HIGHLIGHTS
Thursday October 10 to Tuesday October 15, 2019

VIA Rail network

• Busiest day: Friday October 11, 2019
• Most popular destinations: Toronto, Montréal and Ottawa
• Ridership increase of 1.2% compared to the same period in 2018

Québec City-Windsor corridor
97,715 Passengers: increase of 1.4% over same long weekend last year

MONTRÉAL, Oct. 17, 2019 /CNW Telbec/ - For the second consecutive year, over 100,000 passengers travelled with VIA Rail Canada (VIA Rail) during the Thanksgiving long weekend.

Over this six-day period, VIA Rail's train covered a total distance of over 33 million kilometers. Friday, October 11, was the second busiest day overall in 10 years, with 22,046 passengers travelling throughout Canada.

A very busy Thanksgiving weekend
Our 10 daily departures from Ottawa to Toronto, as well as our direct service from Ottawa to Québec City saw robust growth. Our Belleville to Toronto segment was equally busy as VIA Rail continues to connect more and more passengers from the Bay of Quinte region to the Greater Toronto Area.

VIA Rail continues to be the smart way to travel for families as well: the number of kids travelling during these dates also increased by 22%. Families can always take advantage of a 50% discount for their kids when travelling in Economy class across the network.

"For this Thanksgiving long weekend, we did what we do best: connecting people," said Cynthia Garneau, VIA Rail President and Chief Executive Officer. "We're delighted to have been able to welcome aboard these passengers and be part of their plans, providing a safe and enjoyable journey for them to spend time with their families and loved ones or enjoy a well-deserved break. We thank our passengers and our remarkable employees for another successful long weekend."

About VIA Rail
As Canada's national rail passenger service, VIA Rail (viarail.ca) and all its employees are mandated to provide safe, efficient and economical passenger transportation service, in both official languages of our country. VIA Rail operates intercity, regional and transcontinental trains linking over 400 communities across Canada, and about 180 more communities through intermodal partnerships, and safely transports nearly 4.8 million passengers annually. The Corporation has been awarded five Safety Awards and three Environment Awards by the Railway Association of Canada since 2007. Visit the "About VIA Rail" section at https://www.viarail.ca/en/about-via-rail.

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SOURCE VIA Rail Canada Inc.

View original content: http://www.newswire.ca/en/releases/archive/October2019/17/c7026.html