The following two press releases were issued the week of Nov. 19, 2013 about the cancellation of the Agawa Canyon Snow Train in Ontario:

CN announces cancelation of Agawa Canyon Snow Train

CN – today announced that it is terminating operation of the Agawa Canyon Snow Train because the seasonal excursion service is incurring rising operating losses as a result of stagnating passenger demand.

CN said it will focus its attention now on continued operation of its successful summer and fall Agawa Canyon excursion trains.

The Snow Train typically operated six Saturday excursions each winter north of Sault Ste. Marie Ontario to the Agawa Canyon.

Despite CN’s efforts to promote the service, passenger counts have failed to grow, remaining at approximately 1,500 per season.

John Orr, CN vice-president, Eastern Region, said: “Since 2011 when we launched our new train, we have actively promoted the Snow Train and its newly refurbished equipment. Unfortunately, ridership has stagnated and the service is not economically sustainable. CN remains committed to Sault tourism and will focus its resources on promoting and growing ridership on the summer and fall tours where we have seen success.”

In the summer and fall, passengers can disembark from the train and tour the Agawa Canyon for about 90 minutes before it returns to The Sault.

This service operates seven days a week over a 17 to 18 week-long season.

The canyon tour, along with the newly- refurbished train cars offering a higher level of enjoyment and passenger satisfaction, has attracted an increasing number of passengers. In the last two years, ridership on the summer and fall excursions has increased by more than 10 percent.

“CN is very pleased by the success of the summer and fall excursion trains,” said Orr. “Working with our partner Tourism Sault Ste Marie, we will continue to invest in the promotion and delivery of this featured excursion train service”.

Source: http://www.wawa-news.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=19292:cn-cancels-agawa-canyon-snow-train-as-a-result-of-low-passenger-demand&catid=41:news&Itemid=201

Tourism Sault Ste. Marie disappointed in loss of snow train

Tourism Sault Ste. Marie and its industry partners are very disappointed at the announcement by CN Rail that it will cancel the Snow Train.

On average 1,500 visitors take the Snow Train each winter, with the majority staying two nights and spending money in restaurants, bars and retail outlets in the community. Not having these visitors will mean a decrease in spending of almost a half million dollars.

Since the re-launch of the upgraded tour train, the rider levels have increased at a steady rate, including increased passengers on the Snow Train.

“That is why it is so disappointing to hear of the cancellation”, said Tourism Sault Ste. Marie Executive Director Ian McMillan. “It just seemed we were making inroads in growing the passenger levels, and thought collectively we were in for the long haul, in restoring these tour trains to the historic levels of passengers they experienced as recently as 2002”.

Kevin Wyer, Chairman of Tourism Sault Ste. Marie and the General Manager of the Delta Waterfront Hotel and Convention Centre echoed the sentiments, saying “the Sault Ste. Marie accommodation sector experienced a very challenging year in 2013, and the cancellation of the Snow Train is going to hit us hard when we don’t have those visitor levels on the weekends for the balance of the winter”.

While TSSM looks as this as a definite set back, the organization is determined to work with CN Rail to look at alternatives to operating a winter train, so that consideration will be given to bringing the Snow Train back in 2015.

There is also going to be a strong push by the tourism industry to have CN Rail look at extending the operating season of the summer/fall Agawa Canyon Tour, as well as looking into possibilities of utilizing additional coach equipment to maximize rider levels in the peak fall season.

Says TSSM Executive Director McMillan, “The tourism industry is an incredibly resilient group. These private sector operators have been hit with a number of challenges over the past several years, but have banded together to develop new products that have attracted new visitors to our city and region, and we will continue to do so moving forward.

Source: http://www.sootoday.com/content/news/details.asp?c=64417

From Trains Magazine:

Watco  Transportation Services has reached an agreement to make a “preferred equity  investment” in Federated Capital Holdings, owner of the 400-mile Great Lakes  Central Railroad. The deal has the possibility of reuniting the old Ann Arbor  Railroad main line, which has not operated as a single railroad in more than 30  years. It also includes Federated Railcars, owner of a fleet of refurbished  passenger cars.

“This partnership between two entrepreneurial companies  will help insure the long-term success of local rail service in Michigan and  also provides a mechanism for the continual growth and improvement of our  transportation assets to help grow Michigan’s manufacturing and agricultural  interests,” Federated Capital President Louis Ferris says. “We also believe that  this partnership provides significant benefits to the Michigan Department of  Transportation’s passenger efforts.”

