RDCs to London-Sarnia in 2016

So sez the VIA Prez
http://www.theobserver.ca/2015/06/17/mo ... -in-sarnia" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Desjardins-Siciliano said Via plans to increase the service in Sarnia to four trains daily, starting in 2016, but he adding it's not a done deal since it's subject to the availability of track, something Via will have to work out with freight rail companies.

"We're meeting with our freight partners to discuss those plans," Desjardins-Siciliano said.

He said the first run will be from Sarnia to Toronto, with adjustments intended to "shave a bit of time" off the current trip.

The additional trains will be a "commuter run" during the day between Sarnia and London using two-car self-propelled trains.

Assuming of course that it will in fact be RDCs from stock, and not Metrolinx leasing them UPX C cars from their massively underpatronised airport service. The next question will then become - will we see RDCs show up anywhere else in the network?

This could allow the "return" of the Chicago-Toronto International via Port Huron-Sarnia instead of Detroit...
(wishful thinking on New Years Eve )

Transport Action reported that in public meetings in southwestern Ontario VIA's CEO Yves Desjardins-Siciliano was questioned about his plan to have an RDC shuttle service between London and Sarnia. When asked where he would get those RDCs he said he would take them from the Sudbury - White River service. When asked further about what he would do to replace the RDCs on that route he said he would run a conventional train.

marquisofmississauga wrote:Transport Action reported that in public meetings in southwestern Ontario VIA's CEO Yves Desjardins-Siciliano was questioned about his plan to have an RDC shuttle service between London and Sarnia. When asked where he would get those RDCs he said he would take them from the Sudbury - White River service. When asked further about what he would do to replace the RDCs on that route he said he would run a conventional train.

Frankly, I don't understand that because they should have the RDC's that ran on Vancouver Island to cover this route AND the Sudbury-White River route. However, if they put a conventional train on the Sudbury route - VIA needs to get the train to Thunder Bay!!!!

VIA had so many RDC's at one time. I remember them all lined up in Halifax after they were pulled from the Maritime service. VIA kept some cars, but who was the main buyer of the others?

jp1822 wrote:VIA had so many RDC's at one time. I remember them all lined up in Halifax after they were pulled from the Maritime service. VIA kept some cars, but who was the main buyer of the others?

TRE owns 13 Budd Rail Diesel Cars, which were purchased from Via Rail Canada in 1993 and remanufactured by GEC Alsthom in Montreal. In 2010-11 ten cars were leased to DCTA for the A-train, but all have been returned and are in storage at TRE shops in Irving, TX.
They sit mostly idle in Irving at the TRE maintenance yard. You can see a bird's eye view with Google Earth. They look like they are kept in great shape. They are all RDC1 versions.

From http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/locolist.aspx?id=via" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
It appears VIA at one time owned 48 -1s, 50 -2s, and 2 -4s, just from their VIA numbers.
I have no idea where the rest are.