Coalition argues that the 18-month initiative planned by Ottawa needs to be broader and last for a longer period of time
A coalition of grain and oilseed groups wants the extended rail interswitching pilot project announced in this year’s federal budget to be bigger.
A campaign called Flip the Switch has launched at interswitching.ca to encourage producers and shippers to contact their members of Parliament to voice their support.
Pulse Canada vice-president of corporate affairs Greg Northey said the industry supports a pilot project but wants it to be as effective as possible.
“There’s two aspects that we wanted to reinforce,” Northey said. “A, that the overall concept, we’re very supportive of extended interswitching, and especially within a minority Parliament, there’s a certain level here where it’s going to be important that as many MPs as possible understand the value of this particular concept of extended interswitching and the competition it can bring,” he said, noting the railways oppose the idea.
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He said the grain sector had a similar project a few years ago that ran for three years and this new pilot should be longer.
Extended interswitching from 30 to 160 kilometres was in place from 2014-17 while the Fair Rail for Grain Farmers Act was in place.
Interswitching commits a rail carrier to pick up cars from a shipper, and move product to a junction with another railway, if that junction is within the allowable distance.
Now, shippers and producers want a five-year pilot project with a distance of 500 km. They said all North American railways should be able to participate to integrate the market and shorten travel distances. And, the campaign said the government should invest in rural rail infrastructure that accommodates larger trains and expands interchange use.
Northey said the planned 18-month pilot is too short and if another project is to be implemented, it should be as extensive as possible.
“We may as well, to make it fair both from a legislative standpoint and from a stakeholder perspective, extend it to a distance by which anybody in the Prairies who has a facility on single rail line could participate,” he said.
Proponents of extended interswitching say it adds value by increasing competition, improving efficiency and expanding access for Canadian goods.
The campaign website refutes what it calls myths about extended interswitching, namely that it slows rail movement by one or two days and adds costs. These were among the complaints from the Railway Association of Canada after the budget announcement.
Northey said the pilot could be in place for the next crop year, if it gains enough support.
The Canadian Transportation Agency has not released details on the pilot project beyond what was listed in the budget documents.
