SASKATOON – Many farmers see short-line railways as a way to keep trains running on branch lines that major rail companies want to get rid of.
But in an ironic reversal of roles, both short lines now operating in Western Canada have recently abandoned, or begun preparing to abandon, parts of their mini-networks.
Earlier this year, Southern Rails Co-operative, which had been operating two lines in southern Saskatchewan, abandoned its Colony subdivision in order to focus its energies on running the more profitable Avonlea subdivision.
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Sections under review
And in Alberta, Central Western Railway Corp. abandoned the east end of its Lacombe subdivision and is reviewing the future of parts of its Stettler subdivision.
“We’re waiting to see what happens with the elevators on the (Stettler) line,” said Tom Payne, president of CWRC.
He said despite rumors, the company has not filed an abandonment application to the Alberta Energy and Utility board on any of the Stettler subdivision.
“You have to wait on your shippers on something like this,” he said. “If the shippers all close, it makes the decision pretty easy.”
Only five of the original 11 elevators on the Stettler line remain open. The two latest to close were Edberg and Meeting Creek, shut down by Alberta Wheat Pool after it opened a large new facility at nearby Legacy Junction.
Without sufficient traffic density, said Payne, it’s impossible for a regional railway to stay in business.
Two years ago, the east end of the Coronation line handled more than 20,000 tonnes of traffic. Last year, in the nine months prior to abandonment, it handled 20 cars. “You can’t survive on that,” he said.
Southern Rails general manager Paul Beingessner said the decision to close the Colony line was unavoidable. There were no delivery points on the 40 kilometre stretch of track, which was used strictly for producer cars. Traffic had declined and fixed costs on the line were eating up profits generated by the Avonlea subdivision.
“There’s no question if we had continued to operate it, we wouldn’t be here any more,” said Beingessner. Proceeds from the salvage sale of the line allowed the railway to pay off most of its debt.
While the decision to close the line was supported by an overwhelming majority of co-op members, a number of farmers shipping producer cars were upset enough to try unsuccessfully to get a court injunction to block the abandonment.
“Losing that service pulls $10,000 out of my pocket,” said Rocke Stewart of Rockglen, Sask. a co-op member who fought to save the line last spring.
Gone when needed most
Southern Rail retained a small section of the track adjacent to the CP main line and put in equipment to help producers load their own cars, but Stewart said it was little help. He added with a big cereal crop in the offing, producer car shipments would likely have been up this year. “Just when we could use it, it’s gone.”
In another irony, just as the two short lines are abandoning portions of their network, both are also exploring expansion.
Southern Rails is talking with CN Rail about buying the north end of the Avonlea subdivision from Avonlea to the main line at Moose Jaw, while Central Western is looking at some lines in Eastern Canada.
Beingessner said there have been preliminary discussions with CN, but “it’s going very slowly.”
He added while it makes sense for Southern Rails to take over the rest of the line, negotiating a deal won’t be easy. He’d like to see the transfer take place well before the end of the current crop year.
Payne said CWRC will look at short line candidates on a case by case basis.
