A CN freight train remains halted as train tracks are blocked two km away at Tyendinaga, Ont., east of Belleville, on Feb. 14, 2020. (Photo: Reuters/Chris Helgren)

Canada rules out sending police in on rail protests

Superior Propane expects supply shortages soon

Ottawa | Reuters — Canada’s Liberal government said on Friday it was deeply concerned about protests by aboriginal activists that are blocking some key railway lines but rejected a call to send in the police. Indigenous communities opposed to the construction of a gas pipeline project in British Columbia started interrupting rail traffic last week. […] Read more

Members of the Tyendinaga Mohawk Territory block tracks serving Via Rail at Tyendinaga, Ont., east of Belleville, on Feb. 13, 2020. (Photo: Reuters/Chris Helgren)

CN halts rail traffic in East due to protests

Grain groups seek dispute resolution or enforcement of court orders

Canadian National Railway (CN) is shutting down its Eastern Canada operations due to ongoing blockades on its rail lines in Ontario. The company announced Thursday it’s been “forced to initiate a disciplined and progressive shutdown” in the region, which means “stopping and safely securing all transcontinental trains across its Canadian network.” The decision “may imminently […] Read more


CN locomotives in Winnipeg. (Photo courtesy CN)

CN could shut parts of network over pipeline protests

Reuters — Canadian National Railway said Tuesday it would be forced to shut down parts of its network unless rail line blockades in protest against a natural gas pipeline in British Columbia are removed. The protests of recent weeks are seen as a flashpoint for indigenous rights and reconciliation and demonstrators on Tuesday also blocked […] Read more



(File photo by Dave Bedard)

CN, CP come in under 2018-19 grain revenue caps

Changes to federal rail transport rules that took effect in 2018 have put Canada’s big two railways well under their new Prairie grain revenue caps for the 2018-19 crop year. The Canadian Transportation Agency on Monday announced Canadian National Railway (CN) booked 2018-19 Prairie grain revenue of $933,357,710, a figure $371,116 below what the CTA […] Read more

(File photo by Dave Bedard)

Teamsters seek charges against CP to cap working hours

Montreal/Toronto | Reuters — A union is taking the unusual step of pursuing contempt of court charges against Canada’s second-largest railroad, in a previously unreported case that escalates the debate over working hours for railroad employees, according to two sources and legal documents. The Teamsters union argued in court filings that Canadian Pacific Railway should […] Read more



A freight train at Manchac, La., about 75 km east of Baton Rouge. (CN.ca)

CN strike to weigh on railway’s 2019 profit

Reuters — Canadian National Railway on Tuesday cut its adjusted profit growth target for 2019, citing shipment delays from the country’s largest rail strike in a decade that ended last week. Shares in CN, which counts billionaire Bill Gates’ investment firm as its biggest shareholder, fell almost two per cent in morning trading in both […] Read more



(Dave Bedard photo)

CN kicks off recovery after eight-day strike

Reuters –– Canadian National Railway on Thursday said it was putting a recovery plan in place while ramping up operations after the country’s biggest rail strike in a decade. The eight-day-long work stoppage at Canada’s largest railroad sent shocks through the country’s economy with grain and propane shipments scuttled. The strike by about 3,200 conductors […] Read more