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VIA Rail

CapitalSeven said:
Ah, Sharbot Lake. That's going to be interesting; there are no solutions to the route past there that are both affordable and easy.
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Are there any industries that would benefit from this new rail line? By allowing freight operations at night would provide additional revenue.

Also being able to run freight trains at night that want to run from Toronto to Ottawa or Montreal and take advantage of the extra capacity might provide more revenue.
Perhaps a multi modal system which allow containers to be loaded and unloaded at stations would provide additional revenue.

Dispatching would be done by VIA so they could control all of the traffic and allow passenger trains priority.
 
No single-tracked line will ever allow for the freight train volumes you would need to accommodate to have any chance of generating enough track access payment revenues to offset the dramatic increase in capital costs inherent from the fact that a mixed rail line allows for less super-elevation than a passenger-only one...
 
CapitalSeven said:
Ah, Sharbot Lake. That's going to be interesting; there are no solutions to the route past there that are both affordable and easy.
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Yeah, that's going to be interesting.

I'd be tempted to build a bypass to the east, with a series of bridges across that string of islands in Sharbot Lake. Which would save a minute or two ... Not cheap though.
 
roger1818 said:
^^^That could also explain some of the "derisking" of the project. I don't think the government would be willing to let VIA expropriate the land, as that would come with a political cost, but instead would want VIA to negotiate an amicable agreement with the owners of the ROW. Small, midroute stations may be built to appease those municipalities rather than because of real demand.

Interesting about Bell straightening the ROW. That makes sense as even though fibre doesn't need to be straight, keeping it straight results in less loss and thus fewer amplification nodes.
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Why? The government it self does this for infrastructure projects, they let private companies do this for infrastructure projects - why wouldn't they let a public company do this?

It happens a lot - maybe just because of the volume of it going on all the time you don't really notice it - the volume of it keeps all but the most cantankerous land owners out of the public sphere. As a land owner, since you are entitled to legal costs no matter the outcome of the expropriation or purchase, the land owners get to hire really good lawyers. There is little reason to make a public fuss unless your position is your land should be yours no matter any decision by government.
 
^ No doubt VIA would win the expropriation, and the opponents may privately acknowledge that, but “pick your battles” applies, and this is politics after all.

The government will likely want to get credit for helping the communities (and the user associations, which as I noted are pretty organised and may reach further than one may imagine) replace the Trans Canada trail.

Then there is Sharbot Lake... where the one building that most encroaches the row is the town’s medical clinic.

Imagine the headline - “VIA proposal leaves town without hiking trails and medical access”. Sure, the expropriation will make them whole financially. but positioning as partners up front and initiating the replacement amenities delivers much better photo ops. And the government assumes the risk anyways, and the land purchase money will be spent by Ottawa anyways. And no one wants the project delayed by squabbles.

Makes sense to me to get out ahead of all his and bring good news.

- Paul
 
crs1026 said:
initiating the replacement amenities
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The expropriation process is literally how you do this. Giving expropriation notice happens either when earlier attempts hit an impasse, or continued delay will impact the critical path therefor making expropriation cheaper than any other option. It is in everyones best interest to settle just to get it done, the government/proponent and informed clients know this.

It is pretty common for expropriations to drag on for years. Of course, the case doesn't have to be concluded for the government/proponent to take the land. They can take the land, and even pay for it, without the claim being final - and then at the end of the process the owner gets the rest of the money/costs.
 
crs1026 said:
^ No doubt VIA would win the expropriation, and the opponents may privately acknowledge that, but “pick your battles” applies, and this is politics after all.

The government will likely want to get credit for helping the communities (and the user associations, which as I noted are pretty organised and may reach further than one may imagine) replace the Trans Canada trail.

Then there is Sharbot Lake... where the one building that most encroaches the row is the town’s medical clinic.

Imagine the headline - “VIA proposal leaves town without hiking trails and medical access”. Sure, the expropriation will make them whole financially. but positioning as partners up front and initiating the replacement amenities delivers much better photo ops. And the government assumes the risk anyways, and the land purchase money will be spent by Ottawa anyways. And no one wants the project delayed by squabbles.

Makes sense to me to get out ahead of all his and bring good news.

- Paul
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Exactly! Given that we are likely very close to an election, the Liberals will want to make friends, not enemies.
 
Bordercollie said:
Do we have any idea when services in the corridor will return?
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Even without any knowledge of the most recent plans, I would expect that service levels (i.e. frequencies) will continue to get scaled up gradually as demand for intercity travel increases, just as they have last June (on the Central Corridor), July (QMO), September (entire Corridor) and this April (Corridor East)...
 
Turns out the next frequency increase will be on June 22, with trains 40, 66, 69 and 643 (as the third frequency on MTRL-TRTO and OTTW-TRTO) operating daily rather than Friday-Mondays only:

"The following 4 trains: 66, 69, 643, 40 will resume daily service (7 days per week) starting on June 22, 2021."
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