24 August 2010

Regional Railway Authority the Solution:  Del Mastro

Peterborough Ontario - A meeting on how to move forward with the Peterborough-Toronto rail-line upgrades revealed diverging views on how to restore commuter passenger train service.
 
Peterborough MPP Jeff Leal, who called the meeting, put forward a model that would see the federal government, province, and the owner of the rail line, CP Rail, share the cost of upgrading the rail line.
 
It's a model that's been used for other shortline rail corridors, Leal said.
 
Peterborough MP Dean Del Mastro suggested a different model that would see a community-based non-profit organization with charitable status own the rail corridor.
 
Under Del Mastro's model, CP Rail would donate the line to the organization in exchange for a tax receipt. The municipalities along the route and stakeholders such as the Chamber of Commerce would each have a set number of seats on the board of directors of the organization.
 
CP Rail or another company could enter into a contract with the organization to operate freight rail on the line and another company would run the passenger rail service.
 
Del Mastro proposed to call the organization the Shining Waters Railway Authority, but he said it could have a different name.
 
The federal government and the Province of Ontario have each set aside $150 million for the Peterborough-Toronto rail line.
 
Leal said his personal integrity has been brought into question over this project, along with claims that a provincial agency "fudged" the cost estimate that came in higher than expected and suggestions that the premier is trying to sabotage the rail upgrades.
 
"I thought it was important today that we brought all the players forward and quit the sniping that's been going on through the media in this particular project," he told The Examiner after the meeting.
 
"I have a cheque for $150 million in my back pocket, signed by the government of Ontario, to move forward to improve rail accessibility to this riding, be it freight, be it passenger. We have a passionate commitment for that $150 million and we want to get action on this project as quickly as possible."
 
Leal brought together Del Mastro, Mayor Paul Ayotte, Peterborough County Warden J. Murray Jones, Metrolinx representatives, CP Rail officials, the Greater Peterborough Chamber of Commerce general manager, and the regional economic development agency president on Wednesday.
 
The meeting at the Greater Peterborough Area Economic Development Corp. office in Peterborough started at about 10:30 a.m. and finished at about noon.
 
It seems the next step will be to gather municipal representatives from the City of Kawartha Lakes, Durham Region, Whitby, and Markham, the communities along the rail line, for a meeting to find out what direction their governments would support.
 
Del Mastro has tentatively scheduled the next meeting for 7 Sep 2010.
 
Metrolinx pegged the cost of the commuter rail link to be at least $541 million in a long-awaited report that it released in May of this year.
 
Del Mastro disputes the Metrolinx cost estimate and argues the newly created organization could get more accurate amounts by calling for bids from contractors that want to build the rail line.
 
"This is a way to take charge, take ownership, and get the job completed," he said.
 
Del Mastro and Leal sat at opposite ends of the table during the discussion.
 
"I'm not here to fight," Del Mastro said at least four times throughout the meeting.
 
But at one point, Del Mastro said the project has been bogged down and "obstructed unnecessarily."
 
"I'm here to get a railway built, passenger railway... that supports freight," he said.
 
Del Mastro provided case studies from Vancouver Island and northern New England in the United States to illustrate a potential ownership structure for the rail corridor and operating costs for passenger rail service.
 
Based on the northern New England rail service operated by Amtrak, it would cost $8.54 million annually to operate the Peterborough-Toronto commuter rail service, Del Mastro said.
 
The service could operate without subsidies with an average ticket price of $17.29, Del Mastro said.
 
"We can build an outstanding railway owned by the region," he said.
 
Leal questioned the CP Rail representative about whether the railway company would partner with the province and federal government to improve the line since the company will benefit by improved freight service.
 
Robert Taylor, national government affairs director with CP Rail, didn't directly answer the question.
 
"We are in the freight business," he said. "The (government) funding... is for passenger (service)."
 
Taylor told the group that CP Rail estimates it would cost $140 million to $150 million to upgrade the existing rail line, but that doesn't include the cost of connecting the line to existing passenger rail service such as to Union Station.
 
John Howe, a vice-president with Metrolinx, said that the cost estimate of at least $541 million could be refined during the next stage of detailed design and engineering work.
 
That study could cost between $2 million and $5 million and take one to two years to complete, he said.
 
Mayor Paul Ayotte was hesitant to get on board with Del Mastro's vision of a non-profit organization owning the rail line with municipal involvement.
 
Analysis needs to be done on what it would mean for the municipalities, Ayotte said.
 
"What are we on the hook for?" he said. "What are the implications for this community?
 
"We have to talk to the people along the corridor and see if they're interested in this concept."
 
But Ayotte added that he sees the rail line as being more important than the extension of Highway 407 to Highway 35/115, pointing to the ability of freight train service to attract and support industrial businesses.
 
"If we don't do something with this line somebody's going to embargo it soon and we're going to be out of business."
 
Brendan Wedley.