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VIA Rail

Anyone know why 51 is listed above "DORV" when the PDF timetable has it starting from Central? Or is that one of life's great mysteries like why VIA mostly refuses to put both directions of a route in the same PDF?
 
dowlingm said:
Anyone know why 51 is listed above "DORV" when the PDF timetable has it starting from Central? Or is that one of life's great mysteries like why VIA mostly refuses to put both directions of a route in the same PDF?
Click to expand...

There are other peculiarities in that chart, such as train times which don't coincide with the current schedule, either. And a lot of results that have seemed to have gotten corrupted by incorrect or incomplete data.

But all-in-all, it's a very, very interesting look into how busy - on average - each train is day by day.

Dan
 
It’s a bit inconsistent in the colour coding....one cell will be green and another cell with the same value will be coloured differently.

But yes, very informative data. Change green to blue and you get reminded of the old CN fare structure at work.

- Paul
 
So... I was on one of the rebuilt HEP2 trains and it was disappointing.
  • The suspension is still terrible and the train was shaking as much as it was before the rebuild.
  • The seats were the same as the ones on the LRC. They're hard and having the extra bumpiness of the HEP2 makes the ride pretty uncomfortable.
  • The aisles are narrow because the HEP2 is narrower than the LRC and they put in the same seats so the service attendant was bumping into everyone.
  • However, the bathrooms were nicer, and the wifi was a bit faster.
 
littlewill1166 said:
  • The seats were the same as the ones on the LRC.
Click to expand...

Which seats?

Im assuming you mean these

175741
 
I've only been on the refurbished LRC Business Class cars and non-refurbished HEP-II and HEP-I cars lately. I like how the LRC cars are done, especially in business class, but yeah, I don't see it working well for HEPs. The old seats were really showing their age, but they were able to absorb the shocks. The harder new seats are easier to clean, and are comfortable enough, but they don't have much give.

The new fleet can't come soon enough.
 
ShonTron said:
I've only been on the refurbished LRC Business Class cars and non-refurbished HEP-II and HEP-I cars lately. I like how the LRC cars are done, especially in business class, but yeah, I don't see it working well for HEPs. The old seats were really showing their age, but they were able to absorb the shocks. The harder new seats are easier to clean, and are comfortable enough, but they don't have much give.

The new fleet can't come soon enough.
Click to expand...

There's another factor, too.

The new seats are a little more than half of the weight of the old seats. There's a pretty significant weight savings with them.

Dan
 
smallspy said:
There's another factor, too.

The new seats are a little more than half of the weight of the old seats. There's a pretty significant weight savings with them.

Dan
Click to expand...
Definitely, but it's a train not a plane. I'm not sure that it would yield that much in fuel savings.
 
In case someone is searching for new professional challenges, VIA Rail is currently recruiting a Senior Advisor for its Strategy department (deadline is already Friday, but the position is based at our office in Toronto, next to Union Station):
Senior Advisor, Corporate Strategy and Planning

Reference Number :
26154_042019
Status :
Permanent - Full time
Job Category :
Train Operations
City :
TORONTO
Province :
Ontario
Annual Salary / Hourly Rate :
$ 91,186 - $ 113,983
Number of positions to be filled :
1
Application Deadline :
2019-03-22
Description:
At VIA Rail Canada, our mission is to reimagine the Canadian journey by creating smarter ways to travel. VIA Rail is a major Canadian player in the transport industry and strongly believes that travel should be an easy, sustainable and enjoyable experience that meets the individual needs and preferences of today’s and tomorrow’s passengers. In the spirit of transformation, our values of innovation, trust and agility are even more important and guide our actions.

We are actively seeking a Senior Advisor, Corporate Strategy and Planning. As such you advise on long-term strategic plans and operational issues; analyze and evaluate capital investment and operating initiatives; identify external issues that affect VIA’s business and strategic direction; and prepare the text of VIA’s 5-year Corporate Plan and Strategic Plan submissions to government.


In this role, the following exciting challenges await you:

• Assist in the development of input into VIA’s strategic plans. Interact with Senior Management to ensure a good understanding of strategies, issues, directions and requirements. Develop and documents assumptions, alternative options, and justification for preferred options.

• Respond to government, regulatory, and third-party inquiries related to VIA’s long-term strategic investment and operating plans. Support the Director of Strategic Planning with negotiations with government agency.

• Perform special studies, such as equipment utilization, fleet planning, and operational initiatives, including train services and network options.

• Perform business analyses of initiatives for capital expenditures and VIA’s train services. Assist executive management in long-term and strategic decisions, through the analyses and evaluation of strategic options.

• Participate in cross-functional teams in support of major strategic studies and projects. Coordinate the development of related operational and financial impacts.

• Play a lead role in assisting management in the Metrolinx territory in particular with issues regarding VIA Rail and Metrolinx’s approach to improving local, regional and intercity rail in that territory including but not limited to assisting with issues relating to station access for VIA Rail trains and passengers, scheduling, train operations and in station passenger communications.
Requirements:
EDUCATION & EXPERIENCE:

• Bachelor’s Degree in business/Commerce/Economics. A Master of Business Administration/Economics is an asset.
• Must possess a minimum of 10 years of related work experience, preferably from the industry or from a governmental agency.


COMPETENCIES REQUIRED:

To be successful in this role, you must:

• Have a passenger centric approach to passenger rail
• Have an in-depth understanding of Canadian traveler wants, needs and behaviors in particular with regards to passenger rail.
• Have an in-depth knowledge of the Windsor-Quebec corridor (the “Corridor”) local, regional and intercity passenger and freight rail businesses and environment including but not limited to knowledge of existing capacity and bottleneck issues.
• Fully understand the issues and opportunities posed by the implementation of Metrolinx’s RER and the eventual implementation of VIA Rail High Frequency Rail initiative if, as and when it is implemented by VIA Rail.
• Relate well to people at all levels, both internally and externally, and must have superior abilities to build constructive and effective relationships, using diplomacy and tact.
• Work effectively in teams and can easily gain trust and support of peers.
• Adapt to a changing environment, must be able and willing to execute different tasks and reprioritize activities on short notice.
• Demonstrate perseverance, strong planning, organizational and priority setting abilities
• Possess effective and creative problem-solving abilities and be resourceful.
• Have a strong business acumen, be knowledgeable of current and future policies, practices, trends, technology affecting the organization and industry.
• Possess strong knowledge of finance and accounting
• Have a high-level proficiency with Microsoft Excel and Power Point.
• Demonstrate strong analytical skills and have an eye for detail.
• Demonstrate superior written and verbal communication skill in English (working knowledge of French is an asset). Must demonstrate excellent abilities to use clear, concise and appropriate written communication techniques.
• Be available to travel for business (approximately 20% of the time).



VIA Rail thanks all applicants for their interest, however only those selected for an interview will be contacted. VIA Rail is an employment-equity employer and encourages all qualified candidates to apply. VIA Rail Canada is proud to be a military friendly employer.
Click to expand...
https://career.viarail.ca/en/job-de...nd-planning-toronto-ontario-canada-jobid-3203
 
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I'm still nervous about the trigger getting pulled on HFR this budget. It's really hard to have faith in this government. They seem incredibly scatter brained and dedicated to putting a chicken in every pot so to speak. If it doesn't happen this round, I don't know how VIA survives long term.
 
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