by trainsinmaine
I was talking earlier today with a visiting acquaintance who is an American customs agent working in Toronto. We were discussing transportation and he, having grown up in Maine, was very familiar with VIA's Atlantic Limited that used to run from Montreal to Halifax over the CP's Moosehead Sub and the CN's Saint John-to-Moncton line. I said that I, and many Mainers, wished the train were still running. He responded that he sees it as a distinct possibility, if not probability. VIA is quite receptive to public input, and this is a matter that has been on the back burner for some time. With the price of gas creeping ever upward, public transport --- especially trains --- is looking to become an increasingly "viable alternative," to coin a well-worn phrase.
I asked him about border hassles, given what has developed since 9/11; he said he doesn't see this as being significantly worse a problem than it was before the train stopped running in 1994.
Moncton to Montreal, through Maine, is a much more direct route than having to travel up through Edmundston. What's more, Saint John, one of the Atlantic Provinces' three largest cities, and Fredericton, the provincial capital, would once again have train service (well, Fredericton Junction, anyway), and Mainers would be able to enjoy the train trips eastward and westward that so many enjoyed in previous generations.
It would be a sorely-needed financial boost to the MM&A and the Maine Eastern Railway, too.
Bring back the Atlantic!! :-D
Any comments ---?
I asked him about border hassles, given what has developed since 9/11; he said he doesn't see this as being significantly worse a problem than it was before the train stopped running in 1994.
Moncton to Montreal, through Maine, is a much more direct route than having to travel up through Edmundston. What's more, Saint John, one of the Atlantic Provinces' three largest cities, and Fredericton, the provincial capital, would once again have train service (well, Fredericton Junction, anyway), and Mainers would be able to enjoy the train trips eastward and westward that so many enjoyed in previous generations.
It would be a sorely-needed financial boost to the MM&A and the Maine Eastern Railway, too.
Bring back the Atlantic!! :-D
Any comments ---?