^ That award takes an interesting loop. If I am reading it right, it asserts the OBRY is not federally regulated, but Ontario and Ottawa agreed that Ontario would delegate back to Ottawa the administration of certain aspects of provincial regulation. In that particular case, that brought the railway and the applicant back before the CTA rather than hearing the matter at the provincial level, and so the CTA was the body that issued the ruling.
That leaves the question of who would address an OBRY abandonment application, and by what legislation, rather up in the air.
- Paul
Exactly! The CTA wording that I emphasized last post *might be judged out of context* by the CTA itself and Superior Court, if that's where it ends up. What is pretty clear is that any ruling on the matter would have to come from a Federal court or legal agency like the CTA which is a de-facto court in legal standing.
To be clear, *in this instance* the ruling concerns level crossings, and the CTA ruling is absolute in that matter, save for an appeal to Superior Court as detailed in the Transportation Act, or ostensibly the Transport Minister through the Lieutenant in Council (effectively the same thing) who won't touch this with a ten foot Ford, while he covers his mouth to block the laughing.
The question isn't if the Feds have the power to block the Province's moves on their short sighted shortline legislation, the question is 'by how much'? I read this:
The Agency is of the opinion that this provides the Agency with express statutory jurisdiction over both the railway line (railway infrastructure) and the land that necessarily supports that railway infrastructure.
to mean all of it. But even if not, at the minimum, as long as those crossings exist, Queen's Park is stymied. It's akin to the Province stopping the Allen Expressway back in the Bill Davis day by claiming title to a one foot strip across the RoW. (My God how things have changed! Now it's the City that would claim the one foot strip!
Pretty juicy, ain't it? If it is Fed as it appears, it will take *at least* three years to dispose of it, and the order of doing so (who gets first, second, third, etc choice) is all laid out in the Transportation Act. And oddly, private buyers are *way down* the list.
I think
@ShonTron got this exactly right. It will be trail, and with the OBRY (effectively Orangeville Council) calling the shots as to how, when and why. I can't see it being anything other than trail, connect that to the Elora-Cataract and up into Orangeville (and beyond) and it will bring tourists into town. That would be one of Ontario's 'cadillac' trails! Ontario's Erie Canal trail. The south end could be snapped up by Brampton for a transit corridor, but even starting as a 'rail trail' from Brampton Station, this would be a recreation trail supreme for the GTHA to connect up to many others.
it asserts the OBRY is not federally regulated
I read it as *is* federally regulated by the CTA's wording, in entirety, but is provincially chartered. That is the point of contention, but as stated, even the crossings alone being Federally regulated throws the kibosh into Ford's Kerfuffle Act. I've sent off details to get an opinion on it.
Mandate of the Agency
(1) The Canadian Transportation Agency (Agency) is an independent, quasi-judicial, expert tribunal and regulator which has, with respect to all matters necessary for the exercise of its jurisdiction, all the powers of a superior court.
https://www.otc-cta.gc.ca/eng/code-conduct-members-agency
Any appeal is to the Federal Court of Appeal.
