Via Community News Service, a University of Vermont journalism internship
BURLINGTON – Until 1995, travelers all along Vermont’s railroads could hop on the train and head up north to Canada. After a three-decade hiatus, a revival of a passenger train route is in the works, connecting major metro centers in D.C. and New York City to Montreal through Vermont communities like Brattleboro, Montpelier, Burlington and St. Albans.
The Ethan Allen Express, a train line that connects Burlington to New York City, was the first direct link between the two cities in decades, running down the western side of Vermont before extending through New York State.
Now, the Vermont Agency of Transportation is turning its attention to our neighbors to the north. In June 2025, the agency released a rail plan outlining its upcoming project. The proposed route would be an extension of the Vermonter route, a train line spanning the Connecticut River Valley before terminating in St. Albans.
The project is still in the beginning stages, but according to Rail Bureau Director Dan Delabruere, the agency is focused on extending the Ethan Allen route to kickstart the connection to Canada.
“Once we accomplished that goal, now we’re moving on to our next goal, which is to restore service back to Montreal. So that’s kind of how it’s laid out in the rail plan.”
The plan doesn’t come without its own set of unique challenges.
“Montreal has a lot of the pieces sort of out of our control,” Dalebrue said. “When it’s in a different country, you’ve gotta cross borders, so you have to get both border protection agencies involved because you’re gonna have passengers going in both directions in and out of both countries. So it gets more complicated when you’re crossing the border.”
Vermont is well-positioned in that regard. The existing rail infrastructure via freight train rails already exists between St. Albans and Montreal, according to Delabruere. The biggest hurdle? Clearing passengers who board the train before they cross the border.
“There are a lot of these things that are out of our control. We can’t really control the narrative in another country. We continue to have productive meetings with the province of Quebec and Amtrak, and you know, moving slowly towards a facility,” said Delabruere.
A pre-clearance station must be built in Montreal for travelers entering the U.S. via the Vermonter line. The United States Customs and Border Protection Office could not be reached for a comment.
As Delabruere describes it, the project will be broken into three phases.
“Phase one is sort of identifying your corridor and what you have in it, and then number two is sort of what [infrastructure] do you have — what condition is it in? What do you have in sort of a state of good repair and all that stuff? And then number three is identifying projects. We’re only in phase one. We’re only identifying what we have.”
Connecting Vermont and Montreal could have significant implications for the communities along the Ethan Allen Express route, especially for St. Albans, where the train currently terminates. Dominic Cloud, St. Albans City Manager, is excited about the potential impact a rail extension could have in his city.
“It’s transformational,” he said. “The city’s long had a relationship with Canadian tourists and business travelers, and this connection’s been on the strategic wishlist for a generation.”
The ripple effects of cross-border tourism are also enticing for the community.
“I would put it all under economics. Economic development thrives on people — the free and efficient exchange of people and goods… If people can access your community easily, it’s always a win-win,” said Cloud.
But not every community would potentially benefit from the extended route.
For communities like Swanton, a town north of the St. Albans station, the change would have fewer ramifications. Town Manager Brian Savage was skeptical that the train would have major effects on Swanton.
“It’s probably more impactful to a place like St. Albans or Essex, where people are already traveling to and from more often…I don’t think it would be a big economic driver for this community in particular.”
Increased passenger traffic between D.C., New York and Montreal could mean more tourism for smaller Vermont towns along the route.
“There are 1.8 million people who live in Montreal, right? So that’s a big hub to draw people into Vermont,” Delabruere said. “For Vermonters, Montreal is a destination. So I think, you know, it’s a pretty big attraction for Vermonters to go north.”
But accessibility to major U.S. cities south of Vermont is just as enticing for the state.
“This train [is not] just for Vermont. It goes into Massachusetts and Connecticut and all the way down to D.C. So yeah, New York City to Philadelphia, down to D.C. So you know, this train would definitely serve Vermonters, but it would expand beyond.”
The passenger line remains a long-term goal more than it does a near-term reality. Neither Savage nor Cloud has been in touch with the Vermont Agency of Transportation to begin the process. The project remains in its infancy and likely won’t be completed for many years.
“There has to be some engineering done to make sure that the existing station can fit all the stuff that both U.S. Customs and Canadian Customs need, plus what Amtrak needs. So it takes time… You’re gonna ask me what the timeline is, and I’m gonna say, I don’t know,” said Delabruere.