Real Rails 2025 - The Trip

After agreeing to make a presentation at Real Rails 2025 there was only one way to get there - by rail! After deciding to spend one night in Burlington, I booked tickets on VIA No 41 up on Friday, October 17 and VIA No 54 back on Saturday, October 18. Unfortunately, VIA has not yet restored train No 641 on Fridays, which would have got me started an hour earlier. VIA No 54 was the last train heading back to Kingston on Saturday, thus maximizing my time. Having profiled the Real Rails talks in Part One, the VIA TMC tour in Part Two, it's time to do a trip account in this final post. VIA No 41 (Venture Set 15) arriving at Kingston (top photo).

THE TRIP WEST - NOT AS LATE AS I'D EXPECTED!

My seat mate was reading a book on an e-reader. I could easily have read along, as it was a large-print version. The fall colours were nice but cloud started to move in as we neared Belleville. Blasting past stopped intermodal train CN No 105 in Belleville yard:

We hit 152 km/h (in-car speed showing on ceiling sign!) east of Trenton Junction, meeting an eastbound freight, likely CN No 372, then hit 147 km/h east of Cobourg. We were now 15 minutes late.  Port Hope''s CP viaduct just to our north:

At Clarke, 105 well cars were stored on an adjacent spur. VIA No 62/52 were departing Oshawa as we arrived, and three CN units were working the west end of Oshawa yard. Venturinterior view:

We stayed travelling about 15 minutes late. The speed seemed slow, often around 111 km/h with maximal speed of 150 km/h.  There was no sensation of a sudden slow down-speed up cycle that I'd heard about during the quarter-mile crossing speed reductions.

Arrival at Toronto Union Station was still 15 minutes late. I was a little grateful for that, because it eliminated the temptation to run through the concourse like a true Toronto commuter to get the 1017 GO Lakeshore West departure. Instead, I had time to buy my $12.30 ticket at the kiosk, find the appropriate platforms to board in the York Concourse, and even have a snack before the 1047 departure. (I could have used a Presto card available for $4 to drop the fare to $10.35, though I would not use it again and would have to do the tap-on, tap-off routine.)

Top level of former cab-car 237 on the 1047 Lakeshore West departure:

YouTube video link - passing VIA's Toronto Maintenance Centre. The site of our excellent tour the very next day!

Procor shop at Oakville:

Switching tank cars at Clarkson black Geep LTEX 3828:

Arriving at 1148, no, I did not want to go to the Burlington parking structure. Wrong way! Heading back under the tracks to the newly-constructed transfer point, I found Burlington Transit Harvester Route 80 bus waiting for its momentary 1152 departure east, riding along Fairview Street to Guelph Line thence Harvester Road, hopping off near the Holiday Inn. Hello, Real Rails 2025!

THE TRIP EAST - NOT AS EASY AS I'D EXPECTED!

One day before departing, I had learned that Metrolinx/GO Transit was suspending all Lakeshore West service due to construction on this weekend. Sure, Sunday it was truncated to ensure fans could get to the Jays' game, but that was later than I needed it. My mind became a frog in a blender. How was I going to get from Burlington back to Toronto Union? My one-hour GO Lakeshore West trip up would become a two- to three-hour trip back. I had to budget time at the conference - leaving too late imperilled my catching the last VIA train of the day back to Kingston and I had a date with a pipe organ the next morning! I found two possible routings:

Option One

• GO Transit bus 12 to Hwy 407 Carpool/Dundas 1357-1415.
• GO Transit bus 40 to Pearson Airport Terminal One 1431-1525.
• Union-Pearson Express to Union Station.

Option Two

• take the truncated part of the Lakeshore West route still in service, riding the Niagara Falls train from Burlington to Oakville (hourly service)
• transfer to a GO bus to Bramalea.
• ride the Kitchener line train to Union Station.

When I asked two GO Transit staff about this option, they made funny faces. I went with Option One. I could have done Option Two all on a weekend $10 GO one-day pass but would have to have downloaded a code to my phone prior to travelling.  Option One cost me an extra $12.35 for the UP Express but in retrospect, it was worth it!

