“It’s no coincidence that the railway for the most part weaves in and out of most First Nations between here and Courtney.”. West will remain even after completion of the E&N Trail – the trail will descend from the rail corridor to road grade at this juncture) The E&N Trail … Galloping Goose Trail, Victoria Victoria’s Galloping Goose Trail is an old 1920s railway converted into a 55-km path, winding its way through most of the city. But without public funds, there’s no future for the rail corridor either way. Then, in 2018, the Greyhound bus service was cancelled, impacting Nelson and her son even more. “The province to date under multiple regimes really isn’t taking inter-community travel on the island very seriously,” says Brown. Information gathered reinforces the vital importance of the rail … The Foundation recognizes the importance of this corridor as a link that connects communities economically, socially and culturally. In late September, the ICF sent a letter to the premier questioning why the foundation was not consulted as a stakeholder and why rail has been left out of the strategy. The E&N Rail Trail was also designed to connect with existing popular trail systems such as the Galloping Goose Regional Trail or Lochside Regional Trails. The Snaw-Naw-As disagree, according to Edwards. (CPR) wanted permission from the You can access many places along the trail and some of them have free parking. “They’ve left everybody north of the Malahat sort of hanging there,” says Tyler Brown, Nanaimo City Councillor and Regional District of Nanaimo director, pointing out that the regional district serves well over 150,000 people. Stevenson says any more “analysis paralysis” and political foot-dragging could end up choking the rail line more than the encroaching forest. Stevenson says that what’s needed now is action one way or the other and – paradoxically – the COVID-19 pandemic that has crippled tourism economies across the country might provide the perfect opportunity. “You get into a whole bunch of stuff that people don’t really talk a lot about … things like social equity which, in my mind, is a big deal,” Stevenson says. Vancouver Island. In recent years, a competing organization called the Friends of Rails to Trails Vancouver Island has begun advocating for the tracks to be ripped out altogether and replaced with a cycling and multiuse pathway, like the Galloping Goose trail in Victoria, or the Kettle Valley Rail Trail in the B.C. The E&N Rail Trail is a 17 kilometer paved bike and pedestrian trail designed to be a non-motorized recreation and commuter connection to downtown Victoria, British Columbia, and runs through Esquimalt, View Royal, and Langford. “Whether rails, trails, ferries, transit, these are services people need and use.”. Current proposals would solve that problem by reversing the train direction, making it more appealing to mid-island residents. It was plagued with problems as numerous operators couldn’t make it economically viable. What you need to know as the future of the Southern Railway of Vancouver Island hangs in balance. The trail has been ranked among the top ten. For as many vocal supporters as the passenger rail push has attracted, there are equally vocal opponents who say even optimistic ridership estimates of around 1,000 boardings per day simply doesn’t justify the costs. The only rock tunnel on the E&N Railway cuts through a mountainside near the Malahat Summit. The views from the forested mountain trail are spectacular, and there is a great lookout halfway up. Vancouver Island mountain bike trail map. A signature recreation destination in Canada, the Vancouver Island Trail will span more than 770 km from Victoria to Cape Scott. Once a comprehensive railroad system, the decommissioned tracks are now home to an extensive recreational trail providing almost 650 km (400 mi) of connected pathways throughout the region. Because the Corridor serves 14 First Nations territories, it is an essential part of community and business development plans in Aboriginal communities on the Island. It was the government’s regional transportation plan, however, that was meant to shed light on whether rail was considered an investment worth making. In 2016, the Cowichan Tribes and Halalt First Nation filed lawsuits seeking their own land back. There’s an ease to the boardwalk trail that makes for a relaxing walk. Premier John Horgan said his party would prioritize re-starting passenger service on the lower sections of the corridor near Victoria and expanding from there. completed in 1886, and the initial A one-way trip would take between three and five hours, depending on the level of service. Old logging roads and hiking trails criss-cross Vancouver Island in British Columbia, providing easy access to alpine areas and inspiring mountain scenery. Groups like the Association of Vancouver Island and Coastal Communities (AVICC) and the Regional District of Nanaimo believe that in the absence of rail, improved inter-regional bus service with support from BC Transit could fill in the gaps. Goldstream Provincial Park. The wooden beams – called ties – are like the railroad’s rib cage, holding together the ribbons of steel first laid down by settlers through First Nations’ territory more than 130 years ago. The Vancouver Island Dirt Riders Association (VIDRA) supports the growth and sustainability of off-road dirtbiking for racers and recreational riders on Vancouver Island, British Columbia. People would use it.”