Farmers shipping producer cars will have to start watching their weight after Jan. 1.
That’s not because of any New Year’s resolutions to lose a few pounds around the middle.
Rather, it’s the weight of the rail cars they’re loading that they’ll be watching more carefully.
Canadian National Railway is increasing the fees it charges for overloaded or improperly loaded rail cars.
In cases where the railway determines it is unsafe to complete a trip, the shipper will be charged $10,000 per car, up from the current level of $1,560.
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The car will be parked and the shipper will be responsible for retrieving it and correcting the problem.
If a car is overloaded but judged able to safely complete its trip, the penalty will be $1,000.
The new penalties apply to all shippers, including commercial grain companies and producer car shippers. However, the financial hit would probably hurt an individual farmer more than it would a grain company.
CN spokesperson Kevin Franchuk said the reason for the increase is to ensure cars can be moved safely from origin to destination.
“Like every shipper, producer car loaders have a responsibility to know how much product they’re putting in relative to the capacity limits stenciled on the side of the rail car,” he said.
He emphasized that the vast majority of shippers, including producer car shippers, follow the rules and load their cars properly.
The size of the penalty charge reflects the costs incurred by the railway in dealing with overloaded cars and the need to send a message to shippers to take the issue seriously.
Not all cars have the same load capacity, so producer car shippers should check before they load. If the weight limit printed on the car number is unclear, they should contact CN and provide it with the car number.
The railway will then be able to provide the car’s weight specifications.
No information was available at deadline for this article as to whether Canadian Pacific Railway is changing its charges for overloaded cars.