I regrettably left the Holiday Inn not long after returning from the VIA TMC tour. I met fellow ARK members Andrew Chisholm and Michael Pasch, both about to depart on a tour. Michael was so stoked about the previous GO Willowbrook tour that I thought he was going to miss the bus while telling me all about it! I walked south until catching Burlington Transit Route 1 at Guelph Line to Burlington GO. This saved me a bit of a walk on an unseasonably warm day, and gave me time to get my bearings before starting my circuitous route east. And, equally importantly - time to grab a Timmies and some Timbits. If travelling by rail, would it have been a Jay Train? Or a GO Jays GO train? Hmmm. 

Lots of Burlington Transit and GO buses in the transfer point:

The GO bus ride was...interesting. Route 12 was a treat. Front seat upstairs, coffee on the window-ledge, cool air blowing. Unfortunately, Route 40 was unpleasant. Transfer point sited along the 407, super-busy route, 50 minutes with no cool air, seat reclined in front of me. Fortunately, the driver found the switch about 20 minutes along. After Square One, we got some elbow room after most young passengers disembarked. Approaching Pearson, this Antonov has been impounded since the Russian invasion of Ukraine. It's not rushin' to get anywhere!

Way-finding in the terminal was a challenge. Arriving by bus I saw no signs for the 'Train to City'. I found them on the upper floors. I literally walked aboard the UP Express 1546 departure before it left. It was fairly crowded. I think it was only a two-car train. 

I arrived at Toronto Union at 1609. Boarding for No 54 was scheduled for 1708 for the 1738 departure. That seemed early for boarding. We had passed numerous VIA trains laying over at GO's Bathurst North layover yard west of Union. VIA had no access to its TMC because of the closure, and many trains were stabled here while No 1's Sunday departure consist overnighted unattended at CN's MacMillan Yard in Vaughan before running down to Union on Sunday! Giving into train watching temptation, I decided I had time to hike west to Spadina Avenue bridge, and maybe even Bathurst Street to get some photos, and ideally making it back to Union to not miss my train home. It was unseasonably hot and humid but I decided to get going! Walking west...

From north:

• Venture Set 6/910-4 LRC-6415 
• 6432-3476F + 4 LRC-6429 (my No 54)/ single guard unit 6418
• 903-4 LRC-9xx (green)
• Venture Set 14

GO 558 with 6 bilevels, GO 617 with ?10 bilevels.

Union-Pearson Express arriving at left, VIA slowly heading for Union at right:

Back to Union Station via Front Street:

Venture Sets 8 and 21 under the train shed. Maybe joined for the trip to TMC?

6429-3470-3476-3311R(en)-my car 33xx-33xx-6432 - No 54. Departing 35' late at 1813 and arriving 45 minutes late at Kingston.

My seatmate, on at Guildwood was one of those rare passengers not using a screen. I celebrated my successful return to Kingston with a Molson Canadian and browsed Branchlike back issues.

My Real Rails 2025 credentials and ticket for the MMC tour, VIA boarding passes, two GO and one UP kiosk tickets, and Real Rails 2025 swag bag that included Time Table 1 - program, site map, tour and banquet information:

Running extra...

Actual wacky news stories of the week...Tom Brady cloned his pet dog (I guess he could not bear to put the first down). A bear was found trapped inside a car (It had bear-icaded itself). A big game hunter was killed by the Cape buffalo he was stalking (It was the last thing he herd). After 529 days in the outback, an Australian dachshund found its way home (He looked and felt like a wiener!)

First past the post...

I'm including this lightly-edited post by Real Rails 2025 key organizer John Spring to social media. John's presentation was just before mine and I could tell his depth of knowledge on the TH&B was unparalleled. The following list reveals the many behind-the-scenes hours spent on this labour-of-love that was enjoyed by so many:

 

Thank you for many great comments on the convention. There was a great committee of people who worked on this convention for almost three years. I am with the TH&BHS and I was the facility manager. I set up the plan for the use of each of the seven rooms in the hotel as well as the loading and unloading of hundreds of sales and display items into the facility. I also had my hand in every aspect of the convention as I have been involved in other national-level conventions as well as chairman of other events such as the Copetown shows. Thursday and Friday nights I got about four hours' sleep setting up until 1 a.m. and being back on deck by 5 a.m. for the next day's events. Saturday I rapped up after the banquet at 1am and was setting up the train show room all night starting at 3:30 am. I set up the Ontario Steam Heritage Museum tour and the Ontario Southland Railway tour. I had my wife Laura (also on the committee), daughter Laura, and son James all working the 4 days selling tickets moving furniture and a hundred other behind the scenes jobs helping out. 

