[URBAN NOTE] "Bombardier declines meeting with TTC about streetcars"

[rfmcdonald]

The Toronto Star's Tess Kalinowski reports about the latest stage in the TTC-Bombardier confrontation.

Bombardier’s absence went unremarked at Monday’s TTC board meeting. But transit officials were already aware that the Montreal manufacturer had declined its request to appear there and publicly explain why it has failed to deliver on Toronto’s $1.25 billion streetcar order.

The company’s refusal wasn’t about whether to address the issue in public or private, said spokesman Marc Laforge in an email to the Star. Company officials have had many discussions with TTC officials and there are legal considerations, he said.

“We told the TTC that we are more than willing to engage into discussions with the chair of the board and other board members if they want to, with (CEO Andy) Byford and the project team,” he wrote.

Those discussions could extend to all the delays, including those beyond Bombardier’s control and those caused by the TTC, he said.

“At the same time . . . the board has authorized the TTC’s general counsel to commence a claim or legal action against Bombardier. The contract signed with the TTC sets forth an exclusive dispute resolution process providing for confidential and without prejudice discussions between TTC and Bombardier in an effort to settle the dispute,” he wrote.