The first hydrogen-powered train in North America is taking riders on a two-and-a-half hour trip through central Quebec this summer.
It’s a demonstration that launched earlier this month to show how electricity stored as hydrogen can replace diesel fuel on railways where installing electrified rails or overhead wires would be challenging.
Advocates for the use of hydrogen in heavy transportation say it could raise awareness and boost confidence in the emerging technology in North America.
The tourist train made by French company Alstom runs from Montmorency Falls in Quebec City to Baie-Saint-Paul — partway along the Train de Charlevoix route — on Wednesday through Sunday until Sept. 30, carrying up to 120 people in two rail cars.
Nancy Belley, general manager of Réseau Charlevoix, the private railway that runs the train, says it’s an extraordinary chance for her company. She told CBC News in French that riding the train is like being in another world.
“When you think that you’ve left your car behind, and get on board a train that emits water vapour, you feel that you’re part of an important decarbonization movement in Quebec,” she said.
Nancy Belley, general manager of Réseau Charlevoix, which runs the route, says having the hydrogen train was an extraordinary chance for her company. (Louis-Philippe Arsenault/Radio-Canada)
The train uses about 50 kilograms of hydrogen a day, estimates Serge Harnois, CEO of Harnois Énergies, which supplies the fuel. That replaces about 500 litres of diesel that would be burned during the journey.
While fossil fuels may be peaking, “we are at the beginning of the history of hydrogen,” said Harnois.
Why the train is being tested in Quebec
The same model of train, known as the Coradia iLint, has previously carried passengers in eight European countries. Germany, purchased a version which uses Canadian-made fuel cells for a hydrogen-only route last year.
Belley says Alstom approached Réseau Charlevoix and Groupe Le Massif, which owns the rails, because it was looking for somewhere in North America to test its train. The Train de Charlevoix route was ideal as it already used European technology, and the new train was a good fit for the existing infrastructure.
Alstom said this week that the commercial operation of the train will allow it and its partners to see what’s needed to develop “an ecosystem for hydrogen propulsion technology” in North America.
The Quebec government said in February that it was investing $3 million in the $8 million project. At the time, Environment Minister Benoit Charette said it was part of the province’s plan for a green economy by 2030, which relies on hydrogen to decarbonize parts of the economy where conventionalelectrification isn’t possible.
Two passengers take in the view on the two-hour ride aboard the new hydrogen train. (Radio-Canada)
So far, Belley says, it seems like the North American regulations can work with a European train.
And, she says, it also appears that this technology lends itself well to low-density areas, like the rural Charlevoix region, where transportation might otherwise be harder to electrify.
Harnois rode on the train when it launched on June 17, and says it was very quiet and comfortable compared to the noisy diesel train with bad suspension that ran on that line before, spewing black smoke behind it.
Instead, the new train emits only water vapour.
The vapour is generated when the train takes hydrogen gas from its tank, combines it with oxygen in the air and combines that in a fuel cell to generate electricity.
The hydrogen-powered Train de Charlevoix runs Wednesday to Sunday until Sept. 30. (Virginie Ngo)
Alstom approached the company to supply hydrogen as it was able to bring the gas to the pressure needed for the purposes of this project.
A diesel-powered truck carries the hydrogen to the train station for refuelling.
But Harnois says the fuel would ideally one day be produced on site.
For refueling, the full hydrogen tank on the truck is connected to the empty tank on the train, and the pressure difference causes the hydrogen to flow from one to the other. A regulator controls the flow so it doesn’t get too hot. The fuelling takes about an hour.
The goal is for the train to eventually be able to run the full route, from Quebec City to La Malbaie. But Belley says that will require further testing, as that part of the railway is very curvy, and the hydrogen train’s wheels aren’t in the same place as those of its diesel predecessor.
The hydrogen is transported to the train in tanks by a diesel-powered truck. ( Sébastien Vachon/Radio-Canada)
Belley says the train will not return next summer, as it’s a demonstration unit that will travel to other cities.
However, she said the railway would like to buy one. “Because we know…we’ve confirmed that it’s the kind of train that could be green in a place like ours.”
