Via Rail adds new daily round trip to Montreal

[lrt's friend]

Effective January 14th, Via Rail has added a new mid-day departure to Montreal. This increases the number of weekday departures to 6. :tup:

http://www.viarail.ca/cgi-bin/AffichageWebComm?Commande=select&langue=en&IDX=2&pk_webcomm=1080

[Greco Roman]

Effective January 14th, Via Rail has added a new mid-day departure to Montreal. This increases the number of weekday departures to 6. :tup:

http://www.viarail.ca/cgi-bin/AffichageWebComm?Commande=select&langue=en&IDX=2&pk_webcomm=1080

And of course there are no improvements for service out west.

[lrt's friend]

It will be really hard to re-introduce a Calgary to Edmonton service once it was cancelled several years ago. This needs action from our federal politicians. Get after those Albertan Conservative MPs! They have the power to get it done.

[Greco Roman]

I was thinking more along the lines of re-introducing the southern route of the Canadian, through Banff, Calgary, Regina, Winnipeg, Thunder Bay and Sudbury. The Calgary-Edmonton route is being considered for a bullet train route, however that is still years away from becoming a reality.

[lrt's friend]

I was thinking more along the lines of re-introducing the southern route of the Canadian, through Banff, Calgary, Regina, Winnipeg, Thunder Bay and Sudbury. The Calgary-Edmonton route is being considered for a bullet train route, however that is still years away from becoming a reality.

Until gas becomes prohibitively expensive creating a massive return to rail travel, I can't see it happening. It would be wonderful to have even a Calgary to Banff route driven by tourist and local excursion traffic, but is there even the demand for that? Besides, does the company that operates the Rocky Mountineer have exclusive rights to run passengers trains between Calgary and Vancouver?

[kitchener-lrt]

More service is always great news, but we really need to improve service in the west. Via should at least try to introduce Calgary-Edmonton, with a few stops in between.
Hopefully this'll encourage more people in Ottawa/Montreal to use the train when travelling between the two cities. The downside of Via is that they're expensive. To get from Kitchener-Toronto and back for one person is around $50! By car, it's about $20.

[Mille Sabords]

More service is always great news, but we really need to improve service in the west. Via should at least try to introduce Calgary-Edmonton, with a few stops in between.
Hopefully this'll encourage more people in Ottawa/Montreal to use the train when travelling between the two cities. The downside of Via is that they're expensive. To get from Kitchener-Toronto and back for one person is around $50! By car, it's about $20.

True - it does cost more than a tank of gas. But for business meetings and to avoid leaving/re-entering Ottawa or Montreal during rush hour, plus be able to work on a laptop or read the paper, I'll take it.

It's really baffling that Calgary, which after all is Canada's fifth largest metro area (which is no small thing), has no Via service.

[eemy]

True - it does cost more than a tank of gas. But for business meetings and to avoid leaving/re-entering Ottawa or Montreal during rush hour, plus be able to work on a laptop or read the paper, I'll take it.

It's really baffling that Calgary, which after all is Canada's fifth largest metro area (which is no small thing), has no Via service.

I suspect it has less to do with a lack of desire on VIA's part, and more to do with a lack of funds. VIA can barely sustain existing service, let alone expand to a new city.

[kitchener-lrt]

But for business meetings and to avoid leaving/re-entering Ottawa or Montreal during rush hour, plus be able to work on a laptop or read the paper, I'll take it.

I'd also take it. I was deciding on whether or not to take the train to Ottawa this summer, but I checked the price, and cost of the train alone would cost more than gas/accomodations/transit pass:P /food combined.

Hopefully, we'll see prices go down, with some government intervention.

[ikerrin]

And of course there are no improvements for service out west.

Out where?

(Sorry, I couldn't resist. I assure you I long for the day that there is better rail service to Georgian Bay ... Ok I am going to stop now.)

[ikerrin]

I suspect it has less to do with a lack of desire on VIA's part, and more to do with a lack of funds. VIA can barely sustain existing service, let alone expand to a new city.

