Winnipeg–Churchill train

Winnipeg–Churchill train
The Winnipeg–Churchill train at Churchill railway station in 1997
Overview
Service type Inter-city rail
Status Service is active between Winnipeg and Gillam. Service to Churchill is suspended indefinitely due to track damage.
Locale Manitoba, Canada
Current operator(s) Via Rail
Route
Start Winnipeg, Manitoba
End Churchill, Manitoba
Distance travelled 1,710 km (1,063 mi)
Average journey time 36 hours
Service frequency 2 trains per week
Train number(s) 692 & 693
On-board services
Class(es) Economy and sleeper class
Seating arrangements Stainless Steel Coach Seat
Sleeping arrangements Stainless Steel Sleepers
Catering facilities Stainless Steel Dining Car
Technical
Rolling stock Stainless Steel Cars
Track gauge 1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in)
Track owner(s) CN, HBRY

The Winnipeg–Churchill train (formerly known as the Hudson Bay and prior to that Northern Spirits[1]) is a semiweekly passenger train operated by Via Rail between Winnipeg and Churchill, Manitoba. It is the only dry land connection between Churchill and the rest of Canada.

Schedule

The train, which runs through Manitoba and Saskatchewan, leaves Winnipeg in the evening on Tuesday and Sunday and arrives in Churchill early in the morning two days later. The train departs Churchill in the evening on Thursday and Saturday and arrives in Winnipeg early in the morning two days later. An additional service operates between The Pas (leaving Monday) and Churchill (leaving Tuesday).

The journey travels on the Canadian National Railway line north to The Pas where it transfers to the Hudson Bay Railway passing through Wabowden, Manitoba, with a spur from Thicket Portage to Thompson, and Gillam on its way to the Port of Churchill on Hudson Bay, taking approximately 36 hours each way. The train previously served Lynn Lake, but service was truncated to Pukatawagan in 2003 by then track owners OmniTRAX citing a loss in freight traffic making the service unprofitable. Via still operates twice weekly service from The Pas to Pukatawagan on behalf of the Keewatin Railway which now owns the Sherridon Subdivision.[1][2][3]

Service between Gillam and Churchill was suspended as of May 23, 2017, as flooding has heavily damaged the track bed and bridges.[4] As of September 8, 2018, repairs on the track has begun and will take approximately 60 days.[5]

VIA Winnipeg-Churchill (interactive map)

References

  1. 1 2 https://web.archive.org/web/20001017204916/http://www.viarail.ca/en.trai.nord.html#03
  2. ↑ "Hudson Bay Rail to end service from Lynn Lake, Man., to Pukatawagan reserve". Canadian Press. 8 December 2003. |access-date= requires |url= (help)
  3. ↑ http://www.viarail.ca/en/trains/prairies-and-northern-manitoba/the-pas-pukatawagan/description
  4. ↑ "Via Rail service between Churchill and Gillam suspended indefinitely due to closure of the railway infrastructure in northern Manitoba". VIA Rail Canada Inc. CNW. 2017-06-09. Retrieved 2017-06-10.
  5. ↑ "Company fixing Churchill rail line says repairs will be complete in 60 days | CBC News". CBC. Retrieved 2018-09-11.
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