VIA Rail: Best ridership performance in 11 years for May long weekend

HIGHLIGHTS
May 16 - 21, 2019

VIA Rail network

• Busiest day : Friday, May 17
• Most popular destinations : Toronto, Montréal et Ottawa

Québec City ? Windsor corridor

• 78,852 passengers: increase of 4.2% compared to 2018
• Revenue increased by 4.7% compared to 2018
• 13.7 % increase in revenue and a 13.4% increase in ridership in our Business class

MONTRÉAL, May 23, 2019 /CNW Telbec/ - VIA Rail (VIA Rail Canada) once again reports an increase in its number of passengers for the May long weekend, giving the Corporation its best ridership performance since 2009 for the same period. More than 82,000 passengers chose the train to get around, which represents an increase of 3.9% compared to 2018. Despite a slight decline in revenue (down 0.4%), VIA Rail recorded its second-best performance since 2008.

"At VIA Rail, the travel experience is as important as the destination," said VIA Rail President and Chief Executive Offfcer Cynthia Garneau. "Over the past few years, we have constanly tried to improve the passenger experience aboard our trains. Our goal is to offer unparalleled services that are tailored to the needs and expectations of our customers. We are delighted that today more and more Canadians decide to leave their cars at home to take advantage instead of the smarter way of a safe, enjoyable and responsible trip. The fact that our passengers continue to trust us demonstrates that our efforts are bearing fruit. This would not be possible without our employees, whose commitment and professionalism are at the heart of our excellent results."  

More than half of passengers travelled within Ontario, particularly between Ottawa and Toronto. Friday, May 17, was the busiest day of the weekend with more than 18,000 passengers travelling across our network. Over six days, passengers aboard VIA Rail trains covered a total distance of 28.4 million kilometres.  

A popular weekend for the Québec City-Windsor corridor
For this long weekend, the Québec City-Windsor corridor recorded a 4.2% increase in ridership and a 4.7% increase in revenue compared to 2018. VIA Rail also saw a significant growth in ridership and revenue for its Business class. In fact, some of these passengers got to take advantage of the Discount Tuesday deal offering markdowns for travel on this class for the May long weekend. Revenues were 13.7 % higher than the May long weekend last year, while ridership rose by 13.4 % compared to 2018.

About VIA Rail
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 4.8 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 https://www.viarail.ca/en/about-via-rail.

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SOURCE VIA Rail Canada Inc.