GRT says ‘adjustments’ being made to freezing rain plan after latest ION disruption

Ice pellets on a car window.
Ice pellets and freezing rain hit Waterloo Region on Nov. 8, 2023. Christine Clark/CityNews Kitchener

By Erin Anderson

Posted Nov 8, 2023 06:42:18 PM.

Last Updated Nov 16, 2023 09:44:47 AM.

Wednesday night’s icy, wintry weather led to an ION service disruption and it’s not the first time it’s happened.

Grand River Transit announced just before 6:30 p.m. that ION trains were not running because of the weather conditions.

It came as a freezing rain warning was in effect for Waterloo Region.

On Thursday, GRT confirmed that it took about two hours for full ION train service to resume on Wednesday night. Replacement shuttle buses hit the road to fill in the gaps during the disruption.

A statement said GRT is working with the LRT management company Keolis to make adjustments to the freezing rain plan for future weather events.

Back in 2019, Keolis spoke with CityNews Kitchener and confirmed that freezing rain poses a significant challenge to the ION system because of the ice build-up, including on the overhead wires.

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