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@crs1026

I really wouldn't worry too much about the comparison to California. And the Conservatives will attack the Liberals for the project. That's what Opposition parties do. Won't get them much traction though. I've met a lot of muggles who think a Toronto-Montreal train is a no-brainer.

Politically, attacking this isn't going to get them much traction. The rural seats they already have. How many suburban/urban seats can be flipped by attacking this? Especially when urban/suburban GTA, Ottawa and Montreal are the biggest beneficiaries?
 
kEiThZ said:
@crs1026

I really wouldn't worry too much about the comparison to California. And the Conservatives will attack the Liberals for the project. That's what Opposition parties do. Won't get them much traction though. I've met a lot of muggles who think a Toronto-Montreal train is a no-brainer.

Politically, attacking this isn't going to get them much traction. The rural seats they already have. How many suburban/urban seats can be flipped by attacking this? Especially when urban/suburban GTA, Ottawa and Montreal are the biggest beneficiaries?
Click to expand...

The Conservatives will attempt to use it as a wedge issue, to gain or solidify support out west. Also, they will equate it to a boondoggle waste of money. Not enough people use VIA today to gain full support of a large enough voter base even in the three cities benefiting. They will remind everybody of excessive Liberal spending and the need to provide more tax cuts. Nothing like bribing people with their own tax money, which is a standard Conservative tactic for the last generation. The concept of investing in quality public infrastructure has been discredited amongst a large portion of the electorate which leans right.
 
littlewill1166 said:
I was right, the LRCs are lighter.
HEP1: 113,960 lbs http://division747.ca/wp-content/uploads/HEP1.pdf Page 4
HEP2: 120,000 lbs http://division747.ca/wp-content/uploads/HEP2.pdf Page 2
LRC: 103,087 lbs http://division747.ca/wp-content/uploads/LRC4_Business.pdf Page 10
Click to expand...

You know, you really shouldn't be putting direct links to a hidden part of a website onto a forum such as this.....

Also for the record, the weight of the HEP2 is incorrect. You don't think that 120,000lbs is a surprisingly accurate and round number for a weight? It also happens to be the weight given for the cars when they were purchased by VIA - and BEFORE they were rebuilt and upgraded with HEP. The maintenance manual for the HEP2s gives a weight of ~46 tonnes, but no precise figure.

Dan
 
smallspy said:
You know, you really shouldn't be putting direct links to a hidden part of a website onto a forum such as this.....

Also for the record, the weight of the HEP2 is incorrect. You don't think that 120,000lbs is a surprisingly accurate and round number for a weight? It also happens to be the weight given for the cars when they were purchased by VIA - and BEFORE they were rebuilt and upgraded with HEP. The maintenance manual for the HEP2s gives a weight of ~46 tonnes, but no precise figure.

Dan
Click to expand...

I find it hard to believe that a HEP2 is lighter than a HEP1 given that it has more seats and a galley with fridges which requires a larger refrigeration unit. It also doesn't make sense that VIA would favour pairing the HEP trains with P42s which are more powerful, and the F40s with the LRCs, according to the cycling chart I posted a couple posts back. But alright, if you say so...
 
littlewill1166 said:
I find it hard to believe that a HEP2 is lighter than a HEP1 given that it has more seats and a galley with fridges which requires a larger refrigeration unit. It also doesn't make sense that VIA would favour pairing the HEP trains with P42s which are more powerful, and the F40s with the LRCs, according to the cycling chart I posted a couple posts back. But alright, if you say so...
Click to expand...

I'm not convinced that the weight of the HEP1s is accurate in that document either, but it's probably not as far off from where it should be. In any case, the weight savings from upgrading to HEP was enough that the trucks needed to be re-sprung and new dampeners purchased. In the case of the HEP2s, they lost about 8 tonnes of weight during the conversion by changing to VIA's standardized seats, losing the steam piping valves and heaters, improved interior components, etc.

The reality is that the weight of the car doesn't have much bearing on what loco is used to pull it. What is far more important is its speed rating - there is little point in using a P42 to pull a train of HEP2 or HEP1 cars as their maximum speed ratings are lower than the P42s are capable.

Dan
 
lrt's friend said:
The Conservatives will attempt to use it as a wedge issue, to gain or solidify support out west.
Click to expand...

How many seats do the PCs have available to them out west anyway?

Playing to your base is a poor strategy in a general election.

lrt's friend said:
They will remind everybody of excessive Liberal spending and the need to provide more tax cuts. Nothing like bribing people with their own tax money, which is a standard Conservative tactic for the last generation.
Click to expand...

How'd that work for them at the last election? The Liberals actually campaigned on running a deficit and won. I'd argue that a train between Toronto, Ottawa and Montreal is far more defensible than so many other Liberal spending initiatives. And if the Conservatives decide to bash this, the Liberals can just drop hints that this newly announced train will be extended to London eventually.....where the CPC has seats. Keep in mind an actual launch announcement, will have a very different reception than yet another high speed rail study.

