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Caption:
Candy Stripes in foreign territory: GMD 1953 built FP7A, ex CP Rail, #1404 & a sister in charge of VIA #1 ...
… on final approach to the CN Newmarket station stop, June 2, 1979 Kodachrome by S.Danko
Noteworthy: In this image the VIA Train #1 – CANADIAN - has only 15 remaining daily trips on the CN Newmarket Sub (south of Washago and from Washago north on the Bala Sub to CN Boyne (CP Rail Reynolds) near South Parry).
The June 17, 1979 timetable re-routed the daily VIA #1 & 2 CANADIAN exclusively onto CP RAIL Vancouver (CN station) through Banff to/from Montreal (CN) Central Station.
and concurrently daily trains #3 & 4 SUPER CONTINENTAL exclusively on CN Vancouver through Jasper to/from Toronto Union.
VIA trains 1 & 2, 3 & 4: The June 17 1979 re-routings were only in place a couple of years, by June 1982 the SUPER CONTINENAL disappeared completely, replaced by 10 regional trains.
VIA #1 & 2 remained on CP RAIL through to the January 1990 debacle that slashed more than half of VIA services – thanks to YOUR Canadian Federal Government
Ponder: Wasn't VIA's original purpose to promote rail passenger travel ? However all VIA has done is reduce / divest services and continues to do so.....hmmm....
Foreign:
bemused
sdfourty
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The promoters of VIA forget so conveniently, don’t they?
Somebody thought it was a great idea. And it could have been.
But now; sloppy service, dirty kiosks, run down looking equipment that never gets cleaned. How quickly they lose concern.
Everywhere I look it gives the appearance that VIA is trying to repel riders, at the same time, claiming to promote.
Oh, and I forgot. CLASSIC image.
For all the rhetoric about how much more ‘progressive’ and ‘enlightened’ Canadians are when compared to America, we sure did our best to destroy passenger train services. Our governments have catered to the auto industries and their related support industries (paving contractors) for decades.
We’re to blame as well… we prefer to sit in cramped cars rather than trains.