[CubaMark]

It's a four-month test program, and only on the Montreal-Toronto corridor, but it's a beginning..


full article here


M

 

[Dr.G.]

Problem is that the Canadian Government took out the railroads in the island section of Newfoundland and Labrador. We were promised better roads and ferry services if we agreed to get rid of the train that ran across the island. We got rid of the train and have yet to see better roads or ferry services. Such is Life.

 

[used to be jwoodget]

That's hilarious. The definition of high speed for the uplink is marginally faster than a dial-up modem. It's like VIA high speed trains that take 7-8 hours to travel between Toronto and Montreal. People complain about Air Canada, but VIA shoots itself in the foot where it should be a VIAble alternative. The rail track is simply not good enough for fast and reliable travel and the prices are lousy for the level of service. We're supposedly about to lauch a $3 billion Quebec City-Windsor corridor but it'll probably cost $5 billion by the time its done and the train frequency will be less than hourly. It'll never make money (well, not until fuel prices make air travel uneconomic in 30 years time).

I'm a big supporter of trains but comparing the crap we have here with european and Japanese systems highlights how sick the North American rail system is.

BTW, the trial is free but only in First Class. I can see people clustered at the end of the second class compartment, tuning in.... even through the metal skin of the carriages.

 

[Dr.G.]

jwoodget, they could also ride on top of the train. The infamous "Newfie Bullet" was so slow that people got out and picked blueberries and then got back on the train...........a train that did not stop, but was so slow in spots that people could walk faster than the train. Still, those days are long gone.

 

[jeac5]

Dr. G., there are no trains on Cape Breton Island either. And, you can be sure, our roads are nothing to write home about. I remember taking the train home from my first year of university in Halifax about 15 years ago. It was much preferable to the bus.