While the concept of a regional railway appeals to some prairie farmers and shippers, the politics and mechanics involved in current proposals are daunting.
“It’s not going to be easy,” said John Edsforth, transportation consultant with Travacon Research Ltd.
Edsforth studied the feasibility of a regional railway in Manitoba and Saskatchewan and prepared a report for those provinces.
To be successful, a regional railway must have the blessing and interest of CN or CP Rail, said Edsforth.
While the major railways have not ruled out working with a regional railway, they have been cold toward OmniTrax Ltd’s CanRail West proposal and they object to the concept of sharing their main lines with other railways.
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However, Edsforth speculated railways may be interested in negotiating running rights in exchange for less regulation.
Regulating or forcing the railways to accept a regional partner would only result in complex and inefficient operations, he said.
To save wear and tear on highways, preserve branch lines and help small communities, a regional railway would have to work closely with one or more grain companies owning elevators on its lines, said Edsforth.
But grain companies are keen to consolidate their handling at high-volume elevators along main lines, rather than keeping open smaller facilities on branch lines.
Travacon contacted Agricore, Cargill, James Richardson International, N.M. Paterson and Sons, Saskatchewan Wheat Pool, United Grain Growers and the Western Grain Elevator Association as part of its study.
An alternative grain handling system could fill the void, said Edsforth, based on the pilot project that loaded large runs of producer cars by farmers, the Saskatchewan government and Canadian Wheat Board.
Canola crushers and special crops handlers support the concept of regional railways, Edsforth said.
“They have great fears that they’re going to lose rail service at points important to them.”