Richard McQuade from the CPHA was the chairman who worked extremely hard promoting the convention and resolving problems in every aspect of the convention. Richard was super-stressed over making things work within tight financial pressures. Richard got the people at GO Transit to agree to have a tour for our people and to expand the size of the tour when the tour sold out almost instantly. Richard also set up the Halton County Radial Railway Museum tour in Rockwood. 

Glenn Courtney from the CNRHA was also worked for two years  as secretary of the committee. Glenn could be found not only covering various jobs for the convention over the three days but also running a great display of CNR memorabilia on the CNRHA tables. Glenn got the 10 or so speakers in the CNRHA room giving talks on great CNR.

Larry Sebelley from the CPHA was the treasurer/registrar. CPHA put up the seed for the convention to get the ball rolling. Larry projected we would not break even and we would lose money on this convention. We exceeded the break-even numbers! Larry is still crunching the numbers to see where we are financially. The train show was a huge success with well over 300 people paying to come through the door plus the convention guests and children that got in for free. Larry put over two years into the planning of the convention but unfortunately he was not able to come east from BC to attend.

Christopher Greenlaw from the VHA was the outside event co-ordinator.  Chris looked after the five tours, getting buses loaded and out on time, making sure there was a bus captain volunteer on each bus to guide the bus to the tour and make sure everyone got back on the bus to the hotel. Chris was also manning the VHA tables and pitching in on so many other jobs like the raffle draw.

Jim Little from the CPHA was inside co-ordinator running the four speakers' rooms. Jim got speakers for both the CPR room 1 and the other railways in room 4. Over the two years Jim worked on scheduling the four rooms to give an extremely full program for everyone to enjoy. Jim tapped in to his personal friendship to get Adam Meeks from CPKC to be the keynote banquet speaker.

 

Damon Stead worked with Richard on the marketing of the convention. Damon created the graphics and flyers we used on so many different marketing items. 

Gerald Harper was on-site registration desk coordinator. Gerald had the complicated job of taking all the information from the program Larry had and make it into over 300 registration packages for everyone attending the convention.  Gerald and Richard spent days making up all packages that were different for each person with the tickets for tours and banquet tickets so they could be easily handed out at the convention door. While everyone was enjoying the programs and tours Gerald was at the door.

Laura Spring also from the TH&BHS was the hospitality room and train show co-ordinator. Laura spent two years getting manufacturers and historical associations to buy display space in the hospitality room. Laura picked the menu for the hospitality and the banquet and got the vendors to sign up for tables at the Sunday train show.  

Jeff Pinchbeck from the CPHA was the IT and AV coordinator.  Jeff supplied the four program computers and other equipment. He had every speaker send in the programs and checked the programs worked with the computer operating system and had the programs all pre-loaded. Jeff rented the screen, sound-board, microphone and speakers for the banquet, and was in change of the CPHA display tables.

Ed Freeman from the CNRHA was part of the convention from the beginning. Ed worked tirelessly helping Gerald with the registration desk and other convention jobs.

Not on the committee but I need to mention is my daughter Laura. Along with our friend Shari Small she sold over $3000 in raffle draw tickets. Laura stayed up all of Saturday night as security for all the convention rooms going without sleep from 6 am Saturday until she got home late Sunday night.

Most of the committee never got to see presentation or go on a tour. This is just some of the effort to bring the Real Rails 2025 Convention to those that attended the event. Add more than 50 speakers, dozens of people doing displays and layouts, nearly 100 manufacturers and vendors at the hospitality room and the train show and countless other people who worked with the committee for this event!

Real Rails 2025 - The Tour

Day One of Real Rails 2025 was spent getting from Kingston to Burlington, ON as well as making my presentation on VIA Rail consists from the early years of 1976-81 and taking in others' presentations. I was expecting Day Two would comprise more presentations after a tour of VIA's Toronto Maintenance Centre (TMC) in Mimico. 

The day got complicated by a GO Transit Lakeshore West two-day weekend closure, albeit one that would be lifted later on Sunday to allow for Jays fans to ride to the game! I found out on Thursday, after innocently seeking some trip advice online, that this closure was taking place. It not only affected activity at GO and VIA at Mimico, but more importantly, my trip back to Toronto Union Station thence Kingston from Burlington! More about that later and in a third post in this series!

