Adam Prudhomme
Editor
Greater Napanee residents are joining an ever-growing ensemble of VIA Rail customers across Eastern Ontario who are seeking answers following the cancellation of Train 651.
Prior to the pandemic the train ran Kingston to Toronto daily, departing Napanee around 6 a.m. to arrive at Toronto’s Union Station for 8:30 a.m. The service was relied on heavily for residents in the rural parts of Eastern Ontario who worked 9-5 jobs in downtown Toronto to provide a safe and efficient commute.
VIA Rail paused the service during the pandemic-as they did with many lines during a time when ridership dropped by 95 per cent-originally stating their intention to restore Train 651 in June. Now in late July the service has not only not resumed, but there’s been no indication from VIA when-or if-it will run again.
“Throughout the pandemic, our decision to add frequencies has been based on various factors, including demand and continuing to employ a balanced approach in order to fulfill VIA Rail’s important public service mandate and manage financial impacts,” reads a statement from VIA issued as a response when asked about the matter. “VIA Rail is constantly evaluating its services, and after two years of pandemic we are looking at the impact of the changes in travel habits on our operations, for example, the new work from home reality. We are planning to complete the impact evaluation of 12 other frequencies not slated to return in June in the coming weeks, including train 651”.
Once such rider from Napanee, who took the train daily, says Train 651 was always full with an average of 500-600 passengers. The rider also noted their account with VIA was worth up to $5,000 a year.
Frustrated commuters, many of which moved to communities such as Greater Napanee in large part because of their ability to travel by rail to work, have turned to local politicians to help get answers. As companies mandate a return to the office the commuters are left with few options-either drive to Oshawa to catch a Go Train, or take the only train offered by VIA in this corridor, which gets passengers downtown for around 10:30 a.m. That, or relocate altogether from Eastern Ontario.
Hastings-Lennox and Addington MP Shelby Kramp-Neuman is among those who are lending their support to riders who want answers.
“Operational decisions such as the service and schedules are being made by VIA Rail,” said Kramp-Neuman. “VIA Rail is an independent crown corporation so it only functions at an arm’s length from the government. That said, that’s not good enough. It’s frustrating because in talking to many people that have similar concerns, the biggest trouble seems to be that VIA doesn’t seem to be answering the public queries. It’s the public that is relying on these services and I think it’s the lack of communication.”
Kramp-Neuman says she’s had many people reach out to her to share their frustration on the matter. She’s written letters to federal Transport Minister Omar Alghabra and plans to keep applying pressure.
“These are people’s lives that are being impacted,” said Kramp-Neuman. “We are trying to build on economic development, on economic tourism in rural areas. We want to do all the right things, we want to promote environmentally sound practices, we want to create infrastructure. We want to do all these things but the failure of the train service is a headache for rural Canadians.”
To help strengthen their case to get the service reinstated, Eastern Ontario politicians are encouraging riders of the train to take a three-minute survey that can be found at https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/OnTrackCommute.