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Old Posted Jan 20, 2010, 2:16 AM
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Ottawa Valley Railway

Quote:
Daily Observer, Pembroke
Posted By TINA PEPLINSKIE

Posted 12 days ago

-The rail lines between Smiths Falls and Sudbury could be removed within the next two years if a third party short line operator doesn't enter the picture.

On Dec. 18, Rail America Inc. announced the termination of its lease with Ottawa Valley Railway of the Canadian Pacific Railway-owned line between Smiths Falls and Sudbury, a distance of about 483 kilometres.

CP's increasingly more efficient use of its core rail network has removed the need to use the OVR route, according to a presentation by Rick Poznikoff from Canadian Pacific's Kamloops office, who was in Petawawa Wednesday.

Now that the decision to terminate the lease has been made, CP must follow a number of steps before the final decision of discontinuance of the line can be made. It must advertise the availability of the line for il operations, offer it to the government and, if no one comes forward, discontinuance. Extending each timeline of the process to the maximum means that without a buyer, the lines, signals and all facets of the rail operation will be removed within a year and a half to two years, Mr. Poznikoff said in response to a question from Admaston/Bromley Mayor Raye-Anne Briscoe.

The loss of this vital transportation link is a serious issue affecting residents of Renfrew County and beyond, and one that is very concerning to Petawawa Mayor Sweet, who serves as the chairman of the county's development and property committee.

With no carrier at the Pembroke and Area Airport, no four-lane highway and potential loss of the rail lines, the Upper Ottawa Valley could suffer greatly as far as economic development is concerned, he told between 40 and 50 people, many heads of councils from throughout Renfrew County, during an information meeting held at the Petawawa Civic Centre yesterday.

"This is an issue that transcends borders and municipalities," Mayor Sweet said. "We must bring as many groups as possible together and make every effort possible to try and maintain this service. It is disappointing to hear this link could be gone forever."

The meeting provided an opportunity for the stakeholders, including municipalities and users of the rail line, to learn what this all means to the future of rail travel in the area. Kevin Hrysak, manager of media relations and public affairs for Western Canada, joined Mr. Poznikoff and they will attend 12 other meetings between Smiths Falls and West Nipissing to provide information and answer questions.

Mr. Poznikoff made it clear that CP does not intend to resume operations on this segment of rail line.

James Allen of JDA Consulting in Metcalfe, Ont., and former general manager of the Ottawa Central Railway, called this decision a kick in the teeth, but also encouraged those in attendance to look at it as an opportunity for economic development along the line.

He believes a business case and needs study must be conducted to determine the potential of the line. Although Ottawa Central Railway began shipping 4,000 carloads in 1998, it grew to a height of 22,000 and later levelled off at about 16,000 car loads by 2008.
Here we go again. If CN and CP had been forced to merge their operations in the Ottawa Valley in the 1980's we would not have trains from Montreal to Western Canada being diverted to Toronto. We would have saved a good portion of the 400$ million that the government is spending on triple tracking CN mainline from Montreal to Toronto because there would be enough capacity to run more frequent and faster passenger trains. More importantly there would have been enough density on the Ottawa Valley route to maintain service and save the route as a future passenger route. Daily service between Sudbury/North Bay or Noranda/North Bay and Ottawa/Montreal could be implemented running at a reasonable speed. Without sufficient density the line can never pay for itself no matter who owns it, including Ontario Northland or another government agency.
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Old Posted Jan 20, 2010, 5:53 AM
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They should be barred from triple-tracking (unless moving passenger service onto a dedicated line) and forced to move operations back onto the Ottawa Valley line. There is not nearly enough development potential to warrant keeping the line for short-line use though, especially since it ends in Smiths Falls which is quite pointless.

