Potential railway stoppage could have big West Coast Express impacts

With a major strike or lockout looming over Canada’s two major railways, communities are bracing for the potential impacts this could have on local systems.

In the Lower Mainland, TransLink says if Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC) and Teamsters Canada Rail Conference fail to reach a deal and if a lockout occurs as CPKC has warned, “West Coast Express will not be able to run.”

The local transit authority explains the WCE operates on rail that’s owned by CPKC, noting it “cannot operate without CPKC’s dispatchers and rail workers.”

“The West Coast Express service outage would be indefinite until the CPKC lockout ends,” TransLink said in an email Monday morning. “We will provide further customer updates as the situation develops.”

The WCE provides commuter rail service between Vancouver and Mission. TransLink says over 3,000 customers use the service every day.

Bridgitte Anderson, president and CEO of the Greater Vancouver Board of Trade, says the impacts of a WCE stoppage would be significant.

“British Columbia relies on the railways for all kinds of goods, so the impact could be quite significant. In addition to that, when you think about the number of commuters who rely on the West Coast Express, and that would be shut down as well. That would have impact on workers to be able to get to the office and employers who are relying on those employees,” she explained.

“I think to understand the magnitude of this is very significant and it’s why we’re calling on the federal government to take action immediately to ensure that there is no stoppage.”

The Teamsters Canada Rail Conference said over the weekend that unless the parties can reach a last-minute agreement, workers will be off the job as of 12:01 a.m. Eastern time Thursday.

However, not long after the union’s statement, CN Rail issued a notice of its own, saying it intends to lock workers out at that same time unless an agreement or binding arbitration is achieved.

The company says no meaningful progress has occurred despite weekend labour negotiations.

Both CPKC and Canadian National Railway Co. have been halting shipments in preparation for potential work stoppages by a combined 9,300 workers at the two railways.

On Thursday, federal Labour Minister Steven MacKinnon rejected a request from CN to impose binding arbitration, saying he wants the company to bargain in good faith.

The Canadian Federation of Independent Business has said a work stoppage could be devastating for small businesses, noting many rely on rail service to send and receive goods, proucts, and essential materials.

-With files from Raynaldo Suarez, Monika Gul, and The Canadian Press