Major Freight Railway Companies in Canada

With more than 46,000 km of tracks, the rail transport industry is essential to Canada's transportation system. In Canada, the rail transport industry generates approximately $10 billion per year—95% of which comes from rail freight operations and about 5% from commuter, intercity, and tourist passenger rail services in major urban centers, corridors, and regions.

The North American rail industry is highly integrated. Companies operating on integrated rail networks build the track to a standard gauge, and tracks are maintained to similar standards. Locomotives owned and operated by the track owner usually pull loaded rail cars, but North American integration allows railways to interchange or hand off cars and locomotives that meet industry standards to other railways to complete a journey.

Canadian National Railway (CN) and Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) are the two dominant freight rail operators in Canada and are both Classes I railways, meaning their revenues exceeded $250 million in the past two years. Of total Canadian rail transport industry revenues, CN accounts for over 50% and CPR for approximately 35%. CN and CPR represent more than 95% of Canada's annual rail tonne-kilometers, more than 75% of the industry's tracks, and three-quarters of overall tonnage carried by the rail sector.  For Canada, these two firms serve as important supply chain links for Canada's key trade corridors and gateways. CN crosses Canada from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and follows the Mississippi River to the Gulf of Mexico, linking customers in Canada, the U.S., and Mexico.

Short-line railways are a fundamental component of the country's rail network, feeding and delivering traffic to and from mainline railways, originating more than 20% of all CN and CPR freight carload traffic, and moving billions of tonne-kilometers back and forth from Class I railways.

Below, you can access the headings of this article:

• What is Rail freight transport?
• Major freight railway companies in Canada
• Freight railway companies' capital plan
• Other transportation agencies in Canada

What is Rail freight transport?

Rail freight transport uses railroads and trains to transport cargo instead of human passengers. A freight train, cargo train, or goods train is a group of freight cars (US) or goods wagons (International Union of Railways) hauled by one or more locomotives on a railway, transporting cargo all or some of the way between the shipper and the intended destination as part of the logistics chain. Trains may haul bulk material, intermodal containers, and general or specialized freight in purpose-designed cars. Rail freight practices and economics vary by country and region.

When considered in terms of ton-miles or tonne-kilometers hauled per unit of energy consumed, rail transport can be more efficient than other means of transportation.

Major freight railway companies in Canada

1- Canadian National (CN):

CN is Canada's largest railway, in terms of revenue and the physical size of its rail network, spanning Canada from the Atlantic coast in Nova Scotia to the Pacific coast in British Columbia across approximately 20,400 route miles (32,831 km) of the track. In the late 20th century, CN gained extensive capacity in the United States by taking over such railroads as the Illinois Central.

• Name: Canadian National
• Website: http://cn.ca
• Number of active locomotives: more than 3000
• Track length: 32,831 km

2- Canadian Pacific (CP):

Canadian Pacific, Headquartered in Calgary, Alberta, owns approximately 20,100 kilometers (12,500 mi) of track in seven provinces of Canada and into the United States.

• Name: Canadian Pacific
• Website: http://cpr.ca
• Track length: 20,100 km
• Number of active locomotives: 1800

3- Quebec North Shore and Labrador Railway (QNS&L):

Quebec North Shore & Labrador (QNS&L)v is a common carrier federally regulated railway, operating freight services between Sept-Iles, Quebec, Labrador City, NL, and Emeril Junction, NL (which is the interconnection point for traffic transiting to and from Schefferville, Quebec with the connecting carrier, Tshiuetin Rail Transportation).

QNS&L is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Iron Ore Company of Canada (IOC). QNS&L offers bulk, through-freight, and way-freight type rail services on its line. The Quebec North Shore and Labrador Railway is a private Canadian regional railway that stretches 414 kilometers (257 mi) through northeastern Quebec and the western Labrador wilderness.

Freight railway companies' capital plan

1- CN 2022 Capital Plan:

CN has outlined a plan that is both ambitious and achievable. The Company will focus on redefining railroading, driving profitable growth, and making structural improvements for the next generation. CN has extensively reviewed all revenue and cost levers and targeted C$700 million of operating income improvements to drive future growth. For 2022, CN expects to grow earnings per share (EPS) by approximately 20% and improve its operating ratio to 57%. CN is targeting an operating ratio of 57% for 2022 by:

It prioritizes rail operations, including car velocity, train speed, and length, and commits to pursuing strategic alternatives for adjacent non-rail businesses that are not best in class.

In addition, as part of its strategic and financial plan, CN is reaffirming its 2021 economic outlook targets of double-digit adjusted diluted EPS growth versus 2020 adjusted diluted EPS of C$5.31, capital investments of approximately C$3.0 billion, and free cash flow in the range of C$3.0 to C$3.3 billion.

2- Canadian Pacific 2021 Capital Plan:

In 2021-22, CP invested approximately $1.5 billion to improve safety, network resiliency, and system velocity while enhancing capacity.

These investments include:

• Expanding air brake flow monitoring.
• Expanding the application of automated train brake effectiveness (cold wheel detection) technology.
• Expanding ground-level air temperature forecast system expansion.
• Leveraging predictive analytics to mitigate locomotive and rolling stock equipment failures before they occur.
• Implementing a high-speed camera train inspection system.

Other Transportation Agencies in Canada

The Canadian Transportation Agencies can be collected in a list that includes:

- Canadian National Railway

- Canadian Pacific Railway

- Southern Railway of British Columbia

- Tshiuetin Rail Transportation

- Quebec North Shore and Labrador Railway (QNS&L)

- Via Rail

- Ontario Northland Railway

In addition, several U.S. operators connect to the Canadian network:

- BNSF Railway (Note: The BNSF rail line is a strategic link in the trade route between Canada, the U.S., and Mexico. Its service to Canada’s Pacific Gateway gives Vancouver the unique strategic advantage of being the only port on the west coast served by three Class I railroads)

- CSX Transportation CSX Transportation (reporting mark CSXT) is a Class I freight railroad operating in the eastern United States and the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec. The railroad operates approximately 21,000 route miles (34,000 km) of the track.

- Norfolk Southern Railway operates spur lines from Toronto to Buffalo and from Montreal to Albany

- Union Pacific

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