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VIA Rail held events in London and Windsor on June 27, 2024 to welcome its new fleet to Southwestern Ontario. In attendance were MPs, mayors, councillors, economic development and tourism leaders, and many other local leaders including Transport Action members whose campaigning for a new train fleet and improved service in the region is now coming to fruition.
Mario Péloquin, President and CEO of VIA Rail Canada was joined by London Mayor Josh Morgan and Peter Fragiskatos, MP for London North Centre, and Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Housing, Infrastructure, and Communities; Vance Badawey, MP for Niagara Centre and Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Transport; Arielle Kayabaga, MP for London West; and Lindsay Mathyssen, MP for London-Fanshawe to formally announce the launch of the new Venture train fleet in the region and unveil a plaque to mark the occasion.
“I am thrilled to welcome VIA’s new Venture passenger train service to London. These state-of-the-art passenger trains will bring added comfort and reliability to the thousands of Londoners that depend on this safe, efficient, and environmentally responsible form of travel. Congratulations on this accomplishment and best wishes for every success during your roll out of the new fleet.”
Josh Morgan, Mayor of London
Southwestern Ontario will be the last segment of the corridor to receive the new trains, so this event is a milestone. The team responsible for the new fleet project at VIA Rail were also present to celebrate the occasion, led by Arnaud Lacaze, VP of New Fleet Programs and Joe Di Liello, Senior Director of Maintenance Process Transformation.
Most of the dignitaries present then boarded the Venture train to experience it first hand, taking a ride to Glencoe. Mario Péloquin and colleagues were able to introduce many features of the new trains, including the accessibility improvements and efforts to provide zero-waste on board service with reusable mugs and glasses. A bus was provided the return the passengers to London, which as an OnexBus vehicle with a BusBud wrap, perhaps a nod to the possibilities for improving integrated transport around the region with London as a hub.
The train then proceeded to Chatham to pick up a delegation to attend the press conference in Windsor. Once on VIA-owned track west of Chatham the train accelerated to 95 mph, with those on board commenting on the smoothness of the ride and how much quieter the trains are than the heritage equipment they’ll be replacing.
In Windsor, Mario Péloquin was joined by Irek Kusmierczyk, MP for Windsor Tecumseh, and mayor Drew Dilkens to welcome the train and sign another plaque to be displayed in the station. Local media were then invited to tour the consist, and a delegation from Detroit were also present, looking forwards to the reconnection of the two cities by rail in the near future.
Irek Kusmierczyk is a regular passenger to travel between the riding and Ottawa, and made a point of commending the excellent customer service provided by VIA Rail’s staff.
Regular daily operation of Venture consists west of Toronto will have to wait a couple more weeks but is expected before the end of summer, and other improvements to the network in the region including platform rebuilding at VIA Rail’s London station will also be finished soon. Full delivery and complete replacement of older equipment in the corridor will be complete by the end of summer 2025.