This is a list of past and present rolling stock owned and operated by Via Rail in Canada. Via Rail owns 78 locomotives and 619 passenger cars. [1] The tables below list that equipment by type and include some information regarding previously owned and operated equipment. When Via began operation in 1976–1978 it was with a collection of equipment inherited from Canadian National (CN) and Canadian Pacific (CP). Much of this equipment remains in use today. Over the years Via has supplemented this initial fleet with new orders and with new acquisitions of secondhand equipment from other operators.
Via operates diesel locomotives exclusively. Its fleet of GMD F40PH-2s was recently modernized. The newer GE P42DCs are found only on Corridor services. Siemens SCV-42s were recently added to modernize the corridor fleet.
Model | Road numbers | In service | Years of service | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|
GMD F40PH-2D | 6400–6459 (*6403 was renumbered to 6459 in 2013) | 52 | 1987–present | Number 6403 is featured on the Canadian $10 bills issued starting in 2013. [2] The actual 6403 was renumbered to 6459 due to its appearance on the bill. All units in the fleet were rebuilt by Canadian Allied Diesel, which included many modernization upgrades, and the addition of a separate Head-end Power generator at the rear of the locomotive. The rebuild was complete by 2012. Units 6400 and 6444 were wrecked and scrapped following a wreck. Locomotives 6454, 6437, 6436, 6416, 6402 wrapped in Canada 150, 40th and currently, the Love the way scheme. In 2023 VIA Rail and CAD Rail announced a second refurbishment program. Units that were wrecked and retired before rebuilding are 6422, 6423, 6430, 6447,and 6450. |
GE P42DC | 900–920 | 19 | 2001–present | GE P42DC locomotives have been retrofitted with High Intensity Discharge lights below the numberboard, these lights were added after successful testing with the F40PH-2Ds in the mid-2000s. Most have been wrapped in the Love the Way scheme. |
Siemens SCV-42 Charger | 2200-2231 | 17 (32 expected) | 2022-present | To replace current fleet for the Québec City–Windsor Corridor. Will operate as trainsets with Siemens Venture cars. First 2 units entered service in 2022. [3] [4] [5] [6] |
EMD SW1000 | 202 | 1 | 1978–present | Switcher. Originally built 1966–1967 for Inland Steel. (201 and 203 retired in early 1990s, 204 stripped for parts to keep 202 running |
Budd RDC-1 | 6105 | 1 | 1979-Present | Rebuilt by IRSI in 2013 |
Budd RDC-2 | 6217, 6219 | 2 | 1979-Present | Rebuilt by IRSI in 2013 |
Budd RDC-4 | 6250, 6251 | 2 | 1979-Present | Rebuilt by IRSI in 2013 |
Via inherited a diverse fleet of diesel locomotives from Canadian National and Canadian Pacific. It also received three of the experimental UAC TurboTrain gas-turbine trainsets. Between 1980–1984 Bombardier delivered 31 LRC ("Light, Rapid, Comfortable") diesel locomotives with matching cars. The last of these was retired in 2002.
