An unidentified man stands in the centre of a nearly empty concourse at Union Station in Toronto on Friday. The bulk of passenger rail service across Canada was shut down after 350 locomotive engineers and yardmasters walked off the job at noon ET. (Chris Young/Canadian Press)Via Rail locomotive engineers went on strike Friday after a noon ET deadline passed without a settlement, a move that has shut down most passenger rail service across Canada.
"As a result of this strike, we have had to cease operations of all trains across the country, apart from service between Sudbury and White River and on Vancouver Island as these are operated by third parties," Ashley Doyle, a Via spokesperson told reporters.
"Via sincerely regrets this inconvenience to our passengers."
The Teamsters Canada Rail Conference, the union representing about 350 locomotive engineers and yardmasters, announced that the workers were off the job shortly after the strike deadline passed. Passengers scrambled to make alternate transportation plans as talks broke off hours before.
"We're not happy. We're not pleased with the fact that we're on strike right now," said Stéphane Lacroix, director of communications for the union.
"We understand the consequences in Canadians' lives throughout Canada."
The locomotive engineers and yardmasters have been without a collective agreement since Dec. 31, 2006.
They had to "draw the line" with Via Rail, Lacroix said.
"We're sincerely sorry about what's going on for the passengers, but we didn't have any other choice," Lacroix said.
Via Rail passengers board buses outside the central train station in Montreal on Friday. (Ryan Remiorz/Canadian Press)Via Rail Canada posted a notice on its website announcing negotiations with the union were at an impasse and that talks had ended at 1 a.m.
The union issued a strike notice on Tuesday, seeking improved wages, benefits and scheduling changes.
"We've said to the company, Via Rail, that we're available to go back to the negotiation table. We're still waiting for a sign from them," Lacroix said. "We made a final proposal last night at 1 a.m. They never answered that proposal. So, we're still waiting for them to call us back."
But Denis Pinsonneault, a Via spokesman who holds the title chief people officer, countered that the company has made "a very fair offer" to the employees.
"We are disappointed that the union has chosen to go on strike," he said.
Transport Minister John Baird said Ottawa has no plans to intervene for now and that he was hoping talks that resumed Friday afternoon would lead to a deal.
U.K. resident Dave Kyles arrived in Canada on Thursday and only found out about the strike when he went to confirm his 12-segment train trip across the country at the station in Halifax.
"I'm a bit surprised. We can't go today, we can't go tomorrow," Kyles said. "I'm not interested in compensation. We just want to make the best of our trip."
A federal mediator was appointed to assist in the contract talks in Montreal and the two sides had previously maintained they were hopeful an agreement could be reached before the strike deadline.
Ripple effect
Canada's tourism industry has said the strike, which is scheduled for one of the peak travel periods of the year, will have a ripple effect on businesses, disrupting vacation plans and hurting tourism operators.
A Via Rail locomotive sits idle in Vancouver on Friday. The Teamsters Canada Rail Conference, the union representing the engineers, has been without a contract since Dec. 31, 2006. (Darryl Dyck/Canadian Press)"This is my first time on Via Rail and I'm feeling bad," Vishnu Reddy told CBC while waiting for his train at Union Station in Toronto. "Like, I'm from India and studying in Toronto and I just wanted to see Montreal by train and this happens."
Via Rail began to cancel its long-distance passenger routes earlier in the week to avoid having passengers stranded mid-route.
Bill MacLean said his family cancelled their vacation plans to ride the train from Toronto to Halifax because of the pending strike and purchased plane tickets.
"It was quite a letdown. We're glad we were able to get a plane ticket at extremely short notice and that there's still enough for all four of us," MacLean said.
Via was loading passengers who held tickets for travel on Friday morning onto buses at Union Station in Toronto to transfer them to their destinations.
Refund on tickets
No alternative transportation will be provided during a strike but affected passengers may obtain a refund for any unused tickets, Doyle said.
Customers seeking more information can consult Via's website or contact Via at 888-VIA-RAIL.
Greyhound has said it will add buses to its schedules if required during a strike.
Via trains transport more than 11,000 passengers daily and the company operates 503 intercity, transcontinental and regional trains each week, linking 450 communities across its 12,500-kilometre route network.
The railway last faced a strike in 1995, when conductors from a different union went on strike for a week.
With files from The Canadian Press
