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Originally Posted by someone123
The old Montreal to Saint John rail service is really from another time and that ended back in the 1970's or 80's. Saint John and Montreal used to be relatively larger and more important cities, the border was less strict, and affordability of flights was poor.
These days most of the people who want to go from SJ or Moncton or Halifax to Montreal will fly. No surprise that the Ocean is mostly used by folks in rural areas who still have limited local flight options. The Ocean is probably not even competitive with bus service for people living in Moncton or Halifax who want to go to Montreal since it goes nowhere near the best domestic route (TCH). Maritime Bus runs a service to Quebec.
If rail service for the Maritimes is a goal then service of shorter distances where flights are relatively uncompetitive through the main corridors is the best option by a huge margin. Contemplating rail service from Boston to Saint John or Moncton is kind of like debating running a train from Minneapolis to Regina or Saskatoon but then stopping there because going to Calgary or Edmonton would be too long. I suppose such a service could be useful but it seems odd and unlikely to be the best potential route. Furthermore a NB-Boston train would mostly run through the US, and it would not get funding from NS. Also, I believe there is already a train from Boston to Brunswick ME.
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The Downeaster is the train running Between Boston and Brunswick ME. It used to run to Halifax.
Quote:
Originally Posted by someone123
For a route like Halifax-Moncton or Moncton-SJ, train travel could easily be faster than flying or even driving. It could be the main way people get around. It was up until a few decades ago; the Maritimes had an extensive passenger rail network.
I think trains might also be more reliable in winter conditions and the Cobquid Pass in particular suffers from bad winter storms. So this would be a big advantage to a train. Unfortunately right now the train is much less reliable than driving with huge delays (well, outside of covid; I don't even think it's running right now).
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The speed limit on the highway is 110km/hr. Right now, the train cannot compete with the speed.
Quote:
Originally Posted by kool maudit
Trains are a lot more relaxing than planes during corona times... not sealed/better ventilated vs. planes, less crowded, no gate and security crowding.
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This is why rail can expand in this time better than air travel.