Model | Road numbers | Built | Years of service | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|
UAC TurboTrain | 125, 151 | 1968 | 1979–1982 | Acquired three trainsets from CN. 1 Retired after accident, all scrapped. |
LRC-2 | 6900-6920 | 1980–1984 | 1980–2001 | All retired, 6917 preserved, remainder scrapped. |
LRC-3 | 6921-6930 | 1980–1984 | 1980–2001 | 6921 preserved, Coaches remain in service. |
MLW FPA-2U | 6758,6759 | 1946-1959 | 1979–1993 | Ex-CN FPA-2U rebuild as 6758 previously numbered as 6755 and delivered new as FPA-2 6711. FPA-2U rebuild 6759 previously 6751 and delivered new as FPA-2 6707. Retired 1987, 6758 now operated by New York and Lake Erie Railroad. |
MLW FPA-4 | 6760-6793 | 1946-1959 | 1979–1993 | Ex-CN. Several acquired by private train operators in US. |
MLW FPB-4 | 6860-6871 | 1946-1959 | ||
GMD FP7 | 6501, 6509, 6521–6623, 6566 | 1949-1953 | 1979 | Ex-CP. FP7A 6566 wrecked in 1986 and retired/scrapped. |
GMD FP9 | 1405-1407, 1405–1407, 1409–1414 | 1954-1959 | 1979-2002 | Ex-CN and CP. Later rebuilt as the VIA FP9ARM (6300-6314). 6304 acquired by Trains Unlimited Rail Tours of California; 6510 on static display in Thunder Bay. F9B 6633 wrecked in 1986 and retired/scrapped. |
GMD FP9ARM | 6300-6314 | 1983-1985 | 15 units rebuilt from Canadian National FP9As, Which included a Head End Power generator | |
MLW RS-10 | 8558 | 1956 | 1978-1981 | Ex-CP. |
EMD E8 | 1800, 1802 | 1949 | 1979-1980 | Ex-CP. 1800 Renumbered to 1898 and 1802 renumbered to 1899 |
Budd RDC-1 | 6100-6148 | 1949–1962 | ||
Budd RDC-2 | 6200-6225 | 1949–1962 | ||
Budd RDC-3 | 6350-6357 | 1949–1962 | Ex-CP and CN. Used for passenger, baggage and postal service. 6144 converted as RDC-1. | |
Budd RDC-4 | 6401 | 1949–1962 | Some still in service today | |
Budd RDC-9 | 6000-6006 | 1949–1962 | Ex-CP and CN. single engine powered and no controls. Passenger use only. | |
IC3 | 7001-7401-7201 | 1986–2001 | 1997 | Built by Adtranz, 2 sets were sent to North America for testing with Amtrak and VIA, Problems with running lead to these units being sent back to Israel Railways. |
The core of Via's long-range fleet is a collection of streamlined equipment originally built by the Budd Company for Canadian Pacific in the 1950s. These were rebuilt by AMF to use head end power and thus are often referred to as the "HEP" fleet. In 2023, Via Rail joined Amtrak in an attempt to replace their aging Streamliner equipment. [7]
Type | Built | Years of service | In service | Fleet numbers | Notes | Image |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
"Galley" club car | 1947–1949 | 1993–present | 10 | 4000–4009 | Built by Budd Car Company and acquired from Amtrak and other operators between 1989–2000, rebuilt by AMF in mid-90s. Seats 56. Designated by VIA as "HEP2" Club cars and primarily used in the Quebec-Windsor Corridor. | ![]() |
Corridor coach cars | 1947–1953 | 1993–present | 23 | 4100–4125 | Acquired from Amtrak and other operators between 1989 and 2000, rebuilt by AMF in mid-90s. Originally built by Budd Car Company. Seats 68. Designated by VIA as "HEP2" coaches and primarily used in the Quebec-Windsor Corridor. Cars 4123, 4124, and 4125 were converted into club cars, numbered 4007, 4008, and 4009 respectively. | ![]() |
Long-distance coach cars | 1947–1955 | 1978–present | 43 | 8100–8147 | Mostly ex-Canadian Pacific, some rebuilt from ex-American coaches. Built by Budd Car Company, rebuilt in the mid-1990s by AMF. Seating for 62 (60 for cars 8145 & 8147). Designated by VIA as "HEP1" coaches. | ![]() |
Château series sleeping car | 1954 | 1978–present | 27 | 8201–8229 | Ex-Canadian Pacific, built by Budd Car Company, names after famed explorers and administrators of the first French and British colonies | ![]() |
Manor series sleeping car | 1954–1955 | 1978–present | 39 | 8301–8342 | Ex-Canadian Pacific, built by Budd Car Company, named after famed explorers and administrators of the first French and British colonies | ![]() |
Park series sleeper-dome-lounge | 1954 | 1978–present | 12 | 8702–8718 | Ex-Canadian Pacific, built by Budd Car Company, named after select National Parks of Canada | ![]() |
Dining cars [8] | 1955 | 1978–present | 12 | 8401–8418 | Ex-Canadian Pacific, built by Budd Car Company | ![]() |
Skyline series dome car | 1954–1955 | 1978–present | 14 | 8500–8517 | Ex-Canadian Pacific, built by Budd Car Company | ![]() |
LRC was a series of lightweight diesel-powered passenger trains built by Bombardier that were used on short- to medium-distance inter-city service in the provinces of Ontario and Quebec. The LRC family includes both locomotives and passenger carriages designed to work together, though the two can be, and now are, used separately. The last locomotives were retired in 2001 but the coaches remain in service.
