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There is a big difference between "having an addiction" and "finding sufficient utility to make it worth crawling along in traffic". Most people I know who do the cottage thing on weekends take along sufficient baggage that they would not be eager to schlep it all to Union, board the train, and...

There is lots of behind the scene preparation, but I'm not aware that they have started any actual work on substations, feeders, or OCS. The Downsview Park station platform is an example of a platform that has been fully grounded - whether that's a test installation or the start of a program I...

Interesting - does anyone have access to know more about the scope - buses? locomotives ? There is a lot of smaller physical plant out there that already uses hydrogen, particularly for backup power for smaller remote devices. I would not leap to the assumption that ML is intending to use...

The automobile has been a mobility blessing for the entire world..... unless we want to go back to the range and limitations of a horse and cart, we need automobiles to get to places that we can't build railways to. We have reached a point of over-dependence, but that's a matter of degree... the...

I could not resist throwing some hints of data at this rhetorical question. So I went digging for an old copy of VIA's 1980 timetable. The lines it shows which have since disappeared include the following ( I may have missed or truncated one or two others) Sydney-Halifax Halifax-Yarmouth...

It's always risky to take renderings too literally (although sometimes they reveal important details that no one has talked about) - but - First, I reported what was approved in the TPAP, ie two station tracks and one "express" track. The TPAP is now almost a decade old. There have been various...

Airport rental income generates only a partial payment against the debt that was accumulated during previous airport construction. Airport rental income does not rise commensurate with new investment. If a runway needs extension, Ottawa pays. Whereas VIA is expected to generate a rate of return...

I can't think of one. Even supposedly privately invested infrastructure such as Brightline receives indirect support from the State of Florida. The issue specifically for VIA is that the accounting is very precise and absolutely everything attributable to its existence finds its way into the...

I’m optimistic (or just cynical perhaps) that neither PP nor the CPC will remember half the things they said while in opposition, and will actually rise to the task of governing on the basis of issues placed before them and facing the country. I’m also optimistic that once the Liberals cease to...

The original TPAP called for sufficient property acquisition to handle three tracks but only two at platform. The TPAP also notes that the Eglinton bridge would have to be widened to accommodate the third track, and that's not in scope as yet. - Paul

And would you expect a new government to axe any other transportation infrastructure that is equally "unprofitable" when viewed using the same very inclusive accounting methodology? I am not optimistic that the business case for replacing the Long Distance fleet will prove to be affordable...

There is nothing wrong with an initial study that puts a quantum on potential cost and benefit. The dangerous part is when people misinterpret that very imprecise "what-if" level study for evidence of actual action or commitment. I particularly dislike media writers who are quick to headline...

Good to see this actually out to tender, as it was announced quite a while ago now. Normal operations meaning, the original main track platform restored to full operability, but..... what about the second platform and track that's new? Nothing said about progress towards double tracking the...

I interpret this to say that the construction forces have generally demobilised, except for where they are performing commissioning and testing and/or correcting defects. Drives me crazy how the ML Board tosses easy pitches. So, what was the comparable statistic for the past two quarters (I...

Until one notes that a full 25% of the study cost will be spent developing a request to Ottawa for funding….. I give this very low probability of going anywhere. We need to stop letting people treat higher order transport as a field of dreams - this ain’t baseball. - Paul

Meanwhile, down east.... https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/commuter-rail-cape-breton-feasibility-study-1.7250315 - Paul

While there was inconvenience to some, the Westjet strike was a walk in the park compared to the impact of a freight rail disruption of equal duration for CN and CPKC. Which is why the Teamsters are making noise already..... it's all about raising public awareness and political concern towards...

I can't help comparing to say Halifax, where the airport - which is a fairly expensive taxi or Uber ride from the city - has only an hourly transit bus to the airport. The reality is, Less than daily service to Timmins at wee hours will have at best a barebones last mile infrastructure. If...

Be careful what you wish for. If US/Canada were a common travel area, Canada would have to seal its share of the outer border to a degree that is acceptable to the other party. We do already, to a degree..... but our borders would have to be a lot harder to cross for that kind of deal to work...

This is a case where "have" and "have not" applies. There are provinces that would have to make a choice between surfacing roads and fixing potholes versus rail passenger.... guess which way their electorate would favour. There are provinces that might have the money but prefer to wait and see...