Brockville, ON - VIA Rail Canada's President and Chief Executive Officer, Paul Côté, today emphasized that customer service is the foundation for the company's success. VIA has chosen to focus on providing excellent customer service as its core business strategy, citing this as a strategic business advantage..

Addressing a group of business people at a luncheon organized jointly by the Brockville Chamber of Commerce and Rotary Club, Côté showcased the VIA experience as one-of-a-kind..

"A recent survey indicated a 98 per cent customer satisfaction rating for VIA, a score that makes us one of the most trusted and admired transportation companies in Canada," said Mr. Côté. "In a market that has seen little growth over the past five years, there is really only one way to make our business thrive - by increasing the value of that unique experience for our customers. The reason people choose the train is it offers something a little different - a more comfortable, convenient and less stressful way to travel. We call it the more 'human' way to travel," he added. "And our success as a business depends on delivering a 'human' experience that consistently matches and surpasses expectations."

This strategy has produced tangible results. In the 2006 Commerce-Léger Marketing Survey, respondents ranked VIA as the most admired transportation company and one of the top 30 most admired companies overall. Last year, VIA's revenues increased, for the third straight year, to close to $300 million. More than four million passengers boarded VIA trains last year; the Quebec City-Windsor corridor alone carried a record 3.5 million passengers. .

VIA has an established presence in the City of Brockville - the city that opened the first railway tunnel in Canada, and marked the completion of a new rail service from Montreal more than 150 years ago. That service grew into a network linking Quebec City to Windsor, which now carries some 400 passenger trains per week, and 3.5 million passengers per year. Last year, 63,000 passengers used the Brockville station, placing it among the busiest stations in Canada.

About VIA

As Canada's national passenger rail service, VIA Rail Canada's mandate is to provide efficient, environmentally responsible and cost effective passenger transportation services, both in Canada's business corridor and in remote and rural regions of the country. Serving more than 450 communities with a network of inter-city, transcontinental and regional trains, demand for rail services continues to grow as more Canadians turn to train travel as a safe and convenient travel choice.