City crews working overnight to repair LRT rail that cracked in the cold

Extremely cold temperatures in Edmonton caused a minor crack in an LRT track near Southgate Centre yesterday, and another crack in a different LRT rail today.

The first track was supposed to be repaired overnight after the intersection was closed off at 8 pm Tuesday, but according to the city, it was so cold the equipment wasn’t able to work properly.

“Last night, due to extremely cold temperatures of roughly -50 with the wind chill, our City of Edmonton LRT track crew encountered challenges with equipment while trying to repair the cracked rail at 51 Ave and 111 Street,” said city spokesperson Rowan Anderson in a statement to Daily Hive.

“Despite the extreme temperatures, crews worked throughout the night and were able to complete the repair by mid-morning this morning.”

Kudos to @CityofEdmonton LRT track crews who worked all night in -45 to fix a rail at 51 Av. Cold weather work is challenging for staff & equipment. Crews will be out again tonight to repair a rail at 34 Av. Our dedicated crews ensure Edmontonians can commute safely. #yegtransit pic.twitter.com/t9sgJ24SR2

— Edmonton Transit Service (ETS) (@takeETSalert) January 15, 2020

However, the city says another cracked rail occurred last night due to the cold, and crews will work overnight again to repair it by tomorrow morning.

“Around 1 am last night, an additional cracked rail occurred at 34 Ave and 111 Street due to the extreme temperatures,” said Anderson.

“LRT track crews will begin repairing this cracked rail at 7 pm tonight, and hope to have the repair completed by 4 am so that there is no impact to tomorrow morning’s commute.”