mb3 wrote:My wife and I will be travelling to Niagara Falls and Toronto soon. Are there any good areas to railfan near the falls in Niagara or near downtown Toronto?
Thanks,
Mike
There's very little rail activity in and around Niagara Falls and nothing within the Falls tourist district, anymore, since the CPR abandoned the area a few years ago. In downtown Niagara Falls, which is a few miles northeast of the Falls, there are the daily Amtrak and VIA trains and a couple of local switchers. Another two or three miles north is where you'll find the CN main from Toronto to Buffalo but, again, this line is not very busy.
CPR still has some local traffic (terminating near
Marineland) on the south side. CP's Toronto-Buffalo route now goes southwest of Niagara Falls through Welland and Ft. Erie via a connection with CN.
In downtown Toronto, Union Station is the focus of passenger activity with VIA Rail, GO Transit, and Amtrak all stopping there. Rush hours are very busy. A good place to watch the trains is the "
SkyWalk" between Union Station and the CN Tower / Skydome. There are a few freight trains of both CN and CP that pass through Union Station, but the vast majority travel on lines farther north.
The best known
Hot Spot for train watching in the Golden Horseshoe (a common name for the area around Lake Ontario between Niagara Falls and extending east of Toronto) is a place called Bayview Jct.. It's about half way between Niagara Falls and Toronto. Here is where the CN/VIA Toronto-London-Chicago / Toronto-Buffalo lines meet and the CP Toronto-Buffalo line has a nearby connection. I highly recommend this location if you have the time.
I hope you enjoy your visit to the Golden Horseshoe
Ken V. Moderator: Most things Canadian.
Any time could be train time!
