How much does CN charge VIA RAIL to run on their tracks? London Free Press - Jonathan Sher - Canadian Transport Minister Marc Garneau can’t fix what ails Via Rail until he stops shunting responsibility to others and admits Via has declined for decades, a leading rail expert says. The critical comments from Greg Gormick came after Garneau and his ministry supplied what Gormick described as boilerplate responses to questions posed by The Free Press. “They bobbed and weaved,” said Gormick, a Cambridge consultant whose clients have included CN and CP, Via and General Motors’ former locomotive-making business in London. http://www.lfpress.com/2016/05/09/minister-in-denial-about-vias-woes-expert

Photo by Walter Pfefferle Greg Gormick is an authority on the history of passenger rail service in Canada. In particular he has studied VIA RAIL extensively. Transport Action Canada hired Greg to produce a study on how to revitalize passenger rail service. He has produced a lengthy 126 page report on the topic. His report hits home identifying some of the serious problems facing VIA RAIL especially relating to it's poor management, lack of VIA RAIL legislation, inability to market their train services and the need for new rolling stock. This study educates people on the current state that VIA RAIL is in. Greg also offers a plan to fix the situation. Most of his solutions involved continuing to use existing CN tracks and make incremental improvements. Herein lies the problem with the studies recommendations. Greg, like many who have followed VIA RAIL through their history, is trapped in the past thinking VIA can thrive staying on CN lines. The cruel reality is this has ne...

It is not easy being in the passenger rail advocacy business in Canada. For most Canadians, VIA Rail has not been a viable alternative to the automobile. Crippling federal government cuts, lack of investment and travelling on tracks owned by a private company, has left VIA Rail struggling to survive. Recent announcements that VIA may restore a train to Sarnia  was greeted with cautious optimism by passenger rail groups fighting to get  service or improved service in their community. For communities from Kitchener, Cambridge into Toronto the Wynne government continues to push with local governments for more GO Rail transit. There is a new study in progress looking at ways to get off the CN freight railway for quicker, more reliable rail service. For fans of high speed rail travel in Canada, it is definitely still a waiting game. Perhaps the elections in October will bring a government in that is pro-high speed rail. Both main opposition leaders Mulcair and Trud...