The Ontario Northlander train, which will bring passengers from Toronto to Timmins, will soon begin a critical step towards opening later this year.
Premier Doug Ford announced the first of three trainsets on the passenger rail service will soon begin the Revenue Service Demonstration to train staff on equipment, run emergency exercises, test scheduled and ensure all operating systems are working properly.
It will also simulate normal operations before the line opens to the public.
The train has already travelled more than 1,600 kilometres to simulate regular service as a part of the “burn-in” testing on the first trains.
The Northlander will travel 740 kilometres between Timmins and Toronto, stopping at 16 cities and towns along the way. There will also be a rail connection between Timmins and Cochrane.
Prices for the train have also been released and will cost riders travelling the full Northlander route $181, which the province says is 10 per cent above the standard rate on the existing Northland bus service.
A trip to cottage country, from Toronto to Gravenhurst, will be just under $67, while travelling on to North Bay will run you just under $110.
Discounted prices will be offered to seniors, students and children, as well as military personnel and passengers travelling for medical purposes.
| Route | Adult | Senior (65+) | Student | Child (2-12) |
| Toronto to Timmins | $181.67 | $154.42 | $154.42 | $90.84 |
| Toronto to Gravenhurst | $66.97 | $56.92 | $56.92 | $33.49 |
| Toronto to North Bay | $109.70 | $93.25 | $93.25 | $54.85 |
| North Bay to Timmins | $108.94 | $92.60 | $92.60 | $54.47 |
| Toronto to Timmins to Cochrane | $188.40 | $160.14 | $160.14 | $94.20 |
A proposed service schedule was previously announced and is available on their website.
The train will depart Timmins at 12:15 a.m. and travel southbound to Union Station, arriving at 10:55 a.m. Headed northbound, the train will leave Union at 6:30 p.m. and will arrive in Timmins at 5:10 a.m.
A formal opening date has not been released, as all three trainsets will have to complete substantial testing before that can happen.
Each trainset will have 169 seats, including accessible seating, wide aisles, accessible washrooms and charging ports.
The train service was originally cancelled by the previous government in 2012 after running for over 100 years.
On top of re-establishing the train service, the province will be establishing a Northern Rideshare Framework to give municipalities the tools to support local rideshare services, as many local northern communities don’t have access to taxis, local transit or community transportation, making it harder for them to access Northlander stations.
When asked about criticisms over the proposed schedule, Ford said, “Anyone who complains needs to get their heads shaken a bit.”
“This isn’t going to be like the TTC [where] you get a delivery every 15 minutes. We should be fortunate that they have a train going up to one of the 16 northern locations that they would never ever see after the previous government cut it.”
Northlander CEO Chad Evans said they completed extensive community consultations, and people overwhelmingly wanted to arrive in the GTA in the morning. “We know that that mean you would need to leave northern Ontario early in the morning or through the night.”