Robert Stasko, executive director of the Ontario-based Hydrogen Business Council, said the launch of a hydrogen passenger train is “a very big deal.”
“I think the most important thing that’s going to come out of it is people’s awareness and comfort with the technology,” he said.
He said Alstom, which has already sold 41 hydrogen trains in Europe, hopes to gain a foothold in North America.
“We, of course, think it’s a great idea,” he said. “I’d love to see something like that in Ontario for instance, running between Union Station and Pearson Airport to replace the diesel-operated UP Express right now.”
He also hopes that familiarity with the train technology will make decision-makers consider hydrogen for other applications, such as long-haul trucking, where he sees the biggest opportunity.
Gord Lovegrove, an associate professor at the UBC School of Engineering in Kelowna, says, on one hand, the technology has already been proven in Europe.
On the other hand, the hydrogen Train de Charlevoix is a demonstration that still needs to get through the hurdle of being accepted by Canadian regulators.
And Canada still has other challenges, he said — ramping up green hydrogen production (most hydrogen in the country is produced from methane), reducing its cost, improving hydrogen storage and transport technology to make it more efficient and easier to handle, and training the workforce to maintain hydrogen vehicles.
“It’s not that difficult,” he said, “but it needs to start happening.”
Lovegrove is currently working on a hydrogen locomotive in partnership with Southern Railway of British Columbia. He hopes to begin testing components this summer, and have it in full commercial service next summer.
GUADALAJARA, Mexico – Canada’s Marina Stakusic fell 6-4, 6-3 to Poland’s Magdalena Frech in the quarterfinals of the Guadalajara Open tennis tournament on Friday.
The 19-year-old from Mississauga, Ont., won 61 per cent of her first-serve points and broke on just one of her six opportunities.
Stakusic had upset top-seeded Jelena Ostapenko of Latvia 6-3, 5-7, 7-6 (0) on Thursday night to advance.
In the opening round, Stakusic defeated Slovakia’s Anna Karolína Schmiedlová 6-2, 6-4 on Tuesday.
The fifth-seeded Frech won 62 per cent of her first-serve points and converted on three of her nine break point opportunities.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
TORONTO – Alejandro Kirk’s long single with the bases loaded provided the Toronto Blue Jays with a walk-off 4-3 win in the 11th inning of their series opener against the St. Louis Cardinals on Friday.
With the Cardinals outfield in, Kirk drove a shot off the base of the left-field wall to give the Blue Jays (70-78) their fourth win in 11 outings and halt the Cardinals’ (74-73) two-game win streak before 30,380 at Rogers Centre.
Kirk enjoyed a two-hit, two-RBI outing.
Erik Swanson (2-2) pitched a perfect 11th inning for the win, while Cardinals reliever Ryan Fernandez (1-5) took the loss.
Blue Jays starter Kevin Gausman enjoyed a seven-inning, 104-pitch outing. He surrendered his two runs on nine hits and two walks and fanned only two Cardinals.
He gave way to reliever Genesis Cabrera, who gave up a one-out homer to Thomas Saggese, his first in 2024, that tied the game in the eighth.
The Cardinals started swiftly with four straight singles to open the game. But they exited the first inning with only two runs on an RBI single to centre from Nolan Arendao and a fielder’s choice from Saggese.
Gausman required 28 pitches to escape the first inning but settled down to allow his teammates to snatch the lead in the fourth.
He also deftly pitched out of threats from the visitors in the fifth, sixth and seventh thanks to some solid defence, including Will Wagner’s diving stop, which led to a double play to end the fifth inning.
George Springer led off with a walk and stole second base. He advanced to third on Nathan Lukes’s single and scored when Vladimir Guerrero Jr. knocked in his 95th run with a double off the left-field wall.
Lukes scored on a sacrifice fly to left field from Spencer Horwitz. Guerrero touched home on Kirk’s two-out single to right.
In the ninth, Guerrero made a critical diving catch on an Arenado grounder to throw out the Cardinals’ infielder, with reliever Tommy Nance covering first. The defensive gem ended the inning with a runner on second base.
