Indeed, the RFQ only asked for „trainsets“ (with mentions of locomotives only when describing its legacy fleet): https://www.viarail.ca/sites/all/files/media/pdfs/About_VIA/new-fleet/VIA%20Rail_Corridor_Fleet_Renewal_Project_Request_for_Qualifications.pdf

Okay, I get your point: the North American map only shows lines with passenger services rather than the „North American railway network“, as incorrectly claimed. That said, a map showing the European railway network and one only showing the European passenger rail network would be virtually...

It was because they were the winning participant in a competitive tendering process with an RFQ and an RFP…

Indeed, a handful of lines shown there are freight-only (or simply disused), but I still believe that far more than 90% of the passenger lines shown have regularly-scheduled service (and quite a few minor passenger lines are omitted). With some exceptions like Corsica, Sardegna, Portugal and...

It‘s not really useful to compare all of North America with all of Europe (let alone: its most densely populated areas), but when you take Ontario and Quebec and strip away the vastly unpopulated Northern regions (e.g., the Kenora district and Nord-du-Quebec), you get a similar population...

It took 9.5 months from funding announcement for VIA’s new corridor fleet to the contract signed with Siemens, but I agree that this procurement is much more complex…

And let‘s keep in mind that they are only expecting deliveries to start in the early 2030s, so 2027/28 seems indeed unrealistic at this point…

Correct, but that‘s more applicable for discontinuing a service rather than cancelling an investment which has already been announced and funded. That‘s indeed a striking omission, as comparatively small amounts of operating funding into bus services could really improve intercity connectivity...

The value of points is measured in how much ticket fare a single point covers. Comparisons like this are meaningless if we don‘t know what the corresponding cash values were. That said, the point value has indeed decreased by 4.3 cents (or 23%) for Economy travel in the Corridor, as reported by...

As you pointed out yourself recently, VIA‘s long-distance operations scatter well-paid jobs across almost the entire country. I therefore believe that the optics of axing the fleet renewal and thus starving non-Corridor VIA services to death would be much worde for the conservatives (the...

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...

Holy moly, Alitalia had already accummulated 30 continuous years of losses before the Direttissima opened (in 1977) as arguably the first HSR line in Europe:

Exactly and that’s not a question about what speed the train reaches, but about how well it can sustain that speed and how long it takes to reach the destination. And that is where frequency comes to play, because the lack of flexibility adds to perceived travel times, especially with the...

Just like “solar roadways”, solar models on rail ties are an unworkable idea which borders on a scam…

I don’t know about you, but if there is a legal entitlement to purchase a ROW at salvage value, but the ROW is dismantled without any sale, I’m much more inclined to blame the lack of motivation on the prospective buyer’s than on the current owner’s side…