The $50 million in the supplementary estimates for VIA Rail is intended to help deal with an operating shortfall. The operating shortfall is a result of lower revenues, the downturn in the economy, increases in fuel costs, and other charges in their train service agreements. The reference levels for VIA Rail were set back in 2008. That was before the downturn in the economy, so they don't necessarily reflect the requirements that VIA Rail has today.
In the 2011 budget, $98 million was included for VIA Rail. The first part of that was for a shortfall in their pension plan, which was experiencing difficulties related to economic circumstances. So an amount of $48 million was authorized by Parliament in the first supplementary estimates for VIA Rail. This $50 million is the second part of that budget announcement, which is provided to allow VIA to continue its operations and make sure that there is efficient passenger rail service for Canadians.