The Renaissance fleet is a set of intercity railroad cars owned and operated by Via Rail Canada.
History The cars were built by GEC Alsthom in the mid-1990s for the proposed Nightstar overnight service between the United Kingdom and continental Europe via the Channel Tunnel. They are based on the British Rail Mark 4 design, but with heavy weight steel construction (by European standards) to meet safety requirements for the carriages to run through the Channel Tunnel.
In 2000, after the Nightstar concept was abandoned, Via acquired an initial three carriages for trials.Three Alstom Nightstar coaches shipped to Canada Rail issue 385 June 14, 2000 In December 2000, the remaining 136 carriages were acquired, entering service in June 2002.Britain says Goodnight to all 139 unused Nightstars Rail issue 400 January 10, 2001 page 9Canadians to buy all 139 Nightstars The Railway Magazine issue 1198 February 2001 page 14Night stock enters service at last Railway Gazette International August 2002 page 412
On May 26th, 2024 Via Rail officially retired the Renaissance cars from services on the Windsor-Quebec City Corridor. The cars will remain in revenue service on long-distance routes until a suitable replacement is found which is not expected until at least the early 2030s.
Accessibility The Council for Canadians with Disabilities successfully sued Via Rail in Council of Canadians with Disabilities v. VIA Rail Canada Inc. over the lack of accessibility of the Renaissance cars. The Canadian Transportation Agency ordered Via to retrofit some of the fleet to ensure the availability of accessible accommodations. Nevertheless, the Renaissance cars remain the least accessible in the fleet.
Car types Via acquired the entire original 139-car fleet; as designed it comprised 72 sleepers, 47 coaches, and 20 service cars. Via rebuilt fifteen of the sleepers into dining and baggage cars. Thirty-three carriages never entered service, remaining in store at Thunder Bay.Tragic End for Nightstar Stock Rail Express issue 247 December 2016 page 3
Type In service Fleet numbers Notes Image Baggage car 9 7000–7011 Built out of unused sleeping car shells. Club car 14 7100–7114 48-seat capacity in a 2+1 configuration. Coach 33 7200–7232 48-seat capacity in a 2+1 configuration. Lounge car 20 7300–7316; 7354–7359 Via Rail refers to these as "service" cars. Dining car 3 7400–7402 48-seat capacity; built out of unused sleeping car shells. Sleeping car 27 7500–7589 10 double bedrooms. 29 unfinished shells were stored at Thunder Bay. These have since been scrapped. Transition Car 3 7600–7602 Barrier vehicle used to transition between the European Renaissance couplers and the standard knuckle couplers on HEP rolling stock.
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