Without such a move the section from Sudbury to North Bay should be saved at least though, for a potential passenger rail corridor (combined with the HCR to Sault Ste. Marie), and purchased by Ontario Northland. East of North Bay, I don't see any reason to save it as I don't see passenger rail ever returning other than for commuter purposes into the Ottawa Valley.
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Old Posted Jan 20, 2010, 11:13 PM
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The triple tracking of approximately 40 miles is taking place or will take place in the next 2 summers. In the late 1970's both CN & CP hauled 5 million tons per year through the Ottawa valley. This freight has either been lost or re-routed to the their respective main lines to Toronto even though it is a longer route. You are right that a short line will only survive with bridge traffic and also other traffic such as passenger and commuter rail but all the service has to be consolidated onto one line. Although the CP line does go to Smiths Falls, there used to be a connection in Arnprior to CN that travelled through Galetta, Carp and Kanata to Ottawa. Vandals burnt the wooden trestle crossing the Madawaska River. This could be re-instated. Just to give you an idea of how much money can be found when governments want to, the contract for the 5 km of twinning Hwy 417 in the same vicinity of Arnprior was tendered for $55 million. Yes, that is million.
Unfortunately, even if the province through Ontario Northland was to purchase the right of way, there would still be the problem of no bridge traffic. It appears that somehow both railways need to be convinced that it is their interest to route traffic via the Ottawa valley. Once the tracks are gone they will never be replaced.
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Old Posted Jan 21, 2010, 5:56 AM
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Originally Posted by GoTrans View Post
The triple tracking of approximately 40 miles is taking place or will take place in the next 2 summers. In the late 1970's both CN & CP hauled 5 million tons per year through the Ottawa valley. This freight has either been lost or re-routed to the their respective main lines to Toronto even though it is a longer route. You are right that a short line will only survive with bridge traffic and also other traffic such as passenger and commuter rail but all the service has to be consolidated onto one line. Although the CP line does go to Smiths Falls, there used to be a connection in Arnprior to CN that travelled through Galetta, Carp and Kanata to Ottawa. Vandals burnt the wooden trestle crossing the Madawaska River. This could be re-instated. Just to give you an idea of how much money can be found when governments want to, the contract for the 5 km of twinning Hwy 417 in the same vicinity of Arnprior was tendered for $55 million. Yes, that is million.
Unfortunately, even if the province through Ontario Northland was to purchase the right of way, there would still be the problem of no bridge traffic. It appears that somehow both railways need to be convinced that it is their interest to route traffic via the Ottawa valley. Once the tracks are gone they will never be replaced.
Any rail maintenance/service would not preclude the need to widen the highway to 4 lanes though. Also freight rail works best for longer-haul traffic, not short-line service.

At the minimum, the ROW should be kept from Renfrew or Pembroke to Arnprior (for commuter/short-haul passenger rail) and from Sudbury to North Bay (for intercity passenger rail via a branch of the Northlander combined with the HCR line to Sault Ste. Marie), even if the tracks are removed. From Arnprior to Smiths Falls and from Pembroke to North Bay, I see no other value in the lines.
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Old Posted Jan 26, 2010, 2:46 AM
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That is my point exactly; that the rail route through the Ottawa valley continues to work best for its long haul capability as a direct route from Montreal to Sudbury and continuing to western Canada. This core segment's value can be increased by its connections in Sudbury and North Bay with eastbound and westbound traffic, its passenger value as a Sudbury to Ottawa/Montreal route and its commuter value as a Pembroke to Ottawa. This route should have enough traffic to make it viable. The railways can make any route look like it is a money losing venture by merely re-routing traffic on alternative routes until they get to the point that they have no more alternatives.
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Old Posted Jan 26, 2010, 2:56 AM
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Originally Posted by GoTrans View Post
That is my point exactly; that the rail route through the Ottawa valley continues to work best for its long haul capability as a direct route from Montreal to Sudbury and continuing to western Canada. This core segment's value can be increased by its connections in Sudbury and North Bay with eastbound and westbound traffic, its passenger value as a Sudbury to Ottawa/Montreal route and its commuter value as a Pembroke to Ottawa. This route should have enough traffic to make it viable. The railways can make any route look like it is a money losing venture by merely re-routing traffic on alternative routes until they get to the point that they have no more alternatives.
Exactly! The freight rail companies need to be forced to divert traffic onto the corridor! The Toronto-centric attitudes of many of the business and political elites do bother me personally.