St. Louis starter Erick Fedde faced the minimum night batters in the first three innings thanks to a pair of double plays. He lasted five innings, giving up three runs on six hits and a walk with three strikeouts.
ON DECK
Toronto ace Jose Berrios (15-9) will start the second of the three-game series on Saturday. He has a six-game win streak.
The Cardinals will counter with righty Kyle Gibson (8-6).
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
CALGARY – Mired in their first four-game losing skid in 20 years, the Calgary Stampeders are going back to Jake Maier at quarterback on Saturday after he was benched for a game.
It won’t be an easy assignment.
Visiting McMahon Stadium are the Eastern Conference-leading Montreal Alouettes (10-2) who own the CFL’s best record. The Stampeders (4-8) have fallen to last in the Western Conference.
“Six games is plenty of time, but also it is just six games,” said Maier. “We’ve got to be able to get on the right track.”
Calgary is in danger of missing the playoffs for the first time since 2004.
“I do still believe in this team,” said Stampeders’ head coach and general manager Dave Dickenson. “I want to see improvement, though. I want to see guys on a weekly basis elevating their game, and we haven’t been doing that.”
Maier is one of the guys under the microscope. Two weeks ago, the second-year starter threw four interceptions in a 35-20 home loss to the Edmonton Elks.
After his replacement, rookie Logan Bonner, threw five picks in last week’s 37-16 loss to the Elks in Edmonton, the football is back in Maier’s hands.
“Any time you fail or something doesn’t go your way in life, does it stink in the moment? Yeah. But then the days go on and you learn things about yourself and you learn how to prepare a little bit better,” said Maier. “It makes you mentally tougher.”
Dickenson wants to see his quarterback making better decisions with the football.
“Things are going to happen, interceptions will happen, but try to take calculated risks, rather than just putting the ball up there and hoping that we catch it,” said Dickenson.
A former quarterback himself, he knows the importance of that vital position.
“You cannot win without good quarterback play,” Dickenson said. “You’ve got to be able to make some plays — off-schedule plays, move-around plays, plays that break down, plays that aren’t designed perfectly, but somehow you found the right guy, and then those big throws where you’re taking that hit.”
But it’s going to take a team effort, and that includes the club’s receiving corp.
“We always have to band together because we need everything to go right for our receivers to get the ball,” said Nik Lewis, the Stampeders’ receivers coach. “The running back has to pick up the blitz, the o-line has to block, the quarterback has to make the right reads, and then give us a catchable ball.”
Lewis brings a unique perspective to this season’s frustrations as he was a 22-year-old rookie in Calgary in 2004 when the Stamps went 4-14 under coach Matt Dunigan. They turned it around the next season and haven’t missed the playoffs since.”
“Thinking back and just looking at it, there’s just got to be an ultimate belief that you can get it done. Look at Montreal, they were 6-7 last year and they’ve gone 18-2 since then,” said Lewis.
Montreal is also looking to rebound from a 37-23 loss to the B.C. Lions last week. But for head coach Jason Maas, he says his team’s mindset doesn’t change, regardless of what happened the previous week.
“Last year when we went through a four-game losing streak, you couldn’t tell if we were on a four-game winning streak or a four-game losing streak by the way the guys were in the building, the way we prepared, the type of work ethic we have,” said Maas. “All our standards are set, so that’s all we focus on.”
While they may have already clinched a playoff spot, Alouettes’ quarterback Cody Fajardo says this closing stretch remains critical because they want to finish the season strong, just like last year when they won their final five regular-season games before ultimately winning the Grey Cup.
“It doesn’t matter about what you do at the beginning of the year,” said Fajardo. “All that matters is how you end the year and how well you’re playing going into the playoffs so that’s what these games are about.”
The Alouettes’ are kicking off a three-game road stretch, one Fajardo looks forward to.
“You understand what kind of team you have when you play on the road because it’s us versus the world mentality and you can feel everybody against you,” said Fajardo. “Plus, I always tend to find more joy in silencing thousands of people than bringing thousands of people to their feet.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
