Return Of The Bras d'Or??

In a related topic:

jp1822 wrote:.....Now if we can just get the Bras'd'Or train back in the Maritimes - at least seasonally with a weekday and weekend round trip. Even if it ran to Port Harksbury(spelling?) where major services seem to be located at the beginning of Cape Breton.

I live along the route of the Bras d’Or and as much as I would like to see it return, it just doesn’t make sense unless it is open to all potential passengers with stops in Truro, Stellarton, Antigonish, Port Hawkesbury (possibly Orangedale) North Sydney and Sydney. As a once a week Tourist Train there were good size crowds eastbound where passengers boarded buses to continue around Cape Breton. Westbound loads were not great.

This was always a busy route for VIA prior to the cuts in January 1990. Usually three or four unit RDC trains with a lot of the passengers connected to the Montreal trains at Truro and is still a busy route for Acadian Lines with their buses stopping at the VIA station in Truro now to provide connections with the Ocean. St. Francis Xavier University in Antigonish was also a good traffic generator for VIA. Some of this traffic might be hard to get back as the bus terminal is on campus. A stop in North Sydney would provide connections with the Newfoundland Ferries.

The VIA Station in Stellarton is still there and part of the Provincial Museum Of Industry complex. It was built in a traditional station style complete with a clock tower and was opened only a year or so before train service ended.

If the Bras d’Or was to return as a Tourist Train only, the better route would be from Sydney to Orangedale and onto Port Hawkesbury providing a Rail Tour along the Bras d’Or Lakes for Cruise Ship passengers arriving in Sydney. There are really no scenic areas on the mainland until Havre Boucher is reached just west of the Canso Causeway and Port Hawkesbury. The rail line from Port Hawkesbury to Sydney was proposed for abandonment but has been saved in the short term and a new passenger train service would provide some needed income for Rail America’s CB&CNS Railway. The line west of Port Hawkesbury to Truro is still busy and in no danger of abandonment.

There is a very nice railroad museum located in Orangedale, Cape Breton and would be an excellent stop or destination for a Tour Train out of Sydney. (And as a side note: former Amtrak President David Gunn is presenting a slide show there this weekend (Oct 27) “Steam Engines in Canada in the 1950's”)

I think this route is ready for some sort of seasonal service. I was looking forward to the twice a week roundtrip, where a round trip was offered I believe on Wednesday and another on Friday or Saturday. They used to operate this train on a weekday, and I think weekend traffic would be a hit. And perhaps the train needs to past Port Harksbury (Port H.) to Sydney - or at least some destination that offers good services for car rentals, bus tours, boat tours/cruises etc. If the line looks like it is going to be around for a time, VIA should look into bringing some sort of service back - even if seasonal and stopping at the *major* stops, rather than having it point to point. I chose Port H., as the drive from Halifax to this point was brutal. I would have much rather been on a train and hten rented a car from Port H. But if the scenic part is north of here, then it may warrant continuation. Couple of museums have come online near the train route. The line from Truro to Port H. seemed more healthier than the line north of Port H. so that's why I suggested Port H. as the northern terminus. I've heard attendants on the Ocean say that even when the train ran one day a week it was crowded. I didn't think it sort of "made it" on weekdays. Course with tour groups, that may be a different story. Have David Gunn support or advocate for the Bras'd'Or revival if the route looks promising. The Chaleur route was another route that was up in the air and it got a new breath of life. It would just seem that during tourist season, the train would be a good option to get people from Halifax to Cape Breton. VIA's got the equipment to run such a train - Park Car and all! They could run coach(es), Skyline dome with food service, sleeper (used as day rooms) and Park Car Dome/Lounge. I am just not sure if the northern terminus of Sydney is best. Are better services offered at another point along the route - and more centralized than Sydney?

Course the ideal would be regular train service, but I think the train would have a hard time surviving with ridership in the winter. You'd want a good crowd to support a non-RDC train that also has at least one dome car. The Bras'd'Or operated with Skyline Dome and Park Dome/Lounge Car. This would be nice!