[ShonTron]

Which is a good thing. Perth doesn't need trains every hour. @Urban Sky one thing that surprises me is that there is (that we know of) no station planned in York Region? The area isn't currently served by VIA and it would be a good chance to get more riders. The Havelock sub passes through Markham near Highway 407, and it would be a missed opportunity to not have a station there. I'm all for the proposed Eglinton station, but if that is part of the plan I'd think a Markham/York Region station is very very much warranted to.

Locust Hill? That's pretty much at the far end of Markham. And the way things are going, doubt YRT would serve it!

 

[SaugeenJunction]

Locust Hill? That's pretty much at the far end of Markham. And the way things are going, doubt YRT would serve it!

Yes out in the boonies, but still better than driving/transiting from York Region to Eglinton or Union Station

 

[steveintoronto]

The Havelock sub passes through Markham near Highway 407, and it would be a missed opportunity to not have a station there. I'm all for the proposed Eglinton station, but if that is part of the plan I'd think a Markham/York Region station is very very much warranted to.

Don't overlook the extensive GO (pre-Metrolinx?) report on servicing the line. It was detailed to the point of publishing drawings of the parking and the lot layout, with local demand and transportation studies. It is probably ten years out of date now, but if HFR+ becomes extant, sure as hell Metrolinx will be part of it.

I'll find the report/study later and link.

 

[SaugeenJunction]

Don't overlook the extensive GO (pre-Metrolinx?) report on servicing the line. It was detailed to the point of publishing drawings of the parking and the lot layout, with local demand and transportation studies. It is probably ten years out of date now, but if HFR+ becomes extant, sure as hell Metrolinx will be part of it.

I'll find the report/study later and link.

It would make sense for Metrolinx to run peak service as far as Peterborough, as well as provide stops at infill stations. Link to reports can be found here, just scroll down a bit.

 

[steveintoronto]

http://www.metrolinx.com/en/regionalplanning/projectevaluation/studies/Peterborough_Rail_Study.pdf

 

[Allandale25]

Update from Sarnia.

RAIL’s Fight For More Trains Still On Track
BY JOSH BOYCEAUGUST 24, 2018 5:54AM@JTBoyceCHOK

Rail Advocacy in Lambton (RAIL) isn’t giving up the fight for improved passenger rail service locally.

The group was formed five years ago after the number of VIA Rail trains in and out of Sarnia was cut to just one a day.

RAIL co-chair Mabel Higgins says while more trains are needed, many improvements have been made locally in recent years.

“Upon our recommendation, VIA provided upgrading and accessibility funding for our heritage train station,” says Higgins. “It means now that it is accessible. The station needed a lot of brick work and that was also done. VIA also reinstated two stops for us, and that was Wyoming and Strathroy.”

Higgins says RAIL has also been instrumental in reconfiguring the route to connect to train 70 in London, which allows Sarnians to reach Toronto 45 minutes earlier.

She says they’ve been hoping for better service for a few years now, and are still optimistic changes can be made with help from senior government.

“Maybe VIA can look at a ‘Plan B’, sort of a dusted off version of what the president had earlier brought to us. It got people pretty excited to have four trains coming into Sarnia a day. We’d be happy with maybe two more.”

Meanwhile, VIA Rail is celebrating its 40th anniversary on Saturday with a special event at Sarnia’s Centennial Park from 11am until 3pm.

There’ll be a tree-planting, and the public will have a chance to tour some of the company’s trains, meet with staff and take in some free entertainment.

 

[crs1026]

^The special train for Sarnia came through Toronto from Montreal today. It consisted of a locomotive, LRC coach, skyline dome, and the lounge car Glenfraser. It went out of the city tacked on the rear of the evening train to Sarnia via Kitchener.

- Paul

 

[Urban Sky]

Update from Sarnia.

