The unification of Canada by settlers happened from east to west at least in part because of the transcontinental railway. The essential condition for British Columbia to join the Canadian Confederation was the promise of a railroad. The first passenger trains of Canadian Pacific Railway leaving Montréal arrived in British Columbia on July 1886 in Port Moody and on May 1887 in Vancouver. The railway was instrumental in developing Canada through the transportation of goods and people. As the only means of transport for many years, it created communities and facilitated the communication between urban centres, as well as the moving of population. It made possible the expansion into the West, selling immigrants the dream of a new life in a new country. It was also indispensable during the two world wars to send troops and goods across the country.