Courtenay Mayor Larry Jangula is joining the fight to bring back the train.
“If we can restore or save that rail service, it would be a huge benefit to the entire Island, not just the Valley,” said Jangula.
Jangula took a seat on the Island Corridor Foundation’s board of directors, and will attend his first meeting on Jan. 19.
The foundation is a partnership between municipalities, Regional Districts and First Nations, which is working to restore rail service on Vancouver Island.
Jangula said the task is a challenge, but progress has been made. The Island Corridor Foundation has lobbied and received funds for improvements to the rail line over the last couple of years.
According to the foundation’s website, the provincial government has approved $7.5 million for rail infrastructure improvements, and it’s hoping the federal government will match the province’s contribution.
Jangula said that if the railway were fixed, it could mean more than just renewed passenger car service and increased tourism for the Comox Valley.
“We could use it to haul goods and services, which is what it did when it first started,” said Jangula. “We could use it as a transportation link.”
He also said he would like to see steam locomotives used in the future.
“Wouldn’t it be neat, in winter if it’d be a ski train and in summer it could be a tourist train, and I know that people, myself included, love steam locomotives,” said Jangula. “There’s something really romantic about them.”
writer@comoxvalleyrecord.com
