Craig Gilbert | [email protected]
Via Rail’s boss for Western Canada says more riders should see the Rockies “in the daylight” in 2019.
“I often get letters of complaint from customers,” Marc Beaulieu, also Via’s chief transportation and safety officer, said in Jasper Nov. 28. “About delayed trains, about some of the issues they had to deal with because they didn’t get to their destination on time. “Every single one of them ends up having a paragraph that says ‘however, all of your employees did such an amazing job taking care of us. You’re lucky to have them.’”
Beaulieu, other Via VIPs and about 100 invited guests gathered in the mountain town’s historic train station to celebrate the company’s 40th birthday since taking over passenger service from CN Rail in 1978.
He spoke for five-and-a-half minutes and spent much of it heaping praise on the company’s local employees, in particular station manager Sue McCarthy. He also had kind words for the businesses in Jasper he said rally when the train is late, a problem that intensified to the point that two trains were cancelled earlier this year.
“I say that because every time we’ve had difficulty, the town of Jasper, the hotels, restaurants, anybody that can help us, tour operators, agents, everybody just steps up and helps us, and we recognize that,” he said. “And we appreciate it very much.”
The company launched a new schedule in conjunction with CN Rail in July to respond to the “extraordinary delays.”
“We had some better performance for a while,” he said. “It’s starting to wane a little bit, but we’re looking into that.”
Beaulieu said in 2019 the freight companies will be able to develop infrastructure between Edmonton, Saskatoon and Winnipeg, and that one of the Via “frequencies” or routes would only travel between Vancouver and Edmonton.
“We were able to protect all of that business and all of that great ridership that comes in and out of Jasper, which was a big success for me,” he said. “2019 will also be a challenge, but we’ll persevere and we’ll make it happen. We’re determined that trains will be arriving at a reasonable time so that they can see Jasper and the Rockies in the daylight.”
Justin Melnyk, vice-president of the Jasper Park Chamber of Commerce’s board of directors, said the new schedule Via and CN worked out was “most welcome and appears to be a successful endeavour.
“We understand the challenges that come with the industry,” he said. “You must share the track with others to keep everyone operating efficiently and most importantly on time.”
Mayor Richard Ireland brought congratulations and best wishes on behalf of town council. He praised the “wonderful, symbiotic relationship” between Jasper and Via Rail.
“It really is a significant thing to celebrate 40 years in business in this particular industry,” he said. “The past 40 years has seen more change than any other 40 years in history, I’m sure. Somehow, Via Rail has adapted to all of that change and they remain a constant in our community.”
Last but not least, he noted Via Rail brings in hundreds of spending visitors at a time, none of whom need a much-prized parking space.
He also pointed to McCarthy as an “exemplary employee of Via” representative of many of the local employees who “add so much to the community.” Changing up the evening’s schedule so the mayor could speak before whisking the three town councillors in attendance back to chambers for an evening budget meeting, for example, was just another accommodation at the Jasper station.
“We know you’re going to be challenged,” he said. “Track time is a real challenge. Commodities on the railway are not slowing down. They have challenges and I know you’re going to work with them, so I wish you the best of luck in all of those negotiations that are coming but know there is a community that stands behind you.”
McCarthy said the party came about because she wanted to thank local staff, some who work “18-hour shifts, whenever” after a year of late trains.
“Whatever event, they were here for the customer, and for the service,” she said.
And members of the community that even for a moment helped a Via rider dealing with a delay.
“It’s an image that you’re giving to yourselves and to Via Rail. You helped us get there.”
