Chaleur (passenger train)
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The Chaleur is a tri-weekly passenger train operated by VIA Rail between Montreal and Gaspé, Quebec. Its name is derived from the easternmost part of its route along the northern shore of Chaleur Bay.
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[edit] Schedule
The Chaleur leaves Montreal in the evening and arrives in Gaspé at about noon the following day. The train departs Gaspé mid-afternoon and arrives in Montreal in the morning.
[edit] Operation
In recent years between Montreal and Matapédia, Quebec the train is normally merged with the Ocean. The consist of the Chaleur in recent years is composed exclusively of cars built by the Budd Company, many originally used by the Canadian Pacific Railway's The Canadian.
This had been the case until 2004 for the Ocean as well, however the introduction of the Renaissance cars on the Ocean has resulted in both trains operating separately during the summer months (when trains are longer) and combined during the winter; the reason for this policy appears to be related to the braking effort of a combined train.
When operating separately, the Chaleur will run several minutes ahead of the Ocean. When combined, the trains run together as far as Matapédia, Quebec, before the Ocean continues to Halifax, Nova Scotia and the Chaleur proceeds to Gaspé.
[edit] Route
The following are stations served on the 1,041 kilometer (647 mile) route, listed from west to east:
- Central Station (Montreal)
- St. Hyacinthe, Quebec
- Drummondville, Quebec
- Charny, Quebec
- Montmagny, Quebec
- La Pocatière, Quebec
- Rivière-du-Loup, Quebec
- Rimouski, Quebec
- Mont-Joli, Quebec
- Matapédia, Quebec
- Carleton-sur-Mer, Quebec
- Chandler, Quebec
- Percé, Quebec
- Gaspé, Quebec
From Central Station to a point several miles west of Rivière-du-Loup, the train operates exclusively on tracks owned by the Canadian National Railway (CN).
Between Rivière-du-Loup and Chandler, the train operates over track of two subsidiaries of the Quebec Railway Corporation:
- Rivière-du-Loup to Matapédia is operated on the Chemin de Fer de la Matapédia et du Golfe (Matapedia & Gulf Railway)
- Matapédia to Chandler is operated on the Chemin de Fer Baie des Chaleurs
The route from Chandler to Gaspé is operated on the Chemin de fer de la Gaspésie which is owned by local municipalities. It should be noted that this company is attempting to purchase the remainder of the Matapédia to Chandler route, which is currently listed for abandonment.
[edit] Sample Consist
As an example, this is the train's consist on a day in October 2005.
All cars were built by Budd.
[edit] References
- VIA Rail Canada
- "By Rail to the Gaspé, VIA The Chaleur; A Return Trip in 2005", by John C. Dahl, Empire State Express, 2005. Published by Hamburg: Niagara Frontier Chapter, NRHS
