Ottawa - CP Rail System has asked the National Transportation Agency (NTA) to rescind abandonment orders on the railway's Chalk River and North Bay subdivisions that were to take effect 19 Nov 1996.

The railway said the lines, running from Smiths Falls to Mattawa, Ontario, and together forming the CPRS Ottawa Valley route, are being reassessed.

Daily freight service along the route will continue pending the outcome of the review, in which the company is actively exploring ways to reduce the cost of the operation.

Almost all freight travelling the line is non-local in origin and destination.

Freight service had been marked for abandonment under the terms of an NTA-approved partnership agreement with Canadian National Railways to establish a single shared rail route on CN's track through the Ottawa Valley.

The railways had hoped to begin partnership operations in June 1994, but court appeals against the NTA decision and environmental requirements associated with three proposed track connections delayed its implementation indefinitely. The agreement was terminated earlier this year.

NTA approval of its latest request would allow the railway to continue operations beyond the previous 19 Nov 1996 abandonment date, but CPR says high costs still plague the Ottawa Valley route.