[Northern Light]

Federal Court of Appeal rules CN can continue building the hub.......... for now.

Judge says construction on massive CN Rail hub in GTA can continue – for now

The judge said that while a halt to work on the $250-million project would have no effect on CN’s long-term viability, any delay is ‘detrimental to the public interest’

www.theglobeandmail.com

From the above ( A Canadian Press item)

 

[Admiral Beez]

Construction on massive CN Rail hub near Toronto can temporarily continue, judge rules

CN Rail's massive hub in the GTA can go ahead pending a decision on an appeal of a lower court ruling that halted construction. Read more.

financialpost.com

We all want stuff, but some don't like how stuff gets to us.

 

[rdaner]

Federal Court of Appeal dismisses challenge to construction of massive CN Rail hub in GTA

The $250-million project aims to double CN’s existing line of tracks in Milton, Ont., and construct a hub for containers to be transferred between trucks and trains

www.theglobeandmail.com

Would this affect rail lines used by passenger rail?

 

[just east of the creek]

Federal Court of Appeal dismisses challenge to construction of massive CN Rail hub in GTA

The $250-million project aims to double CN’s existing line of tracks in Milton, Ont., and construct a hub for containers to be transferred between trucks and trains

www.theglobeandmail.com

Would this affect rail lines used by passenger rail?

No passenger rail currently uses the Burlington to Milton line, so I think not.

I have no data, except my anecdotal observations, but there does seem to be more traffic on the line then ever before. I am not sure if accessible stats exist to prove this. it would be interesting to know.

Although many object to this use of lands at the location, to be fair to CN, they have owned the lands for 25 or more years and their intentions were known locally for a long , long time previous to actually beginning work on developing the site. A lot of politicians and developers chose to (wilfully?) ignore these plans when the idea of running a water line to Milton from Lake Ontario was first proposed, enabling the intensive development in Milton that we see today.

 

[Bojaxs]

I posteds this in the Missing Link/ 407 freight bypass thread, but figured it would also be fitting to post in this thread.

Simply pointing out that if CN had agreed to construct the 407 freight bypass, the area right above the intersection of Trafalgar Rd & Steeles would have served as a better spot for an intermodal facility in Milton versus the current proposed location off of Tremain.

 

[just east of the creek]

I posteds this in the Missing Link/ 407 freight bypass thread, but figured it would also be fitting to post in this thread.

Simply pointing out that if CN had agreed to construct the 407 freight bypass, the area right above the intersection of Trafalgar Rd & Steeles would have served as a better spot for an intermodal facility in Milton versus the current proposed location off of Tremain.

View attachment 602349

That is interesting.

Follow up question then. The track in question (Halton SUbdivision - Burlington to Milton through the new intermodal yard) is rated at 286,000 lbs. And is double tracked from Burlington to the yard site, but only a single track through Milton? Do you think CN will ever need to double track the section through Milton? The costs of doing so would be substantial I would think with the track elevations and bridges required.

 

[Bojaxs]

That is interesting.

Follow up question then. The track in question (Halton SUbdivision - Burlington to Milton through the new intermodal yard) is rated at 286,000 lbs. And is double tracked from Burlington to the yard site, but only a single track through Milton? Do you think CN will ever need to double track the section through Milton? The costs of doing so would be substantial I would think with the track elevations and bridges required.

Should they? Yeah.
Will they? Don't know.

Back in 2019, CN and CSX announced an agreement that would see CN moving more containers out of CSX's BUffalo yard and into Toronto and Montreal. These containers at CSX's Buffalo yard are typically coming from and going to the New York, Jersey and Philadelphia Ports. So this stretch of track is going to see an increase in rail traffic as the years go by. Right now we only load a couple trains per week for Buffalo, but I'm sure that'll increase over time.

CN and CSX Announce New Intermodal Service Offering | cn.ca

CN and CSX Announce New Intermodal Service Offering

www.cn.ca

 

[just east of the creek]

Should they? Yeah.
Will they? Don't know.

Somewhere at home I have the CN proposal on file. I do not remember it saying much about any lengthy double tracking outside of the confines of the yard under construction (and now just receiving the seal of approval in federal court) but I’ll look again.

