Maple Leaf (train)

Maple Leaf

The Maple Leaf crosses the Whirlpool Rapids Bridge, in 1983.
Overview
Service type	International Inter-city rail
Status	Operating with no international service (truncated)
Locale	New York State/Golden Horseshoe region, Ontario
Predecessor	Ontarian
First service	April 26, 1981
Current operator(s)	Amtrak (within US) Via Rail (within Canada)
Annual ridership	245,079 (Albany–Toronto, FY21) -37.2%[1][a] [b]
Route
Start	New York City, United States
Stops	20
End	Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Distance travelled	544 mi (875 km)
Average journey time	12 hours, 30 minutes (includes time at border control)
Service frequency	Daily each way
On-board services
Class(es)	Business and Coach class
Seating arrangements	Reserved Coach Seat Business Class Seat
Catering facilities	On-board café
Baggage facilities	Carry-on baggage only
Technical
Track gauge	4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
Track owner(s)	Amtrak Metro North CSX Transportation Canadian National Metrolinx
Timetable number(s)	63, 64 (Amtrak) 97, 98 (Via)
Route map Legend Dist. 544 mi 875 km Toronto 523 mi 842 km Oakville 512 mi 824 km Aldershot 488 mi 785 km Grimsby 473 mi 761 km St. Catharines 462 mi 744 km Niagara Falls, Ontario Niagara River Canada United States 461 mi 742 km Niagara Falls, New York 437 mi 703 km Buffalo–Exchange Street Lake Shore Limited to Chicago 431 mi 694 km Buffalo–Depew 370 mi 595 km Rochester 291 mi 468 km Syracuse 250 mi 402 km Rome 237 mi 381 km Utica 177 mi 285 km Amsterdam Adirondack to Montreal and Ethan Allen Express to Rutland 159 mi 256 km Schenectady Hudson River 141 mi 227 km Albany–Rensselaer 114 mi 183 km Hudson 88 mi 142 km Rhinecliff–Kingston 73 mi 117 km Poughkeepsie 32 mi 51 km Croton–Harmon 14 mi 23 km Yonkers Harlem River Grand Central Terminal 0 mi 0 km New York Penn Station This diagram: view talk

The Maple Leaf is an international passenger train service operated by Amtrak and Via Rail between Pennsylvania Station in New York City and Union Station in Toronto via the Empire Corridor. Daily service is offered in both directions; the 544-mile (875 km) trip takes approximately 12 hours, including two hours for U.S. or Canadian customs and immigration inspection at either Niagara Falls, New York, or Niagara Falls, Ontario. Although the train uses Amtrak rolling stock exclusively, the train is operated by Via Rail crews while in Canada and by Amtrak crews in the United States. Service began in 1981.

History[]

Amtrak and Via Rail introduced the Maple Leaf along the Hudson River and Erie Canal on April 26, 1981. The Maple Leaf replaced Buffalo–Toronto connecting service operated by Via and the Toronto, Hamilton and Buffalo Railway, the latter of which discontinued passenger service that day. The new Maple Leaf was the first collaboration between the two companies and the first direct New York-Toronto passenger service in a decade, the last being an overnight TH&B, New York Central, and Canadian Pacific Railway train called The Ontarian (Buffalo-Toronto) that ended in 1967. That earlier train began as the Cleveland Limited westbound, with sleeper passengers having a continuous carriage ride (eastbound riders joined the Ohio State Limited for the Buffalo-New York City leg).^[2][3] By contrast, the modern Maple Leaf was a unified New York City-Toronto train. There was also a New York City-Toronto train named Maple Leaf operated by the Lehigh Valley Railroad from 1937 until 1961, a train which traveled through northern New Jersey, northeast Pennsylvania and central New York.

The new train employed Amtrak's Amfleet coaches with a dinette car. A 1982 consist included a baggage car, two coaches and a dinette; time spent in customs ranged from thirty minutes to two hours.^[4] The new route goes through the two Niagara Falls towns on both sides of the border, before going to Aldershot in Burlington, then Toronto. The prior New York Central trains crossed from Buffalo to Ontario south of the Niagara Falls and made five stops in Ontario before reaching Toronto.^[5][6]

An Amtrak crew operates the train in the United States, while a Via Rail crew operates the train in Canada.^[7] The crew change takes place in Niagara Falls, Ontario.