The 30 attendees who had registered for the TMC tour, each paying $35 in addition to their registration fee, busted out to muster in a cluster around the bus at 0730 (above). Peter and Cathy Ely are at left, with shepherds Ed Molenkamp and Chris Greenlaw at right. Ed and Chris did a roll-call and PPE check - we had to supply our own for this tour. I wore a white hardhat because I figured if I had to buy one, I might as well be 'a Foreman'! Off we went, hurtling down the Queensway toward Mimico in our school-bus. As in most school-bus trips, there was a lot of excited banter on the way there.

Once we reached the TMC gatehouse, Chris disembarked to meet the security guard, and unlike the GO Willowbrook tour the day before, they were expecting us! There was even a standby list for this tour. The size of the tour was pegged at 30, and we went inside in two separate groups -  the other group waiting by the bus outside. I was on Team Frontofbus, so in we went!

We were told there are 25 miles of track at the TMC. The trackage in this section east of the shop buildings is not in use and is where the VIA Historical Association, under whose aegis I attended the convention as one of their presenters, posed their 6539 and blue & yellow cars. 

Things were very quiet at the TMC. A few crews arrived and left by shuttle van, but nothing was moving due to the Lakeshore West GO Transit line shutdown. An upcoming post will show where VIA was stabling its trains as a result! The benefit to this quietude was that we could actually hear our tour guide and talk without the din of banging, grinding, hammering, idling, accelerating or other noises necessitating our ear protection that we were required to bring along with safety boots, hardhat, eye protection and safety vest!

Outside: 905, 6421 (went out on the Canadian October 23), 4116, 4118, 8119, 8135, Butler Manor, Set 17.

We met David Imbeault, VIA’s Government, Community, and Indigenous Relations Officer who travelled from Montreal just for this tour. He accompanied our tour guide, Jose Morales the TMC's Manager, Mechanical and Maintenance. Jose has been with VIA for 15 years, previously a car technician and equipment maintenance supervisor. He was most approachable, answered all questions, did not dispense corporate spin, and if he didn't know the answer, would phone a colleague to get it!

After being welcomed and the obligatory safety briefing (first aid, muster point, active shooter), we entered the TMC offices, noting a plaque and classrooms named after the three VIA crew that perished in the 2012 Aldershot incident. We were told we could take photos but not employees. A tour participant asked if we could access the Siemens simulator. I thought chances would be slim to nil. Slim had left town, so the best I could do was a highly-reflective photo through the glass hallway window.

We then entered the first shop building. Inside: Business Class car 4005 jacked, 4103 sitting over the drop pit nearer the roll-up door, Venture Set 21 one track over.

There ensued a discussion that showed the relative age of our tour participants to our tour guide. When someone does an instantaneous internet search for 'marker lamp brackets', Jose admits he had no idea what those fixtures were until that moment. Use it, or lose it, or don't lose it. They're still there!

Peter kindly snapped a photo to show how far we'd ventured into the shops:

Set 21 with windshield being repaired. Jose noted that ongoing issues with windshield cracks and supply-chain issues were being resolved by bolting, not gluing, new windshields into place. 

I have a proclivity for saving what some would call scrap lumber, considered unusable. Apparently I'm not the only one - see how handy scrappy pieces of 2x4 can be?

Do these look like windshields to you? Their location next to the above makes me think this is where Venture windshield replacements get done.

A variety of wheel sets between shop tracks, including traction-motor locomotive wheel sets.

Our tour passing 4005 then 4103:

Passing the end of the drop pit, we exited into nice fall morning sunshine, eventually finding locomotive 2217 on the other end of Set 21. The new run-through Venture service building begun by Buttcon over two years ago has risen at left, after two TMC bays were demolished to make way. 

Walking west, we passed 6421 which went west on No 1 the following Wednesday.

West-end doors of the Venture building (below). Jose confirmed that staff training was well underway, meaning that maintenance on Venture sets could be done here, no longer limited to only watering and fuelling when Ventures started frequenting the TMC. Siemens staff and resources were on hand if needed, all part of a contract with the global transportation conglomerate. The key missing piece for the TMC was still the stand-alone Wheel Lathe Facility, not yet completed. Any such work required meant the Venture set still had to be sent to the MMC.

If VIA 1 begat Business Class, this carried small businessmen:

I took a moment to reflect on my tour experience. Literally. At home I have a room full of mirrors and sometimes I go there...just to reflect.

