ACCESS TO INFORMATION REQUESTS

A fascinating facet fact-finding for Trackside Treasure has been researching and disseminating information on VIA's current operations. There is certainly a lot to learn, and much to share. Certain evolving exigencies have been of great interest to me, and I hope to others, over the past few years: buffer cars added to HEP consists, CN-imposed Venture crossing speed reductions and related subsequent Federal and Quebec court cases, Venture serviceability, and most recently buffer cars added to LRC consists. VIA's ATI team has been co-operative, sometimes going above and beyond to facilitate access to documents. Trackside Treasure has become somewhat of a repository for all the above VIA service challenges. At one point, I considered changing the name of this blog to Trackside Venture!

There are many misunderstandings out there about how Access To Information (ATI) requests are made and what requestors can expect in return. Vague, blanket requests are unlikely to prove useful because it is not always in the government's best interests to provide full fishing-expedition access to the activities of its institutions. There have been manifold news stories about how various levels of government purposely skirt the applicable law, or outright refuse, or at least slow-walk Access To Information requests.

Certain things are off-limits: personal information (can't request an individual's blood type), matters involving solicitor-client privilege, commercial matters that may contain trade secrets or financial, commercial, scientific or technical information that belongs to, and has consistently been treated as confidential by (a) the Canada Post Corporation; (b) Export Development Canada; (c) the Public Sector Pension Investment Board; or (d) VIA Rail Canada Inc. 

MAKING ATI REQUESTS WORK FOR YOU

I have found that three things are required to use ATI requests to full advantage prior to making the request, while waiting for a response, and after a response is received:

• Before: Be specific in what you actually request
• During: Patience
• After: Understanding and good communication

VIA's ATI team has always clearly set out the limitations imposed on agencies as to what can and cannot be divulged. On VIA's website Governance & Ethics page, VIA is mandated to maintain an online listing of its annual reports to Parliament as to how it applies the Access to Information Act. 

Annual lists of completed ATI requests are also maintained and updated periodically on VIA's website. These lists can be useful for honing requests to garner the most complete and useful information. The list of completed requests interestingly shows the number of pages of information disclosed for each request. Surprisingly, some wordy requests get 0 or 1 page, some short questions get...400 pages disclosed! 

This is my current favourite, submitted by an eager model railroader:

Response: No records exist, 0 pages disclosed!

So it can be seen that a wide range of requestors submit ATI requests for a panoply of reasons - some appear to be submitted by legal representatives of individuals, community groups or companies that have had issues with VIA -  those who have been involved in accidents, groups seeking ridership levels through various online communities, or seeking information on the awarding of contracts, respectively.

WHAT IS ATI?

Government institutions, including VIA Rail Canada are subject to the Access to Information Act and the Privacy Act and have responsibility for how the Acts are applied within their institutions. Each government institution has a duty to assist requestors, as provided for by subsection 4(2.1) of the Access to Information Act and by the Government’s access to information and privacy policies.

Each government institution has an Access to Information and Privacy Co-ordinator. The Co-ordinator is responsible for ensuring that any access to information or personal information requests received by the institution are responded to in accordance with the Acts. According to the ATIA, the institution must acknowledge a request within 30 calendar days of its receipt. However, in special cases, more time may be needed to process a request, in which case an extension notice is communicated to the requestor. Hence, why patience may be required - especially when making a request involving consultation of multiple sources, or a large volume of documents to be reviewed.

Government institutions are responsible for providing comprehensive, accurate and up-to-date descriptions of their programs, activities, related information holdings, etc. Here is a listing of VIA's Info Source -  background information, programs and activities as well as how to request information.

As with many posts here, this one will serve as a personal (and sadly, largely unillustrated*) information repository for me - it may also be of interest to you - and may even prove useful for ATI requests you are considering making. Why not? You have the right, if you are a Canadian citizen, and are therefore in some small already paying for the privilege!

(*I suppose I could have included a selfie of me scratching my head while viewing a 2,000-page response on my laptop! But no.)

VIA ATI REQUESTS 

Below are my ATI requests over the last five years. By now you may have read the results in various posts I have published on the topics I listed and linked in the top paragraph. ATI request numbers and dates of the request are listed below, followed by response dates from the institution (VIA or Transport Canada) and the messages I received are shown in italics:

22-2243 sent December 19, 2022. Response received January 27, 2023:

I am requesting a listing of passenger cars that were/are sent for structural-integrity testing at the National Research Council facility in Ottawa and the dates the cars were taken the Ottawa. 

