Photo: Curtis Galbraith / EverythingGP

By Erika Rolling

CRAA

Northern Alberta municipalities and industry members form alliance for better rail service

Feb 9, 2023 | 1:42 PM

An advocacy group with 20 members has formed to be a collaborative voice for better rail service in Alberta and the western half of the country.

The Community Rail Advocacy Alliance has 15 municipalities from northwestern Alberta, including the County and City of Grande Prairie, MD of Greenview, and Saddle Hills County.

The CRAA says right now railways throughout Alberta face unevenly deployed resources, insufficient seasonal service, and unreliable capacity that fails to adequately serve several industries across the province.

Grande Prairie Mayor Jackie Clayton said in a release; “Grande Prairie is home to some of our province’s biggest industries, and the failure to provide reliable rail service has significantly impacted our industries’ capacity to import and export goods.”

Clayton adds that “with railway legislation under the federal government’s responsibility, we have yet to see much action in addressing the inequality in service delivery.”

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Five other organizations also have joined the alliance including the Alberta Wheat Commission, Alberta Barley, the Alberta Forest Products Association, Peace Region Economic Development Alliance, Northern Transportation Advisory Bureau, and Central Alberta Economic Partnership.

The General Manager of the Alberta Wheat Commission and Alberta Barley Tom Steve says our province has some of the best agricultural land in Canada but rail service is not reliable.

“Something has to change if we want to see farmers remain competitive in global markets, and we’re all hoping this Alliance can be part of the solution,” Steve said.

The Alliance is hopeful they can speak to Ottawa, CN, CP and its regulators as a unified voice to make needed changes to the railway industry.

The CRAA notes it’s bringing forward priority areas it hopes to get addressed, including mandating rail companies release data on car fulfillment statistics and developing a strategy to manage service levels during the winter months.