NEWS

Canada's first hydrogen train is taking passengers

02 October 2023

The first hydrogen-powered train in North America is taking riders on a two-and-a-half hour trip through central Quebec this summer. It's a demonstration that launched earlier this month to show how electricity stored as hydrogen can replace diesel fuel on railways where installing electrified rails or overhead wires would be challenging. Advocates for the use of hydrogen in heavy transportation say it could raise awareness and boost confidence in the emerging technology in North America.

The first hydrogen-powered train in North America is taking riders on a two-and-a-half hour trip through central Quebec this summer.

It's a demonstration that launched earlier this month to show how electricity stored as hydrogen can replace diesel fuel on railways where installing electrified rails or overhead wires would be challenging.

Advocates for the use of hydrogen in heavy transportation say it could raise awareness and boost confidence in the emerging technology in North America.

The tourist train made by French company Alstom runs from Montmorency Falls in Quebec City to Baie-Saint-Paul — partway along the Train de Charlevoix route — on Wednesday through Sunday until Sept. 30, carrying up to 120 people in two rail cars.

Nancy Belley, general manager of Réseau Charlevoix, the private railway that runs the train, says it's an extraordinary chance for her company. She told CBC News in French that riding the train is like being in another world.

"When you think that you've left your car behind, and get on board a train that emits water vapour, you feel that you're part of an important decarbonization movement in Quebec," she said.

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