1 January 2010

CP Ends Lease Agreement with Ottawa Valley Railway

Arnprior Ontario - The future of one Ottawa Valley rail line is in question, while another looks promising.
 
On 18 Dec 2009, Rail America Inc., the parent company of Ottawa Valley Railway (OVR), announced it has closed on a transaction with Canadian Pacific (CP) to terminate its lease of the OVR line.
As a result, Canadian Pacific now has 60 days as per the Canadian Transportation Act to decide if train service will be restored on the line once OVR has cleared its remaining cars off the line.
 
Depending on what it decides, the rail line could be abandoned by CP.
 
The rail line stretches from Smiths Falls to Sudbury.
 
The Chalk River subdivision is the track that comes right through Valley towns like Carleton Place, Arnprior, and Renfrew.
 
According to a press release, RailAmerica Inc. received $73 million (Canadian funds) in gross proceeds as part of the terms of the agreement.
 
"The OVR operation consists of 342 mainline miles of track and primarily transports bridge traffic, chemicals, and pulp and paper products," stated a RailAmerica Inc. press release.
 
The issue came up for discussion at the 21 Dec 2009 Arnprior town council meeting when CAO Larry Donaldson presented council with the press release and an e-mail from Canadian Pacific.
 
"CP wants to consult with municipalities," Donaldson stated, adding CP recognizes the importance of the rail line in the communities it passes through.
 
"CP is looking for a fairly quick turnaround for meeting with municipalities in which the rail line passes through."
 
In an e-mail from CP manager to community relations Rick Poznikoff to Donaldson, Poznikoff indicated CP, which wants to review its position and next steps, is available for meeting the week of 4 Jan 2010.
 
As such, Donaldson suggested the town look to set up a meeting for 5 or 6 Jan 2010.
 
"We should anticipate we will be having a meeting with CP in the new year," Donaldson stated.
 
Transportation Pontiac-Renfrew
 
The CAO noted that the rail line in question is not the same line as the old CN Beachburg line that Transportation Renfrew-Pontiac is looking to take over and operate as a community, tourism, and freight line.
 
"This is not the line to go to Ottawa. There is value in this line (CP line) but its commuter value is dubious at best," mayor Terry Gibeau stated.
 
Gibeau, who is a founding member of Transportation Pontiac-Renfrew, said the CP situation does have "implications" on the local initiative and was scheduled to take part in a conference call the morning of 22 Dec 2009 to discuss the matter.
 
As for that initiative, it received some good news December when with Minister of Foreign Affairs, Minister responsible for the Outaouais, and Member of Parliament for Pontiac, Lawrence Cannon announced that the federal government will provide Transport Pontiac-Renfrew with a contribution for a feasibility study under the National Infrastructure Knowledge Component (NIKC) of the Building Canada Fund (BCF).
 
This study will include a business case on the feasibility of a commuter train service between the regional county municipality of Pontiac, Renfrew County, and the City of Ottawa.
 
"This project to assess the feasibility of a commuter train service linking the regional county municipality of Pontiac (in Quebec) and Renfrew County (in Ontario) to the City of Ottawa, to be carried out by Transport Pontiac-Renfrew, will contribute to the future development of this region.
 
By investing in this study, our government can better plan transport solutions so that families benefit from quality infrastructure and the regional economy develops, particularly in tourism.
 
Thus, we create world-class infrastructure for Canada through applied research," he said in a press release.
 
The total cost of the project is estimated at $272,000.
 
The federal government contribution will come from the Feasibility and Planning Studies subcomponent of the NIKC-BCF, which aims to support collaborative feasibility and planning studies on public infrastructure projects. The feds will provide a contribution of up to 50 percent of the total eligible costs of the project, for a maximum federal contribution of $136,000. Transport Pontiac-Renfrew, a non-profit community organization, will assume the remaining costs.
 
Theresa Fritz.