Source Link: Times & Transcript

As travellers all over the country were cursing the weather for grounding their flights yesterday, the folks at VIA Rail were smiling and eager to please.

“Any time the weather strikes like this, we are the only mode of transportation that keeps on going through the snow. We actually look forward to it, even though we are really busy at this time of year,” VIA spokesman Malcolm Andrews said yesterday from Montreal.

A fierce winter storm over Ontario forced Air Canada and other airlines to ground all flights yesterday. Although the weather was sunny and calm in Moncton yesterday afternoon, flights by Air Canada Jazz, Lufthansa and West Jet from to Toronto, Hamilton and Montreal were either delayed or cancelled.

Despite the cancellations, there were few people waiting around the Greater Moncton International Airport, since the airlines usually call customers at home and warn them to stay put and keep an eye on the website for travel news.

More than 300 flights — about one-quarter of the usual daily total at Pearson International Airport in Toronto — were cancelled and many others delayed on one of the busiest travel days of the year.

While the snow only started flying at Pearson at about 8 a.m., the early delays and cancellations were mainly due to problems at other airports. The storm is moving eastward across Canada after hitting the U.S. Midwest earlier. More than 300 flights were cancelled at Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport, and ahead of the storm, more than 500 were cancelled at New York City-area airports.

Air Canada issued a travel advisory yesterday afternoon, saying that people who had already purchased airline tickets and wanted to find alternative arrangements could do so without penalty.

Manon Stuart, a spokeswoman for Air Canada Jazz in Halifax, said yesterday the airline was doing its best to reschedule flights and make sure all ticket holders are looked after. She said Air Canada officials always plan for the worst of winter weather and have contingency plans to respond to cancellations and delays. But there is only so much an airline can do when bad weather strikes and creates unsafe conditions.

Air Canada Jazz has several direct flights between Moncton and Toronto each day, using the 50-seat Canadair Regional Jets (CRJ). Direct flights between Moncton and Toronto take about two hours and adult tickets range from $89 to $349 before taxes and service charges. Passengers flying from Moncton to western Canada usually change planes in Toronto.

Stuart said Air Canada has the ability to put on extra flights if required to take care of customers who have been delayed or missed their connections.

“Right now, we’re operating at capacity, but we’ll certainly do our best to minimize any inconvenience to our passengers.”

During the winter months when delays due to weather are more common, Air Canada advises passengers to check their website for up-to-date information on arrivals and departures. The Greater Moncton International Airport website also has a frequently updated schedule of all passenger flights.

Stuart said Air Canada is very busy with flights almost fully booked, but a check of its website yesterday showed many available seats on trips over the next few days.

For those who don’t mind a longer trip, there is always the bus or the train.

Daniel Côté, a spokesman for Acadian Lines in Moncton, said the Maritime busline is always busy during the Christmas season, but often puts on extra 51-seat buses to keep up with demand.

“We’re busy, but we do whatever we have to do so we don’t have people without transportation.”

The bus route serves mainly Atlantic Canada, but does provide service from Moncton to Montreal, where passengers can get connections to Toronto through either Greyhound or Coach Canada.

VIA Rail spokesman Malcolm Andrews said all trains were running on time yesterday and it takes quite a snowstorm to slow them down. VIA Rail has one train daily between Halifax and Montreal, which stops in Moncton around 5 p.m. A round trip ticket from Moncton to Toronto aboard a VIA Rail train would cost about $750 for one person, depending on the class of ticket. The trip would take about 24 hours, compared to the roughly two hours for a flight from Moncton to Toronto.

For those really desperate travellers, renting a car might also be an option. A spokesman for Enterprise Rent-A-Car said it would cost roughly $215 to rent a car for a one-way trip to Toronto, where it could be dropped off. The estimated cost of fuel — about five tanks at roughly 45 each — would be about $225. Throw in some money for meals and it would cost roughly $500 and 15 hours of your time to drive one way.