VIA takes CN to court over grade crossing issue

With no progress in lifting the precautionary speed restrictions applied to the new Siemens Venture trains at certain grade crossings in the corridor since October 11, VIA Rail Canada applied to federal court on November 12, 2024 seeking a judicial review.

VIA Rail is of course complying fully with the speed restrictions, leading to delays of 30-45 minutes on many trains, and has been trying to work with CN over the past month to resolve the issue. This ought to be a relatively straightforward technical matter, especially considering that trains with one locomotive and two stainless steel or three LRC cars have not had issues either.

It now appears that CN has been withholding data and not allowing its staff to work constructively with VIA Rail and Siemens engineers to resolve the issue. Amtrak has experienced a similar lack of collaboration regarding requirements for “axle-count cars” on CN routes in the United States.

No risk assessment or evidence has been provided by CN to substantiate their assertion that the new Venture trains might not correctly activate certain crossings equipped with constant warning time systems unless they’re lengthened to seven cars. While CN asserts that the restrictions were introduced because Venture trains started traversing new routes in southwestern Ontario, this is hard to justify give the extensive testing that had already taken place, including on the Windsor and Sarnia routes, and that the trains had already been operating for two years without any reported issues on the rest of the corridor, where the new restrictions have also been applied.

A lack of transparency between an infrastructure manager and a train operator on safety matters is unacceptable; and that this matter has had to go to court proves that the current regulatory framework for railways in Canada is not fit for purpose. We need a Fair Rail for Passengers Act to clearly define mutual responsibilities.

While Transport Action Canada has previously been assured by CN managers that the freight operator is a collaborative and willing to host VIA Rail in return for reasonable track access fees, and we have promoted co-investment to address bottlenecks for both freight capacity and passenger operations, this new development is deeply concerning.

It has also been alleged that CN is using this issue to apply pressure to VIA Rail, and to the government, regarding the current adjudication of track access arrangements by the Canada Transportation Agency, which has now been in progress for more than a year. If true, such a mingling of technical safety and commercial considerations would be outrageous.

Full cooperation between all parties to ensure railway safety, and the safety of road users and communities the railways serve, is paramount. If any private sector railway were to remain unwilling to be collaborative and transparent about safety, as appears to be the case in this instance, the government should also be prepared to consider stronger remedies, including breaking up that company into infrastructure and operating divisions and taking the tracks back into public ownership.

November 20th 2024: Transport Action has written a letter to the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Transport regarding this issue

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