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Discussion of Canadian Passenger Rail Services such as AMT (Montreal), Go Transit (Toronto), VIA Rail, and other Canadian Railways and Transit

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 #1082063  by XC Tower
 
I'm saddened to see the end of the Northlander, as riding it brought to a true appreciation of northern Ontario. My first journey was going north in January of 1990 riding in the old Swiss trainset, to visit friends, then ride VIA's last Northland back to Toronto from North Bay. After my wedding in 1992, I took my new bride to visit my same friends in North Bay aboard my old friend, the Northlander. There were other trips, which no two were the same, that all blend into one memory. For old times sake, I'd like to ride once more before September 28th, a last chance to go back in time, retracing steps of past journeys, with an old northern Ontario pal.........It's always tough to lose a friend.




XC
 #1085276  by Wingnut
 
As nice as a trip to North Bay or Cochrane would have been, it just wasn't practical with my itinerary. The ONR has an ongoing campaign called "Ontario Northland is NOT for Sale" which includes posting their stop sign banner at the ticket window in Union Station and on the front of their locomotive. I wish them the best of luck but it seems to be too little, too late. When nobody is willing to subsidize trains, they die. Simple as that. Worst of all, this may just be the beginning of a new round of train cuts in Canada.
 #1085584  by XC Tower
 
I'm going to give it a try to catch the Northlander at Toronto for Cochrane tomorrow. We'll see if I can jump through all the hoops of getting there (long car drive to border, cross, park, catch an early bus to Toronto, hope it get there early enough to get a seat on the train, etc), but, at least, I'll have tried. Saying good-bye to an old Northern Ontario friend deserves the effort. During my travels there, I've met many kind, considerate folks, who've left both a lasting positive impression and memories with me. Letting the ONR folks and friends know of my support should mean something, I hope.



XC
 #1087402  by XC Tower
 
Early yesterday evening, on September 28th, 2012, after 102 years of faithful service to the towns of beautiful northern Ontario, Ontario Northland Railway's "The Northlander" rumbled and wheezed to a stop at Toronto's Union Station, ending a physical link to the past and marking a date in history. I had the honor of being on its final run, as with VIA's "Northland", some 22 years earlier. The train crew's service was outstanding, even in this time when whether they have a job on the ONR is in doubt, a true mark of dedication and class........Northern Ontario class. To see the train being greeted by people in the little towns along the route, where between the very young and old, good-byes were said to a train that played a part in the development of Northern Ontario. Speeches were made, by many folks and various political representatives at each stop. The mayor of Cochrane, Ont, made the trip down with two city councilmen, he speaking eloquently at each stop with others. The ONR red stop sign banner declaring that their railway is not for sale was heavily in evidence, worn and hung at each stop. Retired ONR railwaymen were on board, along with young ONR employees, one who's grandfather was the first engineer on the train north back in the early 1900's, along with others who supported the ONR plus folks who wanted to make the last run. The feeling of history, tinged with sadness, at the end of an era for a physical link to a region's opening and past. Yes, a liner of the land which rolled across long ribbons of silver steel rails, which I consider and others,the most civil mode of mass transportation invented by man, which was and is a step out of the everyday ordinary reality of our lives, came to an end, done in by a political stroke of the pen in the name of balancing a provincal budget. My wish is not to start a polarized political debate, for there are there are honestly good valid points from each point of view, but I feel that there were a 100+ ways that "The Northlander" could have been promoted and saved, ridership attracted, train frequency reduced with the seasons, along with other ideas and suggestions introduced, etc., but as an Amtrak conductor on the Silver Meteor quoted to me years ago on the subject of passenger trains, "All passenger trains are political and all politics are local". The words resoounded in my mind as true and still do. I give Mr. David Gunn, former Amtrak president and other rail passenger agencies head credit, for standing up to a strong political will, at the cost of his job, for telling the American public the truth about rail passenger services: None exist to serve the people in general without government subsidies. A true Cape Bretoner, a man from America's neighbor to the north, who had the courage to speak a truth in the face of huge opposition and pressure. On a personal level, sadly, I bid farewell and thank you to an old Northern Ontario friend, Ontario Northland Railway's, "The Northlander". You will not be forgotten, living on in the hearts, minds, and memories of many........including mine. Roll on, my Northern Ontario friend. Roll on.......I will remember you....You welcomed a young man from away to your region, to your land so many years ago. I like you have grown in years, called old by some now, but in my mind we will be forever young.......Roll on....I will be aboard with you wherever life's journey takes us.





XC Tower
 #1087763  by XC Tower
 
Gentlemen,

I sure hope that the fight isn't over, for my wish is to continue north on The Polar Bear Express to Moosenee from Cochrane. (After seeing it arrive at 10pm in Cochrane from my room window from the 2nd floor of the Station Inn, I could've kicked myself for not spending the money that, as most everybody else, I don't really have, but who can take it with them in the first place?)
One final ending note, if you'll allow me: Once I've been telling folks about the Northlander trip, so far three people want to make the trip with me! Years ago, I had the idea of taking groups of friends with me on the route north, but never pursued it beyond getting lots of real interest in going to a region of natural beauty and real hospitality......Another reason why I could just kick myself. I could've done more to help the Northlander.....