Although the Pembroke-North Bay section has little potential for any passenger rail, my thinking for Sudbury-North Bay was to branch the Northlander and run it west from North Bay to Sault Ste. Marie on a second branch (extreme long term HSR potential combined with Toronto-North Bay, like beyond 2040 at least).

I still believe that eventually (immediately in some sections), rail or no rail, the highway needs to be widened to 4 lanes though.
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Old Posted Jan 27, 2010, 8:48 PM
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Obviously if they can get rail back that's great, but if they don't, they could turn it into a reaaly long bike path!
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Old Posted Jan 29, 2010, 2:10 AM
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Rail beds make kind of boring bike paths as there are no hills to speak of. The other problem is that conversion to a bike path takes the infrastructure out of use forever as a rail line.
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Old Posted Jan 29, 2010, 3:58 PM
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Originally Posted by GoTrans View Post
Rail beds make kind of boring bike paths as there are no hills to speak of. The other problem is that conversion to a bike path takes the infrastructure out of use forever as a rail line.
The high valley is filled with hills (almost mountains) and deep valley cuts though.

There are a couple sections where an abandoned railbed might be useful for highway twinning though, but hopefully a deal can be made with the national rail companies to divert rail through the Ottawa Valley.
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Old Posted Feb 3, 2010, 1:30 AM
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We are approaching a crisis in the provision of rail services in the less urban and more northern areas of Ontario. It is interesting to note that most of the problems are with ex CP Rail lines such as the Ottawa Valley Railway and the Huron Central. Both of these lines should be combined into one and either CP should be forced to operate them or Ontario Northland should purchase them. As you have previously stated the railways should be forced to route some trains via these routes even if purchased by Ontario Northland as there is not enough freight generated by the routes themselves. Most of Canada's so called mainline routes do not actually generate the traffic, they exist to carry the traffic between origin and destination. The routing of bridge traffic over a route does not mean that the route is not economically viable.
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Old Posted Mar 5, 2010, 2:14 AM
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Here is the latest news with respect to the OVR.
Meeting on CP rail line taking place in Petawawa
Posted Mar 4, 2010
BY THERESA FRITZ - Arnprior EMC

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Municipalities from Smiths Falls to North Bay and points in between are meeting in Petawawa March 11 to discuss the future of the CP rail line.
The discussions are the result of announcement Dec. 18, 2009 in which Rail America Inc., the parent company of Ottawa Valley Railway (OVR), stated it terminated its lease of the OVR line with Canadian Pacific (CP). As a result, Canadian Pacific has 60 days from the end of the lease, 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, which stretches from Smiths Falls to Sudbury, could be abandoned by CP. After holding meetings with affective municipalities, it appears clear that this is likely what CP plans to do.
Please see the March 11 EMC for more details.
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Old Posted Mar 6, 2010, 5:09 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by eternallyme View Post
Any rail maintenance/service would not preclude the need to widen the highway to 4 lanes though. Also freight rail works best for longer-haul traffic, not short-line service.
Blimey, you really don't know anything about railways, do you?

Ottawa Central worked quite well until it was taken over by CN for other reasons. Most of their business west of Ottawa was up in Pembroke with a little in the Pontiac.

Quote:
At the minimum, the ROW should be kept from Renfrew or Pembroke to Arnprior (for commuter/short-haul passenger rail) and from Sudbury to North Bay (for intercity passenger rail via a branch of the Northlander combined with the HCR line to Sault Ste. Marie), even if the tracks are removed. From Arnprior to Smiths Falls and from Pembroke to North Bay, I see no other value in the lines.
Ya, that just confirms my suspicion that you don't know anything about railways. Why do I say that? Because CP themselves seem to think that North Bay - Mattawa - Temiscaming is worth trying to spin off as a short line. So what we're actually talking about is the section from Mattawa to Pembroke (or Petawawa, or Chalk River, below).