. And like that former railway, Craighead says mid-Island communities could see significant tourism traffic from a multiuse pathway. “It contemplated various different uses and relationships for that corridor,” Edwards said. A VITA volunteer – Alan Philip of Cowichan – has recently completed (July, 2019) the compilation of a series of 7 topographic mapsthat cover the entire Trail from Victoria to Cape Scott. The Island railway was originally incorporated on September 27, 1883 by the E&N Railway Company, led by Sir Robert Dunsmuir, a renowned British Columbia (BC) coal baron and politician. But a year later, the winds had shifted. “[Rail] was unprofitable probably for the last 50 years,” Craighead says. And so we really can’t afford to waste it and let it just, you know, return to broom and brambles.”. History of the West Coast Trail. And with a provincial election now behind us, its future still remains uncertain. CPR take over the Island railway, Walking along the Esquimalt and Nanaimo (E&N) Railway corridor north of Ladysmith, he counts wooden rail beams in his head, spending mere seconds to assess each one. The BC Trail is a 1,200 kilometer traverse of southern British Columbia, starting in the Fraser Valley and ending in Fernie, on the Alberta border. It's a good four-hour climb with 1,000 metres in elevation gain on rough but ready trail. Goldstream Park is a must-see if you’re visiting south Vancouver Island … Renewing passenger service, he says, is about allowing people like Nelson the same freedom that’s enjoyed by people who drive cars. Speaking at a Greater Victoria Chamber of Commerce event in March 2018, Horgan seemed to all but kill the idea. For Locals Locals would utilize the trails for local commuting or pleasure while avoiding the hazards, congestion and noise of the road. Construction of the railway was The Foundation recognizes the importance of this corridor as a link that connects communities economically, socially and culturally. The railway and land grants were transferred to the CPR and by 1925, the railway was a thriving operation. The Friends of Rails to Trails Vancouver Island have provided the following article to Saltair News and Views. Under the most recent proposals, residents as far north as Nanaimo could conceivably commute to work in Victoria and back. The Snaw-Naw-As suit alleged “the [right-of-way] through their reserve lands impedes access, restricts development, causes social and economic losses and affects the cultural importance of the land,” according to court documents. This short hike through a forest of … He believes based on what it cost to convert the Okanagan’s Kettle Valley Railway into trails, his organization’s Rails to Trails project could be completed for around $90 million. This would likely be the first step in a phased in approach to the restoration of rail service on the entire island and is the focus of the current study the Province has undertaken to determine the condition of the corridor. Cathedral Grove. Nelson doesn’t drive, and Dean has a disability that requires appointments in Duncan, the only place she could find a family doctor that could take him as a patient. Restoring freight and passenger rail service on southeastern Vancouver Island could cost about $729 million, according to a new report commissioned by the provincial government. “I have been an enthusiastic supporter of revitalizing Vancouver Island rail for as long as I have memory,” Krog says, pointing to the promise not just of increased passenger service, but renewed freight possibilities and the potential of attracting more cruise ships to Nanaimo’s deep-water port. Whether rail or bus, he says he just wants to see a cohesive plan. It came about through the vision of the Cowichan Tribes, Mayors and Councilors from Vancouver Island communities and railway enthusiasts who did not want to see the corridor divided and sold off in parcels to private interests, to be lost forever to the people of the Island. kilometers from Esquimalt to The E&N Route as a beautiful Vancouver Island Bike Trail All around the world, railways that are no longer useful are being replaced with long-distance cycling and hiking routes. Over the past decade, the ICF has worked closely with corridor communities to create a larger system of rail-with-trails, linking communities and rural areas along the 290-kilometre corridor. West and the Island Highway; crosswalk lights now provide a safe crossing of this major thoroughfare to access the joint Galloping Goose and E&N trails via a short path (This method of crossing of Burnside Rd. “The Island Corridor is completely invaluable,” says Guy Dauncey, an advocate of the Rails to Trails proposal. By the late 1880s, the Using lower contingency budgets and a hybrid of the middle and most expensive options laid out in the April report, Stevenson says passenger service could be restored along the line, including three daily commuter trains near Victoria, for around $300 million. At Rails-to-Trails Conservancy, we are building a nation connected by trails. Exploring the Boardwalk Trails of Vancouver Island. Pacific Rim National Park. But she says her arrival in Nanaimo was a rude awakening. “It’s incumbent upon the [ICF] board of directors to really speak to the fact that there are other uses contemplated for the corridor,” Edwards says. Rail construction will bring much needed economic stimulus to the Island. The lack of a train meant she and Dean had to rely on bus service to get to his doctors appointments or visit her