Passenger Trains > Amtrak Question - Niagara Falls Trains 63 & 64

I have not paid much direct attention to these trains in a long time, but was looking on the Amtrak website for a Rochester, NY - Toronto trip. It says a "transfer" must be made at the Canadian Border for a Via Train 7098. I thought this equipment went on through from NY to Toronto. Has that changed ? If it is a "paper" transfer as a change of train number why even state as such and make it seamless. Anyway, wondering what the real deal was with it. One way fare listed as $53.

Also note the running time is 6 hours 12 minutes for the 168 miles which if my brain is not foggy about 27 mph. Drive time, depending on traffic can be just under three hours. Also recall the failed high speed ferry a decade or so ago made it cross lake in about 50 minutes or some such. Nothing seems easy anymore.

The equipment runs through, but you must get off and on in each direction with luggage for Customs.
VIA Rail runs the train from Niagara Falls,ON and Toronto.

Sounds like the ferry should come back !

Ok, thanks. Is it the same drill for Trains 68 & 69 to Montreal from Albany ?

Wasn't it trains 63 and 64 that used to run through to Detroit in early Amtrak days ?

train1275 Wrote:
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> Also note the running time is 6 hours 12 minutes
> for the 168 miles which if my brain is not foggy
> about 27 mph.

There is about 2hrs built in for the border crossing.

No. You stay on the Adirondack at the border as there is no station at La Colle, northbound, and it is done just north of Rousses Pt station, southbound.
VIA Rail has nothing to do with the train. Albany crew goes though to Montreal.

In the 1970's, 64 & 64 was called the Niagara Rainbow and ran to Detroit via now gone ex-Michigan Central trackage.

Thanks again. Just for the heck of it I looked up Buffalo Exchange Street to Toronto and the fare is $60, $7 dollars higher than from Rochester.

And it takes 4 hours 55 minutes to cover the 99 miles or 3 hours slower than driving. (Avg speed 20 mph).

train1275 Wrote:
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> Thanks again. Just for the heck of it I looked up
> Buffalo Exchange Street to Toronto and the fare is
> $60, $7 dollars higher than from Rochester.
>
> And it takes 4 hours 55 minutes to cover the 99
> miles or 3 hours slower than driving. (Avg speed
> 20 mph).


That's the attraction. If the train goes too fast, it is hard to see anything and difficult to photograph. Also, there's more travel time to enjoy, so it's worth a premium.

These trains are not for ordinary people. They're for a special breed.

I ride 64 often, Syracuse to Albany Rensselaer. An Empire Service Train takes 2hrs 37 min between these stations vs 3 hrs 21 min for 64 with all the same stops. Sometimes 64 runs late. One time last fall we sat in Schenectady for 30 min after arriving there early and still got into Albany on time.

Tom Coughlin
Stow, MA (I’ll be on train 64, the Maple Leaf, tomorrow)

Posted from iPhone

joemvcnj Wrote:
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> No. You stay on the Adirondack at the border as
> there is no station at La Colle, northbound, and
> it is done just north of Rousses Pt station,
> southbound.
> VIA Rail has nothing to do with the train. Albany
> crew goes though to Montreal.
>
> In the 1970's, 64 & 64 was called the Niagara
> Rainbow and ran to Detroit via now gone
> ex-Michigan Central trackage.


Little correction(s) if I may. The correct spelling is Lacolle. Technically the northbound stop is not in Lacolle as the train is on the CNR. Lacolle is a stop on the CPR.
The southbound stops with the locomotive and the first car at the station. This allows the border folks to board the train at the station and keeps the train sealed.

Southbound, I have noticed the platform lights at Rousses Pt are lit when Customs is working the train. When they get off, the lights go off. That happens a couple of minutes before they cut the HEP off for about half a minute to go from standby mode. If you are sitting on the right, you can see around the bend, and have some clue as to when they are done before it actually moves into the station