VIA Rail will end its early-morning train service from Cobourg and Port Hope next month, just two years after the service was restored following local pressure.
Train 641, which runs Monday to Thursday from Ottawa to Toronto, will be cancelled effective Oct. 25. The train currently leaves Cobourg at 7:35 a.m. and Port Hope at 7:44 a.m., arriving in Toronto before 9 a.m.
VIA says the revised schedule is intended to better match passenger demand and improve reliability.
A later train will continue to serve Cobourg, but it departs at 8:44 a.m. and does not stop in Port Hope.
The early service was restored in 2024 after being cut during the COVID-19 pandemic. At the time, VIA said eastern Ontario passengers had stressed the importance of an early Toronto connection for work and other purposes.
(Richard Evans)
