CANADA: The project to relaunch Northlander passenger services between Toronto and a future Timmins-Porcupine station is advancing, with the province of Ontario awarding a contract for station works and releasing images of the what future trains will look like.
EllisDon has been awarded the contract to build platforms at North Bay, Temagami, Temiskaming Shores, Englehart, Kirkland Lake, Matheson and Cochrane, and to install pre-manufactured shelters previously ordered from Enseicom at Matheson, Kirkland Lake, Temiskaming Shores and Temagami.
A separate contract is to be awarded for the construction of Timmins-Porcupine station.
The livery has been unveiled for the three loco-hauled trainsets ordered from Siemens Mobility in 2022. These will feature wheelchair lifts, mobility aid storage spaces, galley-style food services, wi-fi and fully accessible toilets.
The previous Northlander service was replaced by buses in 2012. The reinstated trains will run four to seven days a week, based on seasonal demand.
‘The Northlander will not only bring safe and reliable transportation back to communities ranging from Muskoka to North Bay to Timmins, it will also help unlock the province’s full economic potential by supporting northern industries and resource sectors and improving access to good-paying jobs and essential services like health care and education’, said Ontario’s Minister of Transportation Prabmeet Sarkaria on December 6.
