Prime Minister Carney announces the largest investment in VIA Rail's history to bring passenger rail car manufacturing back to Canada
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THUNDER BAY, ON, Sept. 3, 2026 /CNW/ -- In a rapidly changing world, Canada is setting a new course. We are building our strength at home, diversifying our trading relationships abroad, and investing in the infrastructure that will secure our future. We are moving fast, seizing new opportunities, and reducing our dependence on any single partner.
Through our Buy Canadian Policy, we are becoming our own best customer – contracting Canadian companies, hiring Canadian workers, and using Canadian steel, aluminum, and lumber. For too long, Canada has relied on other countries to build what we have the talent, expertise, and capacity to build ourselves. Much of VIA Rail's existing fleet, for example, was built in the United States. Today, we are changing that.
The Prime Minister, Mark Carney, announced that, for the first time in four decades, VIA Rail passenger cars will be built in Canada. The federal government is investing more than $4.7 billion for VIA Rail to acquire and maintain 313 new passenger rail cars from Alstom Canada. The cars will be manufactured and assembled in Thunder Bay, Ontario, and La Pocatière, Québec, with design and engineering work taking place in Saint-Bruno-de-Montarville, Québec.
This is the largest investment in VIA Rail's history and in Canadian intercity passenger rail in a generation. It will support nearly 700 good jobs in Ontario and Québec, and generate more than $1.6 billion in economic benefits. In line with the Buy Canadian Policy, Alstom will leverage and expand its extensive network of more than 900 Canadian suppliers in delivering the new fleet, while maximising the use of Canadian steel in structural assemblies, supports, and fabricated metal elements.
This investment comes at a critical time for Canada's passenger rail network. In a country as vast as ours, reliable passenger rail is essential to keeping communities connected. Yet VIA Rail's long-distance, regional, and remote fleet is approaching the end of its useful life, with some equipment more than 70 years old. Replacing that aging fleet will deliver safer, more reliable, and more modern service for Canadians – while creating good jobs and building more of what Canada needs at home.
Today's announcement, combined with the federal government's recent $1.95 billion investment in 45 new passenger rail locomotives and a new assembly and maintenance facility in Montréal, brings the federal government's investment in renewing VIA Rail's long-distance, regional, and remote fleet to more than $6.6 billion. Together, these investments will replace aging equipment and help ensure Canadians can rely on modern and reliable passenger rail service for decades to come.
In the face of global uncertainty, Canada is strengthening the industries, infrastructure, and supply chains that make our economy more resilient. By building these rail cars in Canada, we are investing in the transportation Canadians rely on, supporting Canadian workers and businesses, and building a stronger, more connected country.
Quotes
"In the face of strong headwinds, a confident Canada is choosing to build. For the first time in four decades, VIA's passenger cars will be built in Canada. Cars once made in the United States, now made here at home. This means new contracts for Canadian suppliers, good jobs for Canadian workers, and paycheques that stay in Canadian cities and towns. That's how we build Canada strong."
-- The Rt. Hon. Mark Carney, Prime Minister of Canada
"Canadians deserve a passenger rail system that is modern, reliable, and built to serve them for generations to come. This investment delivers exactly that while supporting good-paying Canadian jobs and strengthening our domestic rail manufacturing sector. By assembling these rail cars in Thunder Bay and La Pocatière, supported by Canadian design and engineering expertise in Saint-Bruno-de-Montarville, we are investing in Canadian workers, Canadian innovation, and a stronger, more resilient economy."
-- The Hon. Steven MacKinnon, Minister of Transport and the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons
"This investment is great news for Thunder Bay and for Northern Ontario. Building the passenger rail cars in Canada means good-paying, skilled jobs for Canadians and new opportunities for local businesses that are part of the rail supply chain. With this investment, we're strengthening our economy, supporting communities, and ensuring Canadian workers continue to play a leading role in building the future of passenger rail right at home."
-- The Hon. Patty Hajdu, Minister of Jobs and Families and Minister for the Federal Economic Development Agency for Northern Ontario
"Today's announcement marks a defining step in shaping the future of VIA Rail's pan-Canadian fleet. These new Canadian-built passenger rail cars will retain signature features such as dome cars, full-service dining, and social areas, while incorporating modern amenities, improved accessibility, and greater reliability. They will help us preserve essential services to remote communities and elevate the unique onboard experience that allows passengers to discover Canada in a way that only train travel can offer. We thank the Government of Canada for this historic investment in the future of passenger rail."
-- Mathieu Paquette, Interim President and Chief Executive Officer of VIA Rail Canada
Quick facts
- Together, the Government of Canada's investments in this fleet renewal initiative include:
- $1.6 billion for 45 new locomotives from Stadler, based in Bussnang, Switzerland. Leveraging its global supply chain and Canadian suppliers, Stadler will complete the final assembly of up to 36 locomotives in Canada, marking the first time in decades that passenger locomotives for VIA Rail will be assembled domestically.
- $357 million for VIA Rail to build a new assembly and maintenance facility in Montréal, Québec, where the Canadian assembly of the locomotives will take place. Built by Pomerleau, the facility will also support the maintenance and operation of the new fleet at VIA Rail's Montréal Maintenance Centre over the long term.
- $4.7 billion, announced today, for VIA Rail to acquire and maintain 313 passenger rail cars from Alstom Canada. The rail cars will be manufactured in Thunder Bay, Ontario, and La Pocatière, Québec, while the design and engineering work will be carried out in Saint-Bruno-de-Montarville, Québec.
- The new passenger rail cars announced today will provide travellers with modern amenities, improved accessibility features, and enhanced reliability, helping make passenger rail an even more attractive travel option for Canadians. The 313-car fleet will include different types of passenger cars, including dining cars, panorama cars, and sleepers.
- They will serve VIA Rail's eight long-distance, regional, and remote routes outside the Québec City-Windsor Corridor, providing essential transportation across eight provinces – particularly for communities where affordable alternatives are limited or unavailable. These routes connect Indigenous, rural, and remote communities that rely on VIA Rail.
- In 2025, more than 216,000 passengers travelled on VIA Rail's long-distance, regional, and remote routes.
- VIA Rail is a Crown corporation mandated to operate national public passenger rail services on behalf of the Government of Canada, connecting major cities, regions, and certain remote communities across the country.
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Associated links
This document is also available at https://pm.gc.ca
SOURCE Prime Minister's Office
PMO Media Relations: [email protected]
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