Type | Years of service | In service | Fleet numbers | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|
Club car | 1984–present | 26 | 3451–3475; 3600–3601 | 44/56 seats. Some refurbished into 44 seat, bi-directional configuration. |
Coach car | 1981–present | 72 | 3300–3399 | 68 seats. Some refurbished into 44 seat, bi-directional configuration. |
The Renaissance fleet was originally built by Alstom in the mid-1990s for the proposed Nightstar overnight service between the United Kingdom and continental Europe through the Channel Tunnel. Via acquired the entire fleet in 2000 for C$130 million after the Nightstar concept was abandoned. [9] Via entered the cars into service in 2002. [10] Presently, two sets are in service: two on the Ocean, overnight between Montreal and Halifax, the two used on the Quebec City - Ottawa corridor have been withdrawn in favor of the newer SCV-42 lead venture trainsets.
Type | In service | Fleet numbers | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
Baggage car [11] | 9 | 7000–7011 | Built out of unused sleeping car shells. |
Club car [12] | 14 | 7100–7114 | 48-seat capacity in a 2+1 configuration. |
Coach [13] | 33 | 7200–7232 | 48-seat capacity in a 2+1 configuration. |
Lounge car [14] | 20 | 7300–7316; 7354–7359 | Via Rail refers to these as "service" cars. |
Dining car [15] | 3 | 7400–7402 | 48-seat capacity; built out of unused sleeping car shells. |
Sleeping car [16] | 57 | 7500–7589 | 10 double bedrooms. 29 are stored at Thunder Bay, Ontario. |
Baggage car/transition [17] | 3 | 7600–7602 | Used to transition between coupler styles. |
The Budd Rail Diesel Car (RDC) is a self-propelled diesel multiple unit railcar. These were used extensively by both the Canadian National and Canadian Pacific Railways for outlying routes. Via currently rosters seven RDCs and contracted with Industrial Rail Services for C$12.6 million to refurbish and upgrade all six. The upgraded units would include new seating, wheelchair accessible washrooms, LED interior lighting, controls, wiring, heating, air conditioning systems, braking systems and rebuilt engines that meet Euro 2 standards. [18] The rebuilt units have also been modified to remove the control cab from one end of each unit, so passengers are never required to pass through the cab when entering or exiting the train. Following the bankruptcy of IRSI, work rebuilding the RDCs was completed by Canadian Allied Diesel (CAD) at the IRSI facility in Moncton.
Type | Built | Years of service | In service | Fleet numbers | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
RDC-1 | 1956–1958 | 1978–1990s | 3 | 6109, 6120, 6127 | Budd built cars. 6109 acquired by CN Rail from Chicago & Eastern Illinois and sold to Ferrocarriles de Cuba in 1998. 6127 acquired from CP Rail and sold to Dallas Area Rapid Transit in 1993. 6120 was ex-CNR D352/6703 and sold to Cuba in 1998 |
RDC-2 | 1956–1958 | 1978–present | 2 | 6212, 6208, 6215, 6217, 6219 | Built by Canadian Car & Foundry. All ex-CP cars (6212 ex-CP 9105, 6208 ex-CP 9195 and 6215 ex-CP 9107). 6208 and 6212 sold to Industrial Rail Services 2000. 6215 still in service. 6217 and 6219 are refurbished and in service (Sudbury-White River) |
RDC-4 | 1955 | 1978–present | 2 | 6250-6251 | A second RDC-4 was added to the fleet in 2013 when ex-CP 9251 was rebuilt into VIA 6251. |
Type | Built | Years of service | In service | Fleet numbers | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Canadian Car & Foundry Café-Coach car | 1954 | 1980–present | 1 | 3248 | 72-seat snack bar ex-CNR 5454. Currently in use on the Keewatin Railway. |
Canadian Car & Foundry baggage-coach | 1954 | 1978–present | 2 | 5648–5649 | Ex-CNR 5649 and currently in use on the Keewatin Railway. |
Colorado Railcar Single-Level Dome dome coach | 2000 | 2002– present | 3 | 1720–1722 | Seats 71–74. Referred to as "Panorama" cars by VIA. Refurbishment program started in march of 2023, Expected to be returned into service by 2024. |
Canadian Car & Foundry lounge car | 1954 | 2002–present | 1 | 1750 | Originally CNR 5585 became VIA Rail 5585 from 1978 to 1998. Sold to Funtrain of Kelowna, then to BC Rail in 2001. Acquired in 2002 as 1750. Named "Glen Fraser". |
