Canadian Railroads > CN Sale of Bridge in Quebec

Good Morning:

I saw online that Canadian National sold a rail / highway bridge in Quebec on a mainline that crosses the St. Lawrence Seaway. It also said that CN obtained ownership from the government back in 1995. If it is on a line critical to CN, why did they sell it back to the government? Seems counterintuitive to give up control of critical infrastructure.

Thank you in advance.

Everyone on Trainorders probably knows this already, but the mishap during the original construction of this bridge is quite fascinating.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quebec_Bridge

PRR_4859 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Good Morning:
>
> I saw online that Canadian National sold a rail /
> highway bridge in Quebec on a mainline that
> crosses the St. Lawrence Seaway. It also said
> that CN obtained ownership from the government
> back in 1995. If it is on a line critical to CN,
> why did they sell it back to the government?
> Seems counterintuitive to give up control of
> critical infrastructure.
>
> Thank you in advance.

Here's a quote from Wikipedia that explains the sale a little bit.

"On May 10, 2024, the Canadian Government and CN announced an agreement for the sale of the bridge for the symbolic sum of $1.  The government committed to spending $1 billion over 25 years on repairs and maintenance. CN and the Quebec government will share ownership of the rails and roadway that cross the bridge."

My take on it is that it is a subsidy from the government.  They are agreeing to pour money into the bridge so the provincial government and CN don't have to.
 

greasemonkey Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> PRR_4859 Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > Good Morning:
> >
> > I saw online that Canadian National sold a rail
> /
> > highway bridge in Quebec on a mainline that
> > crosses the St. Lawrence Seaway. It also said
> > that CN obtained ownership from the government
> > back in 1995. If it is on a line critical to
> CN,
> > why did they sell it back to the government?
> > Seems counterintuitive to give up control of
> > critical infrastructure.
> >
> > Thank you in advance.
>
> Here's a quote from Wikipedia that explains the
> sale a little bit.
>
> "On May 10, 2024, the Canadian Government and CN
> announced an agreement for the sale of the bridge
> for the symbolic sum of $1.  The government
> committed to spending $1 billion over 25 years on
> repairs and maintenance. CN and the Quebec
> government will share ownership of the rails and
> roadway that cross the bridge."
>
> My take on it is that it is a subsidy from the
> government.  They are agreeing to pour money into
> the bridge so the provincial government and CN
> don't have to.

My take is that CN would not spend the money on the bridge.
The mainline is on the south side of the St. Lawrence River.
The main freight yard is located in Charny, QC. Th main port 
facilities are located on the north side, but CN wouldn't lose
access as they have a line along the north side of the river
as well. 

Believe it or not, just looking at the vehicular traffic (~30,000 veh/d), a $1 billion commitment over 25 years equates to almost $4.00 per vehicle trip over the bridge.

Ray

greasemonkey Wrote:

> My take on it is that it is a subsidy from the
> government.  They are agreeing to pour money into
> the bridge so the provincial government and CN
> don't have to.
>  

This is creating a bit of controversy in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia,
as the Feds have yet to pony up funds to ensure the Chignecto Isthmus
isn't inundated by sea level rise due to climate change and thus making
Nova Scotia into an island (and severing the CN mainline to Halifax
as well as the trans-Canada highway.)

...John Reay
Springhill NS

The major rail user is VIA not cn. plus it is the route of a proposed lrt to the south shore. its also one of two bridges connecting qubec city to its fast growing suburbs on the south shore... ie very very important economically and politically.
additionally the federal gov has a history 9f owning operating and financing bridges.... they just spent billions building a replacement bridge for the Champlain bridge ( road plus rem ie lrt line) Plus they are building the new windsor detroit bridge
An election is coming.... so I suspect a funding announcement for the raising the highway between nb and ns will occur prior to the election.... it's a political issue b c the provincial govs are conservative and feds are liberal....

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