Terra Transport
Encyclopedia
Terra Transport was the name for the Newfoundland Transportation Division, a wholly owned subsidiary of Canadian National Railway
(CN), created in 1979 as a means to organize the company's operations on the island of Newfoundland.
from the Government of Newfoundland in 1949 under that dominion's Terms of Union of entry into Confederation
. The majority of the Newfoundland Railway's operations were not economically self-sustaining, requiring significant subsidization; however, it was only after the construction of the Trans-Canada Highway
across the island in the early 1960s that the railway began to see serious declines in traffic.
At the same time, CN took over the Newfoundland Railway's ferry
service between North Sydney, Nova Scotia
and Port aux Basques, Newfoundland
and promptly began to improve the service, bringing in vessels
dedicated to carrying automobiles and trucks throughout the 1950s-1970s.
By the early 1970s, CN faced increased scrutiny from federal politicians complaining about the railway's continuous losses. Successive federal governments of the period had frequently forced the company to undertake various endeavours in the national interest, often at the expense of business and economic logic. As a result, CN sought to restructure itself, placing many of these operations into separate subsidiaries to clarify the accounting behind their existence. Restructuring applied to operations which lost money and required subsidization, or which were not part of CN's core freight railway business.
In 1977, all east coast ferries operated by CN were transferred to a new CN Subsidiary, CN Marine
. Passenger rail services were transferred to the new Crown corporation, Via Rail
, and in 1979, all of CN's freight railway operations on Newfoundland, along with the CN Roadcruiser Bus service and CN's trucking operation, were placed into a new division named Terra Transport.
, which was the longest narrow gauge railway in North America, stretching approximately 1000 km across the island, from the ferry
terminal in Port aux Basques
to the provincial capital at St. John's
. Many of the island's largest communities developed along the main line, largely because of their location; as a result, the Trans-Canada Highway paralleled its route in many places.
Rail operations in Newfoundland remained economically unfeasible because of slow service times, a side effect of the narrow gauge format. CN invested heavily in track improvements during the 1950s-1960s, but the narrow gauge operation could not compete with the flexibility of trucks. Significant time was lost at Port aux Basques, where standard gauge railway cars from mainland North America were lifted
off their bogie
s and onto narrow gauge bogies for use in Newfoundland. In some cases this was not possible, and the rail car contents were unloaded and reloaded onto narrow gauge cars. CN's operation of dedicated railway car ferries
was an additional expense.
CN operated a main line passenger train, the Caribou, from St. John's to Port aux Basques. Nicknamed the Newfie Bullet, the Caribou operated until June 1969, when it was replaced by the CN Roadcruiser bus service started in the Fall of 1968. With the demise of the Caribou, the only passenger services remaining on the island were mixed freight and passenger trains
on the Bonavista, Carbonear, and Argentia branch lines, and on the main-line between Bishop's Falls and Corner Brook. Terra Transport would continue to operate mixed passenger/freight service on the branch lines until 1984. The mainline service between Corner Brook and Bishop's Falls made its last run on September 30, 1988. The Roadcruiser bus service ran until March 29, 1996, when it was sold to DRL Coachlines
of Triton, Newfoundland.
The most significant change made under the Terra Transport subsidiary was the move to the carriage of less-than-carload (LCL) freight. A large fleet of distinctive green intermodal
shipping containers
were ordered and used in place of boxcar
s. These containers could be stacked on flatcar
s of mainland trains, fitted onto the decks inside the ferries, and then placed on flatcars of trains in Newfoundland or transported entirely by truck. During the mid 1980s, trains composed almost entirely of the distinctive TT containers were common. The handling time for freight dropped considerably, as containers could be easily removed from the trains in each community and the loading/unloading at Port aux Basques was significantly improved over standard freight cars. Another significant change the closure and abandonment all of CN's branch lines in the province by 1984, leaving only the main line operational.
Despite these changes, Terra Transport was unable to turn a profit for CN and the federal government. Specialized ferries were still needed for carrying non-LCL railway cars, and by the mid-1980s were approaching the end of their operational life and required replacement. The election of a Conservative
federal government brought about the elimination of subsidies for money-losing operations. In 1986, one of two remaining railcar ferries was sold off as the government converted CN Marine
into Marine Atlantic
, completely separating the rail and ferry services. Terra Transport operations were largely captive on the island and would specialize in handling import/export LCL and inter-island non-LCL freight.
the railway industry in Canada and CN promptly applied to abandon its Newfoundland operations under Terra Transport. The political firestorm which followed saw the federal and provincial governments negotiate a one-time payout of $800 million (CAD) from Ottawa to St. John's to fund highway improvements under the Trans-Canada Highway Program and the Regional Trunk Road Agreement.