VIAphile heaven. Where else can you see RDC's (RDsee what I did there?) alongside an LRC locomotive, blue & yellow VHA Dayniters and nine stored HEP2 coaches? 

HEP2 cars 4102, ?4109, 4120 and six others. Though we may expect retired HEP2 coaches to be stored at the MMC, I need to confirm whether these are retired or not. Reportedly, 4101, 4104, 4106, 4107, 4109, 4117, 4120 and 4122 have been retired, and this is NOT the busy end of the yard. Hmmm. It's like the museum end. Vestibules are open, are the wheels rusty? 

Looking back at the new Venture maintenance building.

Back inside, we had another Venture to venture past. This is the most ill-fated and also most elusive set to be seen, Set 1. After its delivery in September 2021, the set was tested primarily between Coteau and Ottawa, later wending it way westward through Kingston in April, 2022 and again that summer. Then, as other sets arrived, Set 1 stayed in Montreal. There were various reports of it being used as a test bed, for troubleshooting, even for a parts source, or that its sensors had been fried and then a report in July, 2024 that the set was so messed-up that it was going back to Siemens' plant in California! On November 12-13, 2024 Set 1 was towed to Toronto. It's unknown when it moved inside. Plastic still covers coach seats!

Inside: 6420L(ove the way), 6445L, Set 31 idling, Set 1 undergoing long-term repairs. F40s from the 1980s alongside power from forty years on:

Walking alongside Set 1, Jose answered numerous questions, soon summoning the team lead for rehabilitating Set 1 who kindly answered yet more questions and granted our group access to the cab. All who wanted could take photos inside and/or have their photos taken at the controls!

After initially eschewing access, I climbed the steps for okay, one cab photo:

Thanks again, Peter!

Set 1 was inside the shop and actively being worked on to resolve long-existing problems. The set has still not been officially accepted by VIA, though SIIX reporting marks on the car side numbers have been removed. A locomotive cab view with Set 31 (above).

This is one long building, with room for two Ventures nearly end-to-end!

Unknown (unreadable number) baggage car at left. At this point, while waiting for the other tour group to re-emerge, we spent an enjoyable hour outside in the sunshine talking trains and trips, imagining passing GO trains and VIA switching, with the only movement being a Trackmobile pushing a couple of covered hoppers to Lantic Sugar.

Heading back to the hotel, we passed VIA 6251. The bus driver kindly agreed to stop on the access road on our way out. The bus seemed to tilt on its springs as almost everyone crossed the aisle and lowered windows to get The Shot. I stayed in my seat, having caught its prior movement west, enjoying photographing the photographers instead!

Buttcon's construction entrance and railfan-unfriendly construction fencing as we start heading back to the hotel:

Lantic's spurs ending at New Toronto Street, south of the TMC:

As in most school-bus trips, there was a lot less excited banter on the way back. The third post in this series profiles how I got myself to and from Toronto. It was not stress-free, unfortunately!

Running extra...

It's been said that Britain and America are two nations divided by a common language. Same in Canada. Apparently the recent government shutdown* has led to US air traffic controllers "calling out sick". Well, I've never called out sick before, but I have called in sick several times. There may have been a time I called out in discomfort before calling in sick. (*Maybe it should be called a startup?) Our two great nations also can't agree on the date for Thanksgiving. Is it October or November? Perhaps the US celebrates New Year's Day in February? Or Labour Day in December?

You know Springer, and Scherzer, and Bieber and Barger...

Schneider, Santander the list gets even larger...

But do you recall?

The Jays' biggest slugger of all?

'Vladdy' Guerrero Junior had a very pow'rful swing,

And if you stood near home plate, you would probably hear it ding,

All of the other players used to have good at-bats,

But when Guerrero homers, please stand and remove your hats.

In the fifth World Series game, 'Yesavage!' they did shout!

Freddie, Shohei, Teoscar and Mookie - he soon struck them out!

Then came Game Six and Seven, - to the Skydome they went in,

This is one World Series the Blue Jays deserve to win!

Goviaorgohome has been virtually wrapping VIA locomotives to support team that currently inhabits Spadina (1978/present image from Historic Aerial Imagery Toronto - above):

First past the post...

Many thanks to Chris Greenlaw for his nearly two years of effort, working with VIA to secure the Toronto Maintenance Centre tour for Real Rails 2025!