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VIA Rail

Quick reminder that this is the VIA Rail thread and that we have a different thread for this kind of freight rail discussions:

General railway discussions

What is sad is CN was originally created as a way to save all the short line railways. It seems ever since going privately owned, they became just line every other railway. CN was created as a Crown agency to save a number of insolvent and financially vulnerable railways after WW1. Some of...
urbantoronto.ca urbantoronto.ca
 
I am enough of a masochist that I am now Premier level of VIA Rail for 2024-2025 and have default access to the business lounges. I've been to the Ottawa and Montreal lounges before but outside of Union and Quebec City I...don't think there are any others?

The VIA website lists the following as stations with lounges in the Corridor: Dorval, Kingston, London, Montreal, Ottawa, Quebec City, Toronto (https://www.viarail.ca/en/plan/business-lounge)

That page has the following note: Due to limited space, access upon arrival to lounges in Kingston, London, Québec City and Dorval stations is not available.

So...i've been to Kingston and Dorval stations before and do not recall any sort of lounge existing. Am I hallucinating or do these really exist? I always assumed these stations did not have them.
 
Mihairokov said:
I am enough of a masochist that I am now Premier level of VIA Rail for 2024-2025 and have default access to the business lounges. I've been to the Ottawa and Montreal lounges before but outside of Union and Quebec City I...don't think there are any others?

The VIA website lists the following as stations with lounges in the Corridor: Dorval, Kingston, London, Montreal, Ottawa, Quebec City, Toronto (https://www.viarail.ca/en/plan/business-lounge)

That page has the following note: Due to limited space, access upon arrival to lounges in Kingston, London, Québec City and Dorval stations is not available.

So...i've been to Kingston and Dorval stations before and do not recall any sort of lounge existing. Am I hallucinating or do these really exist? I always assumed these stations did not have them.
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Kingston has a lounge but it's nothing special. Too bad Windsor doesn't have one.
 
I just booked a trip between Ottawa and Montreal in May. It did not show what type of train it would be. Is there any way to find that out?
 
VIA's long-distance fleet replacement funded in Federal Budget 2024! Page 256: https://www.budget.canada.ca/2024/home-accueil-en.html#pdf

Screenshot 2024-04-16 at 16.04.03.png

Plus HFR update:
1713298285265.png
 
micheal_can said:
This is good news.This means that as long as the next government does not cancel it, we might have the new fleet within the next 10 years.
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well if theyre negotiating now, perhaps a contract award by years end and then 2 to 3 years for the first trainset to arrive. perhaps the initial operations by end of 2027/8
 
cplchanb said:
well if theyre negotiating now, perhaps a contract award by years end and then 2 to 3 years for the first trainset to arrive. perhaps the initial operations by end of 2027/8
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I haven't seen anything out that would have shown they are in negotiations.
 
cplchanb said:
well if theyre negotiating now, perhaps a contract award by years end and then 2 to 3 years for the first trainset to arrive. perhaps the initial operations by end of 2027/8
Click to expand...
Back in 2018, when Budget 2018 announced at around the same time the funding for the Corridor fleet, the contract was indeed signed in December the same year. However, I would be surprised if that happens again, given that this procurement is much larger and more complex, with fewer obvious bidders. Anyways, let the RFQ and RFP begin!
 
cplchanb said:
so theyre once again stalling... 6 years of further study and design. that means we wont see any construction until at the very least the end of the decade.... 😒
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No change was announced to the RFP winner annoucemment timeline. It was most recently publicly stated by the VIA HFR CEO at the TRBOT Transportation Symposium. So premature to say anything has stalled in my view.
 
cplchanb said:
well if theyre negotiating now, perhaps a contract award by years end and then 2 to 3 years for the first trainset to arrive. perhaps the initial operations by end of 2027/8
Click to expand...
I think that is excessively optimistic, given historical procurement and that VIA have indicated they will rebuild the F40s. I can't see VIA committing until they see what Amtrak ends up with and can potentially piggyback as they did the corridor fleet.
 
dowlingm said:
I think that is excessively optimistic, given historical procurement and that VIA have indicated they will rebuild the F40s. I can't see VIA committing until they see what Amtrak ends up with and can potentially piggyback as they did the corridor fleet.
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That is why I say 10 years. I feel i that by 2035 we will have new non Corridor fleet cars.
 
We were almost at yes to a new LD fleet, closer than we are now ..... in the 1980's.

it's encouraging that this government is keeping the long distance idea alive, but it will be up to the next government to put in the miles towards procurement, or maybe not. Time will tell.

The more interesting commitment in the budget was the statement that VIA-HFR will be given a legislative mandate. Let's see how that turns out, and how VIA-HFR (note that the term was always used with an F, and never with an S) is positioned relative to freight railways.

- Paul
 
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