The thing is that VIA does really well with the money they get. They fund $.64 on the dollar from operating Revenue and that is with tourist trains to remote locations included. They might break even on the main Ontario Quebec lines. That suggests to me that they could also do very well on an Edmonton to Calgary line and perhaps even on a Regina to Saskatoon line. After all, most bus companies earn 50 cents on the dollar so Via is very affordable from a funding perspective.

[kitchener-lrt]

Out where?

(Sorry, I couldn't resist. I assure you I long for the day that there is better rail service to Georgian Bay ... Ok I am going to stop now.)

Ouch:haha: . I'd also like to see better rail service to Georgian Bay.
I'd just like to point out something. Why is it that VIA travels to Churchhill MB, as well as Senneterre QB? They don't really look as though they'd be profitable.

[eemy]

Ouch:haha: . I'd also like to see better rail service to Georgian Bay.
I'd just like to point out something. Why is it that VIA travels to Churchhill MB, as well as Senneterre QB? They don't really look as though they'd be profitable.

Many of those communities are dependent on the railway for access as that is their only connection to the outside world. I suspect that as a crown corporation, they have a mandate to serve those communities.

The thing is that VIA does really well with the money they get. They fund $.64 on the dollar from operating Revenue and that is with tourist trains to remote locations included. They might break even on the main Ontario Quebec lines. That suggests to me that they could also do very well on an Edmonton to Calgary line and perhaps even on a Regina to Saskatoon line. After all, most bus companies earn 50 cents on the dollar so Via is very affordable from a funding perspective.

Regardless of the operating costs, the capital costs would still be far out of their reach without a special commitment from the federal government to fund such an expansion.

[AuxTown]

I'm taking the train to Kingston today for work. I was going to rent a car but the freezing rain forecast for this morning solidified my decision. $98 round trip and I booked it last night; no complaints here.

[vid]

Many of those communities are dependent on the railway for access as that is their only connection to the outside world. I suspect that as a crown corporation, they have a mandate to serve those communities.

That's exactly why. Many communities in Northern Ontario along the lines VIA travels are not accessible by car. Some communities along the souther rail line that weren't accessible in Northwestern Ontario after service was cut are now ghost towns. There is also the tourism aspect. Churchill gets a good amount of tourists because of the polar bears.

Ontario Northland does a similar thing with communities between North Bay and James Bay. Why it won't expand westward is beyond me.

[Kitchissippi]

To get from Kitchener-Toronto and back for one person is around $50! By car, it's about $20.

You're only counting the money spent on gas. How about the wear and tear on on your car, what you would pay yourself to drive (you can do work while on the train), not to mention the cost of parking in Toronto (which alone could set you back another $20).

[kitchener-lrt]

You're only counting the money spent on gas. How about the wear and tear on on your car, what you would pay yourself to drive (you can do work while on the train), not to mention the cost of parking in Toronto (which alone could set you back another $20).

I know I'm only counting gas money (I just remembered that last night:P ). It's true that I forgot to mention wear and tear, but I was only talking about one round trip. I doubt that on one trip, wear and tear would be a very big issue.
And with the parking in Toronto, that's where Yorkdale comes in:haha: .

Over a long period of time, VIA would probably come out to be cheaper that driving.

[Rathgrith]

Oh Yorkdale! Its so true to! Just park and take the subway downtown.

[harls]

That's an extra 6 bucks there (for subway fare).

re Mtl-Ottawa : I'll have to check that out sometime.. I'm there at least once a month for drin..er, visiting friends and relatives.

[ikerrin]

Regardless of the operating costs, the capital costs would still be far out of their reach without a special commitment from the federal government to fund such an expansion.

I think capital costs are a red herring. Sure high speed rail costs billions, but building side tracks and passing lanes on current track to speed up Via service would cost only a few hundred million. Its cheaper than double laning highways.

[eemy]

I think capital costs are a red herring. Sure high speed rail costs billions, but building side tracks and passing lanes on current track to speed up Via service would cost only a few hundred million. Its cheaper than double laning highways.

That's just it, I doubt VIA rail has a million dollars to spare let alone a few hundred million dollars. Not only that, spending a bit of money on a capital project like that would add to operating costs that VIA already has trouble paying.