Current status: Closed
Open on December 11, 2020 and will be closed on February 26, 2021.
The Transportation Modernization Act (TMA) introduced a new requirement for six class 1 rail carriers to submit public service and performance information and confidential waybill (rate) data, for their Canadian operations. Both of these elements are currently reported on a temporary basis, until regulations are developed.
Transport Canada (TC) launched a regulatory process in 2018 to:
- amend the Transportation Information Regulations (TIR) to collect data currently collected under the TMA; and
- refine and potentially expand the rail data that is collected, primarily for the purpose of increasing the transparency of Canada’s freight-rail network.
On March 19, 2019, TC launched broad public consultations on the type of data needed to better understand Canada’s freight-rail system. This initial phase of consultations included soliciting comments on a Discussion Paper, with submissions due on May 31, 2019. Since then, Transport Canada has been continuing regulatory development, supported by ongoing technical consultations.
Transport Canada has now developed a detailed proposal, which has been shared with stakeholders to support a further round of consultations on changes to freight rail data collection. The proposal, which takes into account the size and scope of each class 1 rail carrier’s Canadian operations, includes:
- an enhanced suite of weekly public service and performance indicators, to improve the utility of the information;
- minor adjustments to the waybill reporting requirement to ensure the data is adequate for its intended purposes;
- a new requirement for the largest class 1 rail carriers to report information on the composition of trains, to enhance TC’s understanding of the network ; and
- new aggregated traffic reporting requirements for smaller class 1 rail carriers, to better reflect the scope of their Canadian operations.
Join in: how to participate
Share your ideas
Contact us at TC.freightrail-fretferroviaire.TC@tc.gc.ca to receive a copy of the consultation materials, then submit your feedback to the same email address.
Who is the focus of this consultation?
All Canadians are invited to participate in the consultations. Those with a particular interest may include:
- railways;
- freight-rail users;
- other supply chain partners;
- other potential users of the data.
Key questions for discussion
We are looking for feedback from interested Canadians on the appropriateness of the proposed:
- public service and performance indicators;
- detailed waybill data reporting requirements;
- new train reporting requirements; and
- aggregated traffic reporting requirements.
You are invited to request a copy of the consultation materials and questionnaire from TC.freightrail-fretferroviaire.TC@tc.gc.ca, and then respond to the questionnaire.
Contact us
Rail Policy Analysis and Legislative Initiatives
Surface Transportation Policy
Transport Canada,
Tower C, Place de Ville
330 Sparks Street
Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0N5
Local telephone: 613-990-2309
Toll-free telephone: 1-866-995-9737
Teletypewriter (TTY): 1-888-675-6863
Fax: 613-954-4731
Email: TC.freightrail-fretferroviaire.TC@tc.gc.ca