Budd observation/club car | 1939 | 2002–present | 1 | 1751 | Acquired from BC Rail as 1750 Pavilion. Original built in 1939 as Biscayne Bay, later as Memphis and owned by 8 different owners. Has never entered service with VIA and stored at Montreal Maintenance Centre. [19] |
Various Budd baggage cars | 1954–1955; 1963 | 1978–present | 19 | 8600–8623 | 8600-8617 are ex-Canadian Pacific; 8618-8623 are ex-Union Pacific Budd slab-side baggage cars. |
National Steel baggage car | 1951 | 1978–present | 1 | 9631 | One of 67 cars of this type once owned by VIA Rail. |
The 2018 Canadian federal budget included funding for the purchase of 32 trainsets to replace equipment used in Corridor service in Ontario and Quebec. [20] With money allocated, Via issued a request for proposals in 2018, with delivery of the new rolling stock scheduled for 2022. [20] In December 2018, VIA Rail Canada ordered 32, 5-car trainsets (for a total of 160 cars) from Siemens for use on the Québec City–Windsor Corridor, at a cost of $989 million. [21] [22] Trainsets will be powered by diesel-electric Charger locomotives, with passenger car trainsets from the Siemens Venture family. [23] Similar trainsets are used on Amtrak Midwest and Brightline in the United States, and Railjet in Austria and the Czech Republic. The first 2 trainsets entered service in 2022.
Type | Built | Fleet numbers | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
Venture Coach Car | 2021-2025 | 2800-2831, 2900-2931 | Economy class coach, 70 seats, 2+2 configuration |
Venture Business Car | 2021-2025 | 2600-2631, 2700-2731 | Business class coach, 50 seats, 2+1 configuration |
Venture Cab Car | 2021-2025 | 2300-2331 | First Via Rail cab cars, 62 seats, 2+2 configuration |
A diesel multiple unit or DMU is a multiple-unit train powered by on-board diesel engines. A DMU requires no separate locomotive, as the engines are incorporated into one or more of the carriages. Diesel-powered single-unit railcars are also generally classed as DMUs. Diesel-powered units may be further classified by their transmission type: diesel–mechanical DMMU, diesel–hydraulic DHMU, or diesel–electric DEMU.
Via Rail Canada Inc., operating as Via Rail or Via, is a Canadian Crown corporation that operates intercity passenger rail service in Canada.
The Maple Leaf is an international passenger train service operated by Amtrak and Via Rail between New York Penn Station in New York City and Union Station in Toronto via Amtrak's Empire Corridor, and the south western part of Via Rail's Quebec City–Windsor Corridor. Daily service is offered in both directions; the 544-mile (875 km) trip takes approximately 12 hours, including two hours for U.S. or Canadian customs and immigration inspection at either Niagara Falls, New York, or Niagara Falls, Ontario. Although the train uses Amtrak rolling stock exclusively, the train is operated by Via Rail crews while in Canada and by Amtrak crews in the United States. Service began in 1981.
The Pacific Surfliner is a 350-mile (560 km) passenger train service serving the communities on the coast of Southern California between San Diego and San Luis Obispo.
The San Joaquins is a passenger train service operated by Amtrak in California's San Joaquin Valley. Seven daily round trips run between its southern terminus at Bakersfield and Stockton, with onward service to Sacramento and Oakland. For Fiscal year 2025, two additional trips to Sacramento will be added.
The Amtrak Cascades is a passenger train route in the Pacific Northwest, operated by Amtrak in partnership with the U.S. states of Washington and Oregon. It is named after the Cascade mountain range that the route parallels. The 467-mile (752 km) corridor runs from Vancouver, British Columbia, through Seattle, Washington, and Portland, Oregon, to Eugene, Oregon.
Amtrak California is a brand name used by the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) Division of Rail for three state-supported Amtrak regional rail routes in California – the Capitol Corridor, the Pacific Surfliner, and the San Joaquins – and their associated connecting network of Amtrak Thruway transportation services.