And of course there is a really big military base at Petawawa. If the tracks between Pembroke and North Bay go, there goes their ability to make large westbound military equipment moves without going through Toronto. There's also an AECL facility at Chalk River... moving nuclear material around is something you don't really want to do by truck if you can at all avoid it. Retention of Pembroke to Chalk River can be justified on strategic national interest grounds. The problem really is that last section from Chalk River to Mattawa - that's the bit that's not got any real own traffic on it. On the flip side, if CP can be convinced to maintain Mattawa-Petawawa, then picking up Pembroke-Petawawa will be a cinch.


The only part I sort of agree is Arnprior to Smiths Falls, but there might be some potential for a tourist train between Arnprior and Carleton Place - it's a pleasant enough stretch (wouldn't it be nice if the Carleton Place Sub were still in place... would make for a nice excursion train). Anyway, connecting the tracks up in Arnprior is going to be crucial because that way local trains can go out on the Beachburg Sub to Pembroke and come back on the Chalk River and Renfrew Subs (or vice versa). That allows more ground to be covered - i.e. more traffic potential - at the same operating cost (though with a higher track maintenance cost).


The trick is going to be establishing a railway that combines much of the trackage of Ottawa Central + Ottawa Valley and possibly even Huron Central (that gives access to the American midwest, including the vital hub at Chicago). Do all that and you've got a single railway spanning from Sault Ste Marie or Sudbury to the outskirts of Montreal. Put in an intermodal yard in Ottawa as well to boost the importance of Ottawa as a rail shipping destination/origin and thereby increase Ottawa-based traffic to/from the west to help make the line more viable (instead of trucking all this stuff in from Toronto and Montreal). Seriously, if Saskatoon can have two intermodal terminals, Ottawa can support one! With such a railway in place, sooner or later CN & CP will start sending bridge traffic down such a route.
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Old Posted Mar 11, 2010, 1:27 AM
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Your Ottawaregion.com
Lucy Hass|Mar 10, 2010 - 1:56 PM| 0
EDITORIAL: Laying it all on the line

"Future of rail line in limelight


CP poised to abandon line. The CP rail line outside of Renfrew is covered with snow. Lucy Hass
We’ve been down this road, or should we say rail line, before.
Today (March 11) elected officials gather in Petawawa for a meeting with CPR officials to discuss their upcoming abandonment of the only remaining rail line through Renfrew.

In the March 31, 1993 edition of The Renfrew Mercury we reported that then-mayor Howie Haramis planned to drive hard bargain in purchasing the rail line that ran, for years, adjacent to the Renfrew fairgrounds.

At a CN/CP Ottawa Valley Partnership information night to discuss plans to run one major rail line through town, Haramis was adamant when he spoke of CP’s earlier demolition of the much-loved heritage train station.

“I’ll never forgive CP for tearing down that building. It was a landmark,” he said.

“It’s a shame and it’s done and over with. But we’re going to get our pound of flesh in negotiations,” the mayor said.

A pound of flesh, in 2010 terms, has yet to be determined.

Today, the rail line abandoned in the 1990s is a recreational trail, known locally as the Millennium Trail.

It’s hard to say what will become of the latest – and last – stretch of rail line being abandoned in a town that was once a hub of train traffic.

Statements at Thursday’s meeting are expected to sound hauntingly familiar to local officials. It is, of course, all about money.

In 1993 The Mercury reported CN/CP claims that high fuel and maintenance costs, coupled with declining freight volume, forced the carriers to take a hard, serious look at their operations.

Back then, CP Rail spokesman Bob Pelland spoke in detail of those pressures.

“Do we need two duplicate rail lines? The key thing to remember is that we are forming one steel highway,” he said.

Today, that one steel highway is poised to become little more than another remnant of days gone by.

What will stand in their place when the railway ties and ribbon of steel are torn up?"

Between the Ottawa Valley Railway and the Huron Central the near north of Ontario is showing its signs of neglect.

