Cam Goff is looking for help in his battle with Canadian National Railway.
The Hanley, Sask., farmer has filed a complaint with the Canadian Transportation Agency against CN’s plan to delist 53 producer car loading stations.
The complaint asks the agency to halt the delisting and prevent the railway from removing track and switches from the sites.
In an interview last week, Goff, who is also an elected director with the Canadian Wheat Board, said he hopes others will support his complaint.
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“I’m really hoping that others will intervene,” he said.
“It’s going to be far harder for the CTA to blow me off if you’ve got various farm groups and organizations saying ‘yes, we want a say in this.’ ”
CN triggered a storm of protest when it announced earlier this fall that it was delisting 53 producer car loading sites on the Prairies.
The rail company says the stations are not being used and it is responding to signals from its customers. It added 120 sites would remain open.
Farm groups and politicians protested the railway’s decision and CN agreed to keep the tracks and switches in place until Jan. 1, 2010, to allow farmers or other groups time to make business proposals for the sites.
Goff said that’s not good enough, noting that the railway could start removing infrastructure from sites as early as next week.
“If they ever take out switches or rail, you can kiss that site goodbye forever,” he said. “Given the cost of reinstalling all that, it simply won’t happen.”
In his application, Goff asked the CTA to move quickly given the time constraints.
CN spokesperson Kelli Svendsen declined to comment on Goff’s service complaint, but said the railway’s position remains unchanged
Most of the stations have not been used during the past few years, she said.
She added that despite the publicity, CN has received no business proposals for any of the sites.
“CN has not received an expression of interest to use or lease any of the 53 stations since we began the delisting process,” she said.
Under current regulations, a railway must publish a list of all sidings available for producer car loadings. It can unilaterally remove a station from the list with 60 days notice.
Goff’s complaint asks the CTA to establish a new process that will allow for input from affected stakeholders, although he acknowledged that might not be within the agency’s purview.
He added he’s skeptical about CN’s statements regarding business at the 53 stations.
“There’s no doubt quite a few haven’t had any producer cars, but I know for a fact some did,’ he said.
Goff added that provincial and federal governments should get more involved in the fight to save the loading sites.
