MONTREAL — Via Rail says its on-time performance fell drastically in the first three months of the year — a drop the Crown corporation blames largely on speed rules from Canadian National Railway Co.
Via is reporting that its trains, which run mostly on CN tracks, pulled into the station within 15 minutes of their scheduled arrival time only 30 per cent of the time last quarter, down from 72 per cent in the same period the year before.
It says ridership decreased by 2.7 per cent, marking the first dip since the railway's pandemic recovery began.
Via CEO Mario Péloquin says its ongoing service disruptions are the direct result of "arbitrary and unnecessary" speed restrictions on new passenger trains that run along its busiest corridors — though heavy snowfall in February was also a likely factor.
“CN’s restrictions have severely impacted our ability to fulfil our public service mandate: on-time performance has plummeted, customer satisfaction has eroded, and confidence in passenger rail is being undermined," added chairman Jonathan Goldbloom.
CN spokeswoman Ashley Michnowski says it is disappointed Via "refuse(s) to assume responsibility" for its choice to buy trains that could have safety shortcomings.
"CN has zero interest in arbitrarily slowing Via trains down as this impacts entire corridors at a time," she said in an email.
Imposed last fall, the speed rules boil down to detection of trains as they approach a crossing. The 24 axles on Venture train sets fall short of the 32 that CN required at crossings starting on Oct. 11 to ensure barriers lower, bells ding and lights flash.
Via has appealed a court decision as it seeks to have the restrictions lifted.
Via says its first-quarter operating loss before federal funding and income taxes sagged to $160 million from $151.3 million a year earlier.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 4, 2025.
Companies in this story: (TSX:CNR)
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