NDP pledges to look for ways to bring back passenger train

We are about eight months away from the next provincial election, an election that looks promising for the NDP.

That, according to Timmins-James Bay MPP Gilles Bisson, who says New Democrats have a “very good chance” at forming a government under leader Andrea Horwath. He says the governing Liberals are “vastly unpopular” and the PC’s are very much “an unknown.”

So in the spirit of pre-election moves, the NDP have come forward with a promise that if elected, they will direct the ONTC to work with industry, unions, communities and residents to look at the best way they can provide rail and bus service.

One of the big things to that is bringing back the Northlander passenger train.

Bisson even alluded to how Timmins—more specifically, South Porcupine—hasn’t been serviced for passenger train service in a long time, despite being on the ONR line.

Before the train was shut down, Timmins residents riding the rails would have to stop in Matheson and board a bus to travel the rest of the way.

Consultation will give Northerners the chance to discuss and have input on how to bring the train back.

“(The province under an NDP government) will provide the capital dollars necessary to build the infrastructure that needs to be done,” Bisson says, “In some cases, it might be equipment, it might be rail, it might be buses, it might be buildings, it might be whatever…but that’ll be up to the commission to go out and do the work.”

This commission would also look at other key things:

• enhance bus service
• develop practical rail and bus schedules
• identification of communities of interest/need
• decide what the infrastructure and equipment needs are
• freight service enhancement including the possibility of servicing the Ring of Fire

Speaking to the last point, Bisson says the ONTC could have a role in transporting ore into the city from the chromite-rich region.

“We have a site that’s already permitted, all the electricity is there, everything we need to build that chromite facility is there,” Bisson says.

We know the city is already making attempts to contribute to the Ring of Fire. It was announced this week that the Timmins Economic Development Corporation received technical documents that outline requirements to build a Ferrochrome Production Facility.

The train situation as a whole was also brought up at the federal level by Timmins-James Bay MP Charlie Angus.

He mentioned he will support Bisson’s efforts, as well as the ones carried out by the newly established All Aboard Northern Ontario Coalition in returning train service.