May long weekend: VIA Rail's ridership continues to grow

HIGHLIGHTS

For the period of Thursday, May 17 to Tuesday, May 22, 2018:

VIA Rail cross-Canada routes
- 79,700 passengers | up 8.4% from 2017
- 28.6 million kilometres travelled | up 4.9% from 2017
- Passenger revenue up 9.7% from 2017
- Busiest day: Friday, May 18
- Most popular destinations: Toronto, Montréal and Ottawa

Québec City – Windsor corridor
- 75,700 passengers | up 10.2% from 2017
- Passenger revenue up 15.8% from 2017

MONTRÉAL, May 24, 2018 /CNW Telbec/ - VIA Rail Canada (VIA Rail) continued its multiple-quarter streak of increased revenue and ridership on its trains with an excellent performance over the May long weekend. Approximately 79,700 passengers chose one of VIA Rail's many trains for their travels, a rise of 8.4% compared to 2017, resulting in a 9.7% increase in passenger revenue.

A popular weekend for the Québec City – Windsor corridor
Significant growth was seen in the Québec City – Windsor corridor, with ridership up 10.2% and revenue up 15.8% compared to 2017. Ridership between London and Toronto increased by 23.4%, while the Kingston – Toronto route saw nearly 19.1% growth. Compared to the same long weekend last year, 11.3% more passengers travelled on the Ottawa – Toronto route.

Over six days, VIA Rail trains covered a total distance of 28.6 million kilometres. Friday, May 18 was the busiest day of the weekend with more than 17,600 passengers travelling on our cross-Canada routes, while the holiday Monday boasted its highest revenue in years.

"We are pleased with the results of this spring long weekend," said VIA Rail President and Chief Executive Officer Yves Desjardins-Siciliano. "This is another testament to the growing popularity of the train and strengthens our desire to lead Canadians toward a more sustainable future. More and more Canadians are seeing the value of passenger rail as an accessible and affordable alternative to their cars, and are making the wise choice to travel by train, whether for long weekend getaways or for business trips. This is clear from the numbers, especially on our routes along the Québec City – Windsor corridor. Our employees across the country, particularly our station employees, on-board crew and maintenance centre workers, have once again demonstrated the incredible service they are known for. I commend their dedication, knowing that a large part of VIA Rail's success is due to them."

About VIA Rail Canada
As Canada's national rail passenger service, VIA Rail (viarail.ca) and all its employees are mandated to provide safe, efficient and economical passenger transportation service, in both official languages of our country. VIA Rail operates intercity, regional and transcontinental trains linking over 400 communities across Canada, and about 180 more communities through intermodal partnerships, and safely transports nearly 4.4 million passengers annually. The Corporation has been awarded five Safety Awards and three Environment Awards by the Railway Association of Canada since 2007. Visit the "About VIA Rail" section at: www.viarail.ca/en/about-via-rail.

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SOURCE VIA Rail Canada Inc.