Rail work stoppage shuts down some Ontario, Quebec, B.C. commuter rail lines

Bewildered commuters were turned away from shuttered rail lines on Thursday as an unprecedented railway lockout upset travel plans for more than 30,000 daily riders in some of Canada’s largest cities.

Canadian National Railway Co. and Canadian Pacific Kansas City Ltd. locked out its workers after they failed to reach a deal on a new contract before a midnight deadline, the first time there has been a simultaneous shutdown on Canada’s two largest railways.

The lockout delivers a blow to commuter railways in Montreal, Toronto and Vancouver that run on CPKC-owned lines. The impact is limited to those lines because dispatchers at CN, which hosts a greater number of passenger trains, are not part of the bargaining process and would not take part in a work stoppage.

Southern Ontario’s GO Transit halted rail service at Hamilton GO Centre and along its Milton line, sidelining a combined 8,100 customers.

Some commuters arrived Thursday morning at GO Transit stations along the line, which cuts through Mississauga to Toronto’s Union Station, only to learn service had been suspended.

“This is completely unacceptable, and we should have been informed earlier, said Om Sangekar, speaking outside the Cooksville station.

“I’ll definitely be late for work.”

GO Transit customer care workers stopped people on their way into the parking lot to tell them about the shutdown and alternative travel options. Shuttles were running every 30 minutes to take those at the Cooksville station to Port Credit’s GO hub, where they could catch a ride on the Lakeshore line.

Shraddha Mhatre, a commuter who arrived at the Cooksville station unaware of the stoppage, decided to work from home.

“I have some meetings scheduled in the mornings so I can’t take a chance to have any further delays,” she said.

In a statement posted to social media, Ontario Premier Doug Ford appealed to both the railways and union leadership to get back to the bargaining table, saying the shutdown was already costing workers, transit users and businesses.

‘We cannot afford to let things get worse,” he said.

In the Montreal area, Exo Transit says its Candiac, Saint-Jerome and Vaudreuil/Hudson lines, which serve around 21,000 daily riders in the Montreal area, are shut down.

In notices on its website, Exo directed customers to regular service alternatives. If the railway shutdown drags on, it says some shuttle bus service will be available starting Monday.

“The proposed bus shuttles will not be able to compensate for all the interrupted service on the three affected train lines, and we recommend that users plan alternative routes via existing regular services,” the notice read.

In the Vancouver area, TransLink said it’s offering supplemental bus service for its suspended West Coast Express service. The transit service said more than 3,000 passengers take the line each day.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 22, 2024.