Canadian Railroads > Late-running "Canadian"

I recently returned from a Vancouver-Toronto trip on the Canadian. This turned out to be the longest train ride I have ever taken and also the latest I have ever been on any train. This is not a moan. I had a great time. Because the train was over 12 hours late, a 100% late train credit is offered. This applies to the coach portion of the fare if travelling in sleepers on "paid tickets." I was travelling on VIA Preference points and received a full rebate. The trip was co-ordinated with some friends who boarded in Jasper. Some interesting people were met, including Fred Frailey. Mr. Frailey has done a four-part blog of this trip. (I often get a terse note when trying to post a link, so I won't bother, but if you would like to read his detailed report you can find it on Google in five seconds.)

Meets with freight trains were the main cause of the delay. A short distance west of Winnipeg something caused the train to lose air and we came to an emergency stop. As I found out later, this caused a flat wheel in the first sleeper which fortunately had been deadhead since Jasper. It took a few hours to set this off in Winnipeg, with the units and the first part of the train taking the sleeper west to the Maintenance Centre. In winter it can take hours to add or delete one car to the consist. It seems VIA doesn't perform this manoeuvre in Jasper very often. One winter passengers waited in the station for nearly two hours for one deadhead car to be added to train #1.

After departing Winnipeg 10 1/2 hours late we stopped on the bridge over the Red River for about 40 minutes for a meet. Near Elma - the first conditional stop - we waited two hours before meeting the first of two freights. Three passengers, who realised their optimism about catching an international flight in Toronto was unreasonable, asked to be let off. The Canadian backed up to the nearest level crossing where a taxi had been called to take them to Winnipeg airport. Throughout northern Ontario we were 16 hours late which made arrival in Toronto look like 1:30 a.m. We made up an hour south of Washago, arriving Union Station at 12:30. If we were five minutes later I wouldn't have been able to catch the last westbound GO train. Passengers with VIA connections were told that hotels were arranged with amended train bookings. Passengers who missed flights or who lived in the area were told we were on our own. Some passengers wisely made their own hotel and air bookings whilst en route. This late arrival was also tough for the on-board crew, who were told to return at 05:00 for a planned rescheduled departure at 07:00 for the previous night's #1. Since early January a new consist is now provided in Toronto, but there is no replacement for the Winnipeg-based crew. Despite some lengthy delays for meets I should point out that some of the dispatching across the five provinces was excellent. Many of our meets were "rolling meets" or involved a wait of just a few minutes. On several occasions we were permitted to overtake freight trains. If this had not happened we might have been a full 24 hours late.

The on-board service was very good, as were the meals. The rack of lamb was as good as ever. Chef managed to prepare a tasty lunch and dinner - with two choices at each - that would not normally be served on the last day. It is a credit to the crew that there was no appreciable grumbling from the passengers (at least those in sleepers!) about this delay. Yesterday VIA indicated on their Website that the three "Canadians" in service at that time were between 11 and 12 1/2 hours late.

When the tri-weekly service is restored in a month and the summer fares start in June, I hope the on-time performance improves considerably. The Canadian is still a splendid train trip. Just don't make any plans for the day of arrival, but if you do make sure you have a "Plan B" that won't cost you much in cancellation or change fees.

I "beat" you by 10 hours. My record late on any train was the Canadian eastbound due to a derailment on CN east of Long Lac. We detoured south to the CP...then east to Sudbury and Capriol where the train was annulled with busses to Toronto. Its a credit to VIA that the crews keep up the service and provide food for meals that weren't planned. Amtrak would have called in the KFC. But CN should be ashamed of themselves for such shoddy dispatching. On my last trip, we were actually passed by a freight and ended up stuck behind it for hours until we could run around. They have a contract to run the train and there is ample padding but that still doesn't seem to make any difference to them.

I have a friend and his wife who were riding No. 1 from Toronto to Vancouver. Their train was annulled at Sioux Lookout (derailed freight) and they were bussed to Winnipeg. VIA offered to fly them to Vancouver but they said no they would would wait for the next train, so VIA put them up in a hotel for two nights. So again they headed west by rail. But at Kamloops they were informed the line through the canyon was blocked by mud, so again they found themselves on a bus to get to Vancouver. Then they got a third bus ride when the line to Seattle was blocked by mud.

The Canadian is an adventure, but an adventure done with style and (usually) comfort. I'm off next Saturday to do it again.

JBWX

An ordeal like that could put people off long-distance train trips.

For several years it was VIA's custom to annul a very late eastbound Canadian at Capreol and send people on to Toronto by bus. Passengers at Toronto Union Station expecting the luxury train they had paid for were also treated to a bus trip to Capreol. Last year on the Canadian I met a couple who, about 10 years prior, had been sent by bus from Toronto to Capreol. The explanation, of course, was that the train was late and the only way to get it back on time was to not run it. They accepted that and suffered the cramped seating, lack of already-paid-for hot meal and private room, etc. As luck would have it, their train was running very late and at Kamloops the same thing happened: the train was annulled and they continued on their way to Vancouver by bus. They tell me there were a lot of "never again" passengers.

These days the Canadian goes through to its destination, if at all possible, regardless of how late it is. When #2 arrives in Toronto 12 hours late, #1 (due out at 22:00) departs the next morning usually between 07:00 and 10:00. Passengers for #1 are put up in hotels in Toronto. Local residents are encouraged to stay home and get to Union Station early. That can be difficult for a 07:00 departure. The Capreol bustitution occurs only when the line is blocked. I suspect this change in policy occurred because the departure of #1 since the change back to a four-night run to Vancouver, being 22:00, would involve a partial overnight bus trip. It's one thing to expect passengers to face a five to six hour bus ride during the day, but to suggest they should spend half a night in such conditions could cause quite a commotion at Union Station.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/31/14 05:53 by DrawingroomA.

I notice that Fred Frailey downgraded The Canadian due to its running so late so often, and awarded his "best train" to the Coast Starlate. Most of my rides on the Canadian have been more or less on time, although my last ride westbound was something like six hours late. For me, I just build the uncertainty into my schedule. A late train is cheaper per minute....that is how we used to evaluate the old WP Cal Zephyr. I plan on a hotel in Toronto instead of flying out the same day, etc. And my friend who got the three bus rides is a retired railroader and fan, so he just avoids taking his wife with him now. But I can certainly agree for most "normal" folks it can be a "never again" experience.

Fred's comparison of the two trains surprised me. I was really surprised he rated them equally for dining. In my mind the Canadian is head and shoulders above Amtrak's Denny's on wheels, even with the PCC as an alternative. And I find the Superliner sleeping accommodations to be nowhere near as comfortable as the Budd bedrooms and roomettes, not to mention the drawingrooms. Although I do wish CP had gotten the more traditional Budd bedroom configurations....the folding chairs are quite uncomfortable.

JBWX