British Columbia Federation of Labour

Opinion-Editorial
By Jim Sinclair, President, B.C. Federation of Labour

The latest collision of two CN Rail locomotives along the former BC Rail line in Prince George should force a debate about how much longer this ill-starred "partnership" between the people of BC and the American-owned railway should last.

It is now more than two years since Premier Gordon Campbell broke his election promise and effectively sold the BC Rail freight line to CN Rail by creating a 999-year lease. Since then, Campbell and Transportation Minister Kevin Falcon have sat silently by as train after train has left the tracks.

Since taking over the profitable crown corporation in 2005, CN Rail has had over two dozen derailments on the former BC Rail line alone. There have been even more derailments on other sections of CN Rail lines throughout this province and this country. Workers have died and the fish of Cheakamus River were exterminated.

Under the sale agreement, the government is entitled to force improved performance from CN Rail. Violations can trigger a series of sanctions up to and including cancellation of the Agreement.

Maybe it is time that the Premier acknowledged that CN Rail is a bad tenant and needs to be evicted before more workers, communities and the environment get hurt.

It was not as if the government Premier was unaware of CN Rail's disastrous safety record before he handed over the keys to BC Rail. There were plenty of warning signs that the sale of BC Rail - one the most treacherous rail lines in North America - would end in tragedy but Gordon Campbell failed to listen.

Months prior to the sale, CN Rail was charged in connection with the death of CN conductor, Ken LeQuesne, and engineer, Art McKay, following poor maintenance of a rail bridge near McBride.

More than a dozen local governments, along the BC Rail line, passed motions opposing the sale of BC Rail citing safety concerns with other rail lines. The B.C. Federation of Labour sponsored a tour of a health and safety worker from

Great Britain who spoke of the sharp increase in train derailments following the privatization of BritRail.

The Premier failed to listen then and it appears that the Premier is unwilling to listen now. Gordon Campbell's failure to disclose the entire 999-year deal with CN, the breach of trust charges against two of his government aides over the BC Rail sale, and the mounting safety and environmental charges against CN Rail have served as reminders to the public about this bad deal for British Columbians.

Where was the Premier's call for a review of CN's safety record following the death of former BC Rail workers like Don Faulkner and Tom Dodd? Where was his demand that CN Rail rehire the more than 800 rail maintenance fired after the sale of BC Rail? How many more injuries and deaths and environmental disasters must occur before the Premier cancels this deal with CN Rail?

The pattern is clear: CN is seeking to maximize profit by speeding up the workforce, lengthening trains and pushing the safety envelope. Communities along the line are paying the price in worker deaths, job losses and environmental damage.

It's time that the Premier admitted that his broken promise was a mistake and take the steps available to him to begin the cancellation of the Agreement with CN Rail.

It is time to take the keys away from CN Rail before another derailment causes further death and destruction along the rail line. We cannot afford another 997 years of this chaos.