From: CZ94000 <CZ94@MUSICA.MCGILL.CA>
Subject: Re: VIA's excellent, Amtrak sticks bigtime
Organization: McGill University
Date: Thu, 20 Aug 1992 18:01:29 GMT

In article <1992Aug20.145435.9613@ee.ryerson.ca> cal@ee.ryerson.ca (Calvin Henry-Cotnam) writes:
>In article <20AUG92.09908687.0064@VM1.MCGILL.CA> CZ94 <CZ94@MUSICA.MCGILL.CA> writes:
>>In article <25032@castle.ed.ac.uk> dtm@castle.ed.ac.uk (D Muxworthy) writes:
>>>At least four messages in the last day or two have said that the Canadian
>>>runs through from Vancouver to Toronto, so by Lewis Carroll's rule it must
>>>be true.  However in Jasper station last week there were references only
>>>to Vancouver - Winnipeg trains and Jasper - Prince Rupert trains.  Maybe
>>>the VIA staff there should be told.
>>
>>There is no VIA train from Vancouver terminating in Winnipeg.  The only
>>train on this route is the Canadian, which continues through to Toronto.
>
>In a sense, both are correct.
>
>The train that starts in Vancouver, ends in Toronto, and vice-versa.
>
>VIA's national timetable has a full page chart showing the three trains
>per week all the way from Toronto to Vancouver.
>
>However, the same national timetable divides the country up into sections:
>
>Atlantic, Corridor (Quebec City to Windsor),
>Winnipeg to Toronto, and Winnipeg to Vancouver.
>(I forget if the last two have "region names" like the firt two)
>
>In a sense, the timetable refers to one service from Vancouver
>to Winnipeg and another from Winnipeg to Toronto, even though
>physically it is the same train.
>
I can't agree with you about this.  The VIA timetable, both in the
table of contents and at the top of each page, classifies services as
(1) Atlantic Canada
         Halifax-Saint John-Montreal
         Halifax-Campbellton-Montreal
(2) Quebec
         Gaspe-Montreal
         Montreal-Jonquiere
         Montreal-Senneterre-Cochrane
(3) Corridor
         Quebec-Montreal
         Montreal-Ottawa
         Montreal-Toronto
         Ottawa-Toronto
         Toronto-Windsor
         Toronto-Sarnia
         Toronto-Niagara Falls
(4) Ontario
         Toronto-Cochrane (ONR)
         Sudbury-White River
(5) Western Canada
         Toronto-Vancouver
         Winnipeg-Churchill
         The Pas-Lynn Lake
         Jasper-Prince Rupert
         Victoria-Courtenay

Note that the Toronto-Vancouver train is classed as a Western Canada
service.  It's true that the timetable for this train is spread over
two pages, one Toronto-Winnipeg and one Winnipeg-Vancouver, but this
is just for space reasons.  The same is done for the Winnipeg-Churchill
train.  Nothe that the heading at the top of p.36, for the Toronto to
Winnipeg segment, says "Western Canada Services."

I can think of two possible explanations for why the Jasper VIA
employees refer to a Vancouver-Winnipeg train.

(1) From June 1, 1985 to Jan. 14, 1990, it *was* a Vancouver-Winnipeg
train.  The Super-Continental ran from Vancouver to Winnipeg via Jasper
(over CN tracks).  It connected in Winnipeg with the Canadian, which at
that time went from Vancouver through Winnipeg to Toronto and Montreal,
over (mostly) CP tracks.  So the Jasper employees may still be influ-
enced by the pre-1990 practice.

(2) The on-board service crews (e.g. sleeping and dining car porters)
are changed in Winnipeg.  One crew does Toronto-Winnipeg, a second
does Winnipeg-Vancouver.  At least that's how it used to be.  This
fact may influence the station employees' perception of the train.

Tom Box
CZ94@MUSICA.MCGILL.CA

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