CN PUSHES FOR FURTHER DEREGULATION IN CANADA
Canadian National Railway said the time has come to further deregulate the rail industry in Canada.
Shipper benefits gained under the deregulatory Canada Transportation Act of 1996 “merit further easing of rail regulation in Canada,” CN said in comments submitted to a federal government panel that is conducting a review of the statute.
CN said the reform law has brought benefits to the Canadian economy and has contributed to the recovery of Canada’s railroads. “But this recover is incomplete and fragile.”
CN said adequate revenue for Canada’s major railroads must figure into the Canada Transportation Act review panel’s analysis of competitive rail access issues.
An interim report on access concepts is due by the end of this year.
Open access, or allowing multiple carriers access to a network owned by another railroad, would constitute a major structural change to the rail system in Canada, CN said.
Canadian rail freight rates “are the lowest in the world” or 60 percent below the international average, CN said.
“Deregulation has given rail customers in Canada the highest level of shipper protection of any jurisdiction in the world and significantly more protection than shippers enjoy in the United States,” CN said.