Rivers station

Not to be confused with River Station.

The Rivers railway station is on the Canadian National Railway mainline in Rivers, Manitoba, in the centre of town. The station is served by Via Rail's The Canadian.^[1] The station operates as a flag stop with 48-hour advance notice.

Rivers
General information
Location	Hwy 250 & Hwy 25, Rivers, Manitoba Canada
Coordinates	50°01′44″N 100°14′19″W
Platforms	1 side platform
Tracks	2
Construction
Structure type	Shelter
Parking	Yes
History
Opened	1917
Previous names	Brandon North Grand Trunk Pacific Railway
Services
Preceding station Via Rail Following station Melville toward Vancouver The Canadian Portage la Prairie toward Toronto
Former services
Preceding station Canadian National Railway Following station Myra toward Vancouver Main Line Knox toward Montreal Preceding station Via Rail Following station Regina toward Vancouver The Canadian before 1990 Portage la Prairie toward Toronto

The station was originally built in 1917 for the Grand Trunk Pacific Railway. The station building is a 1½ story structure made of concrete to halfway up the first story, brick to the roof line.^[2] The station building was closed in the 1990s, however trains continued to serve the community as a flag stop. The station was designated a national historic site in 1992.^[3] A local community group is working on restoring the building.

In 2008, Via Rail (Via) relocated its facilities serving The Canadian from Brandon North railway station (located 23 km (14 mi) away) to the Rivers railway station.^[4]

Stranding

On March 1, 2011, Via passengers traveling east were stranded for 15 hours due to a Canadian National freight train becoming disabled near Rivers.^[5] The line was reopened, but this delay suspended Via's service between Winnipeg and Toronto in both directions.^[6] Consequently, Via had to make arrangements to accommodate about 70 affected passengers, including providing alternate transportation for them.^[7] Regular service was expected to resume the following Thursday for the Winnipeg to Toronto route, and on the next Saturday for the opposite direction.^[8][9]

References

1. "Rivers train station". Archived from the original on 2009-12-24. Retrieved 2009-11-22.
2. "Canadian National Railways Station". Heritage Properties. Historical Places - A Joint Federal, Provincial and Territorial Initiative. Archived from the original on 2016-03-08. Retrieved 2012-05-20.
3. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2006-10-28. Retrieved 2009-11-23.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
4. "Via Expands Station Services in Rivers, Manitoba Press Release Wednesday, 31 December 2008". Archived from the original on 20 January 2011. Retrieved 29 January 2011.
5. "Disabled freight train strands Via passengers". Retrieved 3 Mar 2011.
6. Via's services between Toronto and Winnipeg affected by freight train mechanical failure Archived 2011-07-06 at the Wayback Machine. Via Rail Canada - Press Release, March 2, 2011. Retrieved 3 Mar 2011.
7. Passenger train service suspended . CBC News, March 2, 2011. Retrieved 3 Mar 2011.
8. Via Passengers Stranded At Rivers Archived 2011-07-08 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 3 Mar 2011.
9. "Broken freight train causes Via Rail to stop service between Toronto, Winnipeg". Archived from the original on 6 March 2011. Retrieved 3 Mar 2011.

External links

Media related to Rivers railway station at Wikimedia Commons

• Community Group with Grant To Restore The Station
• Via Rail Station Information