XC Tower
 #1088006  by labaienordique
 
goodnightjohnwayne wrote:
It's over.
It's just beginning.
 #1088173  by XC Tower
 
If the "Northlander" is put back on, I will ride again, along with bringing the groups that were once thought of by me. In life, sometimes a person,...... and maybe a passenger train, gets a second chance.......Never say never..




XC Tower
 #1089597  by goodnightjohnwayne
 
XC Tower wrote:If the "Northlander" is put back on, I will ride again, along with bringing the groups that were once thought of by me. In life, sometimes a person,...... and maybe a passenger train, gets a second chance.......Never say never..




XC Tower
It's doubtful that the Northlander could be restored, ever. The real issue is that Ontario has a minority government and the opposition wasn't willing to force an election over the issue of the Ontario Northland, most likely because an election wouldn't have resulted in additional seats for the opposition.

In any case, recruiting groups of railfans to ride the Northlander wouldn't have done much to help, since this train was killed due to ridership, but due to the huge labor costs associated with subsidizing a large workforce of highly paid union employees maintaining a hundreds of miles of jointed rails to passenger rail standards. As a railroad enthusiast, it's interesting to see old fashioned track gangs and the sort of vintage railroading that disappeared from the United States in the 1960s. However, it's not in the best interests of taxpayers to subsidize that sort of operation.
labaienordique wrote:
goodnightjohnwayne wrote:
It's over.
It's just beginning.
It was over on September 28 with the last run, and it appears that not very many people really cared - a situation that resembles this years VIA Rail service cuts. From what I've seen of the "protesters" the signs look like they come from the effected labor organizations. That's not grassroots support, that's astroturfing.
 #1090002  by XC Tower
 
Thank you for the explanation, goodnightjohnwayne, regarding the Northlander's demise. Your insight and point of view is appreciated.
From traveling on many a passenger a train in Canada over the years, I've been broadened by listening to folks living in the different cities and provinces, along with gaining an appreciation of the beauty of the land, even calling it my "education". What I have been given and gained from past train travels in your land has had a profound effect upon me. I do have a true respect for Canada and its people, being honored and hoping to be a good neighbor for my part.
Regarding the VIA cuts and ONR's "Northlander" plight, I was shocked by a VIA agent at Toronto Union Station's response to my question of "What's going on up here with the passenger trains?", when she answered, "It has been decided that the Canadian people do not want to ride passenger trains." I guess that I remain a small fish in my small pond, but shouldn't a person get a choice of their mode of travel? Of course, it all applies to this land where I call home. There are far too many locations with a real lack of choices.
Out of my experience from riding the Northlander this past week, the overall feeling is sadness: for the communities along the route, the ONR employees and anyone else who'll feel the loss. Also, as for me, a person who is a passenger train advocate, I feel real guilt for taking the "Northlander" for granted. I always thought it would be there to ride.




XC Tower
 #1091287  by neroden
 
XC Tower wrote: Regarding the VIA cuts and ONR's "Northlander" plight, I was shocked by a VIA agent at Toronto Union Station's response to my question of "What's going on up here with the passenger trains?", when she answered, "It has been decided that the Canadian people do not want to ride passenger trains." I guess that I remain a small fish in my small pond, but shouldn't a person get a choice of their mode of travel? Of course, it all applies to this land where I call home. There are far too many locations with a real lack of choices.
And as soon as the people vote out the politicians who "decided" that Canadian people do not want to ride passenger trains, this "decision" will be revealed as the fraud it is.

But it's a pretty accurate description. The VIA cuts come straight from the PM's office.
 #1091682  by XC Tower
 
Another disturbing aspect of ONR's "Northlander" being discontinued goes right along with the ominous quote, "Those who forget the past are condemned to repeat it." My hope is that in this case that I am mistaken. In the ONR's and Northern Ontario's case, what I fear is what a former mayor of a small town along the former Erie Lackawanna Railroad's mainline said, "Looking back, we didn't sense any trouble with the railroad until the passenger trains were taken off." In a relatively short period of years, so was the railroad. It's never been the same since in those towns, either. If one looks elsewhere for other examples, a list can be started: Newfoundland, Cape Breton,.....If they still have a railway, look at the condition it's in. Yes, I understand statements said about what the taxpayers can afford, but there are other costs that come with the loss of passenger trains and railroads: jobs, the environment, etc., all of which have a human face in their costs. I can see why the ONR unions are putting up such a huge fight for they know what's at stake for them and Northern Ontario.
My belief is that if a solution is desired truly by people on both sides of an issue, an agreement beneficial to all can be reached, but when one enters into the murky realm of politics quite often the first casuality is truth. Somebody always stands to gain at another person's loss. I'll venture another statement regarding taxpayer's wherever they may live, "You're always getting the "business".....
Lastly, the Amtrak conductor's quote to me on the Silver Meteor, "All passenger rail is political and all politics are local". Twenty plus years from his saying those words and they still make sense.




XC Tower
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