The Ocean, previously known as the Ocean Limited, is a passenger train operated by Via Rail in Canada between Montreal, Quebec, and Halifax, Nova Scotia. It is the oldest continuously operated named passenger train in North America. The Ocean's schedule takes approximately 22 hours, running overnight in both directions. Together with The Canadian and Via's corridor trains, the Ocean provides a transcontinental service across Canada.
The LRC is a series of lightweight diesel-powered passenger trains that were used on short- to medium-distance inter-city service in the Canadian Provinces of Ontario and Quebec.
Amtrak has used a variety of paint schemes (liveries) on its rolling stock since taking over intercity passenger rail service in the United States in 1971. A series of seven schemes termed Phases, first introduced in 1972, have seen the widest use. Phases primarily use geometric arrangements of red, white, and blue—the national colors of the United States—part of Amtrak's patriotic visual identity.
The JetTrain was an experimental high-speed passenger train concept created by Bombardier Transportation in an attempt to make European-style high-speed service more financially appealing to passenger railways throughout North America. It was designed to use the same LRC-derived tilting carriages as the Acela Express trains that Bombardier built for Amtrak in the 1990s, which used all-electric locomotives. Unlike the Acela, powered electrically by overhead lines, the JetTrain would have used a combination of a 4,000-horsepower (3.0 MW) gas-turbine engine, a low-power diesel engine, a reduction gearbox, and two alternators to power electric traction motors. This would have allowed it to run at high speeds on non-electrified lines.
The Nightstar was a proposed overnight sleeper train service from various parts of the United Kingdom to destinations in mainland Europe, via the Channel Tunnel, in the mid 1990s. To run alongside the Eurostar, and north of London day-time Regional Eurostar services which were never operational, the Nightstar was the last part in a proposed round-the-clock passenger train utilisation of the Channel Tunnel.
ViaFast was an abandoned passenger rail plan that would have cut Via Rail's trip times throughout the Quebec City–Windsor Corridor. ViaFast did not propose true high-speed service throughout the service area, but a series of smaller upgrades to avoid known bottlenecks and provide improved performance at a fraction of the price of entirely new lines. It aimed to reduce the Toronto–Montreal time by about one hour, to 3.5 hours; halving the Montreal–Quebec City time to 2 hours; and reducing Toronto–Windsor time by an hour, to 3.5 hours.
The Renaissance fleet is a set of intercity railroad cars owned and operated by Via Rail Canada.
The Siemens Charger is a family of diesel-electric/dual-mode passenger locomotives designed and manufactured by Siemens Mobility for the North American market.
The Tempos are a fleet of 25 lightweight streamlined railway coaches built by Hawker Siddeley Canada for the Canadian National Railway in 1968. The cars were the centrepiece of a new set of intercity passenger trains in Southwestern Ontario. The fleet passed to Via Rail in 1978 and later saw use with the Ski Train, QIT-Fer et Titane, and the Algoma Central Railway.
Siemens Viaggio Comfort is a brand of locomotive-hauled railroad passenger cars built by Siemens Mobility. The car was designed in the early 2000s and was based on the earlier Siemens Viaggio Classic railcars. The railcars were first used in 2008 on Railjet, a high-speed rail service in Europe operated by the Austrian Federal Railways (ÖBB) and Czech Railways (ČD).
Siemens Venture is a type of locomotive-hauled passenger railroad car built by Siemens Mobility for the North American market. The cars are derived from the Siemens Viaggio Comfort cars used in Europe, with adaptations for North American operations. The cars entered service with Brightline in 2018 and with Amtrak Midwest in 2022. They have also been ordered by Amtrak for national and other state-supported routes, Via Rail, and Ontario Northland. The Venture cars will also be used on Amtrak’s Airo trainsets.
The first-generation Acela Express trainset is a unique set of vehicles used on the Acela, Amtrak's flagship high-speed service along the Northeast Corridor (NEC) in the Northeastern United States. When they debuted in 2000, the sets were the fastest in the Americas, reaching 150 mph (240 km/h) on 33.9 mi (54.6 km) of the route. They were built between 1998 and 2001 by a consortium of Alstom and Bombardier. Each set has two power cars derived from units that Alstom built for the TGV, and six passenger cars derived from the LRC that Bombardier built for Via Rail.