I was first a bit puzzled about the claim that "VIA also reinstated two stops for us, and that was Wyoming and Strathroy”, but it seems that they are referring to the fact that Wyoming, Strathroy (and also Saint Mary's) were conditional stops for a few years: on train 84 since 2014/01/02 and on train 87 since 2006/04/30 (though Saint Mary's became a conditional stop on the latter train only on 2007/04/29).

Source: official VIA Rail timetable, effective 2014/07/07

All these stop conditions (in this case: the requirement to book the ticket 20-40 minutes before its scheduled departure at its origin in order to make a stop there) were removed on this route in 2015/06/01 and the only conditional stop which remains in the Corridor is the mysterious Friday-only stop of Ottawa-Montreal-Quebec train 26, which has been around for as many years and survived three changes of its train number (previously: 34, 54 and 52) and two changes of its route (previously: Ottawa-Montreal and Toronto-Ottawa-Montreal):

Source: official VIA Rail timetable, effective 1992/10/25

Source: official VIA Rail timetable, effective 2018/06/17

 

[Allandale25]

Someone posted this on Facebook:

Winnipeg media outlets are reporting that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is going to make some kind of announcement in Winnipeg during September as for funding for the Hudson Bay Railway. Apparently the government is going to back a bid by Fairfax Financial out of Toronto, according to the Winnipeg Free Press, to purchase the line from OmniTRAX. Word is some preliminary repairs are going on along the Churchill line to comply with a mandated Canadian Transportation Agency ruling.

Update. I think the article being referenced is this one. Text copied below.

Federal money for consortium takeover of Churchill port, rail waiting for Omnitrax to sign deal
By: Dylan Robertson
Posted: 08/22/2018 5:51 PM

OTTAWA — The federal government has approved a financial package for the northern Manitoba consortium angling to take over Churchill’s railway and port, suggesting a deal could be imminent ahead of a planned visit to Winnipeg from Prime Minister Justin Trudeau next month.

The federal Treasury Board has approved funds for the consortium, sources tell the Free Press, making that money ready for Ottawa to transfer, once Denver-based Omnitrax signs a takeover deal.

Officials would not say how much money is involved, nor how long it’s intended to last. The cash would likely be related to repairs along the line and initial funding needed to start soliciting business.

Any longer-term funding arrangement would likely need parliamentary approval, such as in next spring’s budget.

A May 2017 flood washed out sections of the track between Gillam and Churchill, severing the lone year-round land link to the town on Hudson Bay.

Since last September, Ottawa has been brokering talks between Omnitrax and a consortium of northern Manitoba groups, to have the port and railway transferred with the help of Toronto financier Fairfax Financial.

Those talks have been in a holding pattern for weeks, with most issues ironed out. Previously, sources claimed negotiations had hinged on Omnitrax’s reluctance to guarantee any unforeseen liabilities — if mould was found at the port after its sale, for example.

Officials familiar with the talks claimed that Omnitrax has been more helpful in recent weeks, from facilitating site visits to pushing interim deals forward, though some suggested it's the result of the company securing financial concessions from Ottawa.

Omnitrax declined to comment Wednesday.

The federal government is hoping to have a final deal announced before the end of the month, and have repairs underway by early September — narrowly allowing for the 60 days required to do repairs on the line that would enable light passenger-train travel before the winter freeze.

Trudeau is set to visit Winnipeg next month, sources say, with a tentative date set for Sept. 11. High-ranking officials are under pressure to get repairs visibly underway before that date.

Ottawa plans to have Fairfax’s grain associate, AGT Foods, use some of the equipment from its railways in Saskatchewan to repair the line.

In any case, a federal tribunal is homing in on its demand that Omnitrax repair its railway, issuing a Tuesday order to prove that work is underway.

The Canadian Transportation Agency sent Omnitrax’s Hudson Bay Railway subsidiary a "show-cause direction," following up on its June order to start repairs along the line by July 3 or formally abandon the railway, noting the "limited construction season" before this winter.

