Alouette (train)

The Alouette was a passenger train jointly operated by the Boston and Maine Railroad and the Canadian Pacific Railway between Montreal, Quebec and Boston, Massachusetts.[1] The Alouette began service on April 26, 1926, operating on a daytime schedule with coach and parlor car service.[1] At Newport, Vermont passengers could transfer to Quebec Central Railway trains bound for Sherbrooke and Quebec City. For passengers originating from Boston on the night train counterpart north, the Red Wing (#325/#302), the train would join with the New York-Quebec City Connecticut Yankee to complete the trip to Quebec City.[2]

Alouette

Overview
Service type	Inter-city rail
Status	Discontinued
Locale	Northeastern United States/Quebec
First service	April 26, 1926
Last service	1956
Former operator(s)	Boston & Maine Canadian Pacific Railway
Route
Termini	Boston, Massachusetts Montreal, Quebec
Distance travelled	338.7 miles (545.1 km) (1949)
Average journey time	10 hours, 40 minutes (northbound) 10 hours, 15 minutes (southbound)
Service frequency	Daily
Train number(s)	5 (B&M), 211 (CP) (northbound) 20 (B&M), 212 (CP) (southbound)
On-board services
Seating arrangements	Coach seating
Catering facilities	Buffet parlor car, only in CP section (1949)
Technical
Track gauge	4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm)
Route map 0 mi Montreal 2 mi 3 km Westmount 5 mi 8 km Montreal West 30 mi 48 km St. Johns 43 mi 69 km Farnham 56 mi 90 km Cowansville 69 mi 111 km Sutton 74 mi 119 km Abercorn QC, CA VT, US 77 mi 124 km Richford VT QC 85 mi 137 km Glenton 91 mi 146 km Highwater QC VT 94 mi 151 km North Troy 108 mi 174 km Newport 117 mi 188 km Orleans 122 mi 196 km Barton 135 mi 217 km West Burke 143 mi 230 km Lyndonville 151 mi 243 km St. Johnsbury pre-1954 route 158 mi 254 km Inwood 161 mi 259 km Barnet 164 mi 264 km McIndoes 172 mi 277 km Wells River 185 mi 298 km Bradford 191 mi 307 km Fairlee 198 mi 319 km Thetford 208 mi 335 km Norwich 212 mi 341 km White River Junction VT NH Woodsville Plymouth Ashland Meredith Laconia Tilton 217 mi 349 km Lebanon 230 mi 370 km Canaan 251 mi 404 km Potter Place 263 mi 423 km Franklin 282 mi 454 km Concord 299 mi 481 km Manchester 316 mi 509 km Nashua NH MA 323 mi 520 km Tyngsboro 329 mi 529 km Lowell 347 mi 558 km Winchester 355 mi 571 km Boston

Until late 1954, the train operated over Canadian Pacific trackage to Wells River, Vermont, where it entered the Boston and Maine for the remainder of the way to Boston via Plymouth, New Hampshire and Concord, New Hampshire on the division that the B&M had acquired with the purchase of the Concord and Montreal Railroad in 1895.[1] After the Boston and Maine abandoned its trackage north of Plymouth, the train was rerouted via White River Junction, Vermont. The train continued to travel via Wells River, St. Johnsbury and Newport, Vermont, before completing the trip to Vermont.[1][3]

In 1956, the Alouette switched to using Budd Rail Diesel Cars, eliminating the buffet-parlor car. The train lost its name and its original number and became #31 north and #32 south and it no longer had food concession service. The overnight Red Wing was numbered #29/#30 and retained its sleeping cars and only offered breakfast exclusively to its sleeping car passengers.[1][4][5] The overnight Red Wing had its last run on October 24, 1959. From April 25, 1965, the Boston & Maine pulled out of its cooperation, and the Alouette successor #31/32 only operated on the Canadian Pacific Railway's Montreal to Wells River, Vermont segment. That remaining segment ended service on October 30, 1965. This ended a tradition of Boston to Montreal trains, dating back to 1887.[6]