If the Conservatives were actually to be smart and devious, the way to challenge HFR is to argue that the Liberals are getting a bad deal by spending too much and buying a slow train. That's the actual attack I expect....
 
kEiThZ said:
How many seats do the PCs have available to them out west anyway?

Playing to your base is a poor strategy in a general election.



How'd that work for them at the last election? The Liberals actually campaigned on running a deficit and won. I'd argue that a train between Toronto, Ottawa and Montreal is far more defensible than so many other Liberal spending initiatives. And if the Conservatives decide to bash this, the Liberals can just drop hints that this newly announced train will be extended to London eventually.....where the CPC has seats. Keep in mind an actual launch announcement, will have a very different reception than yet another high speed rail study.

If the Conservatives were actually to be smart and devious, the way to challenge HFR is to argue that the Liberals are getting a bad deal by spending too much and buying a slow train. That's the actual attack I expect....
Click to expand...
Ha! Yes it is too slow, but with no intentions of actually building HSR or anything else. Play us as fools.
 
kEiThZ said:
How many seats do the PCs have available to them out west anyway?

Playing to your base is a poor strategy in a general election.



How'd that work for them at the last election? The Liberals actually campaigned on running a deficit and won. I'd argue that a train between Toronto, Ottawa and Montreal is far more defensible than so many other Liberal spending initiatives. And if the Conservatives decide to bash this, the Liberals can just drop hints that this newly announced train will be extended to London eventually.....where the CPC has seats. Keep in mind an actual launch announcement, will have a very different reception than yet another high speed rail study.

If the Conservatives were actually to be smart and devious, the way to challenge HFR is to argue that the Liberals are getting a bad deal by spending too much and buying a slow train. That's the actual attack I expect....
Click to expand...
Ha! Yes it is too slow, but with no intentions of actually building HSR or anything else. Play us as fools. It usually works.
 
This is interesting, and perhaps telling in terms of good fortune for HFR financing:
Virgin Trains USA stops plans for IPO

By The Associated Press
Thu., Feb. 14, 2019

ORLANDO, Fla. - The company that is building a passenger rail service from South Florida to Orlando is stopping its plan to go public.
Virgin Trains USA said this week it wouldn’t go through with an initial public offering.
Senior Vice-President Ben Porritt says in a statement that alternative financing sources have become available that will allow the company to stay private and keep its growth strategies.
The company formerly known as Brightline launched service between Miami, Fort Lauderdale and West Palm Beach last May. It plans to expand into Orlando and Tampa.
The company also plans to construct a rail system connecting Las Vegas and Southern California.
Brightline partnered last year with Richard Branson’s Virgin Group. Brightline took the Virgin name, and Virgin took a minority interest in the company.
Click to expand...
www.thestar.com

Virgin Trains USA stops plans for IPO

ORLANDO, Fla. - The company that is building a passenger rail service from South Florida to Orlando is stopping its plan to go public.
www.thestar.com www.thestar.com

There's a couple more stories on other aspects of Virgin's new financing agreements elsewhere in the business press. What's telling is that they didn't have to go public to get the funds needed. Someone probably stepped up and 'bought in big time'. There are other possibilities, but why deal with the complexities of going public when the fewer the cards held, the easier it is to make bold decisions on the fly.

There may also have been a problem in name recognition in terms of US investors and "Virgin Rail".
 
Reposting this because I'm not sure the Facebook link we previewing properly: http://bit.ly/2Nid0PI HT Canadian Railway Observations (CRO)

Text below.

Siemens Canada, the company that was selected by VIA Rail to manufacture the new trains to operate on the Quebec City-Windsor Corridor, is looking for interested suppliers. For this process, two Siemens' procurement offices have been set up in Montreal, Quebec and Oakville, Ontario. Siemens aims to provide Canadian content of up to 20% in supplies and services. Siemens is looking for suppliers in the following fields of expertise:
Electrical supplies; Mechanical supplies; and
Services related to the technical service and spare parts supply agreement. Just like VIA Rail, Siemens is committed to a fair and transparent sourcing process. Selection of suppliers will be based on the total cost of ownership, quality and delivery schedule.

To become a shortlisted Siemens supplier, interested parties can fill out the Supplier Application Form. on their website The application deadline is March 11th, 2019 at 11:59 EST. Interested parties who are unable to meet this deadline, can submit a request for extension to Siemens Canada via email that will be assessed on a case-by-case basis. Further information is available at www.siemens.ca

Siemens will evaluate all applicants and will invite shortlisted suppliers to attend a Siemens Canada Supplier Day event to further discuss the background of this project, schedule, timeline, and further opportunities mid and long term. Qualified applicants will also be considered for other Siemens projects where relevant.

