It’s time to derail studies and improve train service
To profit from passenger trains in Canada, don’t build or operate them, just win government contracts to study them to death.
There are now three publicly funded studies of improved rail service underway, one provincial and two federal, at a total cost of about $20 million. All are part of multi-year processes that have been grinding away and only pick up steam when an election looms.
At other times, these studies chug along just like chronically ineffective Via Rail Canada, itself a pre-election bauble from Pierre Trudeau’s government. When unveiled in 1977, VIA was promised as a salvation for Canada’s remaining trains. Sadly, that wasn’t the case and we’ve paid the price for it, usually with the conveyor belt of funding for unnecessary studies.
Federally, there’s currently a $1 million study of VIA’s desperate need for $1.5 billion of new rolling stock to maintain its current service. Without new cars, says VIA’s corporate plan, they’ll have to start trimming services by 2020. Never mind that proven cars are rolling off production lines right now to serve VIA’s U.S. counterpart, Amtrak. No, VIA has to study the issue, which allows its federal masters to avoid making a decision.
Next, there’s a $3.3-million, three-year study of VIA’s proposal to create a new route linking Toronto, Ottawa and Montreal at breathtaking speeds of, perhaps, 200 km/h. It would use a meandering route through the backwoods of eastern Ontario that Canadian Pacific abandoned more than 40 years ago.
Rather than say no to this fantasy flyer, Transport Minister Marc Garneau commissioned the study. It will investigate VIA’s claim that this multi-billion-dollar project will pay for itself and cross-subsidize VIA’s other Quebec-Windsor Corridor trains.
In towns along the proposed route, this is viewed as a done deal. One mayor has already told VIA he wants a rustic, heritage-themed station, similar to the one flattened after CP canned the passenger service on this route in 1966.
Next up is Queen’s Park, which has a $15-million study to beat them all: 250km/h high-speed rail (HSR) for Southwestern Ontario. At election time, HSR is to politicians what cat nip is to felines, and they go wild for it.
The latest dream scheme started with a pre-election report in 2015. It said Toronto-London HSR would to be a snap, partially because it wouldn’t encounter any mountains. As for impediments, such as hills and towns, the consultant said the track could just be “wiggled.”
That study led to another after the election, this time extended to Windsor. After 18 months, the verdict was another study of this $21-billion project, which might be running by 2031. More consulting fees are just down the track as a result.
Obviously, what we really need here is a consultant to tell the two levels of trainhappy politicians — which don’t seem to talk to each other — that this public money could be doing some good for the pub- lic right now.
Southwestern Ontario? Put the consulting fees into refurbishing a couple of GO trains for 160-km/h intercity service on the Toronto-Kitchener-London line as a joint federal/provincial venture. That would at least stop GO from eating VIA’s lunch on the Toronto-Kitchener segment, as is the case today.
East of Toronto? Give VIA the money to piggyback on those Amtrak orders to quickly get us some decent trains that would reduce operating costs and cut the outrageously high VIA fares that keep Canadians off the rails.
Alas, none of this will happen. The bureaucrats will retain their jobs supervising the consultants and the consultants will rub their hands with glee. The politicians will continue to ramp up the promises before elections and scale them back after, thus avoiding any action or expenditure.
Meanwhile, around the world — even in Donald Trump’s Great America — public money is being invested to expand the economic, social and environmental benefits of rail service. Any wonder why we’re losing the competitive battle for jobs and investment to places such as California and North Carolina, where they have modern passenger trains?
Perhaps our governments could study that phenomenon.
At election time, high-speed rail is to politicians what cat nip is to felines, and they go wild for it
Greg Gormick is a Toronto transportation writer and policy adviser. His clients have included CP, CN, Via and numerous elected officials and government transportation agencies.