Omnitrax had instead put forward a tendering process to solicit bids to fix the railway, which it claimed meets the regulator’s demands, though it said the repairs would only proceed "assuming funding is available" from government or investors.

The CTA wrote Tuesday that "HBR’s contention that a tendering process constitutes compliance… is questionable, particularly in the absence of a concrete plan" to repair the railway. It doubled down on its finding that Omnitrax ought to formally walk away from the railway if it can’t afford to fix it, and can’t hold it without doing so.

The order gives Omnitrax until next Monday to demonstrate why the CTA shouldn’t rule it's in violation, putting the onus on the company to prove why the tribunal shouldn’t set specific deadlines for parts of the repair.

dylan.robertson@freepress.mb.ca

 

[dowlingm]

CTA show cause ruling https://www.otc-cta.gc.ca/eng/ruling/r-2018-190

 

[steveintoronto]

^Fingers crossed on this one. Key to this is "consortium". That allows the gov't to participate too without it being a 'bailout' per-se. The season is running short again though, time is of the essence on this.

 

[steveintoronto]

Fairfax appear to be very solid and long-term oriented. My initial concern was their real-estate facet and looking to flip the land, rather than run a railway, but this gives me reassurance:
"Ottawa plans to have Fairfax’s grain associate, AGT Foods, use some of the equipment from its railways in Saskatchewan to repair the line."

That indicates Fairfax are looking at future grain exports from Churchill, and already have experience and investment in grain railways. This might all bode well for the line's long-term use and upkeep. I assume the Feds and Manitoba are also underwriting some of the liabilities, but this is looking promising.

Edit to Add:
There's reams of Google hits for the Hudson Bay Railway and this topic, Fairfax been involved for some time and 'deals' that fell through. It would appear that the regulatory notice has lit a fire under Omnitrax, let alone the threat (stated or not in the press) of court action to enforce the CTA decision, as the Feds have threatened, but here's another interesting aspect buried in the Google results:

Farmers call for reopening of Tisdale rail subdivision

UPDATED: June 19, 2018 – 0955 CST – adds CN emailed comment – If Ottawa is serious about re-establishing the Port of Churchill as a viable export route for prairie grain, it should focus its regulatory efforts on re-opening the Tisdale subdivision in northeastern Saskatchewan.

That’s according to Ian Boxall, a Tisdale-area farmer who also serves of vice-president of Saskatchewan’s general farm lobby group, the Agricultural Producers Association of Saskatchewan.

“The closure of the Tisdale Subdivision requires grain from northeastern Saskatchewan to travel hundreds of kilometres further than necessary to reach the (Hudson Bay Railway’s) rail head at The Pas, Man.,” Boxall said.

“Once the port re-opens, we are concerned that these additional freight costs will continue to undermine Churchill’s commercial potential.”

The Tisdale branch line is owned by Canadian National Railway.

It covers about 100 kilometres between Crooked River, Sask., just east of Tisdale, and Hudson Bay, Sask.

CN also owns the track between Hudson Bay, Sask., and The Pas, Man.

A few years ago, CN had placed the track on a list of prairie rail lines slated for discontinuance or sale.

But the company has since removed the section of track from the discontinuance list.

CN still owns the line but it hasn’t been used to move freight for years.

Parts of the line are in poor condition due to flooding. CN uses other parts of the track to store unused rail cars.

CN has given no indication that it plans to return the line to service.

That’s an irritant for Boxall and other producers in northeastern Saskatchewan, who argue that CN should be forced to either repair the track and return it to service, or sell it to someone who’s interested in using it.

APAS recently sent letters to federal transport minister Marc Garneau and other MPs, urging them to speak with CN officials about the future of the line.

A few years ago, the Hudson Bay Route Association had also expressed interest in the track.

HBRA spent $12,000 on a study to assess the line’s condition and determine the cost of necessary repairs. But not long after the study was completed, CN announced it was removing the line from the discontinuance list.

“They should be forced to use it or lose it,” said Boxall.

