October 15, 2014

MORE CANADIANS CHOSE VIA RAIL ‎ON THANKSGIVING WEEKEND 56,600 Passengers On-board

HIGHLIGHTS

From Friday, October 10 to Monday, October 13:

Québec City – Windsor corridor|
53,700 passengers
6.7% increase in passenger revenues compared to 2013

Long-Haul Trains
2,100 passengers
3.5% increase of passenger revenues compared to 2013

Coast-to-coast VIA Rail Network |
56,600 passengers
6.2% increase in passenger revenues compared to 2013

Montréal, October 15, 2014 – A total of 56,600 people chose VIA Rail Canada (VIA Rail) for their travel plans during Thanksgiving weekend. The 200 trains that travelled across the country from October 10 to October 13 saw a 2% increase in ridership and generated a 6.2% rise in revenues compared to 2013.

“Thanksgiving weekend is the busiest weekend of the year for VIA Rail”, said VIA Rail’s president and CEO, Yves Desjardins-Siciliano. “We are glad to have served many Canadians on-board and we are thankful to our employees for their dedication and professionalism. Results of the weekend show that our services appeal to more and more people, and our efforts enable our business’ growth.”

In total, 53,700 passengers travelled in the Québec City–Windsor corridor during the weekend, a 2.7 % increase compared to the same period in 2013. On long-haul trains, 2,100 passengers took advantage of Thanksgiving to discover the scenery between Montréal and Halifax (the Ocean), and between Toronto and Vancouver (the Canadian). Thanks to its Artists on board Program, VIA Rail welcomes Canadian up-and-coming musicians aboard its long-haul trains and offers them the chance to showcase their repertoires to passengers. Over the last weekend, travellers had the privilege to hear musicians Jeanette Arsenault, Kevin Kratcsh, Astrid Young, and Glenna Green on the Canadian between Toronto and Vancouver. On the Ocean service between Montréal and Halifax, performances were offered by Ellen Gibling to the delight of passengers. There have been more than 800 performances since the program was created in 2009.

About VIA Rail Canada
As Canada's national rail passenger service, VIA Rail Canada (viarail.ca) and its 2,500 employees are mandated to provide safe, efficient and economical passenger transportation service, in both official languages of our country. VIA Rail operates intercity, regional and transcontinental trains linking 450 communities across Canada, and safely transports nearly four million passengers annually. The Corporation was awarded seven Safety Awards by the Railway Association of Canada over the last eight years, and was the recipient of the 2012 Agent's Choice Award voted by Canadian travel agents and presented by Baxter Travel Media. Since 2007, the Government of Canada has invested almost a billion dollars in VIA Rail. Read more about our transformation at www.viarail.ca/transformingVIA.