc.ca/About_the_TTC/Commission_reports_and_information/Commission_meetings/2020/October_22/Reports/5_TTC_Fleet_Procurement_Strategy_and_Plan.pdf . October 19, 2020 .
  13. Web site: Repurposing TTC’s Hillcrest Complex . . John . Thompson . August 9, 2018 . August 11, 2018 . August 12, 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180812053950/https://www.railwayage.com/passenger/repurposing-ttcs-hillcrest-complex/ . live .
  14. Web site: North Service Road & Leslie Street . . November 9, 2015 . September 13, 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220913194825/https://www.google.com/maps/@43.6598984,-79.3262042,16z . live .
  15. News: Another Delay For Leslie Street . Steve Munro . Munro . Steve . May 28, 2015 . May 28, 2015 . The purpose of the [concrete] "tub" track structure turns out to not be a function of load distribution on the soil below, but to act as a container for a "hockey puck" like substance that will provide vibration isolation between the track and the roadbed. This is similar to the design used on new subway lines where there is a layer of large discs between the concrete ties under the track and the floor of the tunnel. . May 30, 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150530210942/http://stevemunro.ca/2015/05/28/another-delay-for-leslie-street/ . live .
  16. Web site: Knox Avenue Route Reassessment . TTC . July 2011 . November 12, 2015 . February 3, 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160203081646/https://swanboatsteve.files.wordpress.com/2011/07/20110706knoxrevisedchse.jpg . live .
  17. News: Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About TTC's New 'Leslie Barn' . Urban Toronto . Terpstra . Nigel . November 23, 2012 . April 30, 2013 . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20130430074745/http://urbantoronto.ca/news/2012/11/everything-you-ever-wanted-know-about-ttcs-new-leslie-barn . Another vital but less-talked about piece of Toronto's evolving transit network is the Ashbridges Bay Streetcar Maintenance & Storage Facility, recently redubbed 'The Leslie Barn.' This 279,463 square foot facility will be sited on a piece of vacant land at the southeast corner of Leslie Street and Lake Shore Blvd..
  18. Web site: Leslie Barns . Transit Toronto . Bow . James . September 7, 2015 . November 9, 2015 . September 25, 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150925032123/http://transit.toronto.on.ca/streetcar/4305.shtml . live .
  19. Web site: Construction Overview and FAQs . . November 9, 2015 . October 24, 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20151024151428/http://www.ttc.ca/About_the_TTC/Projects/Leslie_Barns/Construction_Overview.jsp . live .
  20. News: Fast cars, slow pedestrians, swerving cyclists: How difficult is it to drive a streetcar? . September 4, 2017 . . Salma . Ibrahim . November 30, 2019 . June 12, 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190612025217/https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/matt-galloway-drives-streetcar-simulator-1.4270147 . live .
  21. News: A peek inside Leslie Barns, the TTC's new high-tech garage . . Tess . Kalinowski . April 10, 2016 . April 11, 2016 . April 11, 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160411102026/http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/transportation/2016/04/10/a-peek-inside-leslie-barns-the-ttcs-new-high-tech-garage.html . live .
  22. Web site: The Saga of Leslie Barns . Steve . Munro . Steve Munro . April 13, 2013 . November 9, 2015 . February 3, 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160203081646/http://stevemunro.ca/2013/04/13/the-saga-of-leslie-barns/ . live .
  23. News: Tigchelaar . Mark . Making the Land Under the Leslie Barns Buildable . January 25, 2019 . Urban Toronto . January 25, 2019 . January 26, 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190126001015/http://urbantoronto.ca/news/2019/01/guest-column-making-land-under-leslie-barns-buildable . live .
  24. Web site: TTC Meeting Wrapup for December 19, 2012 . Steve . Munro . Steve Munro . December 30, 2012 . November 9, 2015 . February 3, 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160203081646/http://stevemunro.ca/2012/12/30/ttc-meeting-wrapup-for-december-19-2012/ . live .
  25. News: New streetcars will roll out on Spadina, Bathurst first . . Kitchings . Chris . June 20, 2013 . June 20, 2013 . According to the implementation plan, the capital costs for the streetcars and upgrades have surpassed $2billion. That figure includes the $1.1-billion price tag for the streetcars themselves, $497million for a new Leslie Street facility where the streetcars will be stored and maintained, and infrastructure modifications. . June 23, 2013 . https://web.archive.org/web/20130623060705/http://toronto.ctvnews.ca/new-streetcars-will-roll-out-on-spadina-bathurst-first-1.1332068 . live .
  26. Web site: TTC Low Floor LRV Roll Out Plan Released . Steve . Munro . Steve Munro . June 25, 2013 . November 9, 2015 . February 3, 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160203081646/http://stevemunro.ca/2013/06/25/ttc-low-floor-lrv-roll-out-plan-released/ . live .
  27. News: Leslie Street closure at Lake Shore Boulevard expected to last 12 weeks . . September 19, 2013 . September 23, 2013 . February 10, 2018 . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20180210181449/https://www.insidetoronto.com/news-story/4115466-leslie-street-closure-at-lake-shore-boulevard-expected-to-last-12-weeks/ . The TTC was expecting a 12-week closure of Leslie Street immediately north of Lake Shore Boulevard to begin as soon as this week..
  28. Web site: Leslie Barns: September 13, 2013 – Construction Update, Closure on Leslie Street . . September 13, 2013 . September 1, 2013 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20130901153316/http://ttc.ca/About_the_TTC/Projects/Leslie_Barns/news.jsp.
  29. Web site: Leslie Street Barns delayed by faulty streetcar track installation . Canadian Broadcasting Corporation . May 28, 2015 . May 28, 2015 . May 29, 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150529081031/http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/leslie-street-barns-delayed-by-faulty-streetcar-track-installation-1.3090842 . live .
  30. News: TTC Service Changes Effective November 22 and December 20, 2015 . Steve . Munro . Steve Munro . October 30, 2015 . October 31, 2015 . October 30, 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20151030235058/http://stevemunro.ca/2015/10/30/ttc-service-changes-effective-november-22-and-december-20-2015/ . live .
  31. Web site: TTC's new streetcar facility to enter service this Sunday . November 20, 2015 . News . TTC . This Sun., Nov. 22, the TTC's new low-floor streetcars will begin operating out of Leslie Barns, the TTC's new streetcar facility at the corner of Leslie St. and Lake Shore Blvd. E. The Barns is still under construction and won't be fully occupied by the TTC until early next year. . November 23, 2015 . October 10, 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20191010223803/https://ttc.ca/News/2015/November/1120_leslie_barns.jsp . dead .
  32. Web site: Doors officially open at TTC's Leslie Barns . . May 26, 2016 . May 29, 2016 . May 29, 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160529184147/http://ttc.ca/News/2016/May/05-26-16NR2.jsp . live .

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