Transportation agency probes Omnitrax complaints

The federal agency that regulates transportation is investigating complaints against the company that owns the washed-out rail line to Churchill, but officials in the town say they're frustrated by the process three months after flooding severed the community's only land link.

The agency's designated enforcement officer for Manitoba has now contacted the Hudson Bay Railway Co., which is owned by Denver-based Omnitrax, to determine whether the company has violated its obligations to maintain the railway under the Canadian Transportation Act.

"To date, 12 people have gotten in touch with the CTA regarding the lack of service on the Hudson Bay Railway line," the CTA said in an email statement.

"The CTA can adjudicate complaints that a railway company has not respected these obligations. Most of the emails received do not constitute formal complaints of this sort, but any that do will be processed accordingly."

Response to complaints

The CTA's designated enforcement officer will inquire about Omnitrax's plans in response to the complaints.

"If the DEO's information-gathering efforts indicate that there may have been a violation of the discontinuance provisions of the Act, she can report these findings to decision-makers at the Agency, who will determine what further steps, if any, should be taken," the CTA said.

Churchill Mayor Mike Spence said he doesn't understand why the CTA needed to wait for people to write in and complain before taking any action.

"It makes no sense to me that you have to go through this process, but some people have [complained] and that's OK. Why do you have to go through this process is beyond me," he said.

Spence reiterated his argument that the federal and provincial governments need to step in to deal with the situation. 

David Daley, the president of the Churchill Chamber of Commerce, agrees.

"Whether there was a written complaint to their department or not, I don't really understand why they couldn't have jumped on this a long time ago," Daley said.

Fight over responsibility

Omnitrax has said it won't pay to repair the tracks and has asked the federal and provincial governments for help. It estimates the cost of the repairs at $20 million to $60 million.

A spokesperson for the company said it received a final report from AECOM Canada that includes the final cost estimate for the repairs. That report will be presented to Transport Canada next week, but the company did not say when that information will be made public.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has said Omnitrax is obliged to repair the tracks.

"This is a responsibility that is squarely on the shoulders of Omnitrax," Trudeau told reporters in Winnipeg on July 29.

Omnitrax, which has owned the railway and the now-closed Port of Churchill since 1997, received a combined $40 million from the federal and provincial governments in 2008 to upgrade the railway, with the expectation that the company would kick in another $20 million.

The contract stated that Omnitrax had to maintain and repair the railway until October 2018. If the company discontinued or abandons the railway or port, Ottawa is entitled to have their funding returned, according to the contract.

Omnitrax also received subsidies from Ottawa following the end of the Canadian Wheat Board in 2012 and the provincial government has given millions in funding to the company, including $820,000 in payments under a 2015 agreement.

Impacts on tourism

The town of about 900 people on the shore of Hudson Bay has struggled with rising costs and lost business ever since May 23, when the rail line shut down.

Daryl Adair, owner of Rail Travel Tours, says his company has had to cancel trips between Winnipeg and Churchill during the summer beluga-watching season. Now, their winter polar bear watching season is at risk.

"We have a considerable void," Adair said.

Daley estimates about 80 per cent of Churchill's economy is related to tourism, and about 80 per cent of tourists typically arrive by rail. Although some tour providers have switched to air travel, many individual travellers have simply stopped coming.

"We're really hoping that this rail line gets fixed because it's our lifeline," he said.