VIA cancels some trains due to COVID-19

First it was the aggrieved "Indigenous People" (note: Mr. ghCBNS) , now its Covid 19:

https://www.viarail.ca/en/travel-advisory-information

Fair Use:

In light of the recent measures being taken to help prevent the spread of COVID-19 (Coronavirus), VIA Rail’s overnight trains (Toronto-Vancouver and Montreal-Halifax) have been cancelled beginning March 13, 2020.

These trains will not be operating from March 13 to March 27 inclusively, with the possibility of extension.

Seems like "y'all up there" just can't ride a train - or at least in a Sleeper.

Gilbert B Norman wrote: ↑Sat Mar 14, 2020 1:01 pm First it was the aggrieved "Indigenous People" (note: Mr. ghCBNS) , now its Covid 19:

Thank you

Seems like "y'all up there" just can't ride a train - or at least in a Sleeper.

I think "y'all down there" are going to be seeing some cut-backs too! Isn't the NEC on a Saturday schedule on weekdays now?

Not so fast. VIA is canceling both the Ocean and Canadian thru 3/27, and reducing frequencies elsewhere now due to Corona....

Sent from my SM-T290 using Tapatalk

Seams the over zealous moderation of this forum has combined two threads here without qualifying or revising the thread title. Train services are no longer cancelled following a 'CN Notice'

The first replies to this thread concerned the cancellation of trains due to the Indigenous protest. Most of those service returned a couple of weeks ago except Jasper-Prince Rupert

Beginning with the post by GBN on Saturday March 14th (which had been in a separate thread) now concerns the cancellation of the Canadian and the Ocean due to COVID-19......and then yesterday (Sunday March 15) VIA announced cancellation of approximately 50% of corridor trains along with a modification to meal service:

https://www.viarail.ca/en/travel-advisory-information

Business Class will have a reduced light meal offering but also...... coach travel will now see a 'complementary' snack and water provided. Certainly being done to avoid as much as possible the handling of food and in coach the need to tap or swipe credit cards/gift cards (cash was no longer being accepted anyway)

Today,the Canadian PM ordered the border closed to "non citizens" and travel to/from US. Corona virus is the blamed cause.
Amtrak's Cascades,Adirondak,and Maple Leaf now turn at Seattle,Buffalo,or Albany.

Backshophoss wrote: ↑Tue Mar 17, 2020 12:30 am Today,the Canadian PM ordered the border closed to "non citizens" and travel to/from US. Corona virus is the blamed cause.
Amtrak's Cascades,Adirondak,and Maple Leaf now turn at Seattle,Buffalo,or Albany.

Why not report this correctly?

The border is closed but US Citizens are exempt…...and travel between the US and Canada continues. Perhaps not on Amtrak but many flights are still operating and no restrictions on driving across for US or Canadian citizens .

CNN got it right!

https://www.cnn.com/2020/03/16/world/ca ... index.html

As did CBC:

https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/cbsa-b ... -1.5498866

NS VIA FAN wrote: ↑Mon Mar 16, 2020 7:13 am Seams the over zealous moderation of this forum has combined two threads here without qualifying or revising the thread title.

Acknowledged. This topic has been split again and retitled.

It seems President Trump just closed the border except to essential traffic.

Tadman wrote: ↑Wed Mar 18, 2020 9:35 am It seems President Trump just closed the border except to essential traffic.

Trudeau just closed it also...so I guess it works (or doesn't!) both ways. It was actually a mutual agreement that still allows goods to flow....I assume that is railways (freight) and trucking.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/canada ... -1.5501289

Yay, I finally managed to sign up here!

I just wanted to provide an update to what @NS VIA FAN has summarized a few posts up:

• Effective Friday, March 13, all transcontinental services (i.e. the Ocean and the Canadian) were suspended until further notice (train 15 had already departed, but trains 2 and 14 were cancelled with only a few hours notice).
• Effective Tuesday, March 17, a limited schedule took effect on the Corridor (cancelling approximately half of all services), while leaving the regional services (except the Skeena, which never resumed services after the blockades and is currently cancelled until at least June 1) unaffected.
• Effective Monday, March 23, all Corridor services were cancelled except trains 22/28/33/39 (Quebec-Montreal-Ottawa), 63/64/68/669 (Montreal-Toronto), 48/52/59/643 (Ottawa-Toronto), 71/72/75/78 (Toronto-Windsor) and 84/87 (Toronto-Sarnia), with all these trains operating daily (regardless of how often they normally operate). Furthermore, Montreal-Jonquiere, Montreal-Senneterre and Sudbury-White River were cancelled except their weekend departures (i.e. 601 and 603 on Fridays, 185 on Saturday and 186, 602 and 606 on Sundays).
• Effective Tuesday, March 31, all Corridor services were further reduced and only operate once per week, as follows: trains 22&39 (Quebec-Montreal-Ottawa), 63&66 (Montreal-Toronto), 44&53 (Ottawa-Toronto), 72&75 (Toronto-Windsor) and 84&87 (Toronto-Sarnia), with all these trains operating daily (regardless of how often they normally operate). No changes were done to the schedules of other services (i.e. Ocean, Canadian and Skeena cancelled, Jonquiere, Senneterre and White River reduced to once per week and Winnipeg-Churchill being the only service operating under the normal schedule).

I will try to provide updates here whenever the temporary timetable changes again...

I have a reservation on the Ocean for a May 22nd departure. I have a feeling that I will have to cancel, but for now I am keeping the reservation alive. I have noticed that the rooms that were sold out are now available, so people must be cancelling.

I suppose with Amtrak Cascades no-go north of Seattle and VIA long-distance trains shut-down, that this is the first time since the opening of the Canadian Northern Railway that Pacific Central Station in Vancouver has seen no departures or arrivals

Waterfront still see's 3 commuter round trips at this point.

Vancouver has always been an enigma regarding stations. It's a city with metro population of 2.5m, #31 in North America, and they have three train stations and two ferry docks. One station is downtown, two are sort of near downtown by subway. Neither ferry dock is even in the city nor connected by Subway.

There was also a fourth station for BCR but that's closed and gone now.

Three train stations? They had three intercity terminals at one time, but Great Northern (at one time "Union") station was demolished in 1968. Both of those stations are technically 'downtown' but they're more remote from downtown's centre of gravity then they were in 1914. I'll certainly join in the puzzlement of why GN and CNoR built two stations adjacent to eachother at the same time served by the same tracks when they were willing to cooperate to save costs elsewhere however.

The intercity ferries originated in the 1950s and their transit access reflects the thinking of that time, though Horseshoe Bay had once-a-day passenger rail service until 2003

https://search.nbca.unbc.ca/uploads/r/n ... 11_033.jpg

The Ocean is now cancelled "until further notice." Prior to this it had been cancelled through May 1st.

This does not bode well for my May 22nd trip - which is probably just as well. My only gripe is that changing the date of my trip will result in a higher fare, even if I choose the cheapest days available.