Quote:
Originally Posted by phil235
Nobody is suggesting that a station in Mount Royal would replace the downtown station as Via’s main station in Montreal, are they? That would just be silly.
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Good Day.
Maybe not before....
but now, as part-and-parcel of a fully organized, separated, uniquely VIA-owned-and-operated HFR system(possibly leading to HSR in the farther future) rail system..... yes !
As mentioned earlier, they are being salami-sliced away from operational access to Union station by GO RER, and from access to Central station by both EXO (formerly AMT) and now, big time, by CDPQ Infra's REM, who have "taken over" the MR tunnel, many kilometers of rail, and a third of Central station. And even RoW is being sliced away by other owners (CN, CP).
This is not to suggest that VIA will leave those stations soon, quickly, or easily,
but - in terms of not owning the rail, and not having unfettered access to the stations, which VIA does not own.....
An, if there is any good opportunity to even conceive, and conceptualize, their own and owned infrastructure, with cleaner route access into and out of a new station which has been selected as to location, size, and modern structure and conveniences, with full access to local high speed transit services......now is the time to do it, or forever hold their voice.
Especially since now is when they have (1) the negatives of being ousted from high demand RoW by CN and CP for increasing freight volumes and demand,
and (2) the positives of an increasing availability of low demand RoW being traded, abandoned, or sold, by CN, CP, and others.
The opportunity seems to be....NOW.
IMHO.