07-04-2023, 08:57 AM
(07-04-2023, 07:38 AM)nms Wrote: Kitchener to London is currently served by two VIA trains:
- Trains 84 (eg leaving London for Kitchener at 9:54)
- Train 87 (eg leaving Kitchener for London at 19:18).
Trains 85 and 86 (I think this was the numbered pair) used to also run this route, beginning in Sarnia and terminating in Toronto. 85/86 was dropped when GO added their London service and I think it also dovetailed with VIA reducing its overall vehicle inventory as cars wore out and the replacements hadn't arrived yet.
Sean Marshall has created this GIS map of Canadian train services circa 1955. Southern Ontario had dozens of small passenger routes with more than a dozen different routes that could get a passenger to a beach.
Will GO ever switch to more than one type of consist? Or invest in other types of vehicles beyond the current push-pull? If they do, and CN and CP(KC) are willing to play ball, there might be a chance of improved rail service beyond the current "every trip must terminate at Union Station" mindset.
Interesting map! Thanks for the clarification on train numbers, I forgot reverse trains were numbered differently derp. Or maybe I was just hopeful.
Are you telling me that Via rail finally decommissioned the...what must be 70 year old cars they were running on the London line?
FWIW...I don't actually expect our rail service to improve anything but incrementally.
I'm very cynical these days...I don't think we're going to see significant change to our society for a while, despite the fact that we are not at a point where without significant change, climate change will be utterly destructive. I expect we will continue BAU right up until the point where our society fails for any number of reasons. And it's not far off...Charles Marohn talked about this...and "failure" isn't what people think. There won't be gangs roaming the street playing guitars that spray fire...nothing like in the movies. Just one day, the water won't be safe to drink, we'll get used to electrical failures. We won't be able to buy new phones anymore. The internet will become provincial...all sorts of little changes, little regressions, until eventually, our society is unrecognizable.