“That’s a very important feeder system to the Hudson Bay Railway and the port of Churchill.”

The fate of the Tisdale-area rail line has generated renewed interest in recent weeks, especially since Ottawa announced that a new group has been identified to assume ownership of the Hudson Bay Railway and the Port of Churchill.

The new ownership group, comprising Fairfax Financial, AGT Food & Ingredients and a partnership of First Nations and northern Manitoba Communities, has indicated that it intends to resume grain shipments to the Port of Churchill as soon as possible.

Boxall said grain growers in northeastern Saskatchewan would be happy to use the northern Manitoba rail route to ship grain, primarily pulse crops.

But volumes will be limited unless CN’s Tisdale subdivision is returned to service, he said.

Wayne Bacon, who farms near Kinistino, Sask., agreed that the section of track between Crooked River and Hudson Bay, Sask., should be offered for sale if CN isn’t planning to use it.

Bacon is a vice-president with the Hudson Bay Route Association.

He is also a founding member of the Northern Lights Railway, a locally owned short line that acquired 59 kilometres of unused track from CN in 2015.

“I’ve said from Day 1 that any railway lines that aren’t being used should be given up… because there is potential for farmers to use some of these tracks.

“I think the Tisdale sub (from Crooked River to Hudson Bay) could be used again but the biggest problem over there might be the cost,” he said.

“It hasn’t been used for a long time and some of it has been under water, so I think the price tag of getting it back into shape — even to run trains at 10 miles per hour — could be costly.”

Bacon said he’s heard it would take about $11 million to repair the line but he’s not sure if that investment would allow trains to run at 10 miles per hour, 25 mph or 40 mph.

“When you’re repairing track, there’s a big difference in costs when you go from 10 mph up to 25 or 40,” he said.

Bacon said efforts aimed at expanding the rail system in Western Canada should be supported by government.

In an emailed statement, CN officials said the company’s record $3.4 billion capital program is focused on investments in its main line corridors and railway locomotives and equipment in 2018.

“There are no planned investments in the Tisdale corridor,” CN stated in the email.

https://www.producer.com/2018/06/farmers-call-for-reopening-of-tisdale-rail-subdivision/

Ironically, CN still show the Tisdale Sub as being in use!
[“They should be forced to use it or lose it,” said Boxall.] And I suspect the CTA would agree! That is certainly in the Transportation Act. CN might also be playing a side bet on the Churchill line. Methinks we're not getting the complete story.

https://www.cn.ca/en/our-services/maps-and-network/

 

[Garuda]

^The special train for Sarnia came through Toronto from Montreal today. It consisted of a locomotive, LRC coach, skyline dome, and the lounge car Glenfraser. It went out of the city tacked on the rear of the evening train to Sarnia via Kitchener.

- Paul

Got up "early" this Sunday to check if the special train would be attached to VIA 84 from Sarina to Toronto as it passed through Guelph. Low and behold, it was! This time the special train was leading the way. There was no LRC coach attached, instead the order was : locomotive, lounge car, skyline dome, refurbished lounge car (which looks really good with the wrap IMO).

 

[steveintoronto]

Got up "early" this Sunday to check if the special train would be attached to VIA 84 from Sarina to Toronto as it passed through Guelph. Low and behold, it was! This time the special train was leading the way. There was no LRC coach attached, instead the order was : locomotive, lounge car, skyline dome, refurbished lounge car (which looks really good with the wrap IMO).

Excellent pics. You were standing on the Guelph Junction bridge to take those! (GJR doesn't run on weekends)

Was there a third loco leading not shown in the pics?

 

[Garuda]

Excellent pics. You were standing on the Guelph Junction bridge to take those! (GJR doesn't run on weekends)

Was there a third loco leading not shown in the pics?

Thanks, no third loco. The "40 VIA" loco was leading. I thought I took a pic of the front (guess I didn't). I assume, once it gets to Toronto, the special train will detached to b-line for Montreal.