CN Rail's network restored after failure halted Toronto-area commute

 

Company had internet connectivity issue, impacting GO Transit and Via rail trains.

Customer care agents for Metrolinx, which is responsible for the operation of GO Transit, field questions from people at Toronto's Union Station on Tuesday. 

Tens of thousands of commuters in Ontario who use GO Transit faced cancellations or long delays Tuesday because CN Rail's "network-wide system" was down, which the company said was later restored.

CN Rail blamed an internet connectivity issue that prevented the regional rail service from dispatching trains.

Commuter trains were held at the nearest stations during the outage, which also affected Via Rail and UP Express train service from Toronto's Union Station to Pearson International Airport.

"CN will be working with GO to review the incident and put in place processes to avoid further disruptions," the company said in a statement.

"CN would like to apologize for the impact caused by this outage. While there continues to be no indication of a cybersecurity issue, the cause of the outage remains under investigation," it said.

People prepare to board a bus in lieu of taking the UP Express train to Pearson International Airport during the rail service outage on Tuesday.

Metrolinx, the government agency that operates GO Transit train and bus service in the Greater Toronto Area and beyond, said all of its rail corridors were down, but it was slowly able to resume service on some lines.

Around 4:30 p.m. ET, GO Transit said it was able to run limited service from Union Station, but urged passengers to find other ways to get to their destinations or delay trips until later Tuesday night. 

• CN apologizes, limited GO train service resumes after signal problem disruption

Some 190,000 passengers use daily GO trains and buses, which connect Toronto's downtown core to Hamilton, Kitchener, Ont., and communities in the regions of Halton, Peel, York and Durham.

The outage left hundreds of frustrated home-bound commuters stuck at Union Station.

Uber caps surge pricing

"This is just crazy, whatever it is, they [GO] need to do better," said David Miller, a coffee shop worker who saw three trains he planned to take being cancelled.

The sudden demand for taxis tripled fares on ride-share service Uber, according to several people who tried to book rides.

An Uber spokesperson said prices temporarily increase when there are more ride requests than drivers.

"In response to this afternoon's GO transit situation, Uber capped surge pricing," spokesperson Keerthana Rang said in an email.

GO Transit said it would prioritize trying to get people home from Union Station, which was "very busy."