There are two parts to my answer. First, on what happened during Christmas, let me say that Canadians are familiar with weather disruptions. They are patient when it comes to disruptions. However, they rightly expect to be kept informed and that alternative plans will be prepared. What happened during Christmas, particularly with the service between Ottawa and Toronto, where passengers were kept on the train without information for 19 hours, was totally unacceptable. VIA accepted responsibility. It is now conducting an independent review into what happened.
Second, our government recognizes that VIA Rail is essential for Canadians and that the current status quo needs improvement. As you know, VIA does not own any of its tracks. It sometimes is at the mercy of the owner of the tracks and ends up facing delays. That's why our government is investing in what previous governments talked about in the past but never made a reality—high-frequency rail. We are building a dedicated track to enable VIA to have a reliable, fast and clean service in the busiest corridor of the country.
I'm excited about that future, but in the meantime VIA needs to accept its responsibility and learn from the lessons that happened during the Christmas holidays.