The Great Lakes Central stretches  from Ann Arbor north to Cadillac on the former Ann Arbor main line with branches  to Thompsonville, Traverse City, and Petoskey. The primary commodities hauled  include grain, sand, and plastic. The railroad interchanges with Canadian  National and Huron Eastern in Durand, CSX Transportation at Anne Pere and  Howell, the Watco-owned Ann Arbor Railroad at Ann Arbor, and the Mid-Michigan  Railroad at Alma.

Federated Railcars, through the railroad’s shops in  Owosso, rehabs and upgrades its passenger car fleet to be used for the Michigan  Department of Transportation’s proposed “Wally” Ann Arbor commuter  service.

“The Watco team is extremely proud and honored to enter into a  long-term strategic partnership with the excellent team at Federated Capital  Holdings,” Watco CEO Rick Webb says. “We look forward to the opportunity to work  with Federated Capital Holdingsto create extraordinary value for rail shippers  in Michigan.”

Watco acquired the “new” Ann Arbor Railroad in late 2012.  In 1977, the state of Michigan contracted with the newly formed Michigan  Interstate Railway to operate the bankrupt “old” Ann Arbor. Michigan Interstate  ceased operation north of Ann Arbor in 1982, forcing the state to split the  lease of the line with the Tuscola & Saginaw Bay, which later became Great  Lakes Central. Michigan Interstate filed for bankruptcy in 1983, and from that  corporation the modern, independent Ann Arbor Railroad was formed in 1987.

From WZZM:

Passengers say their trip on Amtrak from Chicago to Grand Rapids has been delayed by storm damage — several times.

A viewer on the train called the WZZM 13 Information Center around 3 a.m. Monday, to report the train was stopped on the tracks one mile south of the Holland Amtrak station at 8th Street and Lincoln Avenue.  Laura Roys says a tree across the tracks is keeping the train from moving.

Roys says the train stopped in Holland around 12:30 a.m.  Monday, and has been unable to reach the station.

Ottawa County dispatchers say Holland Police are ferrying some passengers to the Holland station where they will be picked up by family or friends.

Roys says an Amtrak conductor told passengers the train service is arranging alternate transportation for the Grand Rapids-bound passengers, but that the buses likely would not arrive before 4:15 a.m.

Many passengers are sleeping while waiting for their ride, while others are talking.

Roys says the train left Chicago around 4:55 p.m. Sunday.  Later in the evening, the train was stopped by debris in northern Indiana, delaying the trip by up to two hours.

She says the train concession ran out of food around 11 p.m. Sunday.  The conductor has been going from car-to-car handing out bottles of water.

Roys says she is in the last car of the train, where the PA system is apparently malfunctioning.  She says the conductor had been keeping the other cars updated on delays, but did not realize the last car had no working audio.

WZZM 13 News has called an Amtrak for information, but a spokesperson has not returned our messages.

We have a crew headed to the scene, and will have updates online and on the WZZM 13 Morning News beginning at 5 a.m.

UPDATE 4:30 am: 93 passengers on the stranded Amtrak train in Holland have now been moved to busses, and are heading to the Holland Amtrak station.

The train was heading from Chicago to Holland and was delayed due to debris on the tracks. It was moved to a nearby train yard.

According to an Amtrak spokesperson, two area train trips are canceled for Monday; the 371 (Grand Rapids to Chicago) and the 351 (Pontiac to Chicago). Alternate transportation is being provided for those who had tickets.

Source: http://www.wzzm13.com/news/article/273742/2/Storm-damage-strands-Holland-Amtrak-riders

From the Chicago Sun-Times:

An Amtrak train on its way from Chicago to Detroit was delayed for more than six hours because of a flat wheel Sunday night.

Wolverine Line train No. 354, carrying 254 passengers, was scheduled to depart Chicago at 6 p.m. and left about 30 minutes late, according to Amtrak spokesman Steve Kulm.

About 10 miles outside of Chicago, the train stopped and the crew found a “flat spot” on a coach car, which is similar to a flat tire, Kulm said.

Instead of continuing on to Detroit, the train returned to Chicago at 10:25 p.m. and went to the maintenance yard to replace the car.

About 12:30 a.m., the train returned to the station to allow any passengers who wanted to get off the train to do so, Kulm said. As of 1:30 a.m., the train was en route to Detroit.

During the delay, the train maintained power and staff passed out free water and food, Kulm said.

Source: http://www.suntimes.com/news/metro/23834338-418/amtrak-train-with-flat-wheel-delayed-six-hours.html