Rail discount helps new citizens discover Canada - New Canadian Media
NCM Anonymous
July 3, 2013
It’s a pass to discover Canada you get on becoming a citizen and 1,500 people did just that last year using VIA Rail’s half price fares.
The discounted train tickets are part of the Cultural Access Pass(CAP) program initiated by the Institute for Canadian Citizenship (ICC), a national, non-profit charity that promotes active citizenship.
“I cannot think of a better way to spend Canada Day than on the Canadian, travelling across Canada’s beautiful and varied landscapes on a train line steeped in Canadian history. Canada inspires and surprises and we would never have done anything like this were it not for the CAP offer,” said Andrew S as he rode VIA’s iconic Canadian with his wife on Canada Day.
Since the offer’s launch on July 1, 2012, new citizens have travelled on every main route VIA Rail offers, visiting almost all of the 450 Canadian communities aboard one of the 500 trains departing each week. Most chose to travel within the Quebec City – Windsor corridor, but many – nearly 20 per cent – chose to journey on the Canadian, an incredible voyage that runs between Toronto and Vancouver.
“VIA Rail is proud to contribute to new citizens’ discovery of our beautiful country,” said Marc Laliberté, Chief Executive Officer of VIA Rail. “We are pleased with the popularity of this initiative and hope that even more new citizens will continue to take advantage of this truly Canadian experience and increase their sense of belonging to their new country.”
Apart from discounted rail fares, the CAP program provides a year of free access to galleries, museums, historic sites, national and provincial parks and performing arts organizations across the country. Since its inception a mere five years ago, more than 70,000 new citizens have participated in the program.
“With more than 1,200 participating attractions across the country, collaborating with VIA Rail has helped make exploring Canada’s cultural places and spaces a real possibility for new citizens,” said Leith Bishop, ICC’s Acting Executive Director & CEO.
To learn more about CAP, its participating attractions, and VIA Rail Canada’s offer, visit culturalaccesspass.ca. – New Canadian Media
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