The agreements were signed in December 1987; however, continuing public outcry and legal challenges kept the railway operational for several months. On June 20, 1988, it was officially announced that the railway would cease operations as of September 1, 1988. Some freight trains still ran till late September, with the last scheduled run on September 29, 1988. The last scheduled passenger train ran on September 30, 1988, from Bishops Falls to Corner Brook. Following official abandonment, the railway operated salvage trains, dismantling track in remote locations; some salvage trains were still operating in the summer of 1990. Most of the track was removed and scrapped by November 1990. CN no longer has any operations in the Province of Newfoundland. In the fall of 1996 CN contracted out its intermodal trucking operation to Clarke Transport. Clarke Transport is now the local agent for CN.
Since 1997, the old railbed has been reclaimed as the Newfoundland T'Railway
Provincial Park.
Canadian National Railway
The Canadian National Railway Company is a Canadian Class I railway headquartered in Montreal, Quebec. CN's slogan is "North America's Railroad"....
(CN), created in 1979 as a means to organize the company's operations on the island of Newfoundland.
Background
Canadian National Railways acquired the Newfoundland RailwayNewfoundland Railway
The Newfoundland Railway was a railway which operated on the island of Newfoundland from 1898 to 1988. With a total track length of , it was the longest narrow gauge railway system in North America.-Early construction:...
from the Government of Newfoundland in 1949 under that dominion's Terms of Union of entry into Confederation
Canadian Confederation
Canadian Confederation was the process by which the federal Dominion of Canada was formed on July 1, 1867. On that day, three British colonies were formed into four Canadian provinces...
. The majority of the Newfoundland Railway's operations were not economically self-sustaining, requiring significant subsidization; however, it was only after the construction of the Trans-Canada Highway
Trans-Canada Highway
The Trans-Canada Highway is a federal-provincial highway system that joins the ten provinces of Canada. It is, along with the Trans-Siberian Highway and Australia's Highway 1, one of the world's longest national highways, with the main route spanning 8,030 km...
across the island in the early 1960s that the railway began to see serious declines in traffic.
At the same time, CN took over the Newfoundland Railway's ferry
Train ferry
A train ferry is a ship designed to carry railway vehicles. Typically, one level of the ship is fitted with railway tracks, and the vessel has a door at the front and/or rear to give access to the wharves. In the United States, train ferries are sometimes referred to as "car ferries", as...
service between North Sydney, Nova Scotia
North Sydney, Nova Scotia
North Sydney is a community in Nova Scotia's Cape Breton Regional Municipality.Located on the north side of Sydney Harbour, along the eastern coast of Cape Breton Island, North Sydney is an important port in Atlantic Canada as it is the western terminus of the Marine Atlantic ferry service...
and Port aux Basques, Newfoundland
Channel-Port aux Basques, Newfoundland and Labrador
Channel-Port aux Basques is a town at the extreme southwestern tip of the island of Newfoundland fronting on the eastern end of the Cabot Strait. A Marine Atlantic ferry terminal is located in the town which is the primary entry point onto the island of Newfoundland and the western terminus of...
and promptly began to improve the service, bringing in vessels
Ferry
A ferry is a form of transportation, usually a boat, but sometimes a ship, used to carry primarily passengers, and sometimes vehicles and cargo as well, across a body of water. Most ferries operate on regular, frequent, return services...
dedicated to carrying automobiles and trucks throughout the 1950s-1970s.
By the early 1970s, CN faced increased scrutiny from federal politicians complaining about the railway's continuous losses. Successive federal governments of the period had frequently forced the company to undertake various endeavours in the national interest, often at the expense of business and economic logic. As a result, CN sought to restructure itself, placing many of these operations into separate subsidiaries to clarify the accounting behind their existence. Restructuring applied to operations which lost money and required subsidization, or which were not part of CN's core freight railway business.
In 1977, all east coast ferries operated by CN were transferred to a new CN Subsidiary, CN Marine
CN Marine
CN Marine was a Canadian ferry company headquartered in Moncton, New Brunswick.-History:CN Marine was created by parent Canadian National Railway in 1977 as a means to group the company's ferry operations in eastern Canada into a separate operating division...