The real debate has clearly just begun.
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Old Posted Mar 15, 2010, 11:57 PM
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The results of last week's meeting... hopefully someone will take the lead but it requires upper level money.


http://www.thedailyobserver.ca/Artic...aspx?e=2488684

Call on upper-tiers
Posted By STEPHEN UHLER

PETAWAWA -No municipality in Eastern Ontario wants to lose the railway, but no one wants to take ownership of it, either.

The only practical solution, should the Canadian Pacific rail line ever be abandoned, is for the provincial and federal governments to step forward and help preserve the tracks between Smiths Falls and Mattawa.

This is the consensus of the communities which line the tracks from North Bay to Smiths Falls, whose representatives filled the conference area of the Petawawa Civic Centre on Thursday.

Invited by Renfrew County, the collection of mayors, councillors, municipal staff, business people and others from across the region met to discuss a "Plan B" should efforts by the CPR to find another rail carrier to take over the line fall through before the April 5 deadline.

Following the deadline, if no interest has been expressed in the line, the company will offer it to the federal, provincial and municipal governments, and if no one steps forward then, will scrap it. Those meeting in Petawawa have been working together on ways to try and prevent that from happening.

Petawawa Mayor Bob Sweet, who was both host and emcee for the meeting, said while he knows Canadian Pacific is actively seeking another rail company to take over the lines - Ontario Northland is rumoured to be a possibility - this is no guarantee CP will be successful.

He said because of the tight timelines, there isn't any time to waste if they want to head off any potential loss of the railway should another carrier not be found to take over.

"This is the time of uncertainty and concern for the future of this major transportation link," Mayor Sweet said, noting once the CPR's obligation to CFB Petawawa wraps up at the end of March, it will terminate its lease with the military and begin the process of ridding itself of the line.

Mayor Sweet said the municipalities have to take action now before the April deadline, in order to make it clear where they stand. Suggestions which will be followed up include a joint resolution of all Eastern Ontario municipalities calling on the rail to be maintained, working on a business case to prove the rail line is viable and vital to their economic interests, and lobbying every avenue of government they can, including contacting the All Party Rail Caucus Parliamentary Group, which oversees matters of Canada's railways.

"We have to do everything we can to safeguard and maintain this, a critical piece of our transportation infrastructure."

Renfrew County Warden Don Rathwell said it is of vital importance for the whole region the rails stay in operation, but at the same time there is no way local municipalities can afford to get into the train game.

"This is a business which should be supported by the provinces and the federal government," he said. "We're not interested in ownership of it, and neither are our ratepayers."

"The only way to continue this is for the federal and provincial governments to get involved quickly."

The fate of the rail lines through the Ottawa Valley have been left up in the air since CP announced at the end of 2009 it was discontinuing its leasing agreement with Railway America, the owner of Ottawa Valley Railway (OVR), and searching for a new carrier to take over the lines between Mattawa and Smiths Falls.

The CP line is one of two running through the Ottawa Valley. The other, the old CN line known as the Beachburg Subdivision, is also being abandoned. A non-profit group Transportation Pontiac-Renfrew is hard at work seeing if it can be preserved as a local passenger and freight service.

If a new company is found, a six-month grace period will come into play to give the carrier time to take over the CP lines. Following the April 5 deadline, if no carrier is found, CP will offer the rail line to local and upper-tier governments and if interest is expressed, a similar period could be granted.

If not, the rails could be uprooted as early as this summer.

So far, there has been no formal comments about the rail situation directly from either the provincial or federal governments, but local representatives of both have expressed their support to maintain the Ottawa Valley rail lines.

While neither Renfrew-Nipissing- Pembroke MP Cheryl Gallant nor MPP John Yakabuski were able to attend the meeting, but both passed along their support for the effort and their concern about the fate of the railway.

In a media release, MP Gallant said the offer by the federal government to include rail applications in the Canada- Ontario Provincial-Territorial Base Fund "provides an existing funding pool to tap to support rail applications."

The MP said Canada is prepared to provide each province and territory with funding up to the full $175 million from 2009 to 2011, subject to matching contributions, which will allow for the repair of bridges, local roads, highways, and in the case of Ontario, railways.

