Case Study
How InterClean and UCS Canada helped GO Transit Develop a Robust Wash System for Their Kitchener Maintenance Facility
About GO Transit Kitchener
GO (Government of Ontario) Transit is a Metrolinx division connecting urban areas in southern Ontario to Toronto. GO Transit transports over 70 million passengers to and from Toronto annually via high-speed rail and buses, making it critical to have an efficient and effective wash system. Installing equipment at GO’s maintenance facilities that is highly reliable with a long life expectancy is also a top priority. One of their bus maintenance facilities is located in Kitchener, two hours away from Toronto.
The Challenge
GO Transit’s Kitchener facility needed a transit bus wash system for their brand new maintenance facility. This facility is an unmanned site, meaning they don’t have on-site building maintenance technicians. In some of GO Transit’s other facilities, they have wash systems that require on-site maintenance staff, making it challenging to keep up with the demanding wash needs of their fleet and resulting in significant downtime and service turnaround time for their transit buses.
Additionally, their previous wash systems were designed with components that may not have included the level of anti-corrosive material that they were looking for to provide a long-lasting solution, especially for high-moisture environments. Since the wash system operates in a high-moisture environment, GO Transit Kitchener needed a stainless wash system that would add many years to the life of their current system and reduce future unexpected costs.
Cue InterClean and UCS Canada
With their new Kitchener facility, GO Transit was looking to combat all previous wash system challenges. Therefore, they needed a new transit bus wash system design that would meet four major criteria:
- Has a high-quality wash performance - cleans buses effectively
- Uses reliable washing equipment - doesn’t break down regularly
- Requires minimal maintenance - daily/weekly maintenance not required
- Has a 20-25+ year lifespan - uses durable and long-lasting parts
InterClean’s Eastern Canada distributor, UCS Canada, proposed an XJ 404 fixed-front system made from stainless steel to meet their needs.
“We have 7 out of 11 bus wash systems manufactured by InterClean Equipment, they are by far superior in reliability, have less downtime, and customer service levels are much better. The washes are easy to use and produce a very clean bus with minimal soap having to be used”
Bus Infrastructure and Facilities Supervisor, GO Transit
The Solution
InterClean helped the new GO transit Kitchener facility design an XJ 404 fixed-front wash system.
XJ 404 Fixed-Front (FF) Wash System
The Kitchener GO Maintenance facility building design includes InterClean’s XJ 404 fixed-front system in all stainless steel. This stainless steel material eliminates the possibility of corrosion, helping extend the lifespan of GO Transit’s wash system investment.
Their XJ 404 FF system has some additional site-required configurations, including an under-chassis spray manifold and an over-speed alarm to slow drivers down in the wash bay if they are traveling through the wash too quickly, this helps maintain a consistent wash. This system was also made for double-decker buses and features 14-foot tall brushes.
In addition to InterClean’s XJ 404 fixed-front transit bus wash system, which is essentially a touchless front wash (to protect against damage to brushes from bike racks) with friction (brushes) for the sides and rear of the buses, Kitchener can also take advantage of high volumes of reclaimed wash water using InterClean’s, low-maintenance wash water recycling system. This system, the EQ 100, produces 300 GPM of recycled water with no chemical additives, recycling up to 90% of wash water.
The Results
With the new InterClean XJ 404 FF, GO Transit’s new Kitchener facility has:
- Minimized downtime
- Improved wash system reliability
- Extended the life of their capital investment
- Maintained GO’s commitment to providing the public with clean buses using a system that cleans buses very well
In the 5 years that this system has been in operation, the total cost for wash equipment parts replacement has been less than 1% of the initial equipment cost per year. The Kitchener facility now has a reliable wash system that equates to more efficient, reliable, and cost-effective transit bus wash operations for their business. With a constant supply of clean buses, they are able to take on more customer traffic and ensure happier ridership.
Learn more about the wash solutions used by GO Transit.