. Passenger rail services were transferred to the new Crown corporation, Via Rail
VIA Rail
Via Rail Canada is an independent crown corporation offering intercity passenger rail services in Canada. It is headquartered near Montreal Central Station at 3 Place Ville-Marie in Montreal, Quebec....
, and in 1979, all of CN's freight railway operations on Newfoundland, along with the CN Roadcruiser Bus service and CN's trucking operation, were placed into a new division named Terra Transport.
CN in Newfoundland
CN's operations in Newfoundland revolved around the former Newfoundland RailwayNewfoundland Railway
The Newfoundland Railway was a railway which operated on the island of Newfoundland from 1898 to 1988. With a total track length of , it was the longest narrow gauge railway system in North America.-Early construction:...
, which was the longest narrow gauge railway in North America, stretching approximately 1000 km across the island, from the ferry
Train ferry
A train ferry is a ship designed to carry railway vehicles. Typically, one level of the ship is fitted with railway tracks, and the vessel has a door at the front and/or rear to give access to the wharves. In the United States, train ferries are sometimes referred to as "car ferries", as...
terminal in Port aux Basques
Channel-Port aux Basques, Newfoundland and Labrador
Channel-Port aux Basques is a town at the extreme southwestern tip of the island of Newfoundland fronting on the eastern end of the Cabot Strait. A Marine Atlantic ferry terminal is located in the town which is the primary entry point onto the island of Newfoundland and the western terminus of...
to the provincial capital at St. John's
St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador
St. John's is the capital and largest city in Newfoundland and Labrador, and is the oldest English-founded city in North America. It is located on the eastern tip of the Avalon Peninsula on the island of Newfoundland. With a population of 192,326 as of July 1, 2010, the St...
. Many of the island's largest communities developed along the main line, largely because of their location; as a result, the Trans-Canada Highway paralleled its route in many places.
Rail operations in Newfoundland remained economically unfeasible because of slow service times, a side effect of the narrow gauge format. CN invested heavily in track improvements during the 1950s-1960s, but the narrow gauge operation could not compete with the flexibility of trucks. Significant time was lost at Port aux Basques, where standard gauge railway cars from mainland North America were lifted
Bogie exchange
Bogie exchange is a system for operating railway wagons on two or more gauges to overcome difference in the track gauge. To perform a bogie exchange, a car is converted from one gauge to another by removing the chassis containing the wheels and axles of the car, and installing a new chassis with...
off their bogie
Bogie
A bogie is a wheeled wagon or trolley. In mechanics terms, a bogie is a chassis or framework carrying wheels, attached to a vehicle. It can be fixed in place, as on a cargo truck, mounted on a swivel, as on a railway carriage/car or locomotive, or sprung as in the suspension of a caterpillar...
s and onto narrow gauge bogies for use in Newfoundland. In some cases this was not possible, and the rail car contents were unloaded and reloaded onto narrow gauge cars. CN's operation of dedicated railway car ferries
Train ferry
A train ferry is a ship designed to carry railway vehicles. Typically, one level of the ship is fitted with railway tracks, and the vessel has a door at the front and/or rear to give access to the wharves. In the United States, train ferries are sometimes referred to as "car ferries", as...
was an additional expense.
CN operated a main line passenger train, the Caribou, from St. John's to Port aux Basques. Nicknamed the Newfie Bullet, the Caribou operated until June 1969, when it was replaced by the CN Roadcruiser bus service started in the Fall of 1968. With the demise of the Caribou, the only passenger services remaining on the island were mixed freight and passenger trains
Mixed train
A mixed train is a train that hauls both passenger and freight cars or wagons. In the early days of railways they were quite common, but by the 20th century they were largely confined to branch lines with little traffic. As the trains provided passengers with very slow service, mixed trains have...
on the Bonavista, Carbonear, and Argentia branch lines, and on the main-line between Bishop's Falls and Corner Brook. Terra Transport would continue to operate mixed passenger/freight service on the branch lines until 1984. The mainline service between Corner Brook and Bishop's Falls made its last run on September 30, 1988. The Roadcruiser bus service ran until March 29, 1996, when it was sold to DRL Coachlines
DRL Coachlines
DRL Coachlines is a motor coach bus company operating in the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador.Wholly owned by DRL Group of Triton, NL, the bus company provided charter services before taking over CN Roadcruiser services on the island of Newfoundland in 1996.-Inter-city service:*...
of Triton, Newfoundland.
