CP Holiday train draws crowd for travelling Christmas show
The CP Holiday Train once again drew a big crowd in Beaconsfield Tuesday night, but not everyone got to see the brightly-lit train.
Thousands of Montrealers poured into the area for the train’s arrival at 8:20 p.m. but just getting to the Beaconsfield station proved an impossible task for some West Islanders like Louise D’Amour, who drove from Dorval only to find the exit for St. Charles Blvd., at Highway 20, blocked.
“My family had been planning this for some time and wished to be part of the scheduled entertainment, however we could not get there,” D’Amour told the West Island Gazette. “The exits going east and west for St. Charles off the 20 were closed, and then we were stuck in traffic to return back home to Dorval.”
“We would have liked to be part of the festivities,” D’Amour said. “It’s unfortunate as many people were in the same predicament.”
The CP Holiday Train event has grown in popularity since its inception in 1999, and many streets in the area are blocked off for traffic and security reasons.
Getting to the station on Elm Ave. is not as easy at it was a decade ago, especially for those bringing along and kids and strollers.
Some motorists simply let their passengers out while stuck in traffic on St. Charles Blvd. Others parked on adjacent streets or at the Beaconsfield Shopping Centre and made the short walk to the station.
Police and security patrols kept both pedestrians and vehicles moving through the area, but with thousands of people arriving at the last minute, streets and sidewalks leading to the station became congested.
Some holiday trainspotters simply stood on Beaurepaire Drive, on the opposite side of Highway 20, to catch a glimpse of the train decked out in thousands of festive lights — even though they couldn’t see or barely hear the entertainment and musical performers Scott Helman, Madeline Merlo and Vishten.
Beaconsfield Mayor George Bourelle said estimates put the crowd at 4,000.
He noted that many people appeared to arrive at the last-minute, making for a scramble to catch the scheduled 30-minute show.
Bourelle said the best way to avoid getting stuck in traffic is to arrive early. He said Beaconsfield station is excellent venue for the CP holiday Train because it offers enough space for thousands of people to view the show. The city also erected spectator stands for the show.
Before arriving in Beaconsfield, the holiday train made a stop at Montreal West. Valois Village in Pointe-Claire also held its own special event as the train passed through.
D’Amour wishes the train would make more stops along the way, including another stop in the West Island, perhaps in Dorval. “It would alleviate all the traffic and fix the problem,” she said.
The CP Holiday Train makes more than 170 stops in the United States and Canada. On its website, CP explains why the holiday train can’t stop in every town.
“Every year we receive dozens of requests from communities across our network for the Holiday Train to make a stop. With so many communities, it is always a challenge for us to determine the routing and schedule for the trains. We try to vary the stops from year to year to accommodate as many locations and food banks as possible.”
Bourelle said the CP Holiday Train has become a popular annual tradition for local residents.
So popular, in fact, that some residents staked out positions near the Beaurepaire train station, located one stop to the west of Beaconsfield station, in hopes of catching a glimpse of the Christmas-themed train.
“But the train doesn’t go past Beaconsfield,” explained Bourelle. “It stops at Beaconsfield then turns around. We heard that some people waited till after 10 p.m. at Beaurepaire hoping to see the train.”
He said the city plans to keep working with Canadian Pacific and Montreal police to keep the CP Holiday Train such a popular event on the calendar. It also doubles as a key collection event for local food banks.
“It’s a great event and Beaconsfield is very happy to host it,” Bourelle said.