 

[crs1026]

^My dusty memory of the published plans says that the amount of new double track being laid in connection with the yard is modest and mostly ensures that through trains can pass the yard while switching is gong on in the yard itself. It was seized on by the reporter likely as it's a more understandable detail for the average reader.
I also seem to recall CN saying that there would be an increase of one train a day in each direction upon opening, although clearly traffic will increase over time.
As to more broader double tracking of the Halton Sub, CN certainly has indicated that it had done initial planning and scoping at the system planning level - but as noted it would be a costly investment so is unlikely to happen until absolutely necessary. At the moment the line is pretty fluid and I don't expect CN will feel any need to do so anytime soon.

- Paul

 

[Northern Light]

The Federal Court of Appeals has ruled in favour of CN in respect of the Milton yard. Unless the appellants attempt to go to the Supreme Court, this one is done; regardless, work continues in the interim.

Federal Court of Appeal dismisses challenge to construction of massive CN Rail hub in GTA

The $250-million project aims to double CN’s existing line of tracks in Milton, Ont., and construct a hub for containers to be transferred between trucks and trains

www.theglobeandmail.com

 

[Allandale25]

Receive this email:

CN_Milton_Project​	3:02 PM (0 minutes ago)
to

Hello,

Please be advised of upcoming night construction work for the CN Milton Logistics Hub, scheduled from February 21-26, 2025. This work involves track realignment and culvert installation work at two locations along the existing CN mainline.

For more details, please refer to the attached PDF or visit the project website at cnmilton.ca.

Sincerely,
CN Milton Project Team

 

[Transportfan]

The Federal Court of Appeals has ruled in favour of CN in respect of the Milton yard. Unless the appellants attempt to go to the Supreme Court, this one is done; regardless, work continues in the interim.

Why was the work even stopped? It seems all NIMBY'S need to do to (maybe) get their way is to stay noisy after a project is started.

 

[Allandale25]

Received by email today:

Hello,

We are writing to you to provide an update on recent activities regarding the Milton Logistics Hub Project (the “Project”).

Activities on Site

The Project was the subject of an extensive, multi-year federal environmental assessment process, which culminated in a federal Decision Statement on January 21, 2021, Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) Authorization on July 23, 2021, and a Canadian Transportation Agency (CTA) decision on November 22, 2021. It is subject to over 300 conditions designed to protect the community and the environment.

The CN Milton Logistics Hub is a critical piece of infrastructure in Canada’s busiest and fastest growing region, where new capacity is needed to meet the growing demand for goods. The Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area (GTHA) is one of Canada’s fastest growing regions and the Milton Logistics Hub is critical to handle the growing demand for household goods, consumer products, and other necessities of day-to-day life.

Annual Report

The following document has recently been posted on cnmilton.ca:

• 2024 Annual Report

This document is available on our Project website under Project Documentation. Per the conditions of the federal Decision Statement and as outlined in the Community Liaison Communication Process, CN will provide a report describing feedback received and how it was addressed on a quarterly basis throughout all stages of the project. These Quarterly Reports can be found on our website individually and included as an appendix in our Annual Report.

Thank you.

-CN Milton Project Team

 

[qubyte]

Shots from April 1st:
Looking Northwest, noting completion of culvert installation, storm sewer and extensive grading. Fence has been installed on both sides since the Annual Report.

Just North of the site, we can see Great Gulf's Milton Village coming together. The phase closest to the tracks is expected to be released sometime this summer.

Update on the Reinforced Soil Slope wall:

Looking towards the site, noting continued progress on the shoring wall/bridge.

Britannia Access Road Intersection Construction will be interesting to see how it plays out with the Region of Halton and Town opposing the project.

The intersection doesn't support dedicated left and right turn movements to the access road. Will require a westbound left turn lane and possibly an eastbound right turn lane (constrained due to bridge width, bike lane and multi use path)

Britannia Access Road: some progress since December, installation of culvert near the intersection and grading.

Bonus Shots from March 8 and 9:

 

[Transportfan]

Why are there VIA trains there? Regular route tracks closed?