An investigation was opened after a collision between two trains on Tuesday evening in the northeast of Montreal, not far from the Saint-Léonard–Montréal-Nord station. No people were injured during the event, but train service was affected.
It was a Canadian National (CN) train which collided with an exo commuter train which was stopped on the Mascouche line, for a reason still unknown. By email, CN indicated in the evening that “initial information indicates that there were no serious injuries or dangerous goods involved in the incident.”
In short, the trains would not have derailed during the collision. That said, the cause of the incident will be the subject of an internal investigation, said the organization’s spokesperson, Jonathan Abecassis.
“Local first responders and CN crews are on site. We will keep you informed of developments as soon as we have more information. CN would like to apologize for the impacts of the incident,” continued Mr. Abecassis.
A team of investigators from the Transportation Safety Board (TSB) will also be sent to the scene in the coming days to gather information, the organization said in the evening.
Exo, for its part, assured that the train staff and passengers of the exo train were taken care of by the emergency services, reiterating in turn that it is too early to identify the cause of the collision.
Several trains canceled
The impact on service was quickly felt on Tuesday: all trains on the Mascouche line were canceled for the remainder of the evening of November 21. According to our information, a VIA Rail train was also forced to disembark passengers going to Montreal at Rivière-des-Prairies, since the rails were not accessible.
“The users were supported by taxi services and shuttle buses so that they could complete their journey to their destination this evening,” said exo spokesperson Jean-Maxime St-Hilaire. this subject.
For its part, the Montreal City Police Service (SPVM) confirmed that it had intervened to secure access and exit from the station for citizens.
In mid-August, an investigation was also opened to determine the exact cause of the derailment of a wagon and two locomotives of a freight train. The event then occurred at the end of the day, in the Old Port of Montreal.