* * * * *

22-2258 sent February 10, 2023. Response received April 10, 2023:

Please provide the following information resulting from Transport Canada Railway Safety Act Order (October 19, 2022): 

1. The report on the engineering simulation of predicted Head-End Power (HEP) car collision performance (provided to Transport Canada by VIA on Oct. 31, 2022); 

2. The inspection report of four HEP cars with structural defects, to identify whether additional structural conditions are present (provided to Transport Canada by Jan. 31, 2023); 

3. Copy of static structural/compression test of two unrepaired HEP cars to validate structural capacity & assess how test outcomes inform future repairs (provided to T.C. by VIA Jan. 31, 2023); 

4. The names and/or numbers of the four HEP cars in Point 2. above."

* * * * *

24-2403 sent April 29, 2024. Response received in June and July 2024:

My request of VIA Rail Canada, under the ATIP request provisions is in five parts:

1. I request a copy of the contract(s) between VIA Rail Canada and CAD Railway Industries of Quebec for the tear-down inspection of VIA Rail Head-End Power/stainless steel fleet cars at the CAD facility from 2022 to the present, including what services were to be provided by CAD, cost of the services, project timelines and disposition of the tested cars and

2. the final disposition and/or dates of scrapping of each VIA Rail Head-End Power/stainless steel fleet car tested at the CAD facility, and

3. the final disposition and/or dates of scrapping of each VIA Rail Head-End Power/stainless steel fleet car at the National Research Council facilities in Ottawa and

4. whether any major or minor car components were provided/sold to any entity other than VIA Rail or CAD and a listing thereof

5. In all four preceding parts of my request, I request copies of all email communications sent or received by VIA Rail management and staff pertinent to the above.

* * * * *

24-2427 sent October 23, 2024. Response received November 19, 2024:

Please provide responses to the questions below and copies of all pertinent email communications sent or received by VIA management:

1. What specific evidence was supplied to VIA by CN regarding specific concerns or any actual close-calls, i.e. incidents when crossing protection signals were not activated by Venture trains in revenue service in 2022, 2023 or 2024?

2. What operational adjustments were considered or made to ensure safety prior to October 11, 2024 in response to concerns expressed to VIA by CN in 2021, 2022, 2023 or 2024?

3. What monitoring of compliance to the VIA System Notice VN24-2023 (or subsequent) by VIA train crews, was performed on or after October 11, 2024?

4. How have passengers been informed of the CN-imposed speed reductions, and their impact on on-time performance of a given VIA Venture train, before or after booking a ticket?

5. What other technology, remedies or further operational adjustments is VIA discussing or considering implementing to better respond to CN's concerns, to ensure Venture trains can operate on-time?

6. Has VIA discussed or considered lengthening Venture trains to 32 or more axles to meet CN's concerns re: current 24-axle trains requiring speed reductions to ensure safety?

Sent September 11, 2025 follow-up:

Now that the application for judicial review is no longer before the Federal Court, can you please advise me whether I can expect to receive information to satisfy my requests (#1, 2, 3, 5, and 6) in Access to Information Request #24-2427? Are you now therefore able to respond to all parts of my request? 

Response received the next day:

While the matter is no longer before the Federal Court, it remains active before the Superior Court of Quebec.

The most current and comprehensive information is available through the public court record. Given the complexity and evolving nature of this case—which has required significant resources and sustained efforts from our teams over the past year—a substantial volume of documentation exists. Consulting the public court file remains the most effective and timely way to stay informed.

I recognize that accessing and consulting a court file can present some challenges. To help facilitate your review and review of other access to information requestors, I am working with our external law firm to compile a repository of key publicly available documents from the court file. Once this repository is established, I will provide you with access (likely by end of September / early October).

Please note that disclosing any information not part of the public record could prejudice our organization in the context of the ongoing legal proceedings and our commercial relationship with CN. Accordingly, the exceptions cited in our initial response continue to apply.

Trusting that this approach reflects our commitment to transparency, I will follow up with you regarding access to the repository.

Response received November 5, 2025:

You will have access to the repository of key publicly available documents from the court file relating to the shunting issues between VIA Rail Canada Inc. and CN at the following link [www]. Please note that the link will remain active until November 14, 2025. 

Further responses Jan-Feb-Mar 2026.

The public repository was actually quite handy, perhaps easing VIA's workload by being accessible to multiple users.

* * * * *

[24sic] 25-2464 sent March 19, 2025. 

I would like to request the following information from VIA Rail Canada through the Access to Information Act process:

1. A copy of the Technical Services and Spares Supply Agreement, and associated documents, that VIA established with Siemens for its 32 Venture-Charger trainsets.

2. A copy of any document or report showing the number of breakdowns causing delay in the Windsor-Quebec Corridor, as well as any document listing the model/type of train/locomotive on which the breakdown occurred for 2023, 2024 and 2025, especially Venture-Charter trainsets 1 to 28.

