Via Rail won’t require minimum Canadian content for its new trains
MONTREAL — Via Rail won’t establish minimum content requirements for the new trains it plans to order for Canada’s main railway corridor that transports millions of passengers annually.
“As Via Rail is a Crown corporation, the procurement process must be compliant with laws and international treaties,” spokeswoman Mylene Belanger wrote in an email.
The national passenger service said Monday that it will launch a request for qualifications, followed by a request for proposals that will take about a year to complete.
Via said it expects the 32 new trains that will run between Quebec City and Windsor will maintain capacity for 9,100 seats. The first trains are scheduled to enter into service in early 2022, with the remainder delivered two years later.