Off the rails – no late night trains heading West

Have you been to a Canadiens hockey game lately? How about an MSO concert or show at the Bell Centre?

Well, if you’re like thousands of West Island train riders you are out of luck when it comes to finding a train ride back home on the Vaudreuil-Hudson line.

The last train to leave the Lucien L’Allier station is at 9:15 p.m. on weeknights – well before Canadiens’ hockey games are finished.

There is no train after that and many commuters find that infuriating.

“The challenge is, then you’ve taken the train in; how are you going to get home?” Mike Keenan rhetorically asks.

The West Island resident uses the train every day to go downtown to his office job.

He doesn’t understand why a late night train can’t be added to the schedule, especially given all the money Quebec governments and public transit advocates have been spending to improve service and promote mass transportation use.

But apparently not for the West Island.

“It’s a mixed message for sure. They’re telling you to get out of the car and use public transit but they’re not giving you a convenient offering,” he said.

A spokesperson for the AMT refused Global News’ interview requests for an explanation.

And a ticket agent told Global News that there is a lot of demand for a later train.

The tracks through the West Island are owned by CP Rail and the AMT has to negotiate with the private rail company each time it wants to add service or change its schedules.

But in an email to Global News, a spokesperson for CP wrote that no formal request had recently been made by the AMT to add a late night train on the Vaudreuil-Hudson.

So for West Island residents who may want to enjoy Montreal’s nightlife or take in a hockey game – they’re stuck taking the city bus home or using their car.