Boxcar Fiasco

[Hopalong]

Anyone else remember the Manitoba govt refurbishment of grain boxcars?
It was about the same time government of Canada, wheat board, Alberta and Sask govts were buying hopper cars.
A political decision because it provided work in Manitoba and it was thought that the cars would be used on the Churchill line where hopper cars were too heavy.
Remember a half mile or so string of them parked on a siding in Saskatchewan for a full year, eventually hauled away.
While on the subject, it must be a trade irritant with United States farmers to see Government of Canada rail cars passing by their farms.

[bucket]

They must really get annoyed about it considering their government built storage facilities and support their farmers.

I'd be pissed too.

Sarcasm intended.

They laugh at us.

[wmoebis]

Don't know if it ever happened or not but there was talk of taking the light running gear off those box cars and putting them under smaller hoppers for the Churchill run. You do see a few 2 compartment cars but I don't think they are grain.

[bucket]

Hey better yet let's get rid of the MRE without reviewing the actual cost of moving grain


Some simple facts.
1. There are 60 percent less points to pick grain up at.

2. Typically pick up 100 plus cars.

3. More fuel efficient locomotives.

Lucky for canadian farmers the conservatives will quickly put up their hands with the liberals to do away with the MRE and forget to analyse the other details. But that's their M.O.

[farmaholic]

Excess outdated capacity....

Who here hasn't had a decent old wooden bin of reasonable capacity that never got knocked down or burned because one day you might need it to put a big crop in. Fast forward...old steel flat bottoms versus hopper bins....

That old dependable horsepower standing around to pull the seeding unit out of the mudhole. Or pull the


landroller or heavy harrows....

Small quonsets that the largest of machinery can't get into...but still good for afew pieces of small stuff....


Some old seldom used machinery along an old fenceline or hedgerow....

All this stuff is kept around with a minimum level of maintenance in case it is needed but it is too much to ask the RRs to have some extra capacity in case its needed. If its not there it can't be utilized.

[pgluca]

The difference is that YOU suffer the loss or gain the benefit from keeping extra or old equipment. The railways would only benefit slightly from increased capacity during big years as they will still get all the revenue later as the volume averages out. Maybe even at a higher rate..........

[bucket]

The line to Churchill is another scam.

OmniTrax took the subsidy but forgot to maintain the line then sold it back to another government funded organization ... the indigenous people.

[nicolaas]

Not too many farmers on earth subsidized as much as the US grain farmer. The states also have more people working in government services than Canada on a per capita basis. Do not be taken by their "free enterprise" double speak! I do not think that any thinking individual down there would care about a few hopper cars with government of Canada on them, as long as the army corp of engineers maintains the canals and barge sites.

[Hopalong]

Europe based organization for economic co-operation and development OECD used to calculate deemed subsidy equivalent for different countries.
United States was not that bad, better than many other countries including Canada which fared badly when subsidy equivalent for marketing boards was figured in.

[Hopalong]

Protectionist politicians in US are only too eager to promote their policy through minor trade issues and irritants.
Inability of their wheat to enter our bulk handling system as anything other than feed grade is another issue, not that much would be likely to come north, but a complaint anyway.
Anyone who thinks they are not thin skinned should have been in same room with US senators when another Canada case of BSE was announced.

[blackpowder]

One bone head president away from another Smoot - Hawley Act.
Or another pirouetting prime minister.