Because of this need for a crew exchange, the Maple Leaf was led by some of the last EMD F40PH locomotives in Amtrak revenue service. While most Amtrak routes outside the Northeast Corridor had switched to the GE Genesis by 2000, it had not been added to the Maple Leaf owing to the Via Rail crews' unfamiliarity with the unit. The Maple Leaf retained the F40PH until Via received its own Genesis locomotives in 2002.^[8]: 107

The Maple Leaf is one of four New York Amtrak routes that are primarily state-funded with the others being the Adirondack, Empire Service, and Ethan Allen Express. Primary funding for these routes is from the New York State Department of Transportation rather than federal funding.

In March 2020, Maple Leaf service west of Niagara Falls, New York was suspended indefinitely after all non-essential travel across the Canada–United States border was banned in response to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.^[9][10] Via did not provide alternate service on the Canadian side of the border; as of February 2021, the Toronto–Niagara Falls leg is listed as "cancelled until further notice."^[11] GO Transit still operates seasonal weekend trains to Niagara Falls, Ontario from Toronto Union Station year-round,^[12] (which has since increased to daily service) although these do not stop at Grimsby.

2013 terror plot[]

In 2013, the Maple Leaf was the target of a failed terror plot involving an attempt by two men, both permanent residents of Canada, who sought to derail the train as it crossed a bridge over the Twenty Mile Creek near Jordan, Ontario. The two men were allegedly affiliates of an Al-Qaeda group operating out of Iran.^[13][14][15]

Route details[]

Amtrak Maple Leaf (interactive map)

In the United States, the Maple Leaf shares the route of the Empire Service, Amtrak's corridor service along the former main line of the New York Central Railroad. Prior to the completion of the Empire Connection in 1991, the Maple Leaf originated at Grand Central Terminal in New York instead of Penn Station.^[16] In Canada, the service shares the route of the GO Transit Lakeshore West commuter rail line.

VIA Maple Leaf sign at Toronto Union Station

The Maple Leaf operates over Metrolinx and Canadian National Railway trackage in Canada, and CSX Transportation, Metro-North Railroad, and Amtrak trackage in the United States.

• Metrolinx , Toronto to Burlington
• CN and , Burlington to Niagara Falls
• CSX Niagara Subdivision, Buffalo Terminal Subdivision, Rochester Subdivision, Mohawk Subdivision, Selkirk Subdivision, and Hudson Subdivision, Niagara Falls to Schenectady (Amtrak leases the Hudson Subdivision between Schenectady and Poughkeepsie from CSX)
• MNRR Hudson Line, Poughkeepsie to Spuyten Duyvil
• Amtrak Empire Connection, Spuyten Duyvil to Penn Station.
• Amtrak Niagara connection, Niagara Falls, NY to CN Niagara Falls Yard (Grimsby Subdivision), Niagara Falls, ON

Amtrak numbers the train as 63 northbound and 64 southbound, while Via numbers it as 97 southbound and 98 northbound. Via brands the Toronto-Niagara Falls leg as part of its Corridor services.^{[citation needed]}

Northbound trains leave New York after the morning rush, arriving in Syracuse at noon, crossing into Canada during the afternoon rush and arriving in Toronto in early evening. Southbound trains leave Toronto after the morning rush, cross into the United States just after noon and arrive in New York in mid-evening. Trains stop for two hours for customs procedures in Niagara Falls, Ontario northbound and Niagara Falls, New York southbound.

Station stops[]

