[khris]

Metrolinx buys Toronto-Barrie CN rail line

Metrolinx, the provincial Crown corporation responsible for the Toronto-area commuter rail system, has bought a rail line from railway giant CN for $68 million.

Metrolinx said Tuesday it had acquired the lower portion of the Newmarket rail subdivision in central-north Toronto from Montreal-based CN, Canada's largest rail company.

The transaction gives Metrolinx full ownership of the 96-kilometre-long Barrie-Bradford GO Train corridor between downtown Toronto and Barrie, Ont., the provincial transit agency said in a release.

Go Transit, the operating division of Metrolinx, provides commuter rail and bus services in the Toronto area of southern Ontario.

"This transaction marks a milestone for the agency, giving us — for the first time — end-to-end ownership of a GO Transit rail line," said Metrolinx president and chief executive Robert Prichard, a past president and chief executive of Torstar Corp., owner of the Toronto Star newspaper and other publishing and media properties.

"This transaction with CN — an important partner of ours — will permit improvements to service between Toronto and Barrie and points in-between. Improved commuter rail and mass transit are vital to easing traffic congestion and air pollution in the [Toronto area] while improving the productivity and economic competitiveness of the region," Prichard said.

Claude Mongeau, CN's executive vice-president and incoming president and CEO, said the transaction generates value for the company.

"CN is pleased to have reached this sales agreement with Metrolinx. We have close ties with GO — most of its services in the Greater Toronto Area operate over CN's network — and we see our partnership with GO and Metrolinx continuing to drive the environmental benefits of rail in the Toronto region."

Under its sales agreement with Metrolinx, CN will continue to serve five freight customers on the lower Newmarket subdivision rail line between Highway 401 and CN's main east-west freight corridor.

 

[TOareaFan]

Maybe I have missed them....but what always seems to be missing in these rail purchase agreements are words to the effect of "CN will continue to utilize the line and will pay GO/Metrolinx $X per year for the right"

Surely we, the taxpayer, are not just purchasing the lines from CN, taking over the ongoing maintenance and then letting them continue to use them for free? Are we?

If that were so, Claude Mongeau's comment that "the transaction generates value for the company." is a bit of an understatement!...no?

 

[DavidH]

CN has a map showing all GO-owned lines and theirs. It does leave the CP-owned Milton line off, of course but it still serves as a nice summary of the current state of ownership.

 

[DSC]

There is another map, with the CP lines here: http://www.proximityissues.ca/Maps/RAC-2004-Toronto_sub.pdf

Found thanks to the Transit Toronto site: http://transit.toronto.on.ca/

 

[DavidH]

There is another map, with the CP lines here: http://www.proximityissues.ca/Maps/RAC-2004-Toronto_sub.pdf

It's worth noting that it's from 2004 so it doesn't show current GO ownership on Newmarket and Weston subs. The CN map is up to date as of today.

However, the other map is terrific for seeing *all* of the lines in the GTA regardless of ownership, and well worth looking at.

 

[smallspy]

Maybe I have missed them....but what always seems to be missing in these rail purchase agreements are words to the effect of "CN will continue to utilize the line and will pay GO/Metrolinx $X per year for the right"

Surely we, the taxpayer, are not just purchasing the lines from CN, taking over the ongoing maintenance and then letting them continue to use them for free? Are we?

If that were so, Claude Mongeau's comment that "the transaction generates value for the company." is a bit of an understatement!...no?

It may not explicitly say it, but CN does have to pay for wheelage/tonnage rights to use the track. On the Newmarket Sub, that's not an awful lot as there are virtually no industries south of Wilson, but it is on the Weston Sub.

I'm sure that CN is also getting a break on the costs though, as they still provide dispatching for GO on those lines.

Dan
Toronto, Ont.

 

[TOareaFan]

It may not explicitly say it, but CN does have to pay for wheelage/tonnage rights to use the track. On the Newmarket Sub, that's not an awful lot as there are virtually no industries south of Wilson, but it is on the Weston Sub.

