Toronto — Streetcar Procurement Hits Milestone

Rail Transit Online, January 2009

Negotiations on technical details and commercial arrangements between the Toronto Transit Commission and three potential bidders for a fleet of 204 new low-floor streetcars were completed by Jan. 5, finishing the second of three phases in the procurement process. Alstom, Bombardier and Siemens were then given seven weeks to submit their final prices to TTC staff, which will recommend a winner to the nine-member commission.

A final decision on the C$1.25-billion contract is expected in April. The three firms were invited to take part after the TTC rejected the only two bids submitted under a request for proposals issued early last year. Bombardier's offer was said to be technically non-compliant and the bid from the small British firm TRAM Power Ltd. was described as "not commercially viable," characterizations both companies denied.

Last Aug. 27, the TTC formally approved re-opening the procurement process using the multi-phase process and invited Alstom Transportation Inc., Bombardier Transportation Canada Inc., and Siemens Canada Ltd. to participate. The technical requirements of the original RFP were unchanged and each of the three companies said it could build a streetcar that met those requirements.