brother in Victoria. Some of the low ridership numbers can be attributed to what many have described as the backwards routing of the passenger train schedule — which left Victoria at 8:30 a.m., arriving in Courtenay by 1 p.m. and returning again to Victoria by nearly 6 p.m. With that schedule, anyone living north of Victoria would have to catch the afternoon train south, overnight in the city, and take the morning train home — essentially tying up two full days for something as simple as a business lunch in the provincial capital. The Island Corridor Foundation is a non-profit society and federally registered charity established for the purposes of owning and managing the rail corridor on Vancouver Island. permission, on the condition that While reporting this story, The Discourse surveyed hundreds of Nanaimo residents for their thoughts about reviving the rail line. “Public transit here is just perfectly awful,” Nelson says. Overview ‘The Epic Journey’ between Toronto and Vancouver. "On top … Travel – At the 4 Mile bridge, the westbound roadside bike lanes must be detoured onto until the junction of Burnside Rd. “I don’t see a business model for it,” Smythe says. According to Larry Stevenson, CEO of the Island Corridor Foundation (ICF), getting passenger trains running again isn’t just about reducing carbon emissions from cars or about boosting tourism to the mid-Island, (though both are important benefits, he says). Rail-with-trail projects make efficient use of rail rights-of-way, transforming often under-utilized spaces into active, non-motorized, multi-use transportation corridors. When the lawsuit was first filed in 2015, it was a contributing factor to the federal government pulling back on funding to repair and upgrade the railroad. Improved rail service for freight, passenger and excursion travel and for commuter service will stimulate the growth and development of First Nations’ businesses and communities across the Island. We want to make that happen. “I can’t see investing hundreds and hundreds of millions of dollars because somebody thinks it’s okay to take five hours to ride a train [from Courtenay] when the drive to Victoria is two and a half hours.”. ~ Andre Sullivan, Chair – Nanaimo Region Rail Trail Partnership. Laura Nelson moved to Nanaimo from Abbotsford in 2015 believing that passenger rail would be an option for her and her adult son, Dean. This story was edited by Lauren Kaljur and Lindsay Sample, with additional files from Lauren Kaljur. Autumn vignettes along a cycling trail: Vancouver Island. The Island Corridor Foundation (ICF) is working hard to try and keep the magic of the holidays alive for Nanaimo’s children and their families amid these uniquely trying times. The “With all due respect to the [South Island Transportation Plan] report writers we have been ‘exploring’ the potential for rail for over 15 years,” the letter states. He believes that rebuilding the rail line could be the perfect stimulus project because construction could begin almost immediately and put people back to work. The second step would include service from Nanaimo to Westhills. As the superintendent of the Southern Railway of Vancouver Island (SVI), it’s Kutaj’s job to know the track intimately. Based on ridership fares for those two services, the report estimated that a renewed Vancouver Island passenger rail service would be broken into zones ranging from between $4 and $6 one way for a trip from Langford to Victoria, up to between $21 and $27 for the full trip from Courtenay to Victoria. But again, nothing came of it. BIKE: Galloping Goose Rail Trail (59 km) HIKE: Juan de Fuca Trail (42 km) HIKE: Della Falls (30 km) HIKE: North Coast Trail (79 km) HIKE: Vancouver Island Trail (700 km) HIKE: Wild Pacific Trail, Ucluelet; Lower Mainland. If it didn’t exist, creating it from scratch would cost billions of dollars and take decades to achieve. A new non-profit society, the Vancouver Island Transportation Corridor Coalition (VITCC), announced formation on July 7, 2020 to facilitate the return to rail service to Vancouver Island. To help subsidize construction of the railway, the federal and provincial governments contributed financially towards the project and granted more than 800,000 hectares of land on southeast Vancouver Island to the E&N Railway Company. Following decommissioned rail trails, gravel side roads, forest service roads, and singletrack, the BC Trail boasts some of … “You will get off your bus and then have to wait 45 minutes for your connection to get anywhere, so you always have to be an hour early.”. HIKE: Howe Sound Crest Trail (28 km) HIKE: Baden Powell Trail - 42 km It’s been almost a decade since paying passengers rode the 225 kilometres stretching from Victoria to Courtenay and 64 kilometers west between Parksville and Port Alberni. VIDRA maintains land stewardship of three off-road recreation areas on the island: Whiskey Creek, Cook Creek, and Tansky. When the ICF was formed in 2003, the goal was to preserve the rail corridor from being broken up and sold off in pieces. While the Snaw-Naw-As case has been dismissed, the ICF acknowledges the grievance. Interior. Premier Listings: Hiking & Backpacking on Vancouver Island & BC Islands Hiking on Vancouver Island Welcome to hiking heaven! The Island Corridor Foundation is a non-profit society and federally registered charity established for the purposes of owning and managing the rail corridor on Vancouver Island. 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