The most significant change made under the Terra Transport subsidiary was the move to the carriage of less-than-carload (LCL) freight. A large fleet of distinctive green intermodal
Intermodal freight transport
Intermodal freight transport involves the transportation of freight in an intermodal container or vehicle, using multiple modes of transportation , without any handling of the freight itself when changing modes. The method reduces cargo handling, and so improves security, reduces damages and...
shipping containers
Containerization
Containerization is a system of freight transport based on a range of steel intermodal containers...
were ordered and used in place of boxcar
Boxcar
A boxcar is a railroad car that is enclosed and generally used to carry general freight. The boxcar, while not the simplest freight car design, is probably the most versatile, since it can carry most loads...
s. These containers could be stacked on flatcar
Flatcar
A flatcar is a piece of railroad or railway rolling stock that consists of an open, flat deck on four or six wheels or a pair of trucks or bogies . The deck of the car can be wood or steel, and the sides of the deck can include pockets for stakes or tie-down points to secure loads...
s of mainland trains, fitted onto the decks inside the ferries, and then placed on flatcars of trains in Newfoundland or transported entirely by truck. During the mid 1980s, trains composed almost entirely of the distinctive TT containers were common. The handling time for freight dropped considerably, as containers could be easily removed from the trains in each community and the loading/unloading at Port aux Basques was significantly improved over standard freight cars. Another significant change the closure and abandonment all of CN's branch lines in the province by 1984, leaving only the main line operational.
Despite these changes, Terra Transport was unable to turn a profit for CN and the federal government. Specialized ferries were still needed for carrying non-LCL railway cars, and by the mid-1980s were approaching the end of their operational life and required replacement. The election of a Conservative
Progressive Conservative Party of Canada
The Progressive Conservative Party of Canada was a Canadian political party with a centre-right stance on economic issues and, after the 1970s, a centrist stance on social issues....
federal government brought about the elimination of subsidies for money-losing operations. In 1986, one of two remaining railcar ferries was sold off as the government converted CN Marine
CN Marine
CN Marine was a Canadian ferry company headquartered in Moncton, New Brunswick.-History:CN Marine was created by parent Canadian National Railway in 1977 as a means to group the company's ferry operations in eastern Canada into a separate operating division...
into Marine Atlantic
Marine Atlantic
Marine Atlantic Inc. is an independent Canadian Crown corporation offering ferry services between the provinces of Newfoundland and Labrador and Nova Scotia.Marine Atlantic's corporate headquarters are in St...
, completely separating the rail and ferry services. Terra Transport operations were largely captive on the island and would specialize in handling import/export LCL and inter-island non-LCL freight.
Abandonment
In 1987, the federal government deregulatedDeregulation
Deregulation is the removal or simplification of government rules and regulations that constrain the operation of market forces.Deregulation is the removal or simplification of government rules and regulations that constrain the operation of market forces.Deregulation is the removal or...
the railway industry in Canada and CN promptly applied to abandon its Newfoundland operations under Terra Transport. The political firestorm which followed saw the federal and provincial governments negotiate a one-time payout of $800 million (CAD) from Ottawa to St. John's to fund highway improvements under the Trans-Canada Highway Program and the Regional Trunk Road Agreement.
The agreements were signed in December 1987; however, continuing public outcry and legal challenges kept the railway operational for several months. On June 20, 1988, it was officially announced that the railway would cease operations as of September 1, 1988. Some freight trains still ran till late September, with the last scheduled run on September 29, 1988. The last scheduled passenger train ran on September 30, 1988, from Bishops Falls to Corner Brook. Following official abandonment, the railway operated salvage trains, dismantling track in remote locations; some salvage trains were still operating in the summer of 1990. Most of the track was removed and scrapped by November 1990. CN no longer has any operations in the Province of Newfoundland. In the fall of 1996 CN contracted out its intermodal trucking operation to Clarke Transport. Clarke Transport is now the local agent for CN.
Since 1997, the old railbed has been reclaimed as the Newfoundland T'Railway
Newfoundland T'Railway
The Newfoundland T'Railway Provincial Park is a rail trail in the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador.Protected as a linear park under the provincial park system, the T'Railway consists of the railbed of the historic Newfoundland Railway as transferred from its most recent owner,...
Provincial Park.