The Huron Central Railway between Sudbury and Sault Ste. Marie will continue to operate as long as the two upper levels of government continue to work towards a solution.
Genesee & Wyoming Canada commercial officer, Christian Richard told Sault Ste. Marie City council the company will defer their March 31st deadline to cease operations as long as talks with the feds and the Ford government continue.
Richard says the company invests about 12 percent of its revenues annually into maintaining the line but adds it needs an investment of $40-million dollars to maintain the short line.
He adds the line is owned by CP Rail but it doesn’t contribute toward track maintenance, so the company has been responsible for upkeep since they were contracted to take over operations in 1997.
The 278 kilometres of track is a vital part of transporting goods for Domtar in Espanola, Algoma Steel in Sault Ste. Marie and EACOM in Nairn Centre.