VIA Rail Canada and the future of passenger rail in Canada / : VIA Rail Canada Inc. et l'avenir du transport ferroviaire de voyageurs au Canada

AND THE FUTURE OF PASSENGER RAIL IN CANADA However, with the rise of motor vehicle ownership in the early 20th century and the expansion of roads and highway networks, rail carriers began losing their dominance in the short-haul intercity markets (see Figure 1). [...] AND THE FUTURE OF PASSENGER RAIL IN CANADA During the 1960s and 1970s, passenger rail service in Canada continued to lose market share to motor vehicles and planes, and CNR and CPR focused increasingly on the more lucrative business line of freight haulage. [...] AND THE FUTURE OF PASSENGER RAIL IN CANADA improvement in its “on-time performance (OTP),” stating that 83% of its trains ran on time in 2009, compared to only 75% in 2008.8 In 2014, VIA Rail reported a drop in its OTP to 76%, owing to rising traffic in oil, grain and freight haulage and increasing commuter rail traffic volumes in Toronto and Montréal.9 4 ANALYSIS OF VIA RAIL’S PERFORMANCE 4.1 ANN [...] AND THE FUTURE OF PASSENGER RAIL IN CANADA 4.2 FEDERAL FUNDING Given the federal government’s directive to VIA Rail to provide passenger rail service to the general population, and VIA Rail’s current operating cost structure, the corporation requires federal subsidies to fulfill its mandate. [...] For this initiative to proceed, large financial commitments would have to be secured from the federal government, including the underwriting of part of the capital costs associated with the development and building of new and advanced rolling stock and fixed facilities.14 In February 2009, the federal government, together with the governments of Ontario and Quebec, awarded a $3-million contract to