Provision of Canadian equipment reflects spirit of the holiday to
connect friends and family in hurricane-impacted Northeast
WASHINGTON, Nov. 19, 2012 /CNW Telbec/ - In an arrangement that reflects
the spirit of Thanksgiving, Amtrak is partnering with its Canadian counterpart, VIA Rail Canada, who accepted to provide passenger rail cars to make additional seats
available and allow more friends and family in the hurricane-impacted
Northeast to connect over the holiday.
"VIA Rail has been a true partner, reaching out in the aftermath of
Hurricane Sandy to offer its friendship and assistance in restoring
mobility to the Northeast," said Amtrak President and CEO Joe Boardman.
"Amtrak is grateful for their generosity and also appreciates the
support of New York State DOT in this effort. We know the more seats
we have, the more people in the region we can bring together to share
the holiday."
"VIA Rail is pleased to help Amtrak, a partner which the Corporation
considers very important," said VIA Rail's President and CEO Marc
Laliberté. "No one is safe from disasters, such as the one that
occurred a few weeks ago in the New York area. This small gesture can
make a huge difference. We had to find a way to show our solidarity
with our partner."
The VIA Rail equipment being provided includes ten coach cars and two
dome cars. From Nov. 20 - 27, the Canadian equipment will be used on
the New York state-supported Adirondack service operating between Albany-Rensselaer and Montreal. This will
allow some Amtrak equipment used on that route to be reassigned adding
about 300 seats to trains operating on the Northeast Corridor during
the holiday travel period and will result in an additional 60 seats
being available on the Adirondack service.
"We're pleased to be part of this creative partnership to provide more
seating on Amtrak trains on the Northeast Corridor during the busy
Thanksgiving holiday," New York State Department of Transportation
Commissioner Joan McDonald said. "Loaning Amtrak trains from the
Adirondack service makes up for some damaged by Hurricane Sandy and
helps Amtrak meet its increased ridership levels."
VIA Rail and Amtrak have a long-standing partnership and jointly
transport passengers across the U.S. - Canadian border, facilitating
train transfers between New York and Toronto, New York and Montreal,
and Portland, Ore., and Vancouver, B.C.
Thanksgiving is the busiest travel period of the year for Amtrak and
America's Railroad® is prepared to accommodate additional passengers with extra trains
scheduled in the Northeast Corridor, the Chicago hub, the Pacific
Northwest and in California. Amtrak will use every available passenger
rail car in its fleet and will operate its special holiday schedule in
the Northeast as repairs have been made following Hurricane Sandy.
More than 724,000 passengers traveled on Amtrak trains for the
Thanksgiving holiday period in 2011, the most ever for the holiday.
Specifically, the VIA Rail equipment includes eight coach cars in the 8100-8147 series, two coach cars in the 4100-4125 series and two dome cars, the Tweedsmuir Park and the Evangeline Park.
About Amtrak®
Amtrak is America's Railroad®, the nation's intercity passenger rail service and its high-speed rail
operator. A record 31.2 million passengers traveled on Amtrak in FY
2012 on more than 300 daily trains - at speeds up to 150 mph (241 kph)
- that connect 46 states, the District of Columbia and three Canadian
Provinces. Amtrak operates intercity trains in partnership with 15
states and contracts with 13 commuter rail agencies to provide a
variety of services. Enjoy the journey® at Amtrak.com or call 800-USA-RAIL for schedules, fares and more information. Join
us on facebook.com/Amtrak and follow us at twitter.com/Amtrak.
About VIA Rail Canada
As Canada's national rail passenger service, VIA Rail Canada's (www.viarail.ca) mandate is to provide safe, efficient, cost-effective passenger
transportation in the country's two official languages. VIA operates
intercity, regional and transcontinental trains linking 450 communities
across in 12,500-kilometer route network. Recipient of the RAC's
Safety Award in 2012 for the 11th time in 12 years, and of the 2012 Agent's Choice Award voted on by
Canadian travel agents and presented by Baxter Travel Media, VIA safely
transports over four million passengers annually. Since 2007, the
Government of Canada has provided VIA Rail with nearly one billion
dollars in capital investment funding. Follow the evolution of current
project at viarail.ca/TransformerVIA.
Follow us... Evolution Blog viaevolution.ca, on Twitter @VIA_rail and on Facebook
SOURCE: VIA RAIL CANADA INC.