Remove The Cap

[agstar77]

Who the wrote that report? Remove the cap, limit competition, raise rates. What the "F"?

[mcfarms]

Someone who obviously has a Swiss bank account that is who.

[bucket]

Who wrote the report?

A. A guy that was given railway shares via a brown paper bag.

B. A guy that recently purchased a short line.

C. People that think removing the revenue cap will increase capacity.

D. A bunch of ****ing tards.

E. All of the above.


Who the **** recommends removing the MRE without a costing review?

[farmaholic]

Remove the cap....

and use it to panhandle on the street in your closest city.

Oh, that's not what you meant?

[rook]

This is garbage. The RRs were built with a great proportion of public money for the national interest. Now they are run purely for shareholders for private interest. They need more regulation, not less. The MRE needs to stay.

This report should have called for open running rights. Instead it wants to perpetuate excess profits for the RRs. It is so egregious I expect Emerson was promised a board seat within a few years or pulled a Mulroney and got a brown paper bag full of cash as mentioned above.

[bgmb]

Probably a lobbyist for the grain companies. WGEA?

[bgmb]

Anyone have a link to the actual report?

[ColevilleH2S]

Sans any other changes, this will place the new "market will bear" cap at trucking rates to the coast. In other words 2X present values.

[farming101]

[URL="http://www.tc.gc.ca/eng/ctareview2014/canada-transportation-act-review.html"]http://www.tc.gc.ca/eng/ctareview2014/canada-transportation-act-review.html[/URL]

[wmoebis]

Don't have link but WCWGA submission is on web too.

[saskcanfarmer]

Wheat Growers respond to Emerson transportation review
Recorded on February 25th, 2016

Grain farmers see some positive rail shipping recommendations, some red flags

SASKATOON, SK—(February 25, 2016):Today, the Western Canadian Wheat Growers Association responded to the Emerson review of the Canadian transportation system.The review report includes several positive and similar recommendations as put forward in the Wheat Growers submission to the review in June 2015, but misses on certain key issues on enhancing greater competition and service in rail shipping.

“Farmers have seen it very clearly for some time that major changes are needed in railway service for shippers, and it’s good to see some of it recognized in the Emerson review” said Jeff Prosko, who farms near Rose Valley, Saskatchewan, and serves as Director of the Wheat Growers and Chair of their Transportation Committee.“As we said in our submission to the review ‘farmers end up shouldering the cost of system failures,’ and this has to change.”

Tens of millions of tonnes—and billions of dollars—in wheat and other grains are produced and exported from western Canada every year.Improved rail service for grain shippers is paramount to getting the grain to customers here at home and abroad, including to key markets in Asia.

“We encourage the government to accept and implement the key recommendations on railway service, some of which would help create a more competitive market and incent greater investment in the grain industry,” said Prosko. “However, grain growers also need to see much greater competition and increased capacity among the railways—we can’t keep losing customers and valuable export markets due to system failures.”

The Wheat Growers do see some positive recommendations for grain farmers in the review, including: modernizing the Maximum Revenue Entitlement (MRE) Program, improving level of service provisions (including for producer car shippers), performance standards, reciprocity, and creation of a dispute resolution unit within the Canadian Transportation Agency to address level of service issues and complaints.

The Wheat Growers are also pleased the report adopted our recommendations to exclude container shipments from the MRE and to properly account for capital investment in the MRE calculation for each railway.

The Wheat Growers also see some red flags in the review.The Wheat Growers believe some form of rate regulation around the MRE will likely still be necessary in seven years, given the lack of competition among railways and the lack of alternative market channels for large segments of the prairie farm economy.Increased competition among railways, as well as expansion in the livestock and processing sectors, is essential before any real discussion takes place of the MRE being done away with completely.Further, the extended interswitching provision of 160 km should not automatically sunset this summer, as that will reduce competition rather than expand it.Finally, the Wheat Growers support the move to modernize the MRE, including provisions to allow shippers to book premium service outside the revenue cap, providing such service is incremental and doesn’t adversely impact service to other grain shippers.

[sawfly]

the railways have promised to move the grain for 50 years.
and the wheat growers were all in
favor of every concession to the railways.
they will move it if we do this.
ya right !!

from the crow to today , nothing has changed .

it's a monopoly, or duopoly if you wish.
they could really give a flying f when they move anything.

we are captive shippers ,
short of trucking it , they will still get to haul it when they get around to it.
and what's the best way to get the rates higher.

apparently . give worse service.

with wheat growers help it works every time

and like 10 times before if you grant them more money.
it will not make a bit of difference.
like before they just pocket it , or invest some where else. like CP did.

how many times can the wheat growers and railroads sell the same lie.
or how stupid are people to buy it.

remember the wheat growers swore full compensatory rates would fix it all years ago.

great system we got .
the worse they screw up the more they get paid

[farmaholic]

The development of the Railways was initially intended to open the West and provide a service. They are completely driven by shareholder returns and service is second.

Is it fair that a public company can pick Industry winners and losers? Does potash, oil, or general freight deserve better service than grain?

Have they not received enough concessions already? Rail line abandonment, inland terminal consolidation to help make their job more efficient at the Producer's(and public's -read roads) cost?

Do we or don't we have a viable Ag industry in Western Canada, will we or won't we have a viable ag industry if we let them do what they want.

Under the circumstances, with little to no viable alternatives and lack of competition between the existing RRs, what options do we have but to exercise a degree of regulation. With out it, maintaining the status quo could be difficult and growing "primary" commodity ag production is likely impossible.

So let's hold ransom a whole industry and all it's supporting suppliers of goods and services so a mono/duo-opoly can pay dividends to it's shareholders.

Maybe Western Canada can do without Ag...

[fjlip]

Who the **** recommends removing the MRE without a costing review?

The Railroads, with all the lobbyists, politicians listen to their buddies, padding future board room jobs, etc....

[wmoebis]

In the interest of Canada, The Gov't expropriates land all the time. How about they expropriate all the land the rail is on and pay them scrap price for the steel.

Set up a joint venture running giving the RR 49% share supplying the engines and maintenance with the Gov't owning majority 51%.