As VIA Rail currently operates some of the oldest trains in North America, some dating back to the 1950s, and most of the cars currently in service are nearing the end of their life. VIA Rail will retire a portion of its current fleet starting 2019, as such, on-time delivery was a key criterion to maintain the current level of services and jobs in the Quebec City-Windsor Corridor.

On December 12, 2018, VIA Rail announced that Siemens Canada was awarded a $989 million contract to build the 32 trainsets that will replace VIA Rail's fleet that operates in the Quebec City-Windsor Corridor. Siemens Canada was selected following a fair, open, rigorous and transparent bidding process under the oversight of an independent fairness monitor and VIA Rail's Board of Directors. On-time delivery, quality of product and price were the criteria on which all the proponents were evaluated.

Starting in 2022, millions of VIA Rail passengers travelling in Canada's busiest Corridor will enjoy a new era of brand-new trains, with more comfortable seats, offering more spaces for people with reduced mobility and equipped with the latest technology to be more fuel-efficient and reduce the carbon footprint of travel.

The new VIA Rail Corridor fleet will be equipped with some of the following key features:

Improved comfort for travelers: LED lighting, USB ports, wide seats, quiet-zones, new interior design elements, bike storage, flexible luggage space.
Enhanced universal accessibility features designed to exceed accessibility standards: multiple spaces for wheelchairs and other mobility devices on the trains, braille seat numbering, companion seating, at-seat emergency call buttons, larger fully accessible washrooms, integrated mobility device lift on each trainset.
Enhanced safety features exceeding the latest safety standards.
Improved locomotive engines meeting EPA - Tier 4 emission standards.
Bi-directional operation will lower operating cost while yielding more passenger capacity.
Over its 30-year expected life, the new fleet will be maintained in Canada by qualified VIA Rail employees at VIA Rail's Montreal and Toronto Maintenance Centers. Maintenance activities will be supported by a 15-year Technical Services and Spares Supply Agreement (TSSSA) valued at $23,7 million per year.

VIA Rail's Modernization

The Quebec City – Windsor corridor fleet replacement is part of VIA Rail's transformation plan for Canadian passenger rail service. This plan also includes renovating a part of the rolling stock that operates on VIA Rail's long-distance routes. Accordingly, the following work was announced earlier in 2018 at several locations:

17 accessible cars – Bombardier Transportation – La Pocatière
25 economy cars – Cad Railway Industries – Montréal
4 dining cars – Rail GD – Gaspésie
Up to 33 economy and business cars – VIA Rail's Montréal Maintenance Centre
This renovation work represents an investment of approximately $154 million, undertaken by 300 workers in Quebec.

About VIA Rail Canada

As Canada's national rail passenger service, VIA Rail (viarail.ca) and all its employees are mandated to provide safe, efficient and economical passenger transportation service, in both official languages of our country. VIA Rail operates intercity, regional and transcontinental trains linking over 400 communities across Canada, and about 180 more communities through intermodal partnerships, and safely transports nearly 4.8 million passengers annually. The Corporation has been awarded five Safety Awards and three Environment Awards by the Railway Association of Canada since 2007. Visit the "About VIA Rail" section at https://www.viarail.ca/en/about-via-rail.

About Siemens Canada: Since 1912 Siemens Canada has stood for engineering excellence, innovation, quality and reliability. Siemens technology in the fields of electrification, automation and digitalization helps make real what matters to Canadians. From the Atlantic to Pacific oceans, Siemens Canada employees deliver solutions for sustainable energy, smart infrastructure, and the digital enterprise. One of the world's largest producers of energy-efficient, resource-saving technologies, Siemens is a leading supplier of efficient power generation and power transmission solutions and a pioneer in infrastructure solutions as well as automation, drive and software solutions for industry. With its separately managed subsidiary Siemens Healthineers Limited, the company is also a foremost provider of medical imaging equipment – such as computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging systems – and a leader in laboratory diagnostics as well as clinical IT. Sales for Siemens Canada in fiscal 2018 (ended September 30), were $3 billion CAD. The company has approximately 4,800 employees and 44 locations across Canada, including nine production facilities.www.canadianrailwayobservations.com
Click to expand...
 
Last edited:
I don't expect anybody to know at this point, but does anyone know how the individual coaches on the new corridor fleet will handle food preparation?
 
robw2708 said:
I don't expect anybody to know at this point, but does anyone know how the individual coaches on the new corridor fleet will handle food preparation?
Click to expand...

It sounds like VIA was looking to continue the current methods of preparation, with all food getting loaded on rolling carts and food trays getting heated onboard, and all service being at-your-seat.

So if you're looking for a return to the days of the café-bar-lounge, unfortunately they are not coming back.

Dan
 
Route by route load factors for 2017.
175480
175481
175482
 
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