City spearheads effort to keep short line railway beyond 2010

Written by jrood

Supporters of a northeastern Ontario short line railway are laying the groundwork to keep a vital Sault Ste. Marie-to-Sudbury transportation link open past next year, Northern Ontario Business reports. 

The City of Sault Ste. Marie is spearheading a regional effort to keep the Huron Central Railway operating beyond August 2010 or find another carrier willing to service industry along the 300-kilometer (186-mile) long track.



A proposal call to select a
shortline operator will go out at the end of October with an assessment likely
made by late January, said City of Sault Ste. Marie Chief Administrative
Officer Joe Fratesi, who is chairing a special railroad working group of
industry and community stakeholders.



"We have no guarantee
that Huron Central will stay on past August of next year and we do, however,
have an obligation to let (the railway) put its best foot forward on a
long-term operation before we entertain other proposals."



Fratesi said this
competitive bid process may be pre-empted if a good offer comes forward from
the Huron Central. "If they come up with a (good) arrangement, they likely
could be seen as a preferred carrier."



The city, Essar Steel
Algoma, Domtar bought themselves a one-year reprieve last summer after striking
a $15.9-million deal with the Montreal-based rail company to underwrite their
operating costs until the agreement expires Aug. 15, 2010. The railway came
within hours of dropping freight service to Sault Ste. Marie and Espanola. 

The
two companies have also committed an undisclosed volume of freight.



Key to the deal is the flow
of $33 million in government infrastructure money to repair badly deteriorating
track that has slowed transit times for freight and undermines Sault Ste.
Marie’s efforts to attract container cargo traffic.

 Under government funding
rules, Fratesi said there’s no way all that money could be spent by March 2011,
the date when these kinds of infrastructure stimulus projects must be
completed. So only $12 million will be parceled out next spring for either the
Huron Central or another railway operator to use.

 The rest of $21 million
will be spent over the next few years in a second round of infrastructure
funding.



The Northern Ontario
Heritage Fund is providing an immediate boost of $1.5 million to help repair
ties, rails and bridges on the track. FedNor has promised to match that money.



Fratesi said for the rail
line to succeed, it’s incumbent on North Shore communities to do their part to
generate additional rail freight business.



"The fact that communities
between the Sault and Sudbury realized the possibility of losing their rail
line has woken up a sleeping giant for them to go out and promote new business
(opportunities)."



Fratesi said there are new
developments along the North Shore being talked about and those mayors and
economic development officials must promote the use of rail to ensure its
success and keep excess transport trucks from rumbling through their towns.



Canadian Pacific Railway,
the owners of the line, said last summer they had no intention of taking over
operations and were prepared to file for abandonment. 

Fratesi said during a
September meeting in the Sault, CP officials were "impressed with what we were
able to do and said that we have done everything that they could have expected
us to do to turn their thinking around."



He added CP must be part of
the framing of the proposal call because no carrier is going to come forward
without its commitment to be part of a solution. To help with the proposal
call, Fratesi said the city has also retained two lawyers who are experts in
salvaging shortline railroads across Ontario.

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