An end to a countrywide rail stoppage may be in sight, but riders of British Columbia’s West Coast Express are facing at least one more day without the service.
The federal government has ordered binding arbitration in the dispute involving the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference union, Canadian National Railway Co., and Canadian Pacific Kansas City Ltd.
CN says it’s ended its lockout of workers and CPKC says it’s preparing to resume operations after the two railways’ first-ever simultaneous stoppage.
But regional transport provider TransLink says the West Coast Express, which runs on CPKC tracks, will remain suspended for the rest of Thursday and Friday.
It says services will be halted “until further clarity is given by CPKC on when trains can operate again.”
TransLink says a supplemental bus service will be provided until service is resumed.
West Coast Express trains have been unable to operate since Wednesday night without locked-out traffic controllers to dispatch them.
Premier David Eby had said before the federal government stepped in that the stoppage was “terrible news,” both for the families of locked-out railworkers and those whose commutes and industries were affected.
The countrywide impasse affected upwards of 32,000 commuters in Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver, including the 3,000 customers who use the West Coast Express each weekday.
The West Coast Express serves communities between Vancouver and Mission, about 67 kilometres to the east, with stops in the Maple Ridge, Pitt Meadows and Coquitlam areas.
Eby told an unrelated news conference Thursday there had been “massive knock on effects” from the stoppage for a range of people who rely on rail services, from farmers in the Prairies to commuters who use the West Coast Express.
Eby said “the word devastating is probably and understatement” as he urged the companies to sit down with the workers “sincerely” to resolve the stoppage.
University of British Columbia professor emeritus Trevor Heaver, who specializes in transportation, said the stoppage meant busier road conditions for Metro Vancouver drivers.
“Putting more cars on the road is not what we want to see,” he said.
Public transit advocates in Vancouver, Montreal and Toronto issued a joint statement before the arbitration announcement saying the stoppage showed rail users were “at the mercy of freight transportation” in Canada.
The statement from Trajectoire Québec, TTCriders and Movement: Metro Vancouver Transit Riders said public transit users were paying for a situation out of their control.
Heaver said grain farmers in Western Canada would be “significantly affected” as they head into the peak time for grain exports.
“A significant proportion of Western grain is exported through the Port of Vancouver and is entirely dependent upon rail movement,” said Heaver.
It would take some time for grain farmers to recover from built-up costs of the stoppage even after it was settled, Heaver added.
The Greater Vancouver Board of Trade applauded the binding arbitration announcement, with president and CEO Bridgitte Anderson, calling it “welcome news.”
“A prolonged work stoppage would have been disastrous for our national economy and our reputation as a trading partner,” she said in a statement.
“Additionally, it was regular Canadians and small business owners who stood to bear the worst impacts, from loss of income to increased costs of everyday goods.
Groups representing other industries had earlier expressed concern.
Blair Qualey, president and CEO of the New Car Dealers Association of BC, had said in a statement that car dealers were already dealing with tight inventory and the rail stoppage would “turn the tap off.”
Fiona Famulak, president of BC Chamber of Commerce, said the group was “extremely disappointed” the parties haven’t been able to reach a deal.