I saw the Remembrance train at Moncton New Brunswick and it was quite a sight. The local military base provided an honour guard, and the legion pipe band provided the music. The station and surrounding area was full of people, and when the vets marched by on their way to the train, the crowd clapped and cheered. I have never seen so many many people with tears in their eyes. The train was over 30 cars long, and the vets were given free food in the dining car. At most stations and small towns (even where the train did not stop) there were crowds waving and cheering as the train passed by. The head end crews slowed the train down if they saw people waiting for the train so the vets looking out the windows had a chance to see the crowds. This whole project was created and implemented by the unionized employees of Via Rail starting with a ticket seller at the Halifax station. No politicians were invited to the activities, and speechs were limited to the vets and railway employees. Here are a couple of media reports - <a href="http://www.cbc.ca/ottawa/story/ot-vets20051110.html" target="_blank">CBC media report </a> CTV media report with links to three videos of train
Very nice tribute. Nice to get a train ride and stay overnight instead of just a parade. Good for VIA employees. Some of the soldiers said they had not been on a train since WWII.
