Via Rail, the government-operated rail provider in Canada, has modified their service to adhere to Transport Canada and Health Canada regulations during the COVID-19 Pandemic. I completed this review trip in early September, before the most recent large increase in cases across the country. If you’re thinking of travelling, please refer to our Return to Travel COVID-19 framework to help guide your return.

As responsible domestic travel began a slow return to Canada in the summer, Nicholas and I are running into an issue: outside of a few smaller carriers, the intra-Canadian market is essentially a duopoly composed of Air Canada and WestJet. It doesn’t help that Porter has suspended operations for the rest of the year.

Thus, on a recent trip to Montreal, we figured that perhaps the train would be the next form of transportation to cover. Despite my love of flying, there are instances where trains can be more useful, particularly if their terminals are closer to the city centre, as opposed to in distant suburbs. Europe is famous for this, with examples like London’s Stansted and Paris’ Beauvais-Tillé airport, or literally every airport that Ryanair flys to.

Train: Via Rail 62

Departing: Toronto (YYZ)

Arriving: Montreal (YUL)

Operated by: A Train

Cabin: Economy Class (Escape Fare, as I am poor)

The Station

Union Station’s reputation as being perpetually under construction was in full display on my arrival, although there was no actual construction going on. The station was almost entirely empty, giving off an eerie, post-apocalyptical feeling; that being said, the washrooms were impeccably clean.

The TD lounge, which I have used many times, was unfortunately closed for the foreseeable future. There isn’t too much in it, as it offers coffee, cookies, apples as substance, in addition to being a comfortable place to work.

Boarding was a smooth affair, aside from the fact I went to the UP Train before heading over to the Via Rail docks. If only there was a giant sign proclaiming where to go…

An attendant checked my tickets, asked me a few customary health questions, and directed me to the platform. Before entering the train, another attendant scanned my ticket. I was also reminded that there was no assigned seating, due to COVID-19 precautions.

As per the website, there are several COVID-19 protocols in place. In addition to the removal of assigned seating, Via has reduced the number of passengers per car, although it’s still possible that you may be sitting with someone else. The most up to date information on Via’s COVID-19 protocols can be found on their website.  

Boarding and the Ride

The train was about half full and held mainly leisure passengers looking to get away from the weekend. Half of the seats were blocked to enforce social distancing, although there were some passengers who elected to sit next to their family/friends. This being Canada, everyone complied with the rules to wear a mask and avoid unnecessary socializing; the attendants were extremely attentive in reminding people who took off their masks to re-apply them.

The seat was comfier than the standard economy class seat on a plane, but nothing to write home about. Interestingly enough, the second train I took did not have any tray tables, so just napped on the way back. (Nick’s note: there are a few different seats on Via Rail, this seems to be one of the older models)

Note that while the free-on-board internet was more than adequate, Via Rail does not allow high data usage activities, such as Netflix/Youtube, so be prepared with your own entertainment (this holds especially true since they have removed the on-board entertainment option).

Half an hour in, an attendant rechecked the tickets, while another attendant came by offering buy on board with coffee and snacks. The Via Rail economy menu is as follows:

I spent the rest of the trip grazing outside, researching what to do in Montreal (holla team last minute), and booking things through the AMEX Concierge, who thankfully had a few spots in Montreal’s more popular restaurants. About 3 hours into the trip, the train did separate into two separate sections, with one section heading to Ottawa and the other to Montreal.

At the end of the service, our attendants made quite the slip, thanking us for “flying with Air Canada”. So glad to see that I was not the only one who needed to switch transport means given the current situation. The train was almost 30 minutes behind schedule both times I took it, which is quite concerning if you need to be on time.

The Point      

Via Rail is an economical, albeit slow and possibly delayed way to get around certain parts of the East Coast. At no point did I feel unsafe, especially as the attendants were vigilant about ensuring everyone wore their masks and remained socially distant. Given both the cheaper pricing and the close proximity of Via Rail stations to its destination’s city centres, I can definitely see myself utilizing Via Rail for short hops around the Windsor-Quebec City corridor.

- Alex Qu