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5/13/2022
VIA Rail Canada Inc. announced that its ridership increased 31.9% in 2021 compared with 2020's ridership, with passenger revenue climbing 54.3% year over year.
The passenger railroad stayed on budget within the funding allocated by the Canadian government as it also marked a 3.2% dip in operating expenses, VIA Rail officials said in a press release.
VIA Rail has been adjusting its gradual service resumption plan as the pandemic and health and safety guidelines evolve. The railroad adopted a mask policy, pre-boarding health checks and a mandatory vaccination policy in accordance with Transport Canada regulations in 2021.
"The agility, resilience and professionalism of the VIA Rail team from coast to coast when adapting our operations are the reasons why we continued to deliver the exemplary service VIA Rail is known for," said VIA Rail President and CEO Cynthia Garneau.
VIA Rail will continue to advance service recovery initiatives in 2022, focusing on operating national passenger-rail service that includes intercity rail and access to regional and remote communities, officials said.
The railroad is also in the midst of building a new fleet in the Quebec City-Windsor corridor, the first trainset of which was delivered on-time and on-budget and unveiled in November 2021.