The Ottawa LRT system seems to have had more problems than most other systems. I seldom use it as I am retired so my experience is limited. It seems to be suffering from problems caused by political interference and incompetence in the design and procurement processes.
stylizer put his hand on it best...
Ottawa's weather is extreme, Far worse than most other nations. We are colder than all but one Capital (Ulan Bator). Our weather is more sever than other cities that are 1000-2000 KM further north than we are.
-30 in winter +35 in summer. That is a 65 degree swing... a simple 3 inch diameter hole will experience 0.001-0.002 inches of expansion or contraction. Now the eye barely sees this, but the stresses on the metal are massive.
So now add stresses due to loading. and teh combine stresses can lead to failure. Imagine a +35 day, a full train and it moving at top speed... Or worst a -30 day, a full train, it moving at speed, frozen ground, so no dampening.. Now shock loads are at their max.. SHOCK LOADS ARE 10-20 G.... 1000-2000 m/sec^2.
now consider non metals and their brittleness. Their hygroscopy, their age hardening. Pits and voids that can expand and contract.
Designing for the elements in Canada is hellish. You cannot have above ground and all the while the cheapest bidder and lowest cost.
The LRT needed to be a brick shit house. not a delicate flower.
10^6 cycles in low cycle fatigue. it will begin to hit most areas in 5-10 years of use... If you think there are problems today, wait until 2026-2027.