Is CN Rail Just a F--k up!

[haveapulse]

Hmmm, I am not a defender of railways,
but the service ratio (cars ordered to cars received) has improved as a direct result of the CTA cases. While it is far from perfect if a terminal is continually plugged you have to ask if the railway has become a convenient excuse for a plug full terminals generating a huge pile of storeage revenue. I note that on CWB grain (are the terminals full of canola, peas or CWB grain, check the grain boards in the terminal to see). With
storeage paid by the CWB (aka you & me) as a cost to farmers bottom line it actually pays to plug a terminal.
While elevators will poo poo this, an owner told me once they made good money storing our grain, thank you CWB (aka you and I ) very much. So check the grain board, 10 to 1 it is free CWB inventory plugging the bins (wanna bet its not company paid canola or peas sitting for months on end plugging the system. Next time you go into a plugged terminal, if the CWB eliminated storage would the terminal be plugged?

So maybe it is the CWB system that is plugging the terminal, not the poor rail service.

I could be wrong but...

[SASKFARMER3]

Peas, Canola and Oats. CWB grains two silos one HRS and One Durum.
DAH its CN CN CN.

[ado089]

They dropped 100 cars at cargil in NB on christmas eve at 6 pm and wanted them loaded in 24hrs. They're playing games and/or some unionized clowns where making a pile of 2.5X overtime. No doubt grain companies play games with storage or if you're anywhere in alberta south of calgary they could be full of US corn, but the rail service is horrible.

[haveapulse]

CN generates huge income from demurrage.
Inconvenient car spots as mentioned by ado90 plus more weekend car spots than mid week enable revenue generation.

he whole concept of demurrage imposed after 24 hours is a ridiculous time period given the fact that elevators have do not receive predictable timing of car delivery.

This tarriff needs to be challenged by the industry.

Demurrage would not be so bad if the railroads were using equipment to the maximum and could argue that tieing up equipment creates equipment shortages, but given the empty cars on sidings siting idle it is hard to imagine that not loading a car is 24 hours is a necessary penalty that ties up equipment availability. In addition the time period of 24 hours is ridiculous even if the railroad had timely arrival of equipment.

I am pleased Saskfarmer3 believes CWB grain in storage has nothing to do with terminals being full, however many stories do exist where the CWB calls in the wrong grain and it sits for months waiting for dispatch. Resulting in farmers paying storeage and elevators have their terminal tied up!