The Halifax-Sydney train was a passenger train service operated by the Canadian National Railway and later

Via Rail Via Rail Canada Inc. (), operating as Via Rail or Via, is a Canadian Crown corporation that is mandated to operate intercity passenger rail service in Canada. It receives an annual subsidy from Transport Canada to offset the cost of operating ...

between Halifax and Sydney,

Nova Scotia Nova Scotia ( ; ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. Nova Scotia is Latin for "New Scotland". Most of the population are native Eng ...

, via

Truro Truro (; kw, Truru) is a cathedral city and civil parish in Cornwall, England. It is Cornwall's county town, sole city and centre for administration, leisure and retail trading. Its population was 18,766 in the 2011 census. People of Truro ...

and Port Hawkesbury. The train was discontinued in 1990. From 2000 to 2004, the ''Bras d'Or'' ran weekly summer excursion service along much the same route.

History

The route was operated by the Canadian National Railway until 1977, when most of CN's passenger routes were transferred to Via Rail. For most of the train's life under Via Rail, two daily round trips ran the full route between Halifax and Sydney. Not all trains stopped at all stations. The April 27, 1980, timetable dropped 22 stops, nearly half the itinerary. These were mostly in small communities located just a few miles from retained stops. On June 3, 1984, a new service pattern took effect. One round trip, trains 604 and 605, ran the entire route on a daily basis. Additionally, train 608 ran from Halifax to Sydney on Fridays and Saturdays, with train 607 returning on Sundays. The remaining days saw trains 603 and 606 run an abbreviated route between Halifax and Port Hawkesbury. The new schedule was billed as enabling same-day round trips from Port Hawkesbury to Truro and Halifax. This timetable also dropped six stops: Avondale, Hopewell,

West River West River may refer to: Rivers Canada *West River (Antigonish, Nova Scotia) in Antigonish County, Nova Scotia * West River (Pictou, Nova Scotia) in Pictou County, Nova Scotia * West River (Halifax, Nova Scotia) in Sheet Harbour, Nova Scotia * West ...

Stewiacke Stewiacke () is a town located in southern Colchester County, Nova Scotia, Canada. The town was incorporated on August 30, 1906. Geography The town is located in the Stewiacke Valley, at the confluence of the Stewiacke and Shubenacadie Rive ...

, Shubenacadie, and Elmsdale. On October 30, 1988, the Stellarton and

New Glasgow New Glasgow is a town in Pictou County, in the province of Nova Scotia, Canada. It is situated on the banks of the East River of Pictou, which flows into Pictou Harbour, a sub-basin of the Northumberland Strait. The town's population was 9,075 ...

stops were combined. On April 30, 1989, trains 603 and 606 were suspended due to track upgrades near Truro. Regular service was planned to resume in late October 1989. Service was discontinued on January 15, 1990, during a round of severe cuts to the Via Rail network overseen by

Benoît Bouchard Benoît Bouchard, (; born April 16, 1940) is a Canadian public official and former politician. Biography After a career as a professor and teacher, Bouchard was elected to the House of Commons of Canada as the Progressive Conservative Member o ...

due to the 1989 budget. In an act of protest, local union leader Victor Tomiczek chained himself to the last train departing Sydney station.

Later service

Passenger service between Halifax and Sydney resumed in 2000 with Via Rail's '' Bras d'Or'', which ran once per week during the summer tourist season. At the time, the line from Truro to Sydney was operated by the

Cape Breton and Central Nova Scotia Railway The Cape Breton and Central Nova Scotia Railway is a short line railway that operated in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia. CBNS operated () of main line and associated spurs between Truro in the central part of the province to Point Tuppe ...

. The train was cancelled following the 2004 season. This was the last regularly-scheduled passenger train serving Cape Breton Island.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Halifax-Sydney train Railway services discontinued in 1990 Former Via Rail routes Passenger rail transport in Nova Scotia