One of the sweetest memories for many of us who grew up in and around Ponoka or on the prairies many years ago was hearing the eerie and noisy whistle and roar of a train, especially late at night as it approached the local station. The neatest treat was if you were lucky enough to be downtown or fishing in the river and got to watch that big old train slowly pull up to the platform with dark smoke pouring out of the big stack of the massive steam locomotive, then patiently counted the long line of freight or passenger cars and waved to the neat engineers. Then we patiently waited for the conductor to step onto the platform and usher the many passengers and their baggage off the train, while hopefully being able to stick around long enough to hear the loud call of ‘all aboard’ when it was time for it to leave the station bound for an exciting new destination down the line.
Along the historic Edmonton/Calgary railroad
In the late 1800s, the only traffic moving slowly along the rugged and dusty C and E trail was by horseback, horse and cart, or the Stagecoach, but in 1891, it all changed drastically when the main railway line was completed between Edmonton and Calgary. By 1892, many slow moving work crews as well as freight and passenger trains were chugging into Siding 14 Ponoka, and the magnificent new CPR station was soon built beside the busy track to accept or unload passengers, freight and nervous livestock. The first fancy passenger trains between Edmonton and Calgary were making a daily runs by 1892, which took 12 hours at a fare of $10 a passenger.
With the overwhelming demand from hundreds of pioneer families and supplies moving in and out of this area, the addition of new railway equipment and lines grew at a rapid pace. By 1905, many new railway companies were being formed and funded by businessmen and farmers to build and operate branch lines into Alix, Stettler, Lacombe, Big Valley, Bentley, Rimbey, Rocky and Drumheller, as well as later serving many other small communities in order to allow passengers to connect with the main and now extremely busy C and E main line. The very first ‘high-speed’ multi-car passenger train pulled by a powerful steam engine was the Chinook, which hit the Canadian Pacific Railway line in 1936, could travel up to 100 mph, and the trip from Edmonton and Calgary either way took between 4.5 to 5.5 hours and made 22 stops along the way. The Chinook passenger service ran four times a day until 1955, was filled to capacity on most trips, and served full course meals.
August 30, 1954 a milestone for Ponoka travellers.
The Ponoka train station was jammed with over 200 spectators and dignitaries as Canadian Pacific Railway officials proudly unveiled their sleek and powerful new two-car Day Liner, which was powered by two 275-horsepower diesel engines, and was capable of making the trip between Edmonton and Calgary in 3.5 hours with a capacity of 89 passenger in each unit. On that day, a thrilling ‘test run’ from Ponoka to Calgary was hosted for local dignitaries and the media, which featured speeds up to 92 mph on the straightaways (the fastest in Canada in that era) and a very comfortable and smooth ride on slick steel and rubber wheels that took two hours and 22 minutes. As the new Day Liner was heading for Calgary, guests on board sat back and watched in comfort as motorists on the Highway pushed their vehicles to the speed limit but were no match for the DL, which flashed by at a cruising speed of 75-85 miles per hour, but had to slow down to 50-70 to safely negotiate some of the 165 curves on the CPR main line. Unfortunately, one of the ongoing serious problems of the Day Liner system over the years was the many accidents, some fatal, that occurred at the hundreds of crossings along the way as the train approached at very high rates of speed, and quite often were obscured by the bright Alberta sun.
Outstanding features of the sleek and shiny new Day Liner included a smooth take-off from 0 to 45 miles an hour in one minute, disc brakes, air conditioning, large windows, foam rubber seats, and so much more. The new service carried no checked baggage mail or express, but overhead racks were provided for hand luggage. Eight of the nine stops on the daily Edmonton to Calgary run, including South Edmonton, Leduc, Wetaskiwin, Ponoka, Lacombe, Innisfail, Olds, and Didsbury were for only two minutes, so passengers had to be ready to hop on and hop off quickly, while the Red Deer stop took a little longer to allow for the exchange of the train crews.
The speedy Day Liner would run the Edmonton/Calgary Canadian Pacific Railway line until September 6, 1985 when it was discontinued due to declining passenger numbers. Fares at that time were $27 one way per person, but because of strong competition from the airlines and many other forms of transportation and new modern highway routes, the amazing and reliable service came to a halt after catering to thousands of passengers of all ages for 94 exciting years. A few large and very modern passenger trains still travel through the Rocky Mountains and across Canada today, but most railway lines are now packed with long and powerful freight trains roaring through on a 24-7 schedule from coast to coast. This colourful and historical era of train transportation has carried on across our province and nation for over a century, and despite so many changes, thank goodness that the shrill sound of the good old train whistle still remains in all its glory, although all would not agree with its grand tradition.