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Summary

Wet'suwet'en Supporters Head To Ottawa As Some VIA Rail Trains Resume Service

A rally is planned for tomorrow in Ottawa.
Wet'suwet'en Supporters Head To Ottawa As Some VIA Rail Trains Resume Service
  • After trains nationwide were shut down, VIA Rail is now announcing service resumption on the Quebec City-Montreal-Ottawa route. Other VIA Rail trains remain cancelled.
  • A blockade was also dismantled in St-Lambert, Quebec on Friday.
  • A rally has been planned to take place outside of Parliament in Ottawa on Monday.

After a nationwide shutdown due to Wet'suwet'en solidarity protests, VIA Rail has announced that trains between Quebec City, Montreal and Ottawa will resume service. This means the 26 and 28 Quebec City-Montreal-Ottawa trains will be running on Sunday and will resume weekday service on Monday. The Montreal-Ottawa weekend train also resumed service on Saturday, February 22.

As per VIA Rail, "all other VIA Rail services remain cancelled until further notice, with the exception of Sudbury-White River (CP Rail) and Churchill-The Pas (Hudson Bay Railway)."

Service from Toronto to Ottawa and Montreal remains cancelled as the blockade on Tyendinaga Mohawk territory remains in place. 

One of Montreal's commuter trains remains impacted, as well, with the exo4 to Candiac still facing a blockade in Kahnawake Mohawk territory. 

The blockade impacting the exo3 to Mont-Saint-Hilaire, however, was reportedly dismantled on Friday night, which should mean that passengers will be able to ride this train come Monday morning, however, there has yet to be an update on the Exo website or Twitter page indicating this.

A demonstration of support is also being planned on Algonquin territory in Ottawa to take place outside the Parliament of Canada for Monday, February 24. 

On Friday, VIA Rail shared this tweet indicating that service would soon resume between Montreal Ottawa, including both weekend and weekday trains.

On their website, VIA Rail explains that as they "continue to monitor the evolution of events across the country, the situation remains the same regarding VIA Rail other services."

You can read the full travel advisory on the VIA Rail website here.

READ ALSO: Quebec Wet'suwet'en Rail Blockades Going Strong As Grocery Supply Shortage Looms (Photos)

As for the blockade in St-Lambert, which was impacting the exo3 that travels between Montreal and Mont-Saint-Hilaire, organizers on the ground maintained updates throughout Friday evening.

Police eventually arrived and the camp was dismantled as night fell. The blockade was shut down not long after Premier Legault indicated his intent to clear the site.

Still many blockades remain. Service on the exo4 which travels between Candiac and Montreal remains stopped due to the blockade in Kahnawake Mohawk territory, as well as VIA Rail trains impacted by the blockade in Tyendinaga Mohawk territory.

Now, supporters are moving off the rails and heading to Parliament. An event titled All Eyes On Parliament is scheduled to begin at 9 a.m. on Monday, February 24. 

The event is being organized by "Indigenous Youth and their allies," with the intent of pressuring MPs to "meet the demands of the Wet'suwet'en."

You can find out more about the rally on the Facebook event page here.

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