By Railfan & Railroad Staff

OTTAWA — VIA Rail Canada unveiled the first trainset of its new state-of-the-art fleet that will serve the railroad’s busiest corridor between Windsor, Ont. and Quebec City, Que., starting in 2022. The week, company officials gathered at VIA’s station in Ottawa to see the new trains that were built by Siemens. 

VIA expects to eventually have 32 of the new trainsets and the first one will begin testing in the coming weeks. The trains are expected to go into service in 2022. 

“This new fleet marks a new era for passenger rail service in the Corridor, where we served over 4.7 million passengers in 2019 and which represented 96 percent of our ridership pre-pandemic. In addition to being one of the most environmentally friendly fleets in North America, this modern new fleet will offer our passengers an unparalleled, barrier-free, and fully accessible travel experience,” said Cynthia Garneau, VIA Rail President and Chief Executive Officer. 

The new trains feature wider aisles, automatic touchless interior doors, adjustable tray tables, comfortable and ergonomic seats, and high-speed reliable data connection. The trainsets have a locomotive on one end and a cab car on the other.