"At this point it is up to local stakeholders to not only voice their concern about the need to save our local railways, but to provide a business plan," she said, noting Ontario, like other provinces, has subsidized passenger rail with funding for years.

"Now what is required (here) is a similar commitment from the province of Ontario."

In a letter dated March 9 and circulated among those attending Thursday's meeting, MPP Yakabuski wrote to Kathleen Wynne, the Minister of Transportation, asking for the province's commitment to help save the rail line.

"Officials of CP Rail explained that they would be moving ahead to shut down the rail lines between Petawawa and Smith Falls and then Petawawa to Mattawa shortly thereafter," he said.

"We in Renfrew County are very concerned about the loss of this vital transportation link, as the Upper Ottawa Valley could suffer greatly, with no four-lane highway and the potential loss of the rail line."

The MPP said since it is financially impossible for the municipalities to take on the burden of running a rail line, it is up to the upper levels of government to step in if needed.

"MP Gallant states the key to unlocking the $175 million for infrastructure projects which include rail is for the Ontario provincial government to sign the Canada-Ontario Provincial Territorial Base-Fund Agreement," he said.

"What is the provincial government prepared to do to assist and work with the federal government to ensure that this economic life line is not lost?"

During Thursday's meeting, an assortment of speakers from across the region all expressed their support for maintaining the rail service.

Jim Hutton, Renfrew County's development and property director, said it is already difficult for the county to compete economically with those communities which rest beside the Highway 401 corridor. Without the railway, they would be in tougher straits.

He said one of the reasons the fibre-board plant was built in Laurentian Valley Township for $120 million some 15 years ago was due to its proximity to the rail lines. Since then, when other companies have expressed interest in investing here, one of the first things they inquire about is the existence of cheap transportation links, which remains rail. Without it, Mr. Hutton explained, the county is a harder sell to investors.

Arnprior Mayor Terry Gibeau, who was speaking as a member of the Transport Pontiac-Renfrew board, said they are facing similar issues with the CN line. Together, the CP and CN lines are the only real railway link to Eastern Ontario direct from the north and west.

"If the lines are taken out, everything will have to go through Toronto, which is problematic," he said, adding time and distance to transportation costs.

Al Lunney, Mississippi Mills Mayor and Acting Warden, Lanark County, said they too are taking the position of opposing the discontinuation of the rail line. He said even if freight and passenger traffic were dishe rails themselves could be used to boost tourism for both Lanark and Renfrew Counties.

This won't happen if the rails are ripped out, he stressed.

"We have to keep the pressure on the governments," the acting warden said, "and open their eyes to the issue at hand."

Pembroke Mayor Ed Jacyno said he also supports the rail line, not just for economic reasons but national security as well, considering CFB Petawawa needs the lines to transport troops and equipment.

He added he would like to see one small stretch of the CP line running through the city's downtown and close to the waterfront removed, and train traffic diverted around the community. This would be both pleasing to the eye as it would eliminate the berm cutting off the waterfront from the city's core, and for safety reasons, as the city has been the scene of three derailments in recent history.

Smiths Falls Mayor Dennis Staples said while his community was blessed this week with news VIA Rail was spending big dollars making major upgrades to the station and the Ottawa to Toronto tracks running through his community, he said it is equally important to maintain the lines running through the Ottawa Valley.

"Once it's removed, it won't come back," he said.

Wayne Thompson, who identified himself as an outdoor writer, said he feels the tracks should be preserved at all costs, as they are the way of the future. He explained with fuel costs projected to skyrocket and the world looking towards more environmental solutions to meet its needs, train travel is the obvious choice.

"Europe has made that choice years ago," he said, suggesting instead of governments putting money into fourlaning Highway 17, they should instead put it into the railways.

"Building more roads is not the answer," Mr. Thompson said. He suggested even if CP decides to abandon the line, all effort should be made to prevent it from being scrapped, in order to retain an asset which will be used in the future.