State/Province	Town/City	Station	Connections
Ontario, Canada	Toronto	Union Station	Via Rail: ■ Canadian, ■ Québec City–Windsor Corridor GO Transit Rail:  Barrie,  Kitchener,  Milton,  Lakeshore East,  Lakeshore West,  Richmond Hill,  Stouffville Union Pearson Express TTC Rail: ,  509 ,  510  Local bus: GO Transit, TTC Bus
	Oakville	Oakville	Via Rail: ■ Québec City–Windsor Corridor GO Transit Rail:  Lakeshore West Local bus: GO Transit, Oakville Transit
	Burlington	Aldershot	Via Rail: ■ Québec City–Windsor Corridor GO Transit Rail:  Lakeshore West Local bus: GO Transit, Burlington Transit, Hamilton Street Railway
	Grimsby	Grimsby
	St. Catharines	St. Catharines	GO Transit Rail:  Lakeshore West St. Catharines Transit
	Niagara Falls	Niagara Falls, Ontario	GO Transit Rail:  Lakeshore West Local bus: GO Transit, Niagara Falls Transit, WEGO
Canada–United States border
New York, United States	Niagara Falls	Niagara Falls, New York	Amtrak: Empire Service
	Buffalo	Buffalo–Exchange Street	Amtrak: Empire Service, Thruway Motorcoach to Jamestown, New York NFTA: Metro Rail
	Depew	Buffalo–Depew	Amtrak: Empire Service, Lake Shore Limited
	Rochester	Rochester	Amtrak: Empire Service, Lake Shore Limited
	Syracuse	New York State Fair	Train only stops during the New York State Fair
		Syracuse	Amtrak: Empire Service, Lake Shore Limited CENTRO
	Rome	Rome	Amtrak: Empire Service
	Utica	Utica	Amtrak: Empire Service, Lake Shore Limited Adirondack Railroad to Thendara, New York CENTRO
	Amsterdam	Amsterdam	Amtrak: Empire Service
	Schenectady	Schenectady	Amtrak: Adirondack, Empire Service, Ethan Allen Express, Lake Shore Limited Capital District Transportation Authority
	Rensselaer	Albany–Rensselaer	Amtrak: Adirondack, Empire Service, Ethan Allen Express, Lake Shore Limited Capital District Transportation Authority
	Hudson	Hudson	Amtrak: Adirondack, Empire Service, Ethan Allen Express
	Rhinecliff	Rhinecliff–Kingston	Amtrak: Adirondack, Empire Service, Ethan Allen Express
	Poughkeepsie	Poughkeepsie	Amtrak: Adirondack, Empire Service, Ethan Allen Express Metro-North Railroad: ■ Hudson Line Dutchess County Public Transit, Ulster County Area Transit
	Croton-on-Hudson	Croton–Harmon	Amtrak: Adirondack, Empire Service, Ethan Allen Express, Lake Shore Limited Metro-North Railroad: ■ Hudson Line Bee-Line Bus System
	Yonkers	Yonkers	Amtrak: Adirondack, Empire Service, Ethan Allen Express Metro-North Railroad: ■ Hudson Line Bee-Line Bus System
	New York City	Penn Station	Amtrak (long-distance): Acela, Adirondack, Cardinal, Crescent, Lake Shore Limited, Palmetto, Pennsylvanian, Silver Meteor, Silver Star Amtrak (intercity): Carolinian, Empire Service, Ethan Allen Express, Keystone Service, Northeast Regional, Vermonter Long Island Rail Road: ■ Main Line, ■ Port Washington Branch NJ Transit: ■ North Jersey Coast Line, ■ Northeast Corridor Line, ■ Gladstone Branch, ■ Montclair-Boonton Line, ■ Morristown Line NYC Subway: ​​​​ PATH: HOB-33 JSQ-33 JSQ-33 (via HOB) NYC Transit Bus

Equipment[]

Amtrak locomotive #106 pushing its train east through Toronto's Mimico GO Station.

The Maple Leaf operates year-round with an Amtrak GE P42DC or P32AC-DM locomotive and Amfleet I & II passenger cars. A typical consist will include:

• 1 P42DC or P32AC-DM locomotive
• 1 Amfleet I Cafe/'Businessclass' car
• 3 Amfleet II 'Coachclass' cars
• 1-2 Amfleet I 'Coachclass' car

Between Albany and New York, the train is always pulled by a P32AC-DM dual-mode locomotive, since diesel operation is prohibited in New York Penn Station. The train switches "on-the-fly" to third rail when it enters the Penn Station tunnel. Typically, the P32AC-DM is swapped for a P42DC diesel locomotive in Albany. Occasionally, the P32AC-DM locomotive will stay on the train all the way to Toronto.

An extra Amfleet I car is added to the Maple Leaf consist during the Christmas shopping rush to handle additional demand.

See also[]

• Cascades
• Montrealer

References[]

Notes[]

External links[]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Maple Leaf (train).

• Maple Leaf – Amtrak
• Via Rail Canada – Toronto–Niagara Falls train