REGINA - Shortline rail was the focus of the opposition New Democrats on Thursday.
Opposition Leader Carla Beck and several members of the NDP caucus were in Richardson, Saskatchewan speaking on the need to invest in short line rail infrastructure.
They were hosted by one of those short line operations, Stewart Southern Railway, which took them on a ride along the rails.
She had two calls for the province. One was for the province to increase funding to short line rail in this province, “something that we've seen stagnated in this province since 2017.”
The other was to have the province and the federal government work together to develop a countrywide shortline rail strategy.
“This is the moment to get things built in this country, to make these investments.And that's what we're calling on both the province and the federal government to do today.”
Beck said the investment was needed, pointing to the importance of building out trade infrastructure, reducing our reliance on the United States.
“Certainly, as the Saskatchewan New Democrats, the official opposition, we've been talking about the need to build rail lines and power lines and pipelines.
But that rail line has to include investing in short line rail infrastructure in this province and across this country. You know, there is so much potential in this province. We are proud of what we produce and how we produce it. And one thing that we need to make sure is that we can get those world-class products to market efficiently.”
Beck said an investment in short line rail “is a smart investment, an investment not only in this province, but in small rural communities right across our beautiful province.”
In a statement Thursday afternoon, the province had this response in which they indicated they were providing more money to short line rail:
“The Government of Saskatchewan through its provincial Short Line Railway Improvement Program is investing $1 million toward maintaining and improving short line railway infrastructure this year under this cost-sharing program – an increase of $470,000 or 88 per cent compared to last year’s budget of $530,000.
Short line railways play a key role supporting Saskatchewan’s export-based economy by helping its food, fuel and fertilizer continue its journey to worldwide markets.”
