The LRC (a bilingual acronym: in English: Light, Rapid, Comfortable; in French: Léger, Rapide, et Confortable) is a series of lightweight diesel-powered passenger trains that were used on short- to medium-distance inter-city service in the Canadian Provinces of Ontario and Quebec.
LRC was designed to run with locomotives, or power cars, at both ends and provide 125 mph (201 km/h) service on non-upgraded railway routes. To accomplish this, the LRC passenger cars feature active-tilt technology to reduce the forces on the passengers when a train travels at high speeds through curves. LRCs have reached speeds as high as 130 mph (210 km/h) on test runs.
On its only regular service route, on the Quebec City–Windsor Corridor, wear concerns, signalling issues and conflicts with slower-moving freight trains limit this to 100 mph (160 km/h) or less. For service at these speeds, a single power car was used. Special signage allowed the LRC to run at higher speeds than normal traffic across a great portion of the Corridor when the tilt system was enabled.
The LRC locomotives and passenger cars are compatible with conventional equipment. While the last LRC locomotive was removed from service on 12 December 2001, the passenger cars are still in widespread use and form the backbone of Via Rail's services, albeit with the tilt system disabled. The same basic car forms the basis of the Acela in the U.S.