On 14/07/2019 18:35, Prescott wrote:
> Not true that the streetcar order went to Bombardier without tender.

> There were two other tenders but the politicians had already decided

> that it would go to Bombardier.

>

My recollection is that none of the tenders were compliant with tender
specifications - in that they would not accept responsibility for
building a low floor tram that could handle the sharp curves in Toronto.

On that basis Bombardier were asked to quote for a tram that was
guaranteed to handle the curves.  Is that correct?

In any case, the main problem seems to have been construction quality
rather than price or design, possibly related to the outsourcing of some
aspects to low wage environments.

I also recall that Minneapolis had similar problems with outsourced
construction.

Mal Rowe - struggling back to being On Topic by noting that the
Melbourne Es have proved reliable - much more so than the Alstom and
Siemens products of the early 21st century.