3. Provide a list of the Venture-Charger trainsets used by VIA Rail and a list of days for which each one was not in service in 2023,  2024 and 2025, and/or a percentage serviceability for each Venture-Charger trainset (i.e. available for service xx% for the year in question) for trainsets 1 to 28.

4. For any Venture-Charger trainset out of service beyond normal maintenance servicing (i.e. 1-2 days), the length of each out-of-service incident and the reason for each out-of-service incident (i.e. parts not available, repair due to collision, software issue, etc).

In all four preceding points of my request, I request copies of all email communications sent or received by VIA management and staff pertinent to the above.

Emailed VIA April 24 - why no response in over a month? Response - received TSSSA the next day. Other parts required third-party consultation therefore there would be a further 60-day extension before response.

Sept 15, 2025 Emailed VIA - I only received the information from Part 1, with the other three parts said to be requiring third-party consultation. The last I had heard was an extension to June 24, 2025. Since this date is now nearly three months ago, can you please advise when I can hear a full response to my request?

Final response received February 13, 2026.

* * * * *

25-2563 March 28, 2025. Response received May 28, 2025 after a 30-day extension:

Please note that in order to respond to your request completely and accurately, it will be necessary for VIA Rail to search through a large number of documents. Therefore, the time limit for responding to your request is extended beyond the initial time limit, as per section 9(1)(a) of the ATIA. A final response to your request will be provided to you once the process is complete. We believe that it will be necessary to extend the deadline by a thirty (30) day period.

I would like to request the following information pertaining to the current state and eventual disposition of VIA's Light-Rapid-Comfortable fleet.

1. The pace of the Siemens Venture new fleet implementation was initially intended to be fully implemented prior to the retirement dates of the LRC fleet. Will the retirement dates of the LRC fleet - currently mandated for the end of January, 2027 -  be extended if the Ventures are not fully in service by January, 2027?

2. Internal communications, memos or emails pertaining to the structural integrity issues discovered most recently in September, 2025 and which led to the addition of buffer cars in March, 2026.

3. Inspection data and reports performed on behalf of, or by VIA Rail Canada, which led to the addition of buffer cars to LRC-equipped trains in March, 2026.

4. a. Internal communications, memos or emails pertaining to the scope and purpose of work currently and recently performed on LRC coaches at CAD Industries or by other contractors. Is this to extend the life of a number of LRC cars? This can exclude proprietary contracts.

b.If not, why is this work being performed so late in the life of the LRC fleet?

5.a.What are the plans for the eventual disposition of the LRC fleet? 

b. When will LRC cars be disposed of, and will they be scrapped on site at VIA mechanical facilities?

   WHAT IS RECEIVED

As in most business dealings these days, the era of manila envelopes arriving in the mail from corporate headquarters is clearly over! Instead, VIA usually responds to ATI requests via email - a covering email entitled Response to Requestor, with two or more attachments or appendices. One attachment is the formal response to the requestor's ATI inquiry (top photo) and the other(s) comprise the information disclosed to the requestor. Such information can arrive in the THOUSANDS of pages. 

It must be very challenging for the VIA ATI team of co-ordinator and paralegals to not only collate but also find the requested information from various meeting notes, PowerPoint slide decks, internal procedures and manuals, and email communication between various internal and external stakeholders. In the case of court proceedings, these can include voluminous, tangential legal case precedents. Sometimes, entire railway rulebooks are sent - for instance, did I need to receive two copies of the CROR?

The onus is then on the requestor to go through the two (or two thousand) pages disclosed per their interest. Inevitably, various electronic Easter eggs (transportation truffles?) are found during the digging. The best example was the retirement schedule for the LRC fleet among some other related documents, not seen anywhere else before or since. Another more sombre discovery was the list of the actual scrap truckload shipments of sheared-up Budd Canadian cars that crossed American Iron & Metal's Montreal scale, from CAD after tear-down testing was complete. Such discoveries make the diligent drudge of the digital dissemination undisappointing!

SHARING THE DISCLOSED INFORMATION

Some disclosed information is marked 'VIA Internal' and therefore is only available if requested through an ATI request. Some may say it is only for viewing by the requestor. My view is that we are all members of the public, and all taxpayers. Just because one requestor receives information, there is never any limitation placed on sharing the information. If one is entitled to know, I believe all of us are entitled to know. It's also important to remember that I have no grudge against VIA, and also no reason to promote its self-interest.

TRANSPORT CANADA ATI REQUESTS

VIA's ATI team has been helpful and responsive, which this requestor greatly appreciates!

Transport Canada not so much.

