CANADIAN national passenger operator Via Rail has awarded Bombardier a $C 54m ($US 42.3m) contract to upgrade 17 of its oldest coaches to meet current and future accessibility standards.

A study into the potential introduction of hydrogen fuel cell trains as an alternative to electrification of part of Toronto’s Go Transit commuter rail network recommends further development of the concept, as
David Briginshaw and Keith Barrow explain.

TRANSED Partners, the consortium building the first phase of Edmonton’s light rail Valley Line, has released images of the first Bombardier Flexity Freedom LRV for the project.

THE mayor of Quebec City, Mr Régis Labeaume, in the presence of Quebec province’s premier Mr Philippe Couillard and the president of Capital Transport Network (RTC) Mr Rémy Normand, has unveiled a $C 2.9bn ($US 2.22bn) plan to expand the city’s public transport network, as the existing bus-based system is at maximum capacity in several locations.

WABTEC subsidiary MotivePower (MPI) has delivered the first MP40PHTC-T4 locomotive for Toronto commuter rail operator Go Transit.

MONTREAL Metropolitan Transport Network (RTM) has unveiled a $C 450m ($US 344.7m) five-year plan to improve service reliability on all of its lines with investment in infrastructure, rolling stock, operations, and maintenance, as well as an enhanced winter operation plan.

CANADIAN National (CN) announced on March 5 that its CEO Mr Luc Jobin is leaving the company with immediate effect following a period of operational difficulties which has drawn sharp criticism from some of the railway’s customers.

STATE support for Via Rail’s Fleet Renewal Program was confirmed on February 27 with the publication of the Canadian government’s 2018 budget, which allocates funds to Transport Canada for the procurement of new trains for the Windsor - Quebec City corridor.

GREATER Vancouver Transportation Authority (Translink) announced on February 22 that it is bringing forward the acquisition of new trains for the SkyTrain automated metro network with the acquisition of 28 Hyundai Rotem cars for the Expo and Millennium lines.

TORONTO and Hamilton transit authority Metrolinx has published the findings of its Hydrail Feasibility Study into the potential use of hydrogen fuel cell (HFC) trains on the Go Transit commuter rail network.