Several Saskatchewan mayors, including Lloydminster’s mayor, are seeking support from Saskatoon to move the VIA Rail passenger train to the CN Prairie North Line.
The changed route would see the VIA Rail train moving passengers along the CN Prairie North Line, connecting Yorkton, Canora, Humboldt, Warman, the Saskatoon region, the Battlefords, and Lloydminster to Canada by passenger rail. In Alberta, Vermilion and Vegreville would be railway destinations before the train returned to Edmonton.
Mayor Gerald Aalbers along with counterparts from North Battleford, Warman, and Yorkton presented the proposal on Tuesday to Saskatoon’s Governance and Priorities Committee meeting.
The team spoke of what it sees as benefits of the new route including:
- Less competition with CN freight traffic, helping VIA Rail to achieve better on-time performance and improve rail safety
- Travel through larger population centres, providing access to approximately 128,000 people compared to its current 22,000 people. Not including Saskatoon or Edmonton
- Connect more Indigenous and rural communities. It notes they have letters of support from 16 Indigenous communities
- Closer access to more national historic sites and parks and more scenic topography
The mayors are seeking a letter of support from the City of Saskatoon to gain traction for the idea at federal level.
Saskatoon councillors heard that in the six-years that the idea has been developed, it has not received uptake from VIA Rail nor the federal transport minister. Councillors including Mayor Clark acknowledged the present situation was not acceptable given VIA Rail’s on-time record. One report cited that VIA Rail’s, the Canadian on-time performance had “declined significantly in the last decade, with delays as long as 43 hours.” Also, while communities like Wainwright and Unity are served by the present line, there was concern expressed by those municipalities at the prospect of the passenger train moving north.
Mayor Aalbers noted that back in the seventies before VIA Rail became a crown corporation the Canadian used to come through Lloydminster.
“Via Rail has challenges and we see those challenges. We are trying to help with some of those challenges. Our proposal is not the cure-all to make VIA Rail profitable, but it certainly would help with their business plan, serving the passengers and tourists to our country,” said Aalbers.
Saskatoon Council agreed that administration would gather more information and bring the matter back to council at a later point.