QUESTION PERIOD — Transport
Rail Interswitching
October 5, 2023
My question is for the Government Representative in the Senate.
Senator Gold, as you know, last spring, Parliament adopted Bill C-47, a budget implementation act. As you might recall, our National Finance Committee made an observation at the time about Division 22 of Part 4, which dealt with the temporary extension of rail interswitching in the Prairie provinces. I continue to believe that this pilot project is a good idea, but we know that the Railway Association of Canada and its members continue to advocate for this measure to be repealed. They argue that this policy incentivizes congestion, not competition.
As I understand it, the pilot project has already started. Can you confirm that the interswitching extension has, indeed, already begun, and can you provide us with an update on how many times the option was used by shippers?
Thank you for your question, senator, and thank you for continuing to raise this issue, having sponsored Bill C-47 — which you did in exemplary fashion.
I understand the pilot project was based upon the report of the Supply Chain Task Force from late 2022 that was aimed at supporting shippers in the Prairie provinces. My understanding is also that the pilot was expected to begin in September 2023, but I don’t have more details on it at this juncture. When the results of the pilot project are known, I’m sure that the results will inform the next steps taken nationally.
Thank you for that answer.
In order to properly evaluate the success or failure of this pilot project, it is critical for Transport Canada to collect high-quality data. We need to know how often the measure is being used, who is using it, what savings are being generated for shippers and growers and what additional costs have been absorbed by some of the stakeholders along the supply chain, including railways.
Can you assure us that such data is being collected so the government can make an informed decision when this temporary measure expires?
Thank you for your supplementary question. I’m not in a position to answer the specific question, but I can assure you and those in this chamber that the government knows how fundamentally important it is that data be collected and analyzed in order to inform the next steps going forward.