I'm sure that CN is also getting a break on the costs though, as they still provide dispatching for GO on those lines.

Dan
Toronto, Ont.

It might help with the PR exercise that public transit has to go through if they would announce/advertise/promote the concepts that the (in this case) $68 million expenditure gives not only greater control of what happens on the line (I presume the "freight has priority" stance changes once the passenger service owns the track...?) but it also brings something of an income stream (however minor).

 

[vegeta_skyline]

Called it http://www.urbantoronto.ca/showpost.php?p=296198&postcount=1171
It cost less then expected, a good sign for future purchases.

Next up the Oakville sub Up until Canpa (mile 1.3 - 8.4) followed by the Kingston sub to Durham Jct. (mile 332.4 - 314.0).
Then nothing for a while.

 

[EnviroTO]

You don't think Bala Subdivision to Doncaster will be on the priority list? I don't think CN has any customers on this section.

 

[smallspy]

It cost less then expected, a good sign for future purchases.

And yet, still far more than the section north of Snider.

I realize that buying the lines allows them to call the shots (to a degree), but at what cost? All that money could have been spent on upgrades to the lines, or new equipment, or enhanced service, etc. And even with the purchases, dispatching is still in the hands of CN (for better or for worse).

Next up the Oakville sub Up until Canpa (mile 1.3 - 8.4) followed by the Kingston sub to Durham Jct. (mile 332.4 - 314.0).
Then nothing for a while.

Actually, next up is the Bala up to Doncaster - it was supposed to be purchased by the end of last year along with the Weston and the Newmarket Subs (although we now see how that's gone).

I hope they have a lot of money put aside for the Oakville and the Kingston Subs......those ain't gonna be cheap.

Dan
Toronto, Ont.

 

[Dan416]

What should be up for purchase is the Milton line. What is Metrolinx doing sitting on its ass while it's 2nd busisest line after Lakeshore gets little to no rail improvements in like 10 years? When I was in university, there were 6 trains in, 6 trains out. Now there's 7 trains in, 7 trans out. I hardly call that progress. Why can't they prioritize? They should focus on the line that could attain Lakeshore ridership quickest, and that'd be Milton.

 

[hwy7]

It might help with the PR exercise that public transit has to go through if they would announce/advertise/promote the concepts that the (in this case) $68 million expenditure gives not only greater control of what happens on the line (I presume the "freight has priority" stance changes once the passenger service owns the track...?) but it also brings something of an income stream (however minor).

Personally, I would like to know more about the actual benefits of buying a line. I was told by a CN employee that the "freight has priority" stance can only change so much. He cited the long stopping distance of freight trains as one of the reasons for this.

 

[doady]

What should be up for purchase is the Milton line. What is Metrolinx doing sitting on its ass while it's 2nd busisest line after Lakeshore gets little to no rail improvements in like 10 years? When I was in university, there were 6 trains in, 6 trains out. Now there's 7 trains in, 7 trans out. I hardly call that progress. Why can't they prioritize? They should focus on the line that could attain Lakeshore ridership quickest, and that'd be Milton.

Milton corridor is still heavily used for freight so I don't think Metrolinx can buy it. $68 million isn't really that much. I don't know how much Milton can actually be improved for that amount of money.

 

[TOareaFan]

Personally, I would like to know more about the actual benefits of buying a line. I was told by a CN employee that the "freight has priority" stance can only change so much. He cited the long stopping distance of freight trains as one of the reasons for this.

If that is the case, then I agree with the question "why do this?" If they get minimal income (as someone else suggested) and it does not change the priority on track usage (as you are suggesting)....why would we through money into ownership as opposed to upgrading the corridors (even if we are just upgrading someone else's property).

 

[Prometheus The Supremo]

is there any plans on adding a second track, either in certain segments or for the whole length?

are there any plans for more stations on this line within toronto? i think a good candidate would be a station on eglinton with a connection to the eglinton LRT.