An initial email to Transport Canada Rail Safety requesting the VIA Rail Canada HEP Fleet Testing Final Report:

I am interested in the results of the Railway Safety Order MO22-06, dated October 19, 2022 regarding the structural integrity of VIA Rail Canada's HEP fleet that necessitated the use of so-called 'buffer cars'.

I understand that results of engineering and testing performed by the National Research Council, CAD Rail, and VIA were to be communicated to Transport Canada by March 31. 

Can you please let me know if this has happened, and when the information is being made public?

Response received: there are no plans to release this report to the public.

* * * * *

A-2023-00090 May 29, 2023. Response received August 24, 2023.

"Requesting the results of the testing required of VIA Rail Canada under Railway Safety Order MO22-06, dated October 19, 2022. The structural integrity of VIA Rail Canada's HEP fleet necessitated the use of so-called 'buffer cars' from October, 2022 to May, 2023. I understand that results of engineering and testing performed by the National Research Council, CAD Rail, and VIA were to be communicated to Transport Canada by VIA Rail Canada by March 31, 2023, and that this information will not otherwise be made public."

The August 24, 2023 disclosure included the report.

* * * * *

A-2024-00810 January 21, 2025.

I am requesting the information Canadian National Railway was asked to file with Transport Canada on December 10, 2024 within 30 days of receipt, pursuant to Section 36 of the Railway Safety Act, # MO 24-01. This is regarding operation and activation of railway-track warning devices on CN lines and the use of VIA's new 'Venture' trains. 

Response received February 20, 2025:

A 30-day extension was requested - the new due date for your request prescribed by the ATIA is now March 24, 2025. Please be advised that you have a right to submit a complaint about the processing of this request within 60 days of receipt of this notice to the Office of the Information Commissioner of Canada.

I sent further follow-up emails sent on February 20, 2025 and March 24, 2025, intending to make a complaint to the Office of the Information Commissioner if no response received by April 1. 

Response received April 3, 2025 - "request expedited".

The reason an extension was taken was due in part to a large and time-consuming search for materials and also the sheer volume of responsive material. A large portion of the responsive material is comprised of machine readable printouts of data. There are thousands of pages of this material. While our team is working with limited resources and an immense workload, I am prioritizing completion of your request. You are welcome to make a complaint to the Office of the Information Commissioner at any point during the processing of your request.

No information was ever received from TC, and the period during which a complaint could be made had passed. As it turns out, the data that CN submitted to TC was voluminous machine data printouts. Even CN staff, according to legal proceedings, had difficulty wading through it all, analyzing it for evidence of short warning times. Your humble blogger would have been snowed under. Again, what is requested may dictate the disclosure a requestor can expect to receive.

Running extra...

The VIA Historical Association posted a list of books "primarily about VIA" on its website. Still a very short bookshelf (with titles unitalicized as in the original). Soon, the growing (both in volumes and in authors) Longpré series will outnumber mine!

Canada by Train, Chris Hanus
Canadian Sunset, Adolf Hungry Wolf
The Cars of VIA, Volume 1, Richard Longpré / Marc Dufour
The Cars of VIA Volume 2, Richard Longpré / Marc Dufour / Christopher Greenlaw
Murals from a Great Canadian Train, Ian Thom
People Moving People, Kevin J Holland
Rail Canada Volume 4, Donald C. Lewis
Scenic Rail Guide to Central and Atlantic Canada, Bill Coo
Scenic Rail Guide to Western Canada, Bill Coo
Trackside with VIA: Cross-Canada Compendium, Eric Gagnon
Trackside with VIA: Cross-Canada Compendium Consist Companion, Eric Gagnon
Trackside with VIA: The First 35 Years, Eric Gagnon
Trackside with VIA: Research and Recollections, Eric Gagnon
TurboTrain: A Journey, Jason Shron
VIA in Color: The First 25 Years, Kevin J Holland
VIA Rail, Christopher Greenlaw
VIA Rail Canada: The First Five Years, Tom Nelligan

When you're talking VIA, you're talking cuts. VIA touts its twice-yearly service review as a good time to make cuts. Or as it's put in the September 16 press release, "better align service with passenger demand, strengthen network resilience and support more reliable and predictable service." As always, click for a larger version.

First past the post...

Kurt Vollenwyder was born just after VE-Day, emigrating to Canada and working as an electrical engineer at the Urban Transit Development Corporation-->Lavalin-->Bombardier here in Millhaven. An early member of the Associated Railroaders of Kingston, he was one of the first I met at the initial ARK sale in which I participated. Often seen walking in our neighbourhood with his wife Susanne, he always had a smile and loved to talk about Swiss and North American railroading. Kurt was always a gentleman and always ready to share his experience and knowledge.