CANADA: Toronto Transit Commission has cancelled a competitive tender for the supply of 70 six-car metro trainsets in favour of a single-source contract with Alstom Transport Canada. TTC said ‘in the face of US tariffs and economic uncertainty, this decision will support Canadian and Ontario workers with good manufacturing jobs and ensure reliable trains’.
The single-source process has been approved by the national, provincial and city governments
TTC said that to ensure Alstom delivers ‘state-of-the-art trains at a fair market price, maximises the creation of Canadian jobs, and benefits Toronto’, Alstom must deliver a product that meets its original specifications and maximises domestic content and jobs, with pricing subject to an independent third-party market price assessment.
Negotiations are to take place over the next few months, with a report to be submitted to the TTC board by the end of the year.
Planned procurement
The base procurement is for 55 trainsets to be jointly funded by the federal, provincial and city governments to replace ageing trains on Line 2. A pool of 15 trainsets would be allocated to cover operation of the Yonge North and Scarborough extensions.
The contract would include options for additional trains to meet future needs as funding is committed and subject to Alstom’s performance.
Made in Canada
‘To build the strongest economy in the G7, we need to ensure our investments are protecting jobs and championing industries right here in Canada’, said national Minister of Housing & Infrastructure Gregor Robertson on August 15.
Ontario’s Minister of Transportation Prabmeet Sarkaria said ‘our government is proud to protect Ontario from US tariffs by ensuring the TTC’s Line 2 subway trains will be made in Ontario, by Ontario workers. Working with our federal and municipal partners, we’ll continue to support Ontario workers and businesses while investing C$70bn in the largest subway expansion in Canadian history.’
Lana Payne, National President of the Unifor union which represents workers at Alstom’s Thunder Bay factory, said ‘Unifor fought long and hard to get the federal, provincial and municipal governments onboard and support a Made in Canada solution. We must use our Canadian procurement dollars to support Canadian workers and Canadian-made products, especially given the current trade war.’