Mayor Sweet said the scope of the discussion shows this isn't just a local issue but a national one, and should be treated with the same gravity.
"If this issue was happening down in Toronto, this will be dealt with 'toute suite'," he said.

Susan Ellis, the city of Pembroke's economic development manager, said what is needed is an aggressive awareness campaign, aimed at the government as well as industry and the public, to get people on board with this effort.

Article ID# 2488684
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Old Posted Apr 6, 2010, 4:14 AM
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Today at 18:30 EDT was the deadline for anyone to enter into negotiations with CP for acquisition of the portion of the Chalk River Sub between Smiths Falls and Petawawa.

Governments have another 30 days to say yes to acquisition, but if they do so there's no negotiation and no backing out: they have to buy it at the net salvage value.
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Old Posted Apr 7, 2010, 5:56 PM
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There could be life after all?

There's interest in replacing railroad
Posted By DAVE DALE The Nugget
Updated 4 hours ago

Canadian Pacific has received several expressions of interest to operate rail lines being left behind by the Ottawa Valley Railway and RailAmerica.

"It definitely looks better than it did a month ago," Kevin Hrysak, CP media spokesman for Northern Ontario, told The Nugget Tuesday.

The deadline for interested parties to step forward was Monday after the OVR advised CP in December it was no longer interested in the line between Smith Falls and Petawawa.

http://www.nugget.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=2522460
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Old Posted Jan 7, 2011, 11:11 PM
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A rail line success story


OTTAWA CITIZEN JANUARY 7, 2011


Re: Commuter Rail Would Reduce Gridlock, Jan. 3.

Letter-writer D.C. McCaffrey presents a compelling argument for the implementation of a GO Transit type commuter service into Ottawa on existing heavy rail corridors stating "a commuter link would serve a very necessary and practical function, in addition to preserving the tracks for future freight use ..." McCaffrey is also correct in suggesting "once the tracks are gone they are gone forever." Rail lines are expensive to construct; in most cases, cost-prohibitive.

Like the CP "Valley Line", CN's "Beachburg Subdivision" is also on an abandonment list, but the similarities end here. The Beachburg Sub connects with the CP line in Pembroke, then runs southeast through Beachburg, Ont. before crossing into Quebec at Portage du Fort. The line returns to Ontario at Fitzroy Harbour, travelling east through Kanata, Nepean and into Ottawa. West of Kanata, a branch of the line extends west to and terminates at Nylene in Arnprior.

In 2009, the not-for-profit "Transport Pontiac-Renfrew" (TPR) was formed with a mission to acquire the Beachburg Sub from CN. Ottawa-based RailFutures Group was subsequently commissioned to prepare a business case and feasibility study concerning continued freight and future passenger/commuter service along the Pembroke-to-Ottawa line. The study determined that shipping freight by rail must continue to sustain and help rejuvenate the fragile business climate in Pontiac and Renfrew Counties. The 200+ page report also included results from specific surveys dealing with both freight and future passenger/ commuter applications. The results for commuter in particular were encouraging.

In November 2010, an initial agreement in principle was struck between CN and TPR. Details of the agreement can be found at www.transportpontiac-renfrew.ca.

Assuming full acquisition of the CN line by TPR, freight service will continue uninterrupted with commuter service scheduled for launch within two years.

Harry Gow and Terry Gibeau

Co-Chairs,

Transport Pontiac-Renfrew

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  #18  
Old Posted Jul 29, 2011, 6:33 PM
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Dado Dado is offline
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I'm hearing rumours in the grapevine that track lifting of some 25 miles of track is either underway or will start next week between Renfrew and Pembroke.
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  #19  
Old Posted Aug 3, 2011, 10:49 PM
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Confirmation for Dado, equipment for picking up the rails moved up the valley to Renfrew on Tuesday afternoon about 2:00 p.m.
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  #20  
Old Posted Aug 4, 2011, 1:11 AM
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Jamaican-Phoenix Jamaican-Phoenix is offline
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We really hate rail transit in this region it would seem...
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