OUTSMARTING STORMS BY TAKING VIA RAIL BECOMING A HABIT FOR SMART TRAVELLERS

HIGHLIGHTS - February 24

CORRIDOR EAST (INCLUDES ALL TRAINS FROM OPERATING BETWEEN QUÉBEC CITY, MONTRÉAL, OTTAWA & TORONTO)

• 7,600 passengers
• 18 % increase compared to an average Wednesday

Montréal, February 26, 2016 – The latest winter blast brought snow, freezing rain and heavy rains to much of southern Ontario and Quebec this week, once again making travel challenging. VIA Rail reports that some 7,600 people outsmarted winter by taking the train, 18 % more travellers than an average Wednesday on the busiest intercity routes in Ontario and Quebec.

“They say that when the going gets tough, the tough get going,” said Yves Desjardins-Siciliano, VIA Rail’s president and CEO. “All of us at VIA Rail really take that to heart, and do our best to help travellers get where they need to go, regardless of the weather. Frequent VIA travellers often tell us that for them, the train is simply the smartest option, storm or no storm. Weather like we’ve had over the past couple of days provides us a chance to demonstrate that to people who might normally not take the train. Thanks to the perseverance and professionalism of colleagues throughout the company, we were able to meet this peak demand, bring all our passengers to their destinations, and provide the top-notch service that travelers have come to expect from us.”

Some 45 trains were scheduled on all affected routes on Wednesday. Despite significant snow accumulation and freezing rain, 100 % of these trains operated and arrived on time or with a minor delay.

This winter, VIA Rail’s Outsmart Winter campaign has included communications and advertising a few days prior to major storms, making it easier for people to plan their travel and avoid weather-related problems. VIA Rail has also assigned employees in major stations special greeting and directional duties to make passengers feel welcomed and to ensure that their trip is easy and enjoyable.

About VIA Rail Canada
As Canada's national rail passenger service, VIA Rail (viarail.ca) and its 2,500 employees are mandated to provide safe, efficient and economical passenger transportation service, in both official languages of our country. VIA Rail operates intercity, regional and transcontinental trains linking over 400 communities across Canada, and safely transports nearly four million passengers annually. The Corporation was awarded seven Safety Awards by the Railway Association of Canada over the last eight years. For more information, visit : www.viarail.ca/en/about-via-rail.