Who Screwed VIA Rail … and Why.

As advocates for passenger rail in the U.S., we look at VIA Rail up north and ask ourselves, How the hell do they do it? With the same lack of government support that shackles Amtrak, how does VIA manage to keep operating their premier train, The Canadian, at such a high standard? It is, after all, still one of the great train rides in the world.
 
Yes, VIA has had to put up with inaction and underfunding by the Canadian government, just as Amtrak has. But, according to a knowledgable source, it’s worse than that, because private interests colluded with the Canadian freight railroads and, with the tacit approval of the government, they shafted VIA.
 
For many years, The Canadian, VIA Trains 1 and 2, followed the traditional southerly route over tracks owned by the Canadian Pacific Railroad: Toronto, Thunder Bay, Winnipeg, Calgary, Banff, Lake Louise, through the spiral tunnels and the spectacular Fraser River Canyon, and on into Vancouver.
 
jasper 
Above: VIA Rail’s train #1, The Canadian, stopped in Jasper, Alberta, for a crew change and restocking of supplies.
 
Then, in 1990, railroad moguls emerged from a smoke-filled boardroom and that’s when VIA Rail learned that there was a deal: henceforth they would be operating their premier train over Canadian National track farther to the north, through Jasper instead of Banff, and along a new, less scenic route through areas with much smaller populations, fewer potential passengers. It was a move that made absolutely no sense whatsoever … until people began adding two plus two.
 Peter Armstrong 4
 Meet Peter Armstrong, a big time behind-the-scenes player in conservative Canadian politics who is apparently close to the people running the Canadian Pacific Railroad—owners of the rail line through that traditional and more scenic southern rout. And it just so happens that Armstrong also owns the Rocky Mountaineer and, before you could say “What the f——!”, his train was hauling tourists over VIA’s former route—to Banff and Calgary.
 
How did this change affect The Canadian? Less ridership and a reduction in frequency, to three times a week in the busy summer season and twice weekly during the rest of the year. And yet, despite all the politics and the deals and the change to a less desirable routing, to VIA Rail’s great credit, The Canadian still makes just about everyone’s list of the world’s Top Ten Long-Distance Train Rides. It’s sure as hell on mine.