Yves Desjardins-Siciliano

millennials: Demographic factors such as the pro-environment values of millennials, the growing number of seniors with mobility issues and an influx of immigrants from countries where train culture is prevalent make it a good time to boost passenger service, Desjardins-Siciliano said Thursday, according to The Chronicle Herald. Young Canadians — millennials — have a green heart, he said. There is a renaissance and an emergence of a train culture in Canada, Yves Desjardins-Siciliano said at a luncheon held in Toronto by the Canadian Council for Public-Private Partnerships. Via Rail hopes to raise $3 billion from private investors in order to build dedicated passenger tracks between Toronto, Ottawa and Montreal. The number of Via Rail passengers declined to 3.8 million last year from 4.1 million in 2010, according to the company financial statements that included a $317.1-million operating loss last year. The company says the long-standing practice of sharing infrastructure with freight trains has hurt its ridership, which has been eroding in recent years. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.