CALGARY — VIA Rail is forecasting operating deficits averaging $395 million a year through 2030, even as it predicts rising revenue and promises a “new golden age” for passenger trains.The figures appear in the Crown corporation’s Summary of the 2026–2030 Corporate Plan, tabled in Parliament, according to Blacklock’s Reporter. VIA expects revenue to grow by 25% over the period but acknowledges that several routes are falling short of passengers’ expectations.“VIA Rail is ready to lead a new golden age in passenger rail service,” management wrote. The report points to renewed interest in train travel amid environmental concerns and describes rail as an efficient, accessible and low-carbon way to travel.The company’s assessment of its existing service is less upbeat. Trains in the busy Windsor-to-Québec City corridor continue to operate below 2019 levels, the report says..Carney announces $4.7-billion deal to build 313 VIA Rail cars in Canada.On The Canadian, which runs between Vancouver and Toronto, delays are “at times unacceptable.” The train operates only twice a week outside tourist season.VIA also says The Ocean, its Montréal-to-Halifax service, is “not sufficiently competitive to deliver an adequate travel alternative” and is falling behind customer expectations.Questions about the cost of subsidizing passenger rail have followed VIA for years. At a 2016 Commons transport committee hearing, then-CEO Yves Desjardins-Siciliano warned that a future government would have to decide whether to eliminate the railway or take a different approach.Pierre Poilievre, now opposition leader, questioned at the hearing why taxpayers should subsidize a railway when airlines pay taxes and other charges to the federal government.“Why should taxpayers be subsidizing a money-losing mode of transportation at the expense of a money-generating mode of transportation?” Poilievre asked.
