Plans to launch a non-stop train service between Toronto and Montreal have been postponed, according to Via Rail Canada. The Crown corporation, Canada’s only national passenger rail operator, had intended to begin a three-month pilot project this week featuring four daily non-stop trips between the country’s two largest cities.
The service would have bypassed several lakeshore communities in order to shorten travel times by approximately 30 minutes. However, Via Rail announced the project has been delayed due to “operational constraints” with rail partner CN.
The pilot project was originally set to remove all intermediate stops for trains 60 and 61 in the morning and trains 68 and 69 in the late afternoon. Additionally, Train 50 from Toronto to Ottawa was scheduled to operate non-stop from Toronto to Brockville. While the intention was to offer faster downtown-to-downtown travel, critics warned the move would reduce service to smaller cities and towns along the corridor.
Citizen advocacy group Transport Action Canada, which had raised concerns about the impact on lakeshore communities, welcomed the postponement. “We are pleased to see this pilot project paused. Hopefully this gives time for a rethink so services to lakeshore communities are maintained and enhanced,” the group said in a statement on X.
The organization added that many passengers had already made travel plans under the existing schedule, and adjustments to maintain service for intermediate communities were not announced alongside the proposed pilot.
The postponement offers Via Rail and CN more time to evaluate the balance between faster express service and regional accessibility, an issue that continues to spark debate among commuters and advocacy groups across the corridor.