Still no service on 3 Montreal-area commuter train lines pending railway dispute resolution

Service to three Exo commuter train lines that serve stations in and around the island of Montreal is still at a halt, as Canada's two largest rail networks and their employees work toward resolving an ongoing labour dispute.

Lines 11 Vaudreuil-Hudson, 12 Saint-Jérôme and 14 Candiac have not been running since Thursday after Canadian National Railway Co. (CN) and Canadian Pacific Kansas City Ltd. (CPKC) locked out 9,300 engineers, conductors and yard workers.

Exo lines 13 Mont-Saint-Hilaire and 15 Mascouche, which use the CN network, continue to operate as normal because CN rail traffic controllers are not affected by the labour dispute, said Exo spokesperson Eric Edström in a statement.  

Labour Minister Steve MacKinnon sent the dispute to binding arbitration, he announced later on Thursday.

"The resumption timeframe is currently unknown," said Edström, adding that the public transit authority is awaiting instructions from CPKC railway company.

Exo is encouraging commuters on the island of Montreal and in Laval to use the Société de transport de Montréal and Société de transport de Laval public transit networks as much as possible.

Exo will be offering a free shuttle service as of Monday as an alternative to the three affected train lines, as it waits for a resolution to the labour dispute. The shuttles will run during peak hours and will mostly serve stations outside the island of Montreal. 

Edström explains that resuming service is a process that will take time. Exo staff will have to reposition the trains which are currently at the end of the rail lines or in garages. This could take anywhere between a couple of hours or a couple of days, he told CBC's Daybreak Montreal. It all depends on when Exo will have access to the tracks and when the CPKC train controllers will return to work.

"These manoeuvres could take time considering the rail congestion linked to the resumption and will depend on the priority given to passenger trains," he said. 

The affected commuter rail lines combined serve approximately 21,000 passengers per day.

The shuttle service will only begin Monday as Exo needs time to hire and train new drivers, some of whom are coming from outside Montreal given a shortage of drivers, compounded by the back-to-school period. 

In an ideal world, Exo would own the railways for its trains, says Edström, adding that "we're looking into it." 

"We need money. We need offers," he said.