The idea of returning passenger trains to Ottawa’s beautiful downtown Union Station is very attractive. However, the current VIA station offers several key advantages for Alto that the old terminal can not match.
Tag: Railway
A return to the abandoned Orangeville-Brampton Railway, 18 months after the last train left Orangeville
On a road trip early this summer, my spouse and I paid a visit to New York and Philadelphia. In New York, we walked the famous High Line, which revitalized an abandoned elevated freight railway corridor, transforming it into a popular grade-separated walking path on Manhattan’s Lower East Side. While in Philadelphia, I made a […]
Restoring Merritton Station in St. Catharines can only benefit Niagara-bound travelers
The hidden stairways to Toronto’s railway heritage.
Categories
Off the rails
Despite calls for the preservation of the Orangeville-Brampton Railway since its discontinuation in December 2021, the removal of rails on the 150-year old line that once connected Toronto with Owen Sound, Teeswater, and points between began this week. The Town of Orangeville aims to replace the tracks with a multi-use path through the municipality. The […]
On Townline Road on the south end of Orangeville, across the street from the old railway yard and station grounds, two plaques stand, telling the history of the doomed railway next to them. The first plaque, a faded provincial marker, commemorates the Toronto, Grey and Bruce Railway, which arrived in Orangeville in 1871 and completed […]
A new interactive map depicts Canada’s passenger rail networks in 1955 and in 1980
An interactive map depicting intercity rail services in Ontario and Quebec in 1955
Brockville and St. Thomas are two small Ontario industrial cities that wouldn’t normally attract much attention. But both communities are working on remarkable projects that re-purpose former railway infrastructure to create interesting public spaces that don’t just lure out-of-town visitors, but add a significant asset to be enjoyed by the